Thank you to the several knowledgeable XKE enthusiasts who contributed to the solution.
After months of adjustments, I took the car to my local restoration shop. Fortunately, one of the employees had been a long-time employee of a Jaguar restoration shop, and knew exactly how to solve the problem.
In my car, the center rod was black, bent, and upside down. No telling why or who made the change since the car is 41 years old. Anyhow, a replacement chrome rod from XKS dot com (right part), two total hours of labor, and it is fixed. The square-hollow gasket in the front edge of the top mates perfectly with the top of the windshield, compresses an appropriate amount, and completely seals the top. No more leaks !!!!!!
It looks and operates like show room new.
Submitted by SE98-32482CJ on Wed, 06/27/2012 - 14:09
Robert glad your problem is solved. i will say that the "black" center rod was correct for your year--federal regs. "anti-dazzel" took anything shiny from in front of the drivers view. Squiters, wiper bezzels and even the bonnet vent should all be muted or brushed finish. Even the spokes on your steering wheel are not polished on your car.