I just bought a 1990 XJ-S coupe that appears to be in great shape. Nearly perfect in every way and only 49,500 miles since new. I took it to a mechanic who is a Jaguar owner and has a sterling reputation as the guy for service (besides the local dealer). They checked out the car and gave me an estimate on air conditioner repair (very reasonable). They also checked the car for cooling system problems and found everything normal. On a short drive I noticed that the cruise control stopped working(!?). As a whole everything was fine so I decided to take a short trip to check things out. I got about 2 miles out of town and the car shut down at a steady 70 MPH cruise. I pulled over to the shoulder and called AAA for a tow. Just before the flatbed arrived I tried to restart and it cranked right on. I drove toward the next exit while my wife called to cancel the tow, but the car again shut down. I had the car towed to my home and told the driver that the car would probably be able to drive into the garage and of course it started right up so I could garage it. Has anyone out there ever experienced this problem? The car is going right into the shop for repair (I hope), but it might be nice if someone had an insight into the problem. I absolutely love the car and can't wait to occasionally trvel with it.

JD Chapman
1990 XJ-S Coupe

Submitted by chapmanj@nwinfo.net on Thu, 07/21/2005 - 13:08

Thanks Steve, I'll take a look at the battery. I had the vent/fan running at low setting and I think it went off. Mostly I was dealing with getting off the freeway safely. I downloaded "The Book" before I bought the car and it has been a great help. I looked at it a bit yesterday concerning electronics and didn't find anything specific, but there is a lot to look through. Thanks again, I'll let you know when Iget it sorted out.

JD Chapman
1990 XJ-S Coupe

Submitted by NE52-32043 on Thu, 07/21/2005 - 10:35

Jeff,

Congrats on the new car. They are great cars and wonderful to drive. I owned an '89 and loved it. Then I moved on to the E-types.

When your car shut down, did everything electrical go dead or just the engine? That's important to know and important to tell the mechanic. If everything went dead (lights, radio, engine, etc.), take a look at the main power connection on the firewall. That is notorious for corroding and causing intermittent power problems. Also, did you check the battery in the boot (trunk)? Sometimes people install a shutoff on the battery terminal. It will often look like a green knob on the negative terminal. That knob can work loose and cause an intermittent loss of power. If you have one, make sure it is twisted good and tight (clockwise). You also need to check the ground to the body to be sure that hasn't corroded as well. Never hurts to clean up the grounds and check the grounding straps for deterioration which results in loss of conductivity, or loose connections that can cause intermittent problems.

Of course, it could be the cruise control. The cruise on these cars is notorious for not working and causing problems. Frankly, I ended up removing mine because the bellows on top of the engine was in the way to reach other things, cluttered up the top of the engine, and didn't work anyway. I just got rid of the whole thing.

As a new owner, you should visit www.jag-lovers.org and download "The Book" by Kirby Palm from the XJS-lovers page or the library. If the answer to your question is not in there, it doesn't exist. It is a free download, over 600 pages, of the collected wisdom and experience of XJS owners from all over the world.

Hope that helps.

Steve Weinstein
'70 XKE FHC, '69 XKE OTS
Former '89 XJS owner