Jaguar engine problem - won't start

Watchful

Got a Jaguar XF 2.2 diesel 58 reg. Had it a year or so, and it's got about 100k miles on it.

Yesterday, I was driving it to an appointment, when the engine light came on. It was running a bit underpowered, but it was still OK. I got where I needed to and parked up.

When I finished, it was very difficult to start, it started on about the 4th or 5th attempt, and it was running quite rough and the car was shaking a bit. I stopped it and called my car insurance who called a local recovery guy.

The guy came and kept trying to start it, but it wouldn't start. He then had me try to start it while he started spraying the engine with a spray can. It sort of started, made a funny noise and then stopped. Then he started spraying like mad. The he told me to try again, and he kept spraying. The engine started and revved up like crazy, but made a terrible noise like someone had put bricks in a washing amchine. Then the car sort of convulsed and the engine stopped.

He then kept trying to start it, but nothing happened. He said the battery was flat, but then he got a battery from the van and connected it up, and still nothing happened.

He then towed it to a local garage, who said that it needed a new engine because the cam belt was faulty and this cause the engine to be damaged.

I'm just wondering what people think, because obviously a new engine is expensive. Do cam belts damage engines if they are faulty? Could the spray have made the belt worse?

Strider590

I guess my only question is whether the cambelt has been change in accordance with the manufacturers specifications? ie within the mileage limit....

arcon5

I'm thinking the guy thought it was the fuel pump. If the timing was out this could be a reason, but repeated attempts to start certainly won't do anything but make it worse, although no suggestion here it actually did.

Snapped or faulty belt often sees the engine destroyed i'm afraid.

forgotmyname

Repeated attempts to start it will make it worse. It will make sure very valve has hit every piston.

Get a 2nd opinion.. Not convinced myself...

topdaddy_2

What sort of recovery was it? Sounds like a can of easi start has beeen used in error.

john_white

Sounds like Green Flag and easy start to me.

AdrianC

The recovery company are irrelevant here. The damage had already been done before calling them.
A quick google suggests the cambelt on that engine's not due until 144k miles!

tberry6686

The rough running and warning light are symptoms of the timing belt haveing slipped - at that point as it was still running the chances are no major damage was being done - new cambelt and reset the timiing and it would almost certainly have been fine. Continuing to try and start it until the point it was juddering and making a racket has totally wrecked the engine - the racket was the pistons hitting the valves.

The recovery guy has screwed up badly here, the description of what happened prior to it refusing to start should have warned him that the timing belt may have slipped and that trying to start it without checking that first could destroy the engine.

At that age of car I would think you would need a recon engine as a replacement or scrap the car as a new engine will almost certainly cost more than the car would be worth with it in.

ohreally

tberry6686 wrote: »

The rough running and warning light are symptoms of the timing belt haveing slipped

How does a toothed drive belt slip?

forgotmyname

ohreally wrote: »

How does a toothed drive belt slip?

Same way a chain can slip? Tensioner failed to feep the belt tight.

Muscle750

Sorry but the recovery man needs shooting if the belt had slipped or jumped the engine would not of even fired I doubt due to it having no compression however I've seen cars that have been either on their roof or on their side and when they are the right way up the engine will scream its head off due to it running on its own oil I've had this with a shogun the only way I could stop it was to stick it in 5th gear handbrake hard on foot brake hard on and dump the clutch and hope luckily the thing was scrap anyway I would say that the easi start he sprayed had the same effect and something has let go in the engine as a result the intial problem may of been something far less expensive like a sensor it certainly sounds shot now thou
The last thing you spray into a diesil is easy start wd40 has the same effect the reason it wouldn't start when he got a new battery was due to it being locked solid I would seriously look into some form of compliant against the recovery company especially as it drove in a fashion prior to them armed with a can of easy start