After changing oil and checking all fluids, I had a great trip from Las Vegas to Reno and back on some wonderfully scenic (and deserted) back roads along the NV/CA border last week. And, I avoided several well-known speed trap towns on the NV side.

Just two little hitches on the trip (of course; there’s still lots to do for this beautiful 91,000 mile barn-find cat). About 150 miles north of the first “Speed Limit 70 sign” leaving Las Vegas, I experienced an attention-getting, hammer-hard downshift to 4th gear during a spirited car pass, resulting in a yellow light "Transmission Fault" error. No “limp” mode but no upshift; it was stuck in 4th gear. Had to pull over, shut down, and restart to clear. Embarrassing... I drove gingerly for a while but experimented and found I could manually downshift & upshift through gears without issue. Problem not exactly solved but at least it’s a viable work-around until I can afford to get it properly diagnosed and cured. Razorboy has shared that he has the same issue and temporary resolution.

Here's my more pressing issue, but first a disclaimer: On the way back to Las Vegas, I may or may not have been listening to Kenny Login’s “Danger Zone” from the movie “Top Gun,” and/or Robert Mitchum’s “The Ballad of Thunder Road,” both of which may or may not have sent some kind of ultrasonic mind-control signals directly to, or in the direction of, the throttle plate, while navigating some very good, very desolate, very untraveled long-stretch back roads. At some point, Jan & Dean’s “Dead Man’s Curve” kicked in. Coincidentally, I became conscious of a very slight wallow developing in the steering during an otherwise unremarkable left hand sweeping turn. (Kind of like a boat slipping and grabbing in a high speed turn on water disturbed by other wide-spaced wakes, you know?) It was very subtle but a definite pucker-factor-increaser so I took the opportunity in the following straight-away to ease the throttle back to significantly less impressive digits. (Read into that what you will, I may or may not be a mature individual who may or may not think that speeds above school-zone speed limits could be life-threatening, even though I was a soldier during Vietnam, a seasoned police officer, and an airplane flight instructor and test pilot with flights in 15 African countries and two dead-stick landings annotated in my 30-plus years of logbooks.) The rest of the trip was uneventful but the sensation accompanied me all the way home. The next day, a little test drive close to the house proved that it wasn’t just my imagination (or the music), and that it is a rapidly-progressive degeneration.

Back in the garage, I jacked up the front end and found 3 o’clock – 9 o’clock play in the steering which wasn’t there before starting the trip. I have narrowed it down to the inner tie rod(s) as I can’t see/feel movement in the outer tie rods, only the inner one(s). No sense taking chances, (I have many bigger trips planned); I immediately ordered new inner and outer tie rods for both sides.

All that said, do you’all think the job easy enough for me to tackle in my garage on jacks or should I hire an indie and save some tight-space grief (and skinned knuckles)? The only tool I would need to rent is an inner tie rod removal set; I’ve got two of everything else. Experienced responses especially appreciated but all opinions will be considered, (and I already know a front end alignment will be mandatory afterwards…).

 

Interesting...I find that Radar Love and Gimme Shelter seem to affect the electronics of my car making it speed up uncontrollably ...............

 

Redline, it's an easy job. You don't even need special tools for the inner tie rod.
I used an adjustable wrench.

I did the job after a quick search for instructions on this forum.

While you can probably get real close to the before position, as I recall the concencus is you'll need a proper alignment afterwards.

John

 

First the shifting If the car shift properly in manual I would first check the cable adjustment on your shifter. An inproper adjustment will cause the same symptoms The inner tie rod when replacing it use locktite when installing the new one also it is recommended to torque it in place. Steering in nothing to play with but that is your choice.

 

Hi Gus, thanks for your suggestions. The hard downshift did not occur for the 1st couple of hours of driving, although I passed a few other cars in the same spirited manner with no problem. I was under the impression that non-manual (as well as manual) downshifting/upshifting is actually computer controlled via electronic signal, so my first suspicions would lean towards faulty signal to the solenoids or possibly loss of fluid pressure resulting in valve body/valve body gasket issues. I have always followed hard reset procedures including slow accelerator pedal depression through the kickdown detent before staring the car (twice) as well as resetting the windows. How would I go about checking shifter cable adjustment? Is it in the shifter housing? Any idea where would I go to ascertain specs for settings? Thanks, Redline.

 

This is the TSB I used for my 99

Link http://jagrepair.com/images/TSB/307-01-1.pdf

If the signal is lost to the TCM it may cause this issue. Checking the cable adjustment would be the first thing I would check. Your car is a 2005 and the TCM is located in the trans so checking it would not be easy.

 

So many of our threads die a natural death without notice of any resolution; thought I'd share an update on my loose steering issue just in case anyone was curious, and also to create an informal poll to get everyone's vote. Since I had purchased a 5 year, no-limit alignment policy from Pep Boys after getting the cat home to Las Vegas from Boise last year, I thought would just get them to check for any other concerns while waiting on the inner and outer tie rods I had ordered to come in. Turns out, I should have just gone there first.

Seems the front tie rods are fine; the cause of the wallow actually comes from the opposite end of the car. The alignment tech at Pep Boys has been around for a while, and knows Jaguars. As soon as he saw the excessively-negative camber reading on the computer monitor, he immediately inspected the rear shock (upper) bushings and confirmed that they were deteriorated and collapsed. This, he said, would account for both the excessive negative camber and the loose feeling in the sweeping turns. We discussed the possibility of a need for new shims for the rear end, but he advocated waiting until he could check alignment after I replaced the shocks since Pep Boys pays him by the hour and not by the job. I like this guy... So, I have new Bilstein shocks and bushings ordered (Pep Boys does not offer these parts) and will install them then get a new alignment asap.

Here's the subject of my poll: Do I keep both sets of new inner and outer tie rods for some future need, or do I put them up for sale? They're not outrageously expensive, but, what are the odds I'll ever really need them? Also, anything else I should go ahead and replace as preventative maintenance while I've got the rear suspension pulled apart? My differential is leaking a tiny little bit and will have to be addressed at some future date; do I save a significant amount to tackle it now?

P.S. I have added "Radar Love" and "Gimme Shelter" to my road music cd. Can't wait to crank 'em up...

 

Dick Dale's (yes the surf guitar king) "ring of fire" gets my XK8 moving along.....In case you haven't heard, Mr. Dale rips on the guitar faster than a Jag on a lonely Nevada desert highway.