1996 4.6 HSE Auto with some issues

Hi everyone, sorry to dive right in with my problems on my first post, but i've been dropped in at the deep end by inheriting the above vehicle from a family member.

Its a P38 4.6 auto HSE with around 166k miles, runs very well, starts nicely, no overheating and I took it on a long 200 mile journey yesterday which really gave me a feel for the car on different roads.

Good bits:

engine - as above, very strong and pulls well
suspension - goes up and down as it should
Transmission - selects all high / low range gears as required (however see below)
Electrics - all working including climate control

Bad bits:

When braking, the car feels like is juddering and is much more violent at higher motorways speeds. I suspect that the discs and pads need changing all round. I have read that it can also be caused by wheel balance issues or incorrect tyre pressure.

On motorway the car drifts around a bit and needs almost constant correction. I think this is maybe the track rod ends that need updating and possibly the steering box needs adjusting.

Last, I get an error that reads 'select neutral'. As mentioned, the car goes into high low without any problems, so I suspect their is a sensor or switch at fault.

Really I would like someone who knows exactly what they are doing to come and have a look and give me an honest opinion.

Is there anyone on here who lives in the Maidstone (kent) area who would lend me a few hours one evening or weekend for £50 plus plenty of tea and biscuits in exchange for some technical knowledge and some advice on how to proceed?

Thanks in advance
Ben

First of all welcome to the site

:welcome2:

1. Could be all you say but if you don't get any vibration during normal running, it's unlikely to be wheel balance. Warped discs are the favourite. Incorrect tyre pressures would get it to pull to one side.
2. Could be all that you say again but they are noted for it, especially on motorways where they try to follow the ruts in lanes 1 and 2. They're also noted for being quite tyre concious. Some makes are much worse than others. However, with yiour mileage, it's quite possible you have wear in any of the steering components.
3. Not sure here. Usually, if you get that message, you can't select low but I'm thinking of the manual gearbox versions. With the auto, you have to go to neutral to be able to move the stick over. Does the message stay up or does it come and go?

Good luck with it. It'll be very mucjh a love/hate relationship at times

Derek, thanks for your reply.

Regarding point 3 - the error message 'select neutral' comes up when you start the car. It appears in all selections including high / low ratios except when you actually place it in either of the 'N' positions.

When you move it into the low ratio gears you hear a motor sound and a faint clunk. On the dash 'L' is displayed. I tried going down a steep hill with it in low with the hill incline selector and iy felt like it was being held back in a controlled way. Same hill but in high ratio in 'D' and the car rolled down and built up speed quckly whereas 'low' felt like it was being let down slowly... Is this right?

tackleberry7 said:

Derek, thanks for your reply.

Regarding point 3 - the error message 'select neutral' comes up when you start the car. It appears in all selections including high / low ratios except when you actually place it in either of the 'N' positions.

When you move it into the low ratio gears you hear a motor sound and a faint clunk. On the dash 'L' is displayed. I tried going down a steep hill with it in low with the hill incline selector and iy felt like it was being held back in a controlled way. Same hill but in high ratio in 'D' and the car rolled down and built up speed quckly whereas 'low' felt like it was being let down slowly... Is this right?

Click to expand...

Yep, it all seem to be working as it should. It shifts between high and low using a motor which you can hear. Your description of going down the hil is exactly right so I don't think you have anything to worry about other than the irritation of the 'select neutral' message on the dash. That sounds more like a confused BeCM. Maybe Irish Rover or someone more familiar with the inner workings of them will be able to elaborate some more.