Hi all,this is my first post . i need a little help.I have a 1996 xk8 convertible and want to change the gearbox rotary switch.I have the car up on display ramps and can easily see the rotary switch itself,but i cannot see where the plug goes.i can see it dissappear up towards the top of the gearbox but cannot actually see where it plugs in.Do I have to remove the J gate from inside the car to access it ? Hope someone can help,many thanks .

On 5/1/2021 at 3:19 AM, storm dog said:

Hi all,this is my first post . i need a little help.I have a 1996 xk8 convertible and want to change the gearbox rotary switch.I have the car up on display ramps and can easily see the rotary switch itself,but i cannot see where the plug goes.i can see it dissappear up towards the top of the gearbox but cannot actually see where it plugs in.Do I have to remove the J gate from inside the car to access it ? Hope someone can help,many thanks .

Hello, I have the 1997 XK8. I, too, am facing this issue. I realize your post is 2yrs. old, but thought I'd share with you my experience. Reaching down and following the cable with my hand, I managed to locate it to a harness behind the throttle body, near the firewall. It has seven wires, and my harness is pictured in the attachment. I have also attached a photo of the neighboring three harnesses which are a bit higher up and easier to see, but the one that goes to the rotary switch is the black one.

Did you ever have luck removing and replacing your switch? I would be interested to know what symptoms you had, and if this resolved them. Right now I have an Engine Fault that only happens after I drive the car a short way and shut it off, after which it will crank but not start, with a P0790 code.

Had a similar fault three or four years ago but cannot remember what the fault code was. I didn't have Engine Fault light or any other indications, just engine cranking but no starting, bit like a failed crank position sensor fault, which I initially thought it was. Had the sensor replaced but this didn't fix things.

In my case the cure turned out to be simple, it was just the operating cable sticking slightly so not selecting all the contacts correctly. A good clean up and lube of the cable sorted out the problem.

Apparently this is not unusual. Naturally I didn't find this out until I had obtained a replacement switch and had it installed to find myself no further forward..........

Hope you manage to sort things out.