Greetings! Relatively new XK8 owner here and faced with my first repair project. First about the car: 2002 XK8 convertible champagne/ivory 31K miles, we are the 3rd owners. This is my wife's fun car.

I would rate my DIY skills at slightly above average - oil changes, brakes, clutches, etc. Up to doing one full tear down and rebuild of a Ford 351 Cleveland many years ago. (still miss that Mustang) Weakest point is probably electronics...

Here is what the car is doing/did. The car is in the garage for the winter. A few weeks ago I went to start it and move it out of the garage to do some work on another car. Low and behold it would not start - just cranked. I checked a few things but got busy with another project. When my wife came home I told her HER car would not start. So we went back out to the garage, turned the key and it started right up! Hmmm. Maybe the cat doesn't like me... A week later it started up again fine. Now, 3-4 weeks later it is again cranking strong but not starting.

I did some searching and reading here and on Jag Repair to get this far.

Battery 12.9V, on a tender. Boost box and jumping did not help.
Fuses #7 and #3 are good.
Swapped Relay for fuel pump - no change
Checked Spark - very strong white blue spark.
Jumped the relay positions 3 & 5 and heard no sound from the fuel pump.

So, I think I need to replace the fuel pump. Before I go further on that, is there anything else I should check?

I understand that the pump was used in many different cars. There are many fuel pump options out there. Is there a favorite from the educated fraternity here?

Thanks in advance for taking the time to help me out.

Curtis

 

Others will offer better and more experienced advice, but ............ a very quick way of checking the fuel pump is to switch on the ignition and then remove the little plastic cover and press the centre of the Schrader valve (like a tyre valve) in the engine compartment. If you get an eyeful of gas, the pump is probably OK. If not, your first diagnosis is probably correct.

 

Thanks for the feedback. Yes, I did this both with the key off and on and got no fuel spray. I did not put a fuel pressure gauge on it.

CC

 

Other with more experience might chime in, but altogether, these cars HATE being started and then rapidly shut down without warming up. Search for "bore wash" on this forum to determine if that is what is happening here. Best of luck, keep us posted.

 

Bore wash is not an issue if there is no fuel pressure. For some unknown reason older fuel pumps fail frequently when in winter storage.

I bought a Denso, but there are many good ones from the various suppliers and even some chinese pumps on ebay for under $20.

 

I clearly misread this part. No fuel pressure, no bore wash.

 

Well you are on the right track. You need three things for the car to start Fuel, spark and compression missing one (fuel) it will not start. It has been known that a failing fuel pump will run off and on then fail so I am sure that is what is taking place but if you want to check it for sure. Go to AutoZone or Advance Auto and get a loaner fuel pressure gauge and see what you come up with it should be around 32 to 40psi.

 

OK, I promise, I won't be one of those guys that asks for help and then disappears. Life gets in the way of playing with the fun cars...

Back to my fuel pump issue...

Of course these things can't happen when you are on vapors and hoping you can make it to the gas station. No. They happen right after you fill the car with gas! So, I had to wait until I had a car that needed gas. Then I grabbed a siphon, positioned cars accordingly and let her rip - to get about a quart of gas out of the Jag. Push siphon deeper into the tank. Um, push siphon deeper into the tank. Yep, that is all I have to do, push siphon deeper into the tank. Anti siphon device of some kind...

OK, plan B. Let's see if I can get this out with the gas in it or at least jiggle it around enough that I can open the top and get a siphon in. After doing some more reading I realized that all lines could be undone with no fear of gas leaking all over the place.

Great. Time to tackle in nearly inaccessible fuel lines under the car. I have seen the homemade tools and the specialty tools offered for this job. From previous projects I already had the clips to undo the lines. But how do I get them up in there? I was barely able to get the clips on the lines but getting any pressure on them to release the catch was going to be impossible. It is well documented here and elsewhere that getting hands up in there is not really possible - at least for a normal sized american male. While putting the clips on the line it reminded me of another difficult fuel related job - replacing the fuel filter on the 3rd generation RX-7. And that reminded me I bought a set of hose pliers for that job. With the clips on the line I was able to get the hose pliers around the fuel line and use their circular ends to apply enough pressure to release the catch. Success! It "only" took me about 20 minutes to release both lines. A lot of that can be attributed to being lucky enough to have a parking lift in the garage and two friends that helped push the Jag up on it. The lift is one tool I will never be without again.

Following the tutorial on JagRepair, I was able to get everything else disconnected and ready to try and manhandle the tank enough to open the top. Well, this normal sized american male was not able to budge it. And I was afraid to put too much pressure on the fill neck - the only real place to get a grip on the unit. Bummer. What I was able to do was get the sealing ring loose from the top of the tank. Then I was able to leverage the top up enough to get 3/8" line down into the tank. "Yoo-hoo, Mr Siphon!" So, over the next hour or so (and a Sam Adams Cold Snap or two) I was able to siphon off 10 gallons of gas. Voila! the tank was easy to maneuver out into the trunk so I could continue on with the job. I pulled the pump/filter out and stopped for the night.

I will pick up another pump today and see if I can't get things back together this weekend. If you have lasted with me this long, thanks for reading! I hope my adventures might help others if this happens to them. I certainly appreciate those that have gone before me and paved the way. Tons of great info here.

 

Been there, done that. So, how does one go from a go-kart car like the FD to a luxury XK? Age I suppose...

 

Not quite. Still have the RX7. I have the best wife ever. See my signature below.

I have 4 fun cars - all with her blessing and encouragement. She always liked the XK8 in the Champagne color. So, when we were at a car show and saw one exactly to her liking - that happened to be for sale - we bought it. Now she has a fun car and understands why I like to have a choice in what I drive. After seeing some of the Jag's foibles and "interesting" engineering, I am maybe wishing we had first seen that 65 Mustang Convertible she keeps talking about...

 

So, Thursday night was the removal of the Fuel pump. Friday afternoon I thought, well let's put some power to this thing and see what happens. Low and behold the pump starts right up! Crap! Oh crap! Oh crap! Oh crap! Did I go through all of this for nothing? Do I have a different problem? A quick look over my shoulder to see if the wife saw this. Oh, never mind, she wouldn't know what was happening... But her baby looks like it is having major surgery and warm sunny weather is on the way. She wants to drive her car. Hmm. Put the pump down and walk away, Curtis. Think about this. Parts are on the way and since you have it apart you might as well replace them. Your wife will never know...

So, Saturday morning I continue on my plan. Let's get the fuel filter out while we are waiting for Amazon to deliver. Being a 2002 mine has the filter with the fittings on it. The lines broke free pretty easy but the darn heat shield is in the way of the rear fitting such that you get an 1/8th of a turn of the wrench, have to flip the wrench over to get a little more turn, just so you can flip the wrench again to get another 1/8th of a turn - All while gas is dripping down your arm, of course. I just smile (grimace really) and keep on going... As I am cleaning up a little and getting ready for the install Sunday I go back to the old pump - sitting there on the bench just taunting me. Is it bad? I hit it again with twelve volts. Spins right up. Wiring issue maybe? I went back through all the tests on Jag Repair. Wiring is good, relay is good, voltages correct. Aargh! Hit the pump again with power - more in frustration that anything - and it just buzzes. Huh? Hit it again - buzz. Hit it a third time and it spun right up. First time in my life I have been able to demonstrate an intermittent failure!

Sunday was a gorgeous day here in MD so we decided to go for a nice walk at a local park. "Gee, it sure would be nice to take the Jag", my wife chides me as we walk past it in the garage.

About 5 o'clock I start on the car. My wife is hanging around and I ask her if she wants to help. Sure! She holds a light for me while I put the new filter in. When I get to tightening the rear fitting - turn, flip, turn, flip - she asks why I don't use one of my "twirly wrenches" on it. I love my wife, I really do! Explanation over, filter installed, wife is bored and goes into the house. So I tackle the fuel pump and get everything buttoned back up to a minimum to simply test it electrically. All good. Get it installed in the tank and get the lines all hooked up and ready to go. The hardest part was getting the dang press fit fuel lines back into the tank from underneath. With the 2002 I have two lines. One was a piece of cake. The other was a royal pain! I honestly think it took me longer to put them back on than taking them off.

So, the time has come. Will it start or is it something else? I have myself convinced there is another problem that I have overlooked. It won't start. I am sure of it by this point. It is just going to crankcrankcrank mocking me and my efforts. So, I jump in and hit the key... Woo Hoo! Fired off immediately. No problem. I wasn't worried for a minute (yeah right).

First Jag issue done and in the books. I just want to thank all those that contributed to this (and other) great resources. Without them - and this great thing called the Interwebs - we all would be paying a lot more for the upkeep of these great machines.

Curtis

On to the next project - this one will have an Italian flair. Wish me luck!

 

I often go to OC Md. hope to see you on the road.

 

My wife's 2006 XK8 is her daily driver. It never sits more than a day or two without her going somewhere in it (unless we're snowed in and have to use the Subaru to get around). One advantage of daily-driving these cars is that you rarely read about the fuel pumps going bad....

 

That is interesting. Of all that I read about the fuel pumps being an issue I didn't realize or put together limited use might be a problem. Up until December the car was getting used a couple times a week - then the snow hit and the salt on the roads that accompany it. She decided she was done until spring. I think previous owners did the same thing. It is a 2002 with 31K miles and the underside looks very good.

Any theories or ideas how to keep this from happening? I am not sure I could craft a proper search on that one. Someone pointing me in the right direction or giving me the Reader's Digest version would be appreciated.

Curtis

BTW - the pump that came out of the car was OEM as best I can tell.

 

Hey Gus - I am in the Columbia MD area. We don't get to OC very often - once or twice a year, maybe. I don't know if you ever head over to the cars and coffee in Great Falls VA (pretty long way for you) but we would have a better shot running into each other there.

Your site was indispensable in helping me sort out my issues. Thank for putting in the effort and supporting the community.