On two XJ8s I've gone through three bonnet release handles. They break where the ball on the end of the cable slides into the handle. I was out of town and went to a u-pull-it yard that had an XJ8. That one was also broken.
Is this just a poorly designed part or do the release locks get get tighter? Currently on mine, the cables are not connected and I just pull the ***** by hand. No significant effort required.

 

Is the cable broken or is it just slipping out of the channel?

 

I'm talking about the black plastic handle in the footwell.

 

Ahhhh...please forgive...I have no experience with that end.

 

Somebody else in the X308 section here said: “There’s two kinds of plastic, broke and almost broke.” My car is 1300 units from the last X308 made, June of 2002. It’ll be 23 years old and my daughter’s car was made October of 1997 at 28 years old. Let’s face it, plastic has a lifespan just like we all do. It really depends on what climate it’s been throughout its life. If someone could 3D print it in aluminum, I’d buy one but, most people wouldn’t.

I believe the main reason the handle fails excluding the plastic is that both of the hood releases need to be throughly cleaned and lubricated. Dirty or dried up lubricant in those latches adds resistance to the cables and onto the single plastic handle. Just like the inside door cables break because the door lock assemblies are dirty and any lubricant is dried up. WD-40 is only a cleaner and not really a suitable long life lubricant. Taking the hood latches out, throughly cleaning them and using a suitable lubricant is the best answer.

 

My quote was: There are two kinds of plastic:
That, which is already broken (into bits) and that, which is about to break...

You are in Florida, which is probably as hot as Australia, and the heat, which builds up in a closed car is immense - that will make plastic brittle over time.
I - luckily - did not have that specific plastic handle issue yet.

But had I had this specific issue, I would probably find a way of making a lever out of aluminium.

Or I would even consider experiments of using a solenoid to do that job.

 

Think I will buy one off eBay. Cut some metal so it lays over the curved part that breaks and epoxy and/or screw the metal on.

 

Jaguar XJ X300 X308 2001 LHD Engine bonnet (hood) release handle PUM54877 | eBay

This one looks sturdy.

 

Add title is wrong. Not X308 compatible. Ad description says came off 2001 X300 which makes no sense.

 

I saw that too...however with your skills, I figured you could revise the mounting
in order to get a release that was metal and wouldn't break again. It looks to be
entirely made of metal.