It occurs to me that there are many service technicians that when confronted with a locked
shifter, might choose to confront the problem with less than prescribed methods. That might
be another point to add in the list of "things to look for when buying a used X308".

 

Wow. Just wow.

Finally got the part I ordered and paid for expedited shipping of on the morning of July 21st...it is indeed a complete gearshift assembly, minus the dual linear switch...and on top of that, it appears to be from an XJ8, looks to be a nuetral microswitch and there are a pair of electrical connectrs just above where the DL switch mounts that are not present on my shifter.

Can't win, don't try.

So...anyone got a spare (working) dual linear switch kicking around? Lol. Guess I'll try disassembling mine again and hose it down with compressed contact cleaner...see if that makes it work differently.

Edit: Am I correct in that an XKR shift assy from the same years (and the XKR DL switch) would be identical?

 

Found the right assembly on EBay for quite a bit more, but if it works its worth it.

Should be here Friday or Monday.

 

Mayhem, you have been through the wringer, so we hope this new part works out. eBay has always been problematic for me unless I specify the exact part number.

 

I knew going into it that I was buying what could be a temperamental car and there wouldbe down time when I couldn't drve it while waiting on parts, money or expertise to develop...just didn't expect it 20 minutes after I put her number plates on.

I'll get past it and be able to enjoy driving it, hopefulyl soon. Need to work on her winter hibernation preventative maintenance plan to find and address all the deferred maintenance from prior owners and ger her ready for life as a more or less reliable daily.

 

New to me gearshift asy came in yesterday afternoon, spent some time in the garage today and got the old one out, found out that the XJR and XKR have slightly different mounting points for the gearshift on the plate that holds the DL switch, fortuntely it just comes off and was an easy swap. New one in, did the neutral cable adjustment, checked it a few times and plugged in the battery. Voila! The gearshift lit up and the gearbox fault and restricted performance messages were gone from the display. Adjusted the DL switch position to show the neutral light position accurately and tightened the screws. Took a drive and the thing worked great. Good power, shifted smoothly, I was able to flip it over into manual mode without any drama and rowed through the 2 available manual gears. My reverse lights are now also working as they should, I suspected that was a clue to the DL switch. As a side bonus, the gearshift knob that came with the new assy is a pretty close match for the lighter wodd thats in my car, so it looks a lot better as well.

Took me about an hour to remember how the reassemble the center console, but it all eventually went back together...the sport and cruise buttons are very low...like below grade on the housing now, so I definitely didn't get it back together quite right, but its all there and I didn't have any screws left over, so I guess that good enough for the time being.

Thanks to all for your help and for just being supportive in my first (of many probable) repair on my Jag. Made all the difference.