This past week the shift lever on the console locked between park & reverse. Managed to bypass the shift lever switch in order to put the car in neutral so that it could be towed to a local shop for repairs. After inspection, was told that the entire shift lever would need to be replaced
(approx cost $820.00). Question: Is this a common occurance that is happening on other XJ-8's or just a fluke that occured?

Submitted by MCCICEO@AOL.com on Tue, 01/22/2013 - 21:44

Steve Petry: Finally managed to have the Jag repaired & up & running again. Thankfully only the J-gate shifter was damaged but still not sure as to how or why it happened. I did have the mechanic give me back the damaged shifter, and the only thing I noticed was that the
shifter linkage that engages and slides was not inserted in its proper hole or groove.
Would be glad to share photos with you if you are interested. Also I finally managed to persuade the owner of the carwash to allow his insurance company to pay for all (not 1/2 as he originally wanted) of the repairs (just shy of 1K). Thanks for all your help.
D.V. McC. - Fun@6ty
05 XJ8 Super V8

Submitted by stevejag@sbcgl… on Thu, 01/10/2013 - 12:27

Ah! Now you see my quandary in the first response.

The first thing I would do, is make completely sure the two bolt bracket that anchors the shift select cable did not just come loose from the side of the transmission. If that occurs, the trans usually gets stuck in Reverse or Drive. If all that is OK, you are probably left with replacing the shifter mechanism.

Again, that's not a very common thing, replacing the shifter, but it does happen.

Good luck!

Submitted by MCCICEO@AOL.com on Wed, 01/09/2013 - 22:07

Hi Steve: Thanks for your reply. This jag has the V8 4.2L DOHC 32V with variable valve
timing & 6-speed Automatic transmission. When I purchased it in Sept of 08 it had only
17709 miles, but now has over 75K. with mostly highway driving. What actually happened was a young fellow at a local carwash said that the car started to roll backwards, and he
shoved the J-gate shifter into park (ouch!!) At that point, the shifter was fimly locked in reverse (the back-up lites were still on) actually between reverse & park & could not be moved. From underneath the car ,we finally managed to dislodge the cables, which allowed us to push the car onto a flatbed truck for towing. It now appears that the J-gate
shifter module has to be replaced & possibly the shifter cables to the tranny. TTFN.

Submitted by stevejag@sbcgl… on Wed, 01/09/2013 - 15:54

Hi DV,

You don't say, but I'm going to assume you posted in the correct Forum and have the 4.0L super with the Mercedes transmission, and not the 4.2L with the ZF trans.

I would not call this a common thing, but it does happen. Honestly, the usual scenario is the shifter once in a while seems hard or reluctant to release from Park, but then works OK the next time. Because of that you start to use a little more force than you think to get the shifter to move. Over time, that stresses the whole assembly and eventually, something breaks. The real culprit it is usually an increasingly temperamental brake pedal switch, that causes the interlock to fail to release the mechanism intermittently.

Here's the rub, the shifter on a 4.0L car cannot be replaced as a whole, it has to be rebuilt with component parts. The 4.2L cars have a shifter that is serviced as an entire assembly because it is actually a module on the vehicle network.

So, not knowing EXACTLY what car you have, I can't say whether what your repair guy has said make sense or not. Plus, I don't know the condition of the selector cable that runs from the shifter to the trans. Your description sort of makes me think may have gotten too stiff to operate properly.

Sometimes a long distance diagnosis can be a challenge.

Cheers,

Submitted by MCCICEO@AOL.com on Wed, 01/09/2013 - 13:07

Garfield: It was either this local foreign car repair shop or have it towed 3.0 hrs to Jackson Ms. & have it repaired @ the Jag dealership ($$$). The shift linkage alone had to come from a dealership in Knoxville Tn., cost ($500.00) & the shop is charging for 3.0 hrs of labor to remove & replace. I hope your friend Steven Petry will also reply.
Thanks DV McC.

Submitted by vineyardman68@… on Wed, 01/09/2013 - 10:55

Edited on 2013-01-09 10:57:30

Darn-----------at $820.00, that isn't a fluke, but I do think I would get another shop to look at it. I'm sure it's a reputable shop, but I wouldn't agree to a heart valve replacement ;-), without, at least, a second opinion.

Hopefully, Steven Petry will chime in here.......

Garfield

05/XJ8L