Ok, let me give you a quick backround, str 2005 97k
less than 100 miles ago had full diagnostics at jag dealer everything perfect, only issue was a tiny leak they said in transmission pan, but very minor and they said it wasn't a big deal at this time.
Car has been garaged for last three months, I go and start it up every 7 days for 15 min, then drive for about 15 min. Every time I have driven the car it drives awesome and shifts absolutley perfect. The last time I took it out before today (7 days ago) it shifted great and drove perfect very responsive shifting like always , no problem.

so.... today as soon as i started the engine,, the yellow light comes on and it says "transmission fault" . Im thinking what the heck it just drove and shifted perfect 7 days ago all the way into the garage. So i took it out to see what's happening. So the car drives fine but doesn't seem to shift at all, the car will go up to 50mph and the rpm is 3k but if i keep pressing on gas the rpms keep going,... no shift??? So i back off so i don't hurt engine with high rpms. Also sport and reg mode NO DIFFERENCE.

Couldn't this possibly be a fluid issue or software (flash) issue considering the transmission was 100% perfect the last time it was moved? Any ideas, the transmission was never flushed or filled or anything. Plus i have a tarp underneath car, I noticed a orangy rusty looking substance pooled up just a little of it (right inside the driver tire on the ground 6 inches in). Have appt at jag to hook it up next week to machine. ANY THOUGHTS PLEASE!

 

First thoughts are the TCU connector sleeve contacts from the wiring loom into the gearbox, wiring harness issues where the wiring harness is known to rub and short out on the front panel, a split seal between the mechatronics assembly and the gearbox or TCM/ control solenoid issues inside the gearbox.... Or maybe even just low gearbox fluid level.

A full dealer diagnostic should pinpoint it. Even better is to buy a JLR Mongoose from Uobd2.com and diagnose it yourself much cheaper!

 

When I read, "tiny leak ... in transmission pan", it made me think that the connector sleeve was hemorrhaging fluid. I would not think that low fluid would prevent a shift, but....

And yes, your operation of the car might have been just on the cusp of the problem, and that enough fluid dripped out over the 7 days to take you over the edge.

There is no level sensors in the ZF 6hp26 transmission. If there was, adding fluid would be so much easier. Though I believe there is a pressure sensor. And that might have caused the transmission fault.

The dealership could not measure the fluid level with any electronic tool. They would have to perform a very time consuming procedure to set the fluid volume to the correct level. If they were to do that, they might as well replace the pan-filter and fluid, as it is about the same amount of effort.

Even though you have been told that the ZF transmission is "sealed for life", that life is approximately 60 to 70 k miles. Even Jaguar admitted that the fluid should be changed at 70k miles.

Any flashable electronic module does not require re-flashing, unless something is wrong with the module as manufactured. An exception is if the module needs to be registered to the car, because it is a new part or an exchanged part. A module cannot become unflashed, nor if there is a dramatic change in the behavior of a module, will flashing it fix the problem.

Earlier model years of the S Type were plagued with bad TCM software, which when flashed to a less buggy version, and in conjunction with an ECM flash update, reduced a "lurch" at low speeds. Sometimes, an owner might want the TCM to unlearn his driving habits. This can be achieved by flashing the TCM back to default settings. (I am having a brain pause right now and cannot remember the terminology)

If you were to get yourself a mongooser, laptop and software, you could do your own flashing or just monitoring of the car yourself. Until you buy that, you could use an OBDII reader to see what fault codes, if any, are set.

My kung fu isn't good enough to know what gear you are in at 50 mph and 3k RPM. Maybe somebody with an STR can chime in.

 

Thanks guys for the gearbox lesson!. I hope it is just sometime of wiring thing or something minor like no fluid. Like I said it would be hard to believe the tranny worked great when I turned the key off, 7 days later w/out being touched key on, transmission failed? Doesn't seem like a flat out bad tranny seems like another problem, that's my gut. Im going to let Jag diagnose it and If i don't have to spend 2.5K $dollars for a transmission fix then I will buy a mongoose LOL!

PS... Tommorow I will try disconnecting battery for like 5 min, to reset if it was a simple fault. Sometimes it says parkbrake fault then it won't say it for a few weeks then one day ill get it back. Ill try that.

 

Could be the battery! No, really. Take car out again, drive till engine warmed up, switch off for 30 seconds and restart. If the fault clears it's even more likely the battery. (The pattern of driving you describe is not enough to keep a battery happy.)

 

Agreed. After reading your initial post, it sounds like the first component to check is indeed the battery. How old is it?

 

The battery is forever old I believe. I actually had to jump the car few months back for no reason, drove it same day 3 hours later went to start ...dead, so might be battery, going to check the battery today, like i said sometimes i get a parkbrake fault and it will go weeks without it then a day with it, that sounds to me like some electrical thing, if it was a true fault it wouldn't go for such long times, i'll keep you posted. im going to dissconnect battery and restart the car after 5 min, see if anything changes, hope so!

 

SO................................................ .....

I removed battery negative terminal for 5 minutes re-connected it........NO MORE TRANSMISSION FAULT!!... CAR DRIVES PERFECT AGAIN . SO NOW THAT HAS TO RULE OUT THE "FAILED TRANNY IDEA" OUT OF MY HEAD. I AM THINKING BAD BATTERY?? OR BAD ELECTRICAL SOMETHING, NOT ACTUAL TRANNY MOST LIKELY RIGHT?

THE BATTERY COULD BE AS OLD AS ORIGINAL OR 5 -7 YEARS OLD FOR ALL I KNOW.

SO WHAT DO YOU THINK NOW? I STILL HAVE APPT WITH JAG, SHOULD I KEEP IT OR JUST GET NEW BATTERY.
UNDERNEATH IS THE PICTURE OF WHAT I AM LEAKING, KEEP IN MIND THIS IS ABOUT 2 MONTHS WORTH OF LEAKAGE BECAUSE THIS IS BEING GARAGED.
TO ME LOOKS LIKE A LITTLE OIL, AND A LITTLE COOLANT?? THANKS GUYS!!

 

After you mentioned the multiple faults AND having to jump the battery, I'm gonna have to cast my vote for a bad battery as well. Alot of well documented threads on this forum (& the "other" one) about all the warning weirdness a dieing battery causes to these cars. Seems it also afflicts the other DEW98 cars too, so you're in good company in that regard. Fluid change on the trans is still a good idea though.

 

Got to say I'd swap battery. I'd change trans fluid and its filter/pan and the electrical sleeve if not short of money.

Those do look like coolant and engine oil. Don't strike me as much of either. I sure wouldn't chase an engine oil leak unless the dipstick showed it was gonna bite me before I'd change the oil (and anyway you can top it up easily). Coolant I'd want to at least know where it's from as some of the hoses/tanks/etc are really bad if they fail.

Don't go mad but it's OK to taste spillages (tiny amounts) and figure exactly what they are. Er, feel 'em (rub between finger and thumb) first. And smell. Put a bit on an absorbent paper towel (kitchen paper is good) and compare with fluid from dipstick / coolant header tank. Taste last if you're still unsure!

Can I say spit not swallow on here...

 

jAGV8 Do you sell batteries for a living? LOL

 

haha, I wish!!

 

TOoo funny LOL! Yeah definitley going to autozone for a battery, any recomendations on a good brand i don't mind spending a little extra, i know how important batteries are for these cats

 

+3 battery.

 

I am anxious to know if Auto zone has a battery for the S Type, and how much it will be.

Ya know, that is something that I just can't figure out. The S Types take a freaking huge battery, and yet, even that is not enough to handle the electronics.

I think it is this: The car battery will put out about 13.2 volts (I think) when it is properly charged and a good battery. But with a little load on it, that will drop to 12.5 volts (or about). In this state, it is not safe to program a TCM or ECM or any programmable module. In this state, one of those external power supplies that puts out 14.5 volts (I think) is necessary.

So that says to me that the electronics require 14 volts or more to program. So why isn't a DC to DC converter built into the modules so that you could program at 12 volts battery voltage?

Or is it one of those things to prevent the DIYer from accomplishing this task and requiring a trip to the dealership?

I can flash program my cel phones, my computers, my mp3 players, my tablets, my DVD and blu-ray players, and what ever else without an additional power supply. Why is it that jag modules require the extra juice? (that was a rhetorical question)

Hmmm, this has me thinking. How difficult would it be to install a DC to DC converter for all module power sources? I am thinking of a cable that plugs into a fuse socket. That cable has an inline fuse and ties to a DC to DC converter. Another lead from the converter goes to ground. And the return DC voltage goes to the other side of the cable and into the fuse socket.

TADA! 14 volts being fed to the modules.

Now to get pricing on DC to DC converters.

 

For a battery, plenty of CCA and Ah plus make sure it fits in the space. Check for venting. I think they last a long time if maintained but apart from Jon89 hardly anyone ever checks.

I doubt 14V is needed but remember when the cars were designed a DC-DC module especially with large output would not have been justifiable. I think most of the cars never have any reflash done but in any case it's trivial for a dealer to plug in the battery maintainer.

You're mentioning low power technology that's 10-15 years newer and the advances have been huge in those years.

I think only about 12V is needed but without a maintainer an old battery can readily drop below that.

 

So advanced autoparts has 3 types of groups of batteries they said came up with the search of 05' STR, i looked at battery in car which is jag battery and on the battery none of those group were mentioned. Any body know the specs or case number used to buy aftermarket battery?

 

Go to Pep Boys and get the proper Bosch battery. Bosch has a $20 off until March. Bettery number has been posted before.
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The part number is 49-850B with 3 years free replacement and a 96-month pro-rated warranty.

acording to post I found by jonb ... So i guess thats
the 1!?

 

Yes.

Don't forget your $20 off coupon!!

Online Printable Coupon - $20 Off Merchandise Purchase of $100 Or More | Pep Boys
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