[Pongo]

Thanks Steve.

Pity I'm not near Bedford (am in Worcestershire) as it would be great to hear the before / after. And to hear another car generally.

I've seen the noise described as a ticking, a Darth Vader sound (!) and so on. Mine is like a tappety type noise at revs over 2,500 and on overrun. How would you describe yours and when did it happen.

Could you please describe (in detail) what you did with the Halfords strap. Previous descriptions are a bit vague for me to be confident if having a go. Bear in mind I am a mechanical numpty..... !

Thanks Steve

 

[cunimuk]

I have noticed this symptom when the engine is cold. However after around 10 miles it disappears which is when the oil temperature has reached normal which will be close to 100c. The water temp comes up to normal in about 6 miles but oil temp will be much longer. My previous car was a VW 2.0 TDI 140 and it had an oil temp reading on the digital display. Yes the noise when cold is a pain I am more than happy with the engine once fully warm. I get 52 mpg average on my normal 18 mile journey to my club and do little town driving which includes gunning it occasionally for pleasure. Always switch off the stop/start because I don't like it on any car I drive. Love the XE and have just 5500 on the clock from new nearly 1 year ago. No problems at all! Long may this continue.

 

[malawbrook]

I have had this irritating sewing-machine sound in my XE since I bought it last year. The car has now done 20000 miles and the noise is still there. Earlier in the year, I complained, and was told that it was the timing chain. The car was taken in and new timing chain/s installed, which was a very big job, entailing taking the engine to bits. No change to the noise. The noise is there when the car is cold, and is only present when the engine is under load. There is no sign of it when you rev the engine in neutral. It takes about 45 minutes for the noise to go away, suggesting that it is not coming from the engine itself, rather from some source under the bonnet but outside the engine. In the very hot weather that we had earlier in the summer, the noise was inaudible, but now that the temperature is lower, the noise has come back. Very frustrating, as otherwise the car is wonderful to drive, and sounds so smooth when the noise is not there. It is definitely a mechanical noise, not a rattle. I keep trying to ignore it but can't!

 

[Stephen]

@malawbrook, what Model Year is your XE? If it's an early model, have you had the earth strap replaced? That happened to be the source of the 'sewing machine rattle' .

 

[BRC]

Please forgive me if I am being thick but does this noise apply to all engines? I ask because according to the Topix information as shown on the first page of this thread my VIN number is one of those affected. However when I look at the offending earth strap it appears to be connected to the suspension turret and an engine mounting, not a high pressure fuel pump.
Can this noise still be present on a 180 deisel?
I ask because I will be droping of my car (again) at Harwoods (big thumbs up) and I may well ask them to comment on the Topix info.
Appreciate any sound advice/confirmation and apologies again if I am being thick!

 

[Repairman]

Hi BRC, yes it is this earth strap, and while it may seem the location is strange, it does fix the noise when strap replaced, I had to point tech in direction of Topix article.

 

[BRC]

Hi Repairman

Many thanks for the advice and I will advise Harwood accordingly. I may even have a tinker over the weekend and see if I can jury-rig something to see if it works.

Again many thanks for the observation

Brian

 

[Pongo]

I'm still trying to understand what the temporary earth strap fix is.

I need to try it to see if it eliminates the noise mine makes.

Took an engineer friend for a spin. He said "I can't hear anything". I said "you will in a minute and once you hear it you can't stop hearing it". Sure enough about a mile later he said "bloody hell that's annoying".

It might be that all XE-S versions make this noise and it isn't the earth strap thing. There are reports of the engine being "coarse". And I came from a lovely, woofly, 2012 XK V8 so was spoiled to a certain degree.

Jagexsmn Steve has fixed his with the earth strap thing so he knows before and after.

Maybe we should have one big XE meet up and have a listen to one anothers cars :lol:

 

[PhilB]

As regards the earth strap thingy, I never had an issue on my 340 and the 380 is as smooth as the smoothest thing at a smooth contest.
But!
You might have the older earth strap which can be changed.
The temporary fix to see if it is the strap is to buy the strap from Halfarts and basically extend the existing strap.
It's hard to get at the lower connection so what I think was done was the top connection was taken off and the new bit was connected to the end of the existing strap and then to the wing thus creating a kind of bridge to see if the noise is being transmitted through it.
No noise then its the original strap.
Noise still there then it's something else.

 

[Jagxesmn]

The noise on mine was quite mild, only noticeable when above 2000rpm with the radio off but annoying once I got sensitized to it and spoilt the fun of using a few more revs and flappy paddles - in D it didn't notice because the gear change points are at low rpm. Seemed to come from the centre airvents above the touchscreen. I tried the Halfords earth strap as a hopeful experiment after reading on here and to my surprise the noise was solved. Now booked in for warranty replacement having quoted the TSB found elsewhere on here.
Was easy to do, one bolt to free up reservoir then undo the earth strap where it mounts onto the passenger side strut tower underneath the reservoir, attach Halfords strap to the loose end with a nut and bolt then use original bolt to attach other end of Halfords strap back onto strut tower. I'll take a pic tomorrow but I think it's well documented elsewhere on here already.
I won't attempt to describe the noise, one person's sewing machine is another's buzz!
Useful to know that a noise can transmit along the strap, into the tower, along the strut brace and seen to come from the centre vents area!

Rgds
Steve

 

[Pongo]

The noise on mine was quite mild, only noticeable when above 2000rpm with the radio off but annoying once I got sensitized to it and spoilt the fun of using a few more revs and flappy paddles - in D it didn't notice because the gear change points are at low rpm.

Thanks Steve. This sounds very familiar..... so much so that I try not to go above 2,000 revs (hence, partly, the reason for using Eco a lot). Very noticeable when lifting off throttle from, say, 5,000+ revs on the overrun. Find myself grabbing the right hand paddle to change up to kill the revs rather than letting the drop naturally. Interesting that it revs quickly (whips round to red line) but then loses revs more slowly. Maybe a heavy flywheel ?

Anyway, the weird noise completely spoils what is otherwise a superb car (creaking and clonking near side rear suspension aside).

I'm going to be gutted if the Halfords earth strap doesn't fix it. Jaguar technician thought it was entirely normal. In which case Jaguar test drivers must all be deaf !

 

[Jagxesmn]

Undo the BOLT holding the reservoir

Earth strap BOLT hidden under reservoir you can see the braided Halfords strap here too

Hopefully this posts OK and gives an idea where to look.
Rgds
Steve

 

[Pongo]

Thanks Steve.

So I'm literally extending the length of the existing strap. Is the issue that the strap is too tight / taught then ?

I'll have to give if a try. Is there a particular Halfords strap I need (length / thickness etc) ?

Thanks again

 

[Jagxesmn]

Yes extending the existing strap by a few inches. I don't know whether the issue is the length of the original or the stiffness of the original or both.
Can't remember which one I bought but was only £5 so probably this one

I assumed that it was isolating the stiff standard cable from the body with a more flexible braided so went for the shortest. Don't forget you'll need a nut, bolt and washers to join the two. I cable tied the resulting overlong assembly to a convenient place too.

I think the strut is aluminium so was careful not to overtighten the bolt and strip the threads.

Rgds
Steve

 

[BRC]

Bought the Halfords strap this morning and fitted it without too much fuss and hey presto it appears to have worked! I say "appears" on the basis it's pretty warm weather right now and that seemed to have some bearing on the noise value. The acid test will be first thing tomorrow morning but I'm feeling pretty confident problem solved albeit I will ask Harwood to apply the official fix.

Thanks to all on here for sharing their wisdom.

If I may can I also add (if it hasn't already been mentioned) that undoing the turret earth bolt is made considerably easier if the single bolt securing the expansion tank is removed and you can then pull it to one side to aid access.

 

[BRC]

Took the car out this morning and lo and behold not even the merest hint of a ticking sound! To say I am pleased is an understatement. Cars into Harwoods sometime soon for rear bumper re-alignment and now of course the official strap fix and thereafter I should have the car pretty well ship shape in all respects.
Got to say this car has been in for more warranty work than any other I have ever owned but I'm still well pleased with it and the overall package.

 

[Pongo]

Hi BRC

I have my fingers crossed for the same result when I try the Halfords strap in a few days time. I have a horrible feeling though that my noise is a different thing. If it does fix it then it will be like taking a stone out of my shoe !

What age and model is yours ? Is your VIN outside the range shown on the TSB pasted at the start of this thread (2016: 9000001 - 929283 & 2017: P000001 - P0000259) ?

Thanks

 

[BRC]

Hello Pongo
Mines a November 2015 and amongst the noted VIN numbers. Got to admit I was a tad sceptical that the noise is/was caused by sound transmission through a cable but the Halfords strap confirmed the problem and at the same time provided the solution.
For the sake of a fiver and 15 minutes spannering the results are truly amazing. Hope you enjoy the same result and remember to remove the single bolt securing the expansion tank as that will make your task so much easier.

Brian

 

[richmond]

This useful information is exactly the reason why sensible people join forums like this one.

 

[Sherlock Ohms]

As I live quite a long way from a dealer, I decided to buy the replacement strap to fit myself.

However, everything is aluminium so I dread stripping out the bolts when tightening.

I can't find the correct torque settings anywhere.

Does anyone know what they should be?

Thanks.