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As I drove the car to the shop last week, the ABS and TRAC FAIL lights came on. I figured that was a clear consequence of the metal shavings all up in the wheel speed sensor, and it was. The shop replaced a fouled tonering, threadlocked the shield bolts, then greased and reset the hub.
In addition, the injection harness appears to have finally been exorcised. Possibly miraculously/probably consequently, the transmission is no longer complaining and going into hard-shift semi-limp-home mode! The drivetrain is working great, feeling strong. The ride has always been pillowy, but the chassis still feels a little sloppy. It may be time for rear suspension bushings and spring donuts.
My to-do list now has 27 items remaining with 66 completed.
It is a work in progress. And you've made a lot of progress considering the size of the list. Are the new wheels mounted yet? Pictures please.
I have never made lists of what my car(s) need, but try to fix things as soon as they go wrong. That way I don't feel overwhelmed. Depending on the weighted importance, sometimes the "little" things have to wait. Beginning of this month I finally replaced the rear springs and shocks, as the shock knock was starting. What a difference in ride quality! It was not too difficult a job but I did take 3 casual days to do it. I used the "One side at a time A-frame drop method" which does not require a spring compressor. So that "little" job is done. It had been waiting for years.
Glad to hear things are looking up for you. Now go get some seat time behind that V12.
The plan is to get the spare tire replaced tomorrow and get a set of 17" Continentals on their way for possible mounting Friday. Then I want to burn away at least most of a tank on some country highways. Too bad the NOT CONT has been precluding use of the A2D-JAG97. I need to get the HU out and sent off to Southern Electronics and the fading clock out to Module Master for rebuild.
This car was always going to be a work in progress, a rolling restoration. There's too much stuff, all of which is old and either sun-baked or oil-soaked, to get it all right.
EDIT: Partial success at the tire shop. Got the spare replaced for just under $90. However, they wouldn't sell me 17" tires because their system says that an X305 needs minimum 98 load rated rubber, though curiously they didn't have the same insistence for the spare. Maddeningly, the Conti PureContact LS (96V rated) that I wanted comes up in their system as an adequate fitment for the '03 Super V8 that the wheels came from.
Have you resoldered the power pins on the ABS module yet? It seems all Jaguars of this vintage have this issue. If the trac/abs fail message comes back you might want to do this.
I haven't had to yet. The Jag Shop seemed to think the ABS power terminal solder was much more of a problem on X308s. Whatever they did extinguished the ABS/TRAC lights.
Took the car for a nice drive to Hood River Saturday. Even the previously intermittent exterior temp readout worked the whole ~130mi trip.
Over 70mph there was a soft, low, thrumming noise coming from the front that I had never noticed before (because this was the first extended freeway-speed drive I've taken it on). I think the airdam/undertray may need tightening.
I got a bug up my butt to revisit the best driving road I've yet come across in the state, OR-47 south of Clatskanie. Before I left, I ziptied the airdam to the undertray where the ears were missing.
After Highway 47, I drove out to Astoria. The thrumming noise above 70 was still there, but it appears to be related to engine load, not aero. Just intake harmonics, I s'pose.
My 17" summer tires arrived and I had them mounted to the Solars. I had BMW Portland do that; they are so close I was able to bring them [road wheel and tire assemblies] home via their hand truck. I just affixed them to the car tonight (and cleaned up the 20-spokes for storage).
I still suspect my rear ride height is a smidge low. Does it need new spring donuts?
Heck yeah John she looks great! More of your time will be spent admiring the look for a while! I think 17s are the right size for the car. Yours are slightly wider now too. Very nice fit. Less commonly seen original Jag Solars. It is one of the best wheels for this car. And in my opinion, that's a fact! You should stick to the road better now.
Your post is very timely... within some days I will be revealing a choice I've made regarding new 17 inch wheels for my car. Not Solars, not XJR. That will happen in another thread. One new test wheel/tire arriving in a few days.
New spring seats will give the rear a small boost. I also put in the later version used upgraded springs that have about 10 turns compared to 7 for the old ones. Even so the boost was small, maybe half an inch total. I now have a set of factory 6mm spacers to go in with the 3mm ones. It is part of the overall project I've undertaken to RE-STANCE the car, as you are doing. Don't worry, it will be in good taste. Mine. I'm not really interested in lowering either. Its low enough already.
What size are those tires? They fit those rims perfectly. Well done.
Last edited by SleekJag12; 04-19-2022 at 02:40 AM.
They are 235/50-17 as would have been standard issue on X308 Super V8.
My tire selection contemplation got documented in this thread, but as an addendum, I suppose the Michelin PSAS4 would have been an option if I had been willing to pay the $150 difference and wait for them to come off backorder. Next time, perhaps.
You have me waiting with bated breath for these novel wheels of yours.
I changed my brake pads over to Akebono years ago, they make very little light coloured dust and it tends not to adhere to the wheels. Much cleaner wheels is the result.
Pursuant to this suggestion, the copious brake dust on my nice "new" wheels in just a few hundred miles brought me to order a full set of Akebono pads.
The rears went on without any problem, besides those fiendish spring clips, but the fronts were too fat to fit! Even after removing the pad shims, which I always do anyway, and with the pistons pushed all the way in, the front pads just would not fit in the cavities, so I had to abrade them down by scraping them against the pavement. I only had about a pint of fluid to put through the system, so I wasn't able to achieve a complete flush, but a cursory bleeding went okay. Still, the pedal was pretty soft on the shakedown drive. Though I am assuming the extra travel is from not-super-square pad faces, I will buy more brake fluid and bleed again until the full system runs clear.
To level-up the disappointment, the transmission light came on again.
Next week I am adding thicker shims to the rear springs. I want a little more lift in addition to my new donuts and later model springs. Now that I did this job once, my confidence level and speed should be much higher. Those donuts do tend to settle in and lift is reduced.
I did it one side at a time without removing the A-frame; by unbolting the body mount bracket.
Kissing the red line is always exhilarating! That V12 really spins freely if you let it.
Next week I am adding thicker shims to the rear springs. I want a little more lift in addition to my new donuts and later model springs. Now that I did this job once, my confidence level and speed should be much higher. Those donuts do tend to settle in and lift is reduced.
I did it one side at a time without removing the A-frame; by unbolting the body mount bracket.
I just put in new rubber lower spring isolators. I guess the previous owner, or the shop he used, didn't bother to put them back in when replacing the shocks. I also added a set of 6mm packers in the upper spring pan to the existing 6mm ones. That's about the maximum you can put in there and still have enough rim to locate the spring.
I need to road test it before I can comment on whether it's high enough yet, or if I have to source the taller springs.
EDIT: This was halfway through the road test. Seems a bit too high, if anything, but this is uneven pavement.
Back home on flat concrete. Looks to be just right!
I just placed my order with Jagstickers. Unf, the fuel lid label is out of stock, and mine is trashed. However...
They can make reproduction VIN labels! My car has been without the large original in the door for my entire ownership. I photo-shopped a new one a few years ago, but couldn't print it/didn't pursue it/forgot about it. So I was very surprised and excited to find this as I finally remembered to check out the site.
I also need the "premium unleaded fuel only" label and they don't have it but it is probably more easily obtained. A short time ago I did paint the leaper on the gas cap with touch-up Flamenco as @Spud Maat did. It looks cool. Also cleaned the GUNK out of the drain fitting.
Also noticed an ugly sound coming from the left side (though TBH I couldn't hear it at all until rolling down the window). Sounded like, and was, a rattling dust shield, which Jaguar apparently calls a Disc Shield.
Today I went to wash the car at a self-serve place in preparation for tomorrow's Cars&Coffee (British day!). I was hearing a rhythmic grinding noise, in sync with vehicle speed, which would sometimes go away completely. This was the right front hub:
Another brake splash shield bolt had backed out. Maybe this is why my ABS and TRAC lights have been illuminating occasionally.
I don't have the tools to get the hub off. The Disc Shield is on there well enough to get to the car show in waft mode, but I still put a ziptie around it and the upright.
03-30-2022, 08:05 PM
Too bad the NOT CONT has been precluding use of the A2D-JAG97. I need to get the HU out and sent off to Southern Electronics and the fading clock out to Module Master for rebuild.
