Non-Runner, suggestions please...

[ChrisDixon]

Jeez, 41 hours! Their heads must have been bleeding like mad as it sounds like most of the time they were stood around scratching them. That seriously questions their competence. You could probably put in a claim, and if you get nowhere and paid by card you could claim against the card company who are jointly liable.

If it makes you feel any better I have had bad experiences with both the so called Jag specialists I have tried over the years so now I do what I can myself and use a local garage for the rest.

The lesson here is (and I don't know if your car has OBD) start with diagnostics.

[franrca]

Thanks Chris - those comments just serve to wind me up more

Yes the car does had OBD, but of little use now as the software is pretty rare that can actually make sense of it - Jaguar as usual don't support either.

Points noted, but I'm going to write this off as yet another expensive disappointment with a garage. Have now got a contact from the Essex/Suffolk border region for an XJS experienced garage...will be worth the extra mileage.

What constantly winds me up is that garages these days don't seem to cover seats or place that little bit of paper on the floor etc - just get in the car in oily overalls and touch everything possible...spent a couple of hours yesterday cleaning the interior and the engine bay.

[davidr]

Does your car not have an OBD2 port? My 1996 car does. This can be read by most systems - doesn't have to be Jaguar specific.
Disappointing that they let you down so badly. Sounds like they were clueless and the MAF should have been high on the list of anyone looking at a problem like yours - Jag specialist or not!

[ChrisDixon]

What constantly winds me up is that garages these days don't seem to cover seats or place that little bit of paper on the floor etc - just get in the car in oily overalls and touch everything possible...spent a couple of hours yesterday cleaning the interior and the engine bay.

I know what you mean, my fallout with one specialist followed some decent work on an XJ-S let down by poor work on an X300. Time wasted on heater pump when (as I later found) they'd fitted the thermostat upside down, car often covered in bird muck, and the last straw, sweet wrappers in the back presumably due to a road test being turned into a family outing.

Back to OBD, does the late AJ16 engined XJS have a 16 pin OBD port? If so, generic diagnostic tools can be used to good effect, as I discovered last year.

[franrca]

Thanks David and Chris - TBH re the OBD, this is from my experience from the garage and Green Flag plugging it in and the car not being recognised and the info coming back being under a similar car Jaguar 3.0 I think(?) giving questionable info. Also I'm quoting Graham Hallett (Grublogger) who advised:

'...the only diagnostic tool that can provide any useful information is the Jaguar PDU (Portable Diagnostic Unit). I used to have one of these but I sold it. There are very few around, and fewer mechanics who know how to use them, or have the patience to put up with its slowness. All Jaguar dealers used to have PDUs but most threw them out years ago, sadly. You may need to find a Jaguar specialist who does have one. Last resort might David Marks in Nottingham - I know he has one, and he also has more knowledge than anyone else I know. '

If that's not the case, would be interesting to know where I can get my hands on a recommended reader.

Assume this is it:

[davidr]

That looks to me like an OBD2 connection like the one in my 1996 car.

[franrca]

I can see lots of OBD2 readers and some that are blue tooth ones that you can use with your phone - you know I need to be spoon fed here David - knowing my luck recently I'll get something wholly inappropriate...is there one you'd recommend?

[davidr]

Not really had to use one on that car. I do have a very basic code reader that's capable of reading codes and resetting the engine light.
However, I am thinking of getting an iCarsoft 930 as it will also read my Land Rover Discovery.
MIke Kennedy is the authority here and I guess he'll be along in a moment to dispense his wisdom!

[J44EAG]

David is rather flattering. Not so much an authority but more likely to just have sufficient knowledge to be dangerous!

The XJS as I understand it has one of the earliest OBD type diagnostic kits fitted which is something of a precursor to the OBD11systems that have then evolved from it.The two guys who understand more about the XJS system have got to be Brake Buster and PTJS1. I believe BB uses a Mongoose diagnostic unit....regret to say I`m not familiar with that system.

PTJS1 has the Torque app on his Android phone (Also now available for the iPhone) which he runs with the ELM327 bluetooth chip which is available via ebay for around £5. The Torque app is a phone download which comprises a basic starter app. You then add the Torque Pro app to it for around another £5. So it is cheap and cheerful and is remarkably effective for the price. Paul can perhaps confirm whether it is appropriate for the XJS. Certainly for modern cars, the app and chip will work well across many model manufacturers products but there are extra plug-ins for systems used for instance on VAG produced cars. The Torque app works well on modern Jaguar models giving a reasonable level of diagnostic capabilities for pepper corn money. If you ever buy the ELM327 chip unit which plugs into the OBD port, try to obtain the V1.5 version rather than the later V2.1 unit which can sometimes have compatibility issues.

As regards the iCarsoft 930i unit from UK Diagnostics for around £90, this is well worth getting hold of. It is JLR dedicated and has a list of Jaguar model applications together with the facility to select year of manufacture. From memory it does not immediately list the XJS with its early electronic architecture in its menu. I`ll plug mine in tomorrow and see what is listed. I think I would have to go into the XJ menu then scroll down the years to see how far back it goes.I suspect though, that the XJS with its early OBD system, may not be supported.

I`ll post again later once I`ve had a chance to get out in the yard.

Mike K

[poprivet]

Going off topic where is PTJS1? I haven't seen a post from Paul since the new forum was launched.

[ChrisDixon]

In case this helps, I used Gendan Engine Check on my X300 which is a generic system but does give a lot of data including MAF, TPS, O2 sensors and fuel trims. As the later XJS 4.0 has the same AJ16 engine as the X300 I would expect it to be compatible. The guys at Gendan are very helpful if you ring them. In my case they thought at first I'd need the Pro version but after some checking they confirmed that the standard version should work fine. As I opted for the wifi ELM interface I had some problems networking this to my laptop, but once connected it all worked fine.

[Brakebuster]

i run several software packs, i have a full JLR system on my laptop which does every Jaguar car ( OBDII ) UNTILL 2014 ,

however, and its a big however

Jaguar ODBI is not an industry standard port on the XJS , it was the first phase of software diagnostics for OBD that was implemented by the industry , and as such each manufacturer installed its ' own software ' system , and the XJS was one of these, so even though your ODBII plug will fit ,it wont as i recall read anything at all , if it does its nothing useful ,only the Jaguar based computers of the day were used for access , you will not harm anything if you do plug in a reader though , and you never know, especially with a jaguar, you may get something from it ??


I also have the iCarsoft 930i , and as mike says its jaguar dedicated, but i have noticed when plugging mine in all other car manufacturers come up in the list to choose from , as for its usefulness, its brilliant for the ' normal ' uses of diagnostics and resetting the MILL etc

BB

[BigCatXJS]

Hi Rich,

Have you tried David at http://www.aldersclassics.co.uk/ ? Not sure if he has a XJS comaptible OBD but has been very reasonable £££s (http://www.aldersclassics.co.uk/labour-charges.htm) wise if you need any work done (and South Norfolk is not that far from you). Just for reference, it was David and his team that performed my manual conversion. They have good experience with XJS and E Types.

Ta, Rich

[franrca]

Thanks Rich (and everyone else) - will have a look at those suggestions.

[ptjs1]

Hi Richard,

1st day back online since December so lot's of catching up to do!

Sorry to hear of your problems and let's hope the car is ok now. Just to add my 2p worth...

The 96 XJS is OBDII compliant BUT, only up to a point! However, it's fully readable using Autologic or similar. So any garage or breakdown company who says it isn't is not really looking at it properly or us using limited software. The only XJS that "pretends" to OBDII but isn't at all is the very late 6.0 V12 which uses a plug that is identical to an OBDII but the protocol is Jaguar-specific. That really does confuse garages!

Even with a £1 Bluetooth ELM 327 plugin and free software I can see most basic engine sensors and clear all engine ecu fault codes on my 4.0 car. I'd strongly recommend investing in such a plugin and the Torque Pro Android App or similar for about £2. Best money you'll ever spend on the car!

As others have said, it sounds like it's time to find another specialist! It sounds like you've had very poor service from the previous lot...

Cheers

Paul