The J - Gate

I do not know why the automotive press have such difficulty with the traditional “J-Gate” automatic gear shift layout that has been a part of every Jaguar for decades.

According to this month’s Car & Driver, the new Jaguar XK convertible and coupé both have done away with the “maladroit J-gate, an ‘80s attempt at manumatic shifting,” in favor of F-1 style paddles.

Note to the good folks at C & D: not everyone likes to use electronic paddles to shift, and some of us do prefer the action of a shifter in hand – as it should be.

By the way, the new automatic shift lever layout still looks like a J, unless, one manages to construe it as a backwards L.

To read the article, “Preview: 2007 Jaguar XK,” click on the following link: Car & Driver