Since I bought my 04 XKR on at occasional times, when cold (first start of the day) and warming up to half way to the operating temp, my car has had a little bit of a problem getting in gear properly on the 2-3 shift. holding a steady light throttle it acts like it is trying to shift but its not, so there is a slight rev of 100-200 rpm verm verm verm up and down.
Now as I have put almost 4K miles since i bought her, the problem is getting more and more pronounced and a lot more regular. It is now doing this every day when cold to proper temps.
I am thinking that a possible issue might be a slight leak and my trans is getting a little low on fluid.
Has any one else had this issue?
How do I properly check the fluid level??

 

Rather than just attempt to check the fluid level, consider doing a proper drain-and-fill with Mercon SP. To check the current fluid level, you must put the car up on a lift (or jackstands), bring the transmission up to the proper temperature range, run the transmission through the gears, and open the fill plug to look for a steady drip of ATF out of it. If I were going to go to the trouble of doing all that, I would just go ahead with a fresh drain-and-fill. You will need approximately 5 quarts of ATF if you do a simple drain-and-fill without dropping the pan. If your fluid is indeed low, you will need more ATF. Mercon SP meets the required Shell M1375.4 specs and can be purchased at any Ford dealership parts department for between $6 and $7 per quart....

While you are underneath the vehicle, look for leaks at the sleeve. If you are indeed leaking fluid there, you must drop the pan and replace the sleeve with the new version that is not prone to leak like the original version sometimes does. If you opt to drop the pan and replace the sleeve, you may need nearly 7 quarts of fresh ATF to get it to the proper fluid level....

This job is best done with two people - one inside the cabin running the gearshift through the proper pattern while the engine is running, and one underneath the vehicle pumping the fresh ATF into the pan through the fill plug hole....

 

Can you remind us of where you stand in maintenance of this transmission? Was anything done since you bought the car?

 

I have dealer documentation that a fluid and filter change was done at 45k and again at 87K, it now has 95k on it.

 

You might read through the S Type forum. This sounds like an issue that is apparently fairly common with the 6hp26 transmission. The engine rpm will bounce a few hundred rpm at around 30-45 mph. If I remember correctly it has something to do with torque converter unlocking/locking, which the 6hp26 can do in any gear. One of my STR's had this issue (torque converting locking) but a fluid change and a sleeve changed fixed it for me. Not sure if this is your issue but sure sounds like it.

 

I climbed under my car last night, yes I have a leaking sleeve, does any one know where to order it, that I don't have to send then my first born? I'm also going to do a filter change while I'm down there.

 

This is what you are looking for:

sealing-sleeve

The procedure is explained here: 6_speed_sleeve_replacement

The filter is built into the plastic pan. Yours was replaced so recently, I would just replace the sleeve and do a PROPER refill.

This is the time to think of the fluid. You could re-use what you have (likely the original Lifeguard6 or even the Jaguar fluid, amber color) and buy more to top it off ($20 per liter). The alternative is to switch it all to Mercon SP at $6 per quart (red color).

The refill procedure is explained in several FAQs here: tree-faq

 

The trick to this is that the lock for the sleeve is inside the tranny! The pan must be removed to release it.

 

Beemer owner here. We have the same transmission and the same issues, of course.

Just a safety suggestion for ZF fluid -- jackstands are a risk when running the car through the gears and spinning the mass of the wheels. Car can rock and fall if the jackstands aren't solid enough. If you can't use an arm lift, put something solid under the rocker panels, either to hold the car or act as a safety. My preference has been to use concrete blocks (holes up) with thick wood squares on top, under the jack points.

Dropping 3500 lbs on the guy with the fluid pump only has to happen once.....

Cheers.

 

Beemer owner? Could have fooled me with that user name.

 

Yes, owned a few BMW's, and that's still my daily driver focus.

But been an XK fan for about 40 years, though I never got around to one.

Probably the prettiest car design in history, bar none. Certain magic to it that no other design has matched.

Unfortunately, the most recent XK versions, post Tata, have strayed towards a Maserati look, not my favorite.

Anyway, the closest to the classic is the XK8, so I've been mulling getting one as a weekend car. Since I do all my own work, it's affordable. I have access to a lift, and don't trust most jackstands -- thus the advice on the tranny refill.

(And I was surprised that "pantheraonca" wasn't taken....)