I am new to this forum and just bought a 1964 3.8s and it needs some service.
I leve in the West Palm Beach area in Florida.

Anyone know of a good mechanic who works on these cars ?

Thank You.

 

welcome to the S type! The second rarest Jaguar ever made.

I know a good one in Orlando, familiar with the 3.8 engine, so if you can trailer it, it might be an alternative. Contact me by PM.

also you are invited to join the S type Register at the following address:

Jaguar 'S'-type Register

 

Thanks Jose,

Orlando is about 4 hours from me. I will pm you.

Steve

 

ok, if you come from WPB cutting through Highway 50 (I think it is Hwy. 50), it gets you closer to the I-4 exit and to the mechanic's shop.

 

What type of brake fluid do U use in your 3.8S ?

 

Any DOT 3 fluid is fine.

Ideally you might want to flush the old fluid out and refilling with new fluid.

 

The 3.8S sat for 2 years in a garage and the brakes are very soft. Some one has told me to use a castrol synthetic brake fluid? I will post some pics of the car when I get a chance . I just got the car last night delivered to my home in Florida from NJ.
Thank U .

 

Steve,
is that the ebay car selling last week or so? I think it looks very good, shouldn't need a lot of work. The price was good too.

my experience with synthetics is not good, back in the 1980's I used Silicone brake fluid in a Saab 900 and it was a disaster, so I only use DOT 3 brake fluid.

also synthetic engine oil is very thin and it leaks, Jaguars don't need any help in that department. I stick with Castrol mineral engine oil.

Check the front Brake Hoses, they tend to collapse from the inside-out. Look for any cracks or any deterioration, replace them; Since you probably do not know the history of the brake fluid, who knows what is in there, drain and flush the brake system, refill with fresh fluid. When you contact the mechanic, ask him what fluid to use, you don't have to take my word for it.

Here's a picture of my '65 S type.

 

Jose
Yes it was the car on ebay. I just got her home and she is in very good condition - she runs a little rough due to bad gas and sitting 2 1/2 years - but I will sort the little things out one at a time.Any other suggestions ? I will try to bleed the brakes dry and put new dot 3 brake fluid in her. I am still looking for a good Jag mechanic in my area and the Wheels across the Pond car show is April 4th 2015. there was a lot of jags at the show lasy year - I will inquire with some of the jag owners at the show and see what happens . Thanks Again. Is your car all original ? It looks superb.

 

yes, mine is all original except for a paint job in 1984 and the mods I made since 2004, paint is still like new. California Black Plate car. Almost pristine.

if your car has been sitting, gas turned to turpentine, etc., here's what I have done to mine:

order 2 new drain-bolt seals from SNG Barrat.

http://www.sngbarratt.com/ProductDet...b557cf8554&l=7

burn the gas in the tanks running the engine. Then get a gas-proof pan, put it under each tank. Remove the large drain bolt and drain whatever gas remains. Leave tanks open.

each drain bolt should have a mesh filter (see picture). Clean the mesh with gas and old toothbrush.

get a garden hose with good water pressure and spray inside the tanks through the filler mouth, and then spray from the bottom drain hole up; Allow to drain and dry overnight, or get a hair dryer or blower and blow the tanks dry from the top and the bottom openings.

replace the drain bolt rubber seals using a little Hylomar on the lower thread and the new seal. (very little is needed).

If you need the Factory Service Manual and Parts Manual, I have it in a .pdf file, send me
your e-mail and I'll send them.

 

Jose
What kind of power steering fluid do you use ?
Steve

 

Steve,
does your car have the original 1964 p/s setup? if yes, then it is a Ford system, use fluid for Ford, for example Mercon.

there is a filter inside the reservoir, you can find those at Ford tractor parts suppliers.

has your car been converted to a rack & pinion system? then it is a GM system, use fluid for GM systems.

 

What kind of power steering ? Stock ? Ford?

And see the hose missing at the front of the engine ? Whats that all about ?
Thanks

 

1) that is the Ford system fluid reservoir, same as mine.

2) the engine is missing the Air Filter assembly which mounts transversally on top of the engine, attached is a picture of mine.

3) the missing tupe is the engine breather hose which also connects to the air filter assembly, it needs a 90 degree elbow, a steel pipe, then another 90 degree elbow connected to the bottom of the air filter assembly.

 

Jose
Thanks again - for all your help.

Steve

 

you are welcome Steve.

also missing is the aluminum air intake. see first picture above.

however, you could use pancake filters on each carb and avoid going on a search for those parts considering the paper air filter element is no longer available.

come to the S type Register Forum where some members have already deleted the original air filter assembly and installed pancake filters.

 

Jose, you're giving him great advice.


On synthetics the key is NEVER change a car to synthetics if it has already used non-synthetics. Synthetics can be good only if the engine is brand new and you start with synthetics and stay with it all the time.


Sounds like Jose gave you a great source when you can travel further for service. In my opinion the stock 6 is very similar to the Datsun 6 so if you cannot find a mechanic close for more convenient normal service see if you can find a shop specializing in the early Datsun engines as they use the same SU multiple carbs. My Datsun mechanic as an example has no issues servicing the early Jag engines as they are very similar.


Great car...

 

Thank you primaz for the compliment, coming from someone who does great work like you do.

 

Just to add to Jose's advice.
I'm not to sure what you mean by bleed the brakes dry, but the method I use when flushing out the old fluid is to put a flexible line of some sort on one of the bleeders on any one of the calipers and have the line going into a glass jar so you can see the old fluid.
Have an assistant open the bleeder just enough to let the fluid flow (1/4 turn)


Push the brake pedal all the way to the floor and hold _ while you're holding have your assistant tighten up the bleeder. (don't over tighten)


Repeat this until the fluid reservoir is getting near empty, but not so much that you're going to suck air into the system.


Note the colour of the brake fluid in the jar, it will be yellow to amber colour and possibley quite dirty. Compare this to the new fluid. The new fluid will be clear in colour and clean.


Add new fluid to the reservoir to the full line and keep repeating this process until the brake fluid in the jar bleeds out clean brake fluid.


Do this for all four brakes and once all four calipers are done, you can be assured that all the nasty old brake fluid has left the master cylinder and vacuum booster.


Bleeding the whole system dry and having air enter the system is not the greatest things to do _ air locks can develop with in the master cylinder that was meant to bench bled before bolting it in the car.


The same goes for the vacuum booster.


If you don't have an assistant, you can do this yourself with a hand held vacuum bleeder. This is what I use with clear flexible line so you can see the colour of the fluid change from the old stuff to the new fresh stuff.


A trick that I use when using a vacuum bleeder is to totally remove the bleed nipples (one at a time of course). Have a rag handy to wrap around the area where the fluid is going to leak out of the caliper. Temporarily plug the hole with a nipple (these can had at an auto parts store).
If the bleed nipple is very rusty and unserviceable, there are stainless steel ones available that will also come with a new ball bearing.
If you have a bench wire wheel you can clean the old ones, but it can be difficult to clean out the inside of the nipple.


When it's time to put the bleed screw back in, apply Teflon tape to the threads ( a fair amount of it, being carful not to plug the hole at the bottom of the bleed screw) The Teflon tape will keep out water and dirt in the threads which will also make this job easier the next time. It also keeps air from entering the clear line when you use the vacuum pump. With out the Teflon tape, air bubbles will appear when the vacuum pump sucks fluid from the caliper. This is air is not a problem because it's simply being sucked past the threads when the bleeder is loose in the caliper.


But if you ever do some brake work and air does enter the system and you're looking for air coming out of the system, it can be impossible to tell if the air is coming from around the bleed screw threads or in the system. The Teflon tape looks after this little annoying problem when using a hand held vacuum bleeder.


You can also put a little "never sieze" on the thread over top of the Teflon tape, this will also help to keep out dirt _ remember when you're all done to put some nipple caps on the bleeders themselves to keep the dirt out _ no one ever seems to use these.


One more thing, if I remember correctly your S type has in-board disc brakes and they are hard to get at, so be prepared for this.
When you're back there, look for any oil getting on the rotors from the rear end.


This is similar to the one I have, very handy tool when it comes to bleeding breaks !

 

Hi there guys, especially Jose and SSS620,
I've just joined the forum and am starting to restore a 62 mk2 with 3.8 auto . it's pretty solid overall but has been standing in a barn for many years and the engine is seized. I've had some diesel fuel in the cylinders but no luck so I'm starting to remove the engine to rebuild it. any body have any tips? should I take the transmission out with the engine?
I'd be interested to speak to your Jag mechanic in Orlando as I'm only 20 miles away. Can you send me his contact details? Any help greatly appreciated