Range rover p38 low range

[Paul Muzzer]

Hi,

I am quite new to this site and Range Rovers but i have an issue that i hope someone can help me with. i am not very good at putting things into words so please bare with me.

I am sat in my Range Rover 2.5 Manual in High range and in neutral. i press the button to select Low range and the computer say's "select Neutral"? and nothing happens.

Now this is the strange bit!

If i put the car in reverse gear in High with the engine running and clutch in then press the Low range button, Low range is selected? how can this be. i dont like it this way and would prefer to have it the way it should be.

Has anyone had the same or similar problem and does anyone know how to fix it?

Also, could you please tell me if 235 85 16 will fit straight on the standard P38 Range Rover with working air suspention!

Kind regards

Paul

[SteveG]

Having never driven a manual P38, I'll leave that to someone that has.

AS for the tyres, yes they'll fit. You may find that if you hit a bump in the motorway setting you might get a small rub on the inner wheel arch. Also in the low setting and turning on full lock, they might be a small rub.

Cheers

Steve

[Escape]

I would assume the problem is with the sensor that detects neutral. If it is out of position, this would explain why it only gives the 'neutral' signal to the ECU when you're actually in reverse.

[David Sparkes]

Low Range via Reverse is interesting, and the solution may be equally interesting.

The 'Select Neutral' warning is almost universal, in that it doesn't matter what has gone wrong, you will almost always get the Select Neutral message while stationary. Others while moving can be Slow Down, and 35MPH Max (I think it's 35).

The book of words, ETM, or Electrical Troubleshooting Manual, says that on a Manual Transmission car there is either a neutral switch or a clutch switch. However, the Transfer Case diagram only shows the Neutral Switch, so we will go with that.

As an aside, I'm sure there is a Clutch Switch on the car, but I can't find the diagram that shows it, which means I could be wrong, but I'm not going to crawl into the footwell to look.

Both the Neutral Switch and the Reverse Switch are on the LH side of the gearbox, roughly where the oil cooler pipes join the gearbox, and close enough together to be in the same Location picture in the ETM.

I'm pretty sure the view is from underneath.

The question here is, do your Reversing lights work?

The connectors to the switches are different, the Neutral switch connector being Rectangular, with a Black and a Brown wire.

The Reverse switch being Oval, with a Black and a Green wire.

Thoughts that occur:

Someone's put the switches in the wrong holes, (I don't know if the switches are the same or not).

Someone's forced the connectors on the wrong switches.

The Neutral switch has failed, so someone's joined the Brown wire to the Green wire, feeding both off the Reverse switch.

Over to you.

[Paul Muzzer]

Hi All,

Thank you for your replys,

David, much obliged for your thoughts on this and for the time you have taken to write your thoughts.

My reverse lights do work?

I will get underneath one evening and take a look at it.

The ETM you have mentioned, where can i get a copy of this?

If you have any more thoughts then would you please forward them to me. i took the car to LR garege and it has got them baffled on why it does this. i think i might have to change the Neutal switch. do you have any idea how much they are?

Thanks again..

PaUL

Low Range via Reverse is interesting, and the solution may be equally interesting.

The 'Select Neutral' warning is almost universal, in that it doesn't matter what has gone wrong, you will almost always get the Select Neutral message while stationary. Others while moving can be Slow Down, and 35MPH Max (I think it's 35).

The book of words, ETM, or Electrical Troubleshooting Manual, says that on a Manual Transmission car there is either a neutral switch or a clutch switch. However, the Transfer Case diagram only shows the Neutral Switch, so we will go with that.

As an aside, I'm sure there is a Clutch Switch on the car, but I can't find the diagram that shows it, which means I could be wrong, but I'm not going to crawl into the footwell to look.

Both the Neutral Switch and the Reverse Switch are on the LH side of the gearbox, roughly where the oil cooler pipes join the gearbox, and close enough together to be in the same Location picture in the ETM.

I'm pretty sure the view is from underneath.

The question here is, do your Reversing lights work?

The connectors to the switches are different, the Neutral switch connector being Rectangular, with a Black and a Brown wire.

The Reverse switch being Oval, with a Black and a Green wire.

Thoughts that occur:

Someone's put the switches in the wrong holes, (I don't know if the switches are the same or not).

Someone's forced the connectors on the wrong switches.

The Neutral switch has failed, so someone's joined the Brown wire to the Green wire, feeding both off the Reverse switch.

Over to you.

[David Sparkes]

For the ETM you need the Green Oval site

http://green-oval.com/joomla/index.php?opt...3&Itemid=29

Note you, or some mate, needs a few computing skills to turn the Rave CD2 Image file into a working CD. Keep the CD for backup, but once you have established it works, copy all the CD onto your hard drive, as the manuals work a lot faster from the hard drive instead of the CD.

The Rave CD is essential, the Microcat Parts file is optional, although in this instance it would give you a part number for the Neutral switch, which you can then Google on, or find on Rimmers site, or 'suggest' to your local Dealer to get the price you want. I have no idea what the price is. Note that parts numbers do change, which is why it's good to only suggest what it is when talking to your Dealer. They can limit parts listing by entering the car VIN, so you might be asked for that.

As your reverse lights work it indicates the switches haven't been put in the wrong holes.

The wiring may still have been patched across, as I suggested earlier.

I looked little further, in the workshop and overhaul manuals, that are also on that Rave CD.

The Reverse switch is in the gearbox extension housing.

The Neutral switch is in the Remote gear change housing.

As the names imply, the extension housing is part of the gearbox, so the reverse switch is operated off the gearbox internals. The gear change housing bolts on top of the gearbox, so the neutral swich operates off the mechanism connecting the gear lever to the gearbox itself. None of this is visible from above.

What this means is that , viewed from beneath, the switchs are almost vertically above one another. You will probably need a small torch and a long thin arm to reach up alongside the gearbox.

Note that on the 38A all electrical connectors mechanically latch together when properly joined. You need to find out which bit to press to release the latch before pulling them apart.

Cheers

[cipijoint]

I had similar problem.

My solution was :

I took off the borg transfer box ecu and throw away.

i conect 2 wires on the electrical motor under the car, near the transfer box that changes the low / neutral / normal range trasmission, and i coonect to battery power whenever I needs this operation.

When i change polarity of the 2 wires, the electric motor runs in one way, and viceversa.

so now i dont need any sensors and ****ty borg ecu.

[BlackFeather]

Hi all I’m new to the site, I saw this post and is now quite old, but I have the same problem, “””But""" the other day after reading this post I did what you did, engine running clutch down put it in reverse and I got low range ok, hmmmmmm? then I tried it as it should be and all was back to normal all working ok, then I tried it the next day hmmmm? and back with the same problem pushed the dash switch for low range and no low range (SELECT NEUTRAL LIGHT BACK ON) tried it back in reverse and still that didn't work this time, So I think it must be the switch on the gear box that when your in Neutral it must send a signal? so I think what I’m going to do is just get a new switch and give that a go as I think it must be sticking or I might just do both the Neural and the reversing light switches ?