XJeff
I can see why you need a big hole in the casing to get at the starter bolt, as that is in the bell housing adaptor in your pic. Could you post a close up shot of the hole you had to make in the casing to accomodate the bolt head, please?

 

Right here: https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo...1923&jsn=14642 It's $32.79

If you want an extra 5% off put this code in the "how did you hear about us" box at checkout. It's good until Sept 6.
Code:144713179131134072

 

 

Thanks, but that shows out of stock when I search for that on their website.

 

Thanks, I don't find that same Amazon view, can you post a link? Mine shows out of stock
When I had Summit in the cart yesterday it showed September delivery. At least that's an improvement.
SDPC shows available but when I called they said it wasn't.

Thanks for checking

 

The tab I had to cut off marked the bottom of the hole.



You can see the notch on the Bell housing below the dowel hole where the starter bolt sits

A drill bit, this hole drilling tool and a round flat combo file made this pretty easy.

 

Thanks for the pics, if I understand it correctly, to access the starter 12 point bolt, your socket goes in through that jagged hole? If so, are you going to cover the hole with something?

 

Because its canada it might be able to ship to you though. Keep me.posted.

 

Yeah it said it could not ship to me. Rats. I may call Summit to see if they can do better.

Thanks for that.

 

You are correct, it is an access hole. I don't know if i will cover it, considering how tight it is in there. It may be naturally covered from splash anyway due to the size of the pan. I won't be driving in winter so probably not, unless i come up with something clever. I wonder if there is something from the shield I could extend.

 

It says 2 day delay when I looked at it, which means they will order it from GM.

 

Update, this cable is not easy to find. All the leads suggested above were dead ends. I ended up calling the local dealer and asked them to find a cable at a dealer so I could call and see if they would send it to me. They found three dealers around Iowa that had a cable, 2 in Omaha and 1 in Chicago. Two of the dealers said they won't take a credit card because they've gotten burned, but Woodhouse Chevy Buick sold one to me for $75.

It arrived today so I'm back on track.

I notified John that this will be an issue but haven't heard back. His instructions advise against a universal cable. Something to think about if your considering this swap.

 

I just did this swap using this kit and my shop was very pleased with the completeness of the kit.

If you need any other reason to go 700R4 over GM400, this is a big one:

 

I have my mini van and motorcycle for mileage.

Like that wheel though.

 

Do you get the feeling that that is accurate mpg?
Love that steering wheel!

 

Good feedback. Did they run into issues or hangups you can share on this thread?

 

Thanks. It's a Grant Fibertech wheel with a gearknob emblem from an XF sedan installed in the center.

It's accurate although the rpm/speed range in which I get hyper-good mileage is a bit narrow. Best thing I can say is my revs at around 75 mph are about 2200. So you can do a calculation there vis-a-vis what what the RPMs are usually in that speed range (~3300) and see where the improvement is and by how much it should be.

A 160-mile round trip last week, with some mixed city driving and some cruising (but no interstate) netted around 26.5.


Some with the detent cable, yes. Not sure what it was, or what the workaround was, but it had to do with positioning of the cable.

Jess

 

Has anyone ever looked at putting a modern transmission in an XJS? Having seen all the work that Xjeffs went through with the Quarterbreed conversion, it seems like a lot of effort to put in a tranny designed in the 1980s.

A 6 speed electronically controlled transmission would seem better suited to keep the car in the sweet spot of the torque curve and offer the option of “manu-matic” shifting without the need for a separate clutch.

Is there just not enough of a market for someone to justify doing the engineering work to design a conversion kit?

 

I don't think it would be that different, you'd just need a transmission controller and those are around $1,000. Adds cost, but opens up a lot of possibilities.

 

I think you would do the same chopping and cutting to the casing and shield, and need to fabricate the adapters and trans mounts. And I think you'd be at around $2000 for just the trans and controller. You'd certainly get a little benefit but you might need to a better the differential ratio.