Has anyone converted an X350 XJR to a six-speed manual gearbox? If so, please post some details please.

 

Welcome to the forum Tony! You should stop by our New Member Area - Intro a MUST - Jaguar Forums - Jaguar Enthusiasts Forum and introduce yourself.

There have been a number of steel-body XK8's & XKR's fitted with manual gearboxes in the UK, a bloke by the name of Norman Durban kicked it off. There's a member here on this forum named xkracer (Paragon Design) who has done it too.

I recently asked NormanD about the possibility of a manual conversion for my X350 XJR, he said he would be looking into it eventually, but it'll be a while off.

The problem ultimately is that the electronics in the X350 are so complex & intertwined, the car will not run without the TCM fitted...

This was overcome in the XK8's & XKR's by fitting a "black box" that tricked the ECU, but the ZF 6HP26 transmission in the X350 is a whole other story...

 

Many thanks for your reply. I haven't been to the introduction area yet, as I am not actually a Jaguar owner at present. However, I am considering a few options, possibly an X350 XJR.

I am aware that a small number of X300 XJRs were sold with an official (five-speed?) manual gearbox and also read about a US firm, which converts the XJ-S V12 to a manual gearbox. It's a pity Jaguar didn't offer the same option on the later X308 XKR and the X350/X358 XJR. Can you give me an idea of the price of one of the manual conversions you mentioned, for a steel bodied (X308) XJR?

 

Go and introduce yourself anyhow, not everyone on this forum is a Jaguar owner.

Yes the last factory manual Jaguar was the X300. It ran a 5-speed Getrag gearbox. Not just the XJR's, there were a number of 3.2L & 4.0L XJ6's with manual boxes too, but not many!

It's a pity that Jag went to auto's only, but I think you'll find this was a political decision, which came down from above (i.e. Ford).

At the time Aston Martin was part of the family, and they were the top of the tree in Fords eyes. The DB7 came with a manual box. Also had an LSD. Jag brought out the XK8/XKR, very similar to the DB7, and it was nobbled by being an automatic only, and had an open diff.

Ford would not allow the Jags to put out more power, be faster, or better to drive than the Aston's, so that was that...the X300 XJR6 was the last manual with LSD. Imagine an XKR with manual box & LSD, why would you buy a DB7 for a much higher price?

Honestly, I have no idea what the cost for one of the manual conversions is. I can put you in touch with Norman Durban, but I'm not going to post his email address here in public. As you are a new member, you can't receive Personal Messages, but you can send them. Send me a Private Message with your email address, I will send you his contact details.

 

Thank you for your comprehensive reply. I agree that an XKR with a manual gearbox would have been sensational. However, whilst I concur that the reason may have been Ford's desire to avoid a conflict between the Jaguar and Aston Martin brands, that doesn't explain why Jaguar are continuing to only offer automatics on their cars, since they are now owned by Tata and have no such conflicts.

I have driven all manner of automatic boxes, from the early three-speed Borg Warners to later six-speeders, more recent DSGs and the latest eight-speed boxes and, whilst they have certainly improved, I'd still take a good manual gearbox every time, given the chance!