Pretentious British Car decided to start throwing codes again out of the clear blue sky it informs me that there is a stability control failure, a problem with the ABS, and the engine has been switched to "Failsafe Mode"
As I had just stepped on the gas from a dead stop the car seemed in no danger of spinning out or rolling over even without "stability control", and the brakes work just fine on the dry pavement. Failsafe mode means the engine runs, but is limited to 1400 rpm and nothing you do with the throttle has any effect at all. This makes for slow travel which is especially annoying when this happens in the #1 lane of a 55mph parkway.
The fix seems to be to remove the ABS electronic module and resolder a couple of connections which the forum assures me can be done in only an hour or two, half of which is waiting for glue to dry. I've looked over the module in question and it's pretty clear to me that the factory never expected it to need working on. Actually a lot of the car is like that.
My other "car" is a Dodge Dakota. 23 years old, 220,000 miles and all original except for the fuel pump. Very unexciting. Turn the key and it starts, put it in gear and it goes. The longer I own a Jag, the more I come to appreciate the Dodge.
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Dear Old Dad owned a an E model Jag once. The Bendex spring broke. $1500 fixed it. The spring costs .75 but the engine had to be moved out of the wayin order to get to the starter. This was back in the fifties.
I helped a friend replace the starter in his Pinto once. Same thing; First unbolt the engine from the frame, then jack the engine up until the starter clears the frame and can be removed. The second step was very easy.
In my case the brake lines are routed around the module in such a way as to look like they were supposed to hold the module in like a giant paper clip.
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