Thanks again everyone. When I return back to New Zealand I will have a good look under the car as suggested. Will also follow the other suggestions and see what I can discover.
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The BW8 is virtually bullet proof, Robert - it can take whatever you throw at itâŚ
I think that in the early days the automatic boxes were configured/marked to conform to driversâ preference when using manuals. And driving off in second gear was common enough with manuals - to reduce manual shiftingâŚ
The arrangement of P/N/R/1/2/-/D is more logical - with 1 or 2 just limiting upshifts to those numbers. And of course reduce the chances of potentially disasterous selection of P and R at the wrong time - accentuated in various ways even with manuals�
Frank
xj6 85 Sov Europe (UK/NZ)
It is not!
PRND21 reduces shift shock as the transmission goes through neutral. It adds a bit of distance to reverse, which I missed into once. Worn gate.
PRND2D1L is nice because it reduces jerking by going into 2nd before 1st, the engine canât put out as much torque towards the wheels in 2nd, and slows down more gently
In both cases pull back the lever and you get a lower gear without fuss.
None of that matters to the OP who doesnât have a BW8 and just wants identification.
PND21R or RPND21 could also be seen as logical but neither work well! PNRD21?
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The quadrant labeling then seems an uncertain way of identifying the gearbox fitted, David - and he may have changed the box and kept the quadrantâŚ
I donât know when the safety feature of boxes not actually overrun downshifting at high speed was introduced to prevent excessive engine rpms . The GM400 is so described, but no sane driver downshift at high speed - though one should not be surprised if âforcedâ downshift does not happen at some speedsâŚ
Frank
xj6 85 Sov Europe (UK/NZ)