Thanks for the votes of confidence gents.

As I said in an earlier post, everything the PO touched was done ham-fisted. After I discovered the wobbling pulley, I reached in to check the belt tension and my lord it was so tight I couldn't believe it!!! I backed it off to a normal level of tightness and then realized that the bottom bolt wasn't even tight. It was just vibrating around down there......lmao. This car is probably the worst case of running neglect I have ever seen in any vehicle ever! Usually, this type of neglect is accompanied with a dead car in a scrapyard.

I need to get the harmonic balancer off there quick as the place that rebuilds them looks like it closes for the month of June! Hopefully, they can turn it around quick. I will reserve judgement on the alternator until that gets fixed. I am going to mark and check the balancer to see if I indeed have any spin that would explain the low charging.

BTW - Don't know if I told you guys but I have another resource for draining my bank account and that is my 18 year old roadracing son. We just completed our first weekend on a new bike. This is a shot of him on track on his new MV Augusta F3 racing in Superstock. First weekend out with the bike and he scored a podium for 2nd and a 4th on his very first outing. Change of conversation I know but since a lot of you are Brits, I thought you would enjoy some bike racing action

 

That is very interesting, and very exciting no doubt!! Perhaps your user name would be associated with him, running on the razor's edge? A very bold, and talented young man indeed.

I know what you mean with previous owners' total lack of concern for their cars. This is where I am with VDP. Years and years of neglect. Problem is, I really didn't want a project car when I got it!

 

Oh come on!
Now the car is just being a total bitch.

Went out today to mark the balancer to see how much slipping was occurring and I bumped the start to line up the marks again. Now I have no starter again.......lol.
Don't know what has happened yet. Might have found a dead spot of the starter or the solenoid is acting up or something but now I have troubleshoot that again as well as finding out why my output shaft is leaking fluid.

I booked the car into my fav shop on Monday and they will remove the harmonic balancer for me. Then I will send it off to be rebuilt. Certainly hope this car appreciates what I am going through here.......

 

Found it!

Believe it or not it was the OTHER side of the ground strap to the engine.
Maybe that is what the deal was all along and somehow I had just wiggled it enough on the chassis side for it to sorta work. The strap end going to the starter motor wasn't even tight! I betcha it is more ham-fisted work on behalf of the PO!!

Anyway, car starts great, runs great and guess what? Since the ground is necessary for the alternator, my voltage is now steady and charging and my water temp gage works perfectly since it also gets its ground from the block! Super chuffed right now and just got back from a 30 minute drive. What an absolute boat to drive. The car floats along without hesitation. Temperature is rock steady just below N and the car shifts and gasses smoothly with no issues. AC is awesome too!

Wow, can't believe I am getting to the end.
Tomorrow I need to find out why that newly rebuilt output shaft is leaking gear oil and hopefully that won't be a big deal.

Two things I want to ask about:
There is a whine coming from the back of the car. I assume its the differential as that's all that's back there. Nope, not the fuel pump as the whine follows the drive speed. I doubt this is normal and to be honest, I don't even know how much gear oil is in the thing? I have been leaking but just drops and it only started yesterday on the first test drive so I doubt I emptied it out. I will be changing all the fluids regardless.

The wobbly harmonic balancer:
Here is the deal.
When I was looking into this and noticed the wobbling balancer, I checked the tension on the alternator / waterpump belt and it was hella tight. Way beyond what the belt needs. Since there is a rubber damper in the balancer, is it possible that the tension of the belt has simply pulled the assembly to one side for long enough that the rubber has distorted? I am thinking like a flat spot on a tire that's been left standing too long?
I ask because the alternator is purring perfectly and I am curious if I just run the car for a while, maybe the balancer will errr balance itself again? Kind of like running the flat spot out of the tire?

Just curious but if not, I am fully ready to have it rebuilt.

Bernie

 

That's all good news Bernie, thew simple fixes are the best!

Loved the pic of your son, I used to race sidecars in the distant past!

 

That's great!

They have sidecars sometimes with the org we race with WERA.
They are really fun to watch. They even let other racers have a go on the back. Too much for me though.....lol

Join his FB page if you want to keep an eye on him.



www.facebook.com/javelin814

 

I did promise pics so here they are!

A couple of things about what you are seeing.
The front seats are going to be completely redone. I haven't done it yet because its going to cost a chunk of change and I don't want to make that investment until I am sure that the car runs solid continuously.

The headliner turned out OK. The problem that happened was that they did not leave the material hanging around the sunroof. This material is supposed to wrap around the metalwork of the sunroof frame and they wrapped it back on the headliner. Its ok for now but the headliner has a few distortions in it anyway so again, if the car proves a solid runner, I will buy a better headliner and have it redone.

There is NOTHING in these pics that I have not stripped down, redone, tweeked, repaired, glued, you name it. Almost the entire interior has been redone. The carpets are cleaner than they look in the pics. I will also be putting in a nice set of mats for the car as well as tinting all the glass and having the wheels powder-coated or replaced.

Right now, I need to finish off the mechanical and also get some other things fixed like the radio which only produces sound from one speaker. Thanks to everyone for the help so far but even when the car is plated and on the road (next 2 weeks) I will still have a host of things I want to do. Figured it would be better to have it on the road showing me where she needs help.

Bernie

 

That's why I love these cars - grace, space and pace - but you can still work on them yourself

Mine's still in 'rolling restoration' mode - looks great, runs fine, but there's always the bits that can be better - cleaning seats when stuck at traffic lights, interior door grip while getting car washed, quick wipe with proshine when getting out or back in.

More serious bits to sort once finance allows (replacement rear arches purchased but need cash to get welding and painting done) but most other 'issues / glitches' sorted one way or another - I hate glitches that fix themselves while workin on other issue (airbag light, radio staying on etc - resolved but no idea why or how)

c

 

Fixed the leak from the output shaft.

The o-ring had slipped out of place and got pinched the first time I put it in. Had to rush to Jaguar who fortunately had one in stock! That was pretty cool.

Anyway, this time I was much more careful on the installation and everything looks good. Going to take my son out for lunch with it now to check and see that everything is running good.

Now I am just down to that harmonic balancer before I can officially say its on the road. Then all the crap begins.................lol.

Cheers
Bernie

 

Took a few more pics of the Jag post carwash.

It was nice to see the months of dirt and grime come off the car after sitting in the driveway. Couple of more mechanical things to resolve and then its off to the window tinter.

Living in Vegas, its imperative for the interior and the passengers to have tinted windows. With temps of 120 F coming, that leather (whats left) needs all the help it can get!

 

Hey Guys,

First a quick update on my work.

See the pics below of the state I found the harmonic balancer in. I guess that is one way to stop the belt squeeling or the alternator belt slipping

Anyway, it has been sent off to Dale for a rebuild after I spent some quality time grinding off all the welds and cleaning up the the V-grooves as best as I could. Dale will review its condition and make more repairs to it if needed.

Does anyone have a picture of the coolant hose that comes off the waterpump on this engine? While the system is drained (to remove balancer), I thought I would replace that hose as it shows a lot of corrosion around the connections. The car is at the shop right now waiting for the balancer so I can't go out and see the hose in question.

Also going to replace the belts of course and having them check the condition of the cam chain and guides while the balancer is off.

 

Really getting there now Bernie, thanks for the continual updates, keep em coming.

 

Haha,

Posting here helps me keep my sanity!

The harmonic balancer is gone to get rebuilt so now I have no Jag in my driveway for a while. Kinda nice to not have it sitting there. I would rather be out driving it.

I am on the hunt now for a radio head unit conversion kit. Seems as though the only place to get one is out of the UK so its gonna cost me. Not a big deal as it will end up having a decent stereo with an Ipod hookup so my wife can play her tunes as well as her CD's.

Once I get it on the road, it will be off to get the windows tinted and then the wheels are getting done. Going to have them powder-coated white to match the car but with the scalloped shaped cutouts left aluminum. Should look unique?

Cheers
Bernie

 

A little of everything:
https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...roject-100618/


Hose renewal" https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...enewal-101914/

 

Awesome pieces of documentation!

I think the hoses will be a project that will take some time. I think I will wait until I can get the rest of them and change everything out at the same time.

Wow, the problems getting the balancer off that you experienced is exactly why I took the car to the shop and have them remove it. They called me 2 hours after I dropped it off to say it was ready to pick up. They always remove the fans and radiator they said and hit it with and good impact gun and it comes right off. I simply could not see that as an easy job for me and decided it wasn't worth the aggravation. I will drop the balancer back off to them and that job will be history.

Bernie

 

Yeah, I was simply unprepared thinking that the starter would do it...and failing that I had a coupla impact wrenches....just didn't realize how sub-standard they were!
Wasn't sure which hose you meant as two attach to the water pump - one is a short, straight piece, but still a (bitter ex-wife) to change, while the other isn't so bad of a swap but has takeouts running all over the place! As best I recall, it was only 2-3 days between ordering the hoses and them showing up on the doorstep - Some mix of Rock Auto and Amazon, I think.

 

Hey Lads,

Well I got the harmonic balancer completed and its made quite a difference in smoothing out the idle of the engine. I thought the car was just running a bit rough but now with the balancer balanced the car idles much smoother. Also replaced the belts, did transmission service, replaced fuel filter (extremely dirty), did oil change, air filter, etc. Felt really good about how the car was running.

I did hot 2 more snags though. The rear end started to whine again and I think its the passenger side stub axle. The boys who did the final service said that there was a small leak from the axle on that side and also commented that the passenger side stub axle is usually the one that starts making noise first. Without too much thought, I ordered another rebuild kit and will have that done tomorrow.

One thing I noticed while driving it was that the throttle seems to hang and I wondered if anyone else has experienced this? You are driving along and then lift your foot off the throttle and the car doesn't respond right away. It takes a second to feel the engine brake. So for whatever reason, there is a pause between the time you lift your foot off the throttle and feeling the engine back torque. Has anyone else experienced this?

So now we have plates on the car, its been smogged with flying colors and without too much more to worry about, the car will be on the road by the end of the day tomorrow. Will post pics of the happy wife when she takes it out for the very first time!

Can't thank all of you enough for following me on this journey. The car has been a piece of work and value wise, it probably wasn't worth it but I learned so much about these cars along the way and now that it is almost back on the road, I feel proud to have saved it from a certain doom with the PO.

Cheers to all of you!

Bernie

 

Hey All,

Haven't visited in a while as the Birthday Jag has been doing great! After I got through the initial phase of putting it back on the road, I would relax a bit and start to pick and choose my jobs. Here is what I have done since putting it back on the road:

- Replaced the front bumper cover (including ambient air temp sensor which now has my HVAC system code free
- Replaced the stock stereo with aftermarket unit including the proper surround for the unit bought from the UK
- Rebuilt the stock motorized antenna. I bough the telescoping rod assembly and completely dismantled, cleaned and repaired the original unit. Turns out it was very dirty but still worked
- Replaced the 3rd brake light in the rear window. Good tip to putting a new on on is to use 3M, VHB tape (very high bond). You can find this stuff on ebay and its a godsend for a lot of uses where you might not want to use glue.
- Replaced all seats with very good condition set out of a VDP. Nice "almost matching" leather with no tears. Incredibly I got all the seats locally for 450.00 complete!
- Installed some nice floor mats
- Repaired the expired speakers in the door panels.
- Replaced interior rearview mirror

Proud to say that EVERY system on the car works now with the exception of the seat memory. Haven't tackled that one yet but I am getting there. I also just ordered a 315mHz key fob as we did not have one. That should arrive next week sometime.

I do have some larger scale work on the horizon that I am both looking forward to but dreading at the same time. I am going to have to replace the rear differential as the one on the car is whining and I have already replaced both output shafts and serviced the unit. There were metallic particles in the oil that came out so I am sure the diff is past its usefulness.

As I was giving the car an oil change yesterday I noticed that the lower control arm bushings are looking pretty worn. Looking at picking up a kit to replace all the wear parts up front. Ball joints, bushings etc. I think my shocks are all still in good shape though which is good for now.

Also will be needing to refurb the wheels and put new tires on the car in the near future. Going to hold on until I get all the suspension parts done so that I can have a proper alignment done after and then new rubber.

I read a post on the forum about someone who had experienced an issue that I have noticed and that is the car running on a bit after I release the gas pedal. He said the throttle body needed cleaning and after that it didn't do it anymore so I am going to clean my throttle body too in hops that this has been the cause of the hang on my throttle. Pedal works fine with no resistance.

Car has been running great and the wife is very happy with it.
Started a new project for my 16 year old in the form of a 1999 VW New Beetle. Not nearly as poor a condition as the Jag was when I got it but alas, another brand to learn and understand. I will post some pics of the Jag when it stops raining to showcase some of the things I have done.

Hope everyone is having a great new year so far!

Bernie

 

Hey Lads,

Trying to find a replacement shifter trim piece for the Jag.
It is the plastic surround piece that holds the S/N switch.

Seems as though some of the black plastic parts on these cars get really brittle over time and mine broke trying to reinstall it.

My question is will other model year rings work? I see a couple on ebay that look like they are the same but the switches have three positions instead of two. Wondering if its just the switch that is different or is the ring different too?

TIA!

Bernie

 

Hey Bernie, greetings from just down the 15 in San Diego!

Congratulations on all your successes with your Jag, and on your totally compelling thread, you're an inspiration!

Anyway, to your question: From all the XJ models I've seen, I can assure you that the ring part you seek will NOT work from any MY after 1997, when it changed to XJ8 and the interior trims all became "softened" with more rounded shapes. What I've found though is that it appears the XJ40 has exactly the same center console and related parts and pieces around the j-gate for the shifter. This is confirmed by pics in the following links:

Sport Mode Switch-Automatic Gearbox - Parts For XJ6 (2.9, 3.2, 3.6, 4.0) from (V)500001 to (V)667828 | Jaguar Heritage Parts UK

Performance Mode Switch - Parts For XJ Series from (V)720125 to (V)812255 (X300) | Jaguar Heritage Parts UK

So hopefully that should allow you to broaden your search.

Just FYI, I'm not sure if it's much use to you, but there's a junkyard advertising here on craigslist claiming to have 60+ Jags, they're just north of LA in the Sun Valley/Burbank kind of area, you could always give 'em a buzz.

1996 JAGUAR XJ6 SEDAN *PARTING OUT* EXCEPTIONALLY CLEAN!!

Good luck mate!