97 XJR - Rear doorhandle knackered after 1 day

[nitramshirley]

OK, so I picked up my '97 XJR and drove it from San Jose to L.A. That was nice. Today I go to drop my girl off at school and the rear doorhandle no longer works (inside or out!). The handle was working on Saturday... I thought Jaguar had solved their quality control problems!!! What have I let myself in for??
Any suggestions as to how I can fix this without a huge dealer bill?

[V12Bob]

With respect, your car is sevenyears old, how can you possibly relate this problem to build quality?

If you bought this car from a reputable dealer, take it back.

If not, contact your local independant Jaguar specialist.

[PlenumPete]

nitramshirley said:

OK, so I picked up my '97 XJR and drove it from San Jose to L.A. That was nice. Today I go to drop my girl off at school and the rear doorhandle no longer works (inside or out!). The handle was working on Saturday... I thought Jaguar had solved their quality control problems!!! What have I let myself in for?? Any suggestions as to how I can fix this without a huge dealer bill?

I know you've said "inside or out" but have you checked the child safety lock? There's a black slide tab on the internal rear edge of the rear doors, in the UP position it is not possible to open the doors from the inside - it could be this mechanism that's causing the problem, try moving it up and down a few times.

Welcome to the world of Jaguar.

Dave

[nitramshirley]

Good thinking. It crossed my mind that the child lock may have a part to play. Unfortuntely, I can't open the door to check due to the fact the door can't be opened from the outside...must be the internal latch mechanism. Ah well... off to the dealer I suppose. Thanks for your thoughts chaps.

[Greg Wheeler]

I dont know about the XJ but my S has deadlocks, so if its the same maybe try cycling the locking system a few times to see if it unlocks...

Just a thought... Good luck..

[Podie]

V12Bob said:

With respect, your car is sevenyears old, how can you possibly relate this problem to build quality? If you bought this car from a reputable dealer, take it back. If not, contact your local independant Jaguar specialist.

Couldn't agree more...

... is a '97 car pre "Uncle Nick"...?

[V12Bob]

Was it not 98 model year, in which case, a 97 registered car could well be affected.