85 XJ6 Reverse Light Always On
#1
85 XJ6 Reverse Lights Always On
Hope everyone here is doing well.
I just remember my 85 XJ6 has had constant reverse lights on when engine starts without the gear shift to reverse.
What do I have to do to get it worked as normal?
Thanks for help in advance.
Mike
I just remember my 85 XJ6 has had constant reverse lights on when engine starts without the gear shift to reverse.
What do I have to do to get it worked as normal?
Thanks for help in advance.
Mike
Last edited by mikega; 06-28-2020 at 04:15 AM.
#2
must be a misadjusted reverse light SWITCH.
Does your Cruise work?
Can you start the engine in any gear?
if yes, then the switch is located at the front right of the shifter. It is a Roller Switch with two or three wires.
if no, then the switch is mounted at the transmission, a round switch with 4 wires.
This is because at some point after 1984, the factory moved the switch to the transmission.
But the Service Manual was apparently not updated and I have never seen a Service Bulletin about the change.
If your switch is at the front of the shifter under the ashtrays panel, then you need to pull out the panel and adjust the Roller switch following the Service Manual instructions. The instructions are in the ELECTRICAL section of the Service Manual.
(not the S57 electrical guide, but the ELECTRICAL SECTION of the Service Manual). You can download it free at my website if you don't have it.
www.jagupgrades.webstarts.com
Does your Cruise work?
Can you start the engine in any gear?
if yes, then the switch is located at the front right of the shifter. It is a Roller Switch with two or three wires.
if no, then the switch is mounted at the transmission, a round switch with 4 wires.
This is because at some point after 1984, the factory moved the switch to the transmission.
But the Service Manual was apparently not updated and I have never seen a Service Bulletin about the change.
If your switch is at the front of the shifter under the ashtrays panel, then you need to pull out the panel and adjust the Roller switch following the Service Manual instructions. The instructions are in the ELECTRICAL section of the Service Manual.
(not the S57 electrical guide, but the ELECTRICAL SECTION of the Service Manual). You can download it free at my website if you don't have it.
www.jagupgrades.webstarts.com
#3
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: Walnut Creek, California
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The switch on my 83 was on the transmission. So, in the transplant, I was left with options to keep the reverse light function. I opted to swap in an XJS shifter. More GM compliant. included a devixe on the tower, might be the same, it screws in!! My kit provided one and a nut to clamo it in then tower similar to the XJS. Sold off to another lumper.
Alas mine went on the blink, lights on... My bodge,. removed the bulbs. No longer up to diving in to the console...If I still had the new one, I sold, I just might.
Or follow Elinor's example and repurpose the master window switch on the comsole/// Never use it nohow!!
Off to bust quarantine.. Gas for Jeep;. Dr must visit in AM.. Poke in the eye!!
Carl.
Alas mine went on the blink, lights on... My bodge,. removed the bulbs. No longer up to diving in to the console...If I still had the new one, I sold, I just might.
Or follow Elinor's example and repurpose the master window switch on the comsole/// Never use it nohow!!
Off to bust quarantine.. Gas for Jeep;. Dr must visit in AM.. Poke in the eye!!
Carl.
#4
must be a misadjusted reverse light SWITCH.
Does your Cruise work?
Can you start the engine in any gear?
if yes, then the switch is located at the front right of the shifter. It is a Roller Switch with two or three wires.
if no, then the switch is mounted at the transmission, a round switch with 4 wires.
This is because at some point after 1984, the factory moved the switch to the transmission.
But the Service Manual was apparently not updated and I have never seen a Service Bulletin about the change.
If your switch is at the front of the shifter under the ashtrays panel, then you need to pull out the panel and adjust the Roller switch following the Service Manual instructions. The instructions are in the ELECTRICAL section of the Service Manual.
(not the S57 electrical guide, but the ELECTRICAL SECTION of the Service Manual). You can download it free at my website if you don't have it.
www.jagupgrades.webstarts.com
Does your Cruise work?
Can you start the engine in any gear?
if yes, then the switch is located at the front right of the shifter. It is a Roller Switch with two or three wires.
if no, then the switch is mounted at the transmission, a round switch with 4 wires.
This is because at some point after 1984, the factory moved the switch to the transmission.
But the Service Manual was apparently not updated and I have never seen a Service Bulletin about the change.
If your switch is at the front of the shifter under the ashtrays panel, then you need to pull out the panel and adjust the Roller switch following the Service Manual instructions. The instructions are in the ELECTRICAL section of the Service Manual.
(not the S57 electrical guide, but the ELECTRICAL SECTION of the Service Manual). You can download it free at my website if you don't have it.
www.jagupgrades.webstarts.com
#5
#6
Join Date: Mar 2014
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As my car has a Chevy 350/700R4 conversion, the backup lights came on (one of the things I checked upon pre-purchase inspection), just not when the car was in Reverse I soon learned. How handy is that!
I was also told to adjust the roller switch, but on my shifter (OEM Jaguar unit) no such adjustment was possible. So I mounted a momentary push button switch in the Left ash tray, re-routed the Light Green wires to it and Shazaam, I had Reverse lights!
(';')
#7
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#8
1984 cars with BW66 transmission have the roller switch in front of the shifter. Mine cannot be the only one. The adjustment is somewhat easy with the car parked in the garage.
you will need a 1/4" ratchet and a 4.5 mm socket. There are two tiny bolts that must be loosened.
once you loosen the bolts, start engine and shift to Reverse, foot on brakes so car does not move back, move the switch forward or backwards until lights go on in Reverse and off when you move the shifter to Park or to Drive.
if you can't see the lights going on and off, place a mirror where you can see at least one light from the driver's seat. Or get a helper to tell you when they are on or off.
you will need a 1/4" ratchet and a 4.5 mm socket. There are two tiny bolts that must be loosened.
once you loosen the bolts, start engine and shift to Reverse, foot on brakes so car does not move back, move the switch forward or backwards until lights go on in Reverse and off when you move the shifter to Park or to Drive.
if you can't see the lights going on and off, place a mirror where you can see at least one light from the driver's seat. Or get a helper to tell you when they are on or off.
Last edited by Jose; 06-29-2020 at 11:53 AM.
#9
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1984 cars with BW66 transmission have the roller switch in front of the shifter. Mine cannot be the only one. The adjustment is somewhat easy with the car parked in the garage.
you will need a 1/4" ratchet and a 4.5 mm socket. There are two tiny bolts that must be loosened.
once you loosen the bolts, start engine and shift to Reverse, foot on brakes so car does not move back, move the switch forward or backwards until lights go on in Reverse and off when you move the shifter to Park or to Drive.
if you can't see the lights going on and off, place a mirror where you can see at least one light from the driver's seat. Or get a helper to tell you when they are on or off.
you will need a 1/4" ratchet and a 4.5 mm socket. There are two tiny bolts that must be loosened.
once you loosen the bolts, start engine and shift to Reverse, foot on brakes so car does not move back, move the switch forward or backwards until lights go on in Reverse and off when you move the shifter to Park or to Drive.
if you can't see the lights going on and off, place a mirror where you can see at least one light from the driver's seat. Or get a helper to tell you when they are on or off.
Then I will transfer that observation cruel live on the car.
#15
#16
#17
Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: Tehama County, California, USA
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1984 cars with BW66 transmission have the roller switch in front of the shifter. Mine cannot be the only one. The adjustment is somewhat easy with the car parked in the garage.
you will need a 1/4" ratchet and a 4.5 mm socket. There are two tiny bolts that must be loosened.
once you loosen the bolts, start engine and shift to Reverse, foot on brakes so car does not move back, move the switch forward or backwards until lights go on in Reverse and off when you move the shifter to Park or to Drive.
if you can't see the lights going on and off, place a mirror where you can see at least one light from the driver's seat. Or get a helper to tell you when they are on or off.
you will need a 1/4" ratchet and a 4.5 mm socket. There are two tiny bolts that must be loosened.
once you loosen the bolts, start engine and shift to Reverse, foot on brakes so car does not move back, move the switch forward or backwards until lights go on in Reverse and off when you move the shifter to Park or to Drive.
if you can't see the lights going on and off, place a mirror where you can see at least one light from the driver's seat. Or get a helper to tell you when they are on or off.
The shifter says REVERSE but the trans says NOT YET and requires a bit more movement before REVERSE is actually engages. By that time the roller switch is completely out of position to fire the reverse lights.
I was told this is a common problem with conversions such as mine, unless, like Carl did, one acquired an XJS shifter (which Nix's previous owner did not), which correctly indexes Reverse.
And now back to our regularly scheduled programming.......
(';')
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Jose (06-29-2020)
#18
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Location: Pacific Northwest USA
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Probably not the reverse light switch, judging from the wires colors....which appear to be black/slate and yellow/purple. These colors correspond to the cruise control inhibit switch (see section 19.1 of the S57 wiring guide)
The early Series IIIs I've worked on had a plunger type reverse light switch mounted to the left side of the gearshift quadrant, part number C1083 in the illustration below
Here's a better picture of the reverse light switch itself:
The plunger moves inward when the gearshift is placed in "R", closing the circuit. The one time I had a car with reverse lights stuck on, the plunger was stuck in the depressed position and wouldn't let go. Replacing it solved the problem. The switch screws into the shift quadrant and is adjusted by adding/removing shims. If you google "Jaguar C1083" you can see other pics as well
The later, transmission mounted switch looks like this:
It is adjusted by loosening the hold-down down screw and rotating/pivoting the switch. In some cases the hole where the hold-down screw need to be elongated to allow the switch to rotate/pivot.
Whether early switch or late switch, the wires colors should be green and green/brown on the reverse light switch
Personally, I've not seen the lever-arm microswitch used as a reverse light switch on a Series III XJ6....but that might just be me. It's always been the plunger style or the transmission-mounted style.
(However, the V12 cars DID use the lever-arm microswitch for the reverse lamps, at least all the V12s I've seen and owned.)
Cheers
DD
Last edited by Doug; 06-29-2020 at 07:49 PM.
#19
ohhh I see. Well Elinor you may have solved a quagmire I have been dealing with.
I have a complete shifter assembly that has a round adjustable rotating switch on the left side of the shifter which my car does not have. ???
and it does not have the Cruise switch, this is a smaller shift quadrant, looks identical to the XJ-6 but no Cruise switch and has that round switch which I assume is the Neutral Safety and Reverse lights switch.
So it may be XJ-S and I thought it was a Series 2 XJ shifter.
I have a complete shifter assembly that has a round adjustable rotating switch on the left side of the shifter which my car does not have. ???
and it does not have the Cruise switch, this is a smaller shift quadrant, looks identical to the XJ-6 but no Cruise switch and has that round switch which I assume is the Neutral Safety and Reverse lights switch.
So it may be XJ-S and I thought it was a Series 2 XJ shifter.
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LnrB (07-01-2020)
#20