Hi,

I suspect this subject is an oldie, so even a reference to an old thread would be great. I would like to know where in the front end of the car is the jumper contact so I won't need to dig under the carpet in the trunk to get at the battery.

My 2000 XKR survived several months unused during last year's winter on what likely was a five year old battery.

This year, with a fresh battery placed in August, after having the car garaged and unused from late November to March, I returned to its storage site (my folks' suburban garage) to find the wee thing stone cold dead. Doors unlocked, those doors now likely uncloseable (sic?) as the windows did not retract when I opened the doors. This Winter was pretty cold.

A call to Jaguar suggested that once the car has been jump started (assuming that's the problem), my security system would not need reset, but I'm not certain even on that.

So, since the regional dealership does not make house calls, and since my recollection is that the battery is buried under the trunk carpeting, I would like to find out where the claimed front-end jumper point can be found under the hood. When AAA arrives it might be easier to aim him at that. Jaguar said it would be happy to talk by phone to AAA when he arrives to aim him at it, but it probably would be good for me to know.

And, yes, for those already rolling their eyes, I am one of those fellow truly grateful to own an insanely great car, but I am not someone who mucks about much under the hood.

best regards

David

 

Hi.

Do not ever jump start by connecting at the front. You will blow some fuses and possibly screw up most of the electronics.
If you have to jump start, connect at the back and follow the procedure in the Owners Handbook to the letter. Even this may be risky.
A better solution is an intelligent battery charger (CTEC) connected for at least 24 hours.
Even a new battery may be ruined if left alone a hole cold winter.

 

Do not attempt to jump start the vehicle from the terminals in the engine bay. The correct procedure is:




Alternatively, remove the battery and get it charged.

Graham

 

+1 to GGG and oyster. DO NOT jump start it from the front contact points PERIOD. You will regret it...

Even though the manual provides a procedure on how it can be done from the battery, I shy away from jump starting at all costs with any of my cars; the electronics are too sensitive.

As Graham suggested, purchase a charger and attach it to the battery in the trunk for 24 hours; that is your safest and best bet. Get one like this one (mine). CTEK is the best.

CTEK Multi US 4.3 - CTEK Battery Chargers

Next time around, before storing for the winter, I would definitely recommend hooking up your car to the CTEK, and put it in the "Winter" mode. Fool proof, and saves you from headaches in the spring.

Also, accessing the battery is very, very easy. You don't need to remove the entire trunk lining. On the right hand side towards the rear of the car, there is a carpeted cover for the battery as shown in Graham's diagram. No fastenings holding it in, so just pop it out!

 

Whatever you do do not use a 100 amp charger/starter to jump your car.
I did this once after a cold winter on a chev ssr and blew the computer, cost me 3k. Bernie

 

David,

I can see you are viewing the thread as I write this. Is the XK8 started yet?

Graham

 

Out of interest, would anyone care to explain why you must not attach the negative jump lead to the negative battery terminal but to an earth at least 12 inches away??

 

Sparks! The last connection you make will tend to spark both when making and breaking the connection. Sparks + hydrogen (from charging battery) = excitement!

I wish Jaguar had added one item to their instructions above. Before removing the jumper cables, it's best to shut off the car that was jumped (the other car should have been turned off through the whole operation). If the jumped car can't then be restarted without the jumper car connected, then of course you have to abandon this, but it's best to disconnect jumpers with both cars turned off if possible.

A good robust procedure for any cars with modern electronics:

- Turn off both cars.
- Jumper cables: connect + to +, then ground to ground. Make the last of these 4 connections to a ground point away from a battery.
- Start the jumped car; let it run for a bit.
- Turn off the jumped car.
- Remove the jumper cables in reverse order.

 

Because the Jaguar manual writer wrote the connection order bass ackwards.

By doing so, they placed all of the spark risk at the vehicle being boosted.

 

What are the under engine hood connectors used for if it's inadvisable to jump start from them? I thought they were put in to make jumping a bit more convenient on cars like my Audi or others with the battery located under the rear seat.
RB

 

Ask anyone who has a flat battery and a seized luggage compartment lock which can't be opened with the key!

You can apply enough juice to pop the luggage compartment lid from the dash button and get to the battery.

Graham

 

I'll be visiting the car Thursday. Sounds as though there is one of those slow chargers at the house. Appreciate the info on access to the battery. Sounds less challenging than I'd thought. Suspect I'll have ago at direct slow-charge of the battery and will stay away from the front end of the car. Should know soon how it goes...

Thanks

david

 

It's perfectly OK to use the front terminals for slow charging. What guys were advising against is trying to use those terminals for jump-starting the car.


Jump starting draws a ton of current, which the wiring to those terminals won't handle. But slow charging ... which involves just a few amps ... no problem!

 

Hi,

OK, so I plan to try to get at the battery, but where are the front terminal for slow charging?

Too, as I have not yet met the slow charger, do the details suggested above for a jump (putting the ground far away from battery) apply as well?

best regards

david

 

You could do it either way, but the best thing to do is to attach the cables before you turn on the charger, then you don't have to worry about any sparks anyway. Also, if your battery is stone cold dead, it will not charge, as it has to have a little bit of charge in it for a charger to work. If you connect it to another battery for a little while, it may give it enough charge for the charger to work. Sometimes such a battery is done for good if this happens, and sometimes it can be put back into use.

 

Charging Points Under Hood (Under Bonnet):

 

Well... Friday 3pm. I'm at my parents' home. Heading out with the cables...

 

Thanks guys. Worked quite well. Did a jump (not just slow charge). Upon all four jumpers touching what they should, the lights in the XK-R's trunk popped on and I swear something or other chirped. After running the donor car for 15 minutes, we disconnected and tried to start her. All the peripheral power worked, but just a loud click form the engine. Another fifteen minutes connected and on trying again she started smoothly. Everything seems ok save that the windows, retracting fine on door opening, are not self closing that 1/2 inch when the doors close. If that persists after I go for a solid drive, I'll have that checked at dealership. I recall hearing here that this can be a sign of weak battery charge, so it might clear as the battery regenerates. The battery is only a few months old. We shall see.

Thanks,

David

 

The windows have to be re-programmed any time that the battery is re-connected.

With the doors closed, run the window up and hold the switch on for 5 more seconds. Repeat for window down. Repeat for the other door.

 

David,

Good to hear you got it started. Follow Paul's info in post #19 to reset the window limit switches.

If you are going to leave it garaged for several months each Winter, a battery tender is essential. Allowing the battery to discharge like this will seriously reduce its life.

Graham