Does anyone know what causes the XK not to have any kickdown anymore? Mine has 75k miles and I hope that the transmission is not on its way out. It feels like it is working for speeds under 50 mph, at least I can see the tachometer jump but over 50 mph nothing happens and the acceleration is modest. I found a few posts where people had to get their engines and transmission reprogrammed/reflashed.
Thanks, Mark

 

Could be the switch under the pedal or the kick down relay. Put it in sport mode and floor it at about 60 mph and see if it will kick down. This will let you know if the system is working.

 

If she's shifting good at the right tach reading below 50mph, i don't see why you're kickdown would all of a sudden not function anymore above that.

 

so at 60 in sport mode I notice a 500-700 rpm increase when I floor it. I guess it is shifting down from 5(overdrive?) to 4, it is not very dramatic. However at 65 or above nothing happens. Maybe that is normal for that transmission, I don't know. From other sports cars (mustang) I am used to rather aggressive downshifts.
Is anyone here from the Bay Area or around Pasadena? I'd like to sit in another 98 and see how the car is supposed to drive.
Mark

 

Something is not right. It should kick down even at 65MPH.

 

I read somewhere (in JTIS) I think, that the transmission will shift into top gear at 115 MPH no matter what, so it should kick down at any speed under that when you floor it in sport mode.

Something is not quite right with your trans.

 

Do yourself a quick favor markman, just take it by a dealer, during a slow time...not first thing in the AM or right after work when everyone is picking up your car....like 1pm during the week, when things are somewhat slow. Ask the service guy if he can take a ride with you and show him the no-reaction your cat is having. That part will be free, but he may want to get her on the code scanner real quick to see if she's throwing you any codes. My service guy does that at no charge, but worse case, you'll pay a small diagnostic fee. Or, you could walk away with no charges and at least some direction that the dealer would like to take to further troubleshoot your car...if only you would call back and make an appt. i wouldn't wait too long either if I were you. i don't mess with engine or transmission glitches!

 

I did take the car to my mechanic (independent, does only Jags here in Oakland) and we took her for a ride. He said it is normal that it won't do a kick down above 65 or 70. For obvious reasons we could not go faster than 65 in the city of Oakland but everything seemed normal to him. No codes either. I trust him very much but I will try to get some other experts opinion on this matter. Of course I can always throw the car into forth gear manually, right?

 

i tried my car above 60mph, and I jumped from 2000 rpm to like 4,500 rpm immediately and climbing... its not normal i'm afraid.

 

Hi hl20oy, thanks for the test, I see you have a 2003 4.2L. Mine is a 98 4.0L, if anyone with a 97/98/99 could do me favor and record the rpm at 60 and then the peak rpm right after you floored it I would appreciate that.

I thought about it over night and it just makes no sense that my engine can rev up to 6500 and there is no way of getting there (other than staying in 2nd or 3rd gear). Today I am traveling and I rented a Ford Focus (economy car!). I floored it at 75 and of course it is downshifting. Like any other car I guess.

I am a bit confused why my mechanic would tell me that it is normal that the car does not downshift above 60 mph. I have known him for years and he has been working on Jags for at least 30 years.

Anyways, I will take it to another mechanic next week and see what he says.

Thanks for helping out,
Mark

 

YER MECHIX IS WRONG. MINE kicks down when over 65MPH.

 

I have an 01 4.0L. It is supercharged, but it downshifted when I was doing 75mph and floored it.

 

Never hurts to get a second opinion. Stay friends with the old mechanic, just don't tell him you went to another jag-doc.

 

Perhaps the sport mode switch is not working...turn off and see if tranny down-shift it is different...

 

Hope this helps and is alittle closer to your model. 97 4.0L non-turbo, kicks down in both normal and sport mode at 65 and 75 mph.

 

well, that was an easy one. Under the gas pedal is a plastic knob/cyclinder that seemed to be too far out. I screwed it in all the way and now I have kickdown at 60 and above. The kickdown is determined by throttle position and because the stop-knob was too much out I never was able to open the throttle all the way.
Mark

 

It took me awhile to find that kickdown switch when I first got the car, but you're saying you have been using it, it just wasn't adjusted correctly and didn't appear to be working? If so, that was definitely was an easy fix, and I am glad you resolved your problem. Hope you stick around for some more fun and help others in the process.

 

the knob under the gas pedal is not the switch, the switch is somewhere in the throttle assembly. The knob is merely a stop for the gas pedal and not a switch at all.
M

 

Hmmm, that's not what I was told. This knob we speak of DOES recess when the pedal is forced down into it further. you'r'rs doesn't?