Well, finally finished a project I started last fall but just didn't have the time to wrap up and then winter hit.....

One of the areas I thought the XJR could use some sprucing up was in the gauge package, specifically for the black surround gauges.

I had added bright trim rings to a Miata (MX-5) many years ago, and it was an easy afternoon job that really dressed up the gauges in my opinion.

So after some searching, I found a vendor that sold a set of rings for the XJ6:

JAGUAR XJ6 CHROME DIAL RINGS SPEEDO DASH CLOCKS SURROUNDS POLISHED ALU NEW - The Tuning Shop Ltd


The rings came nicely packaged with well written instructions, and were of very high quality. They are aluminum, and are feather light, but sturdy.

The four accessory gauge rings (battery/charge, coolant temp, oil, fuel) all fit perfectly. Both the speedometer and tachometer rings required some light filing around the perimeter of the gauge fascia speedo/tach openings to fit. Once popped in, and per the instructions "rolled" so the barely protruding rear lip curls and flares into the hole, the rings are securely fitted without glue. They aren't going anywhere once fully installed.

Since I wasn't sure how well these would work out until after it was all done, I took the fascia from a spare salvage instrument cluster and painted it black. That spare fascia was the hydro-dipped faux wood finish, so I painted with my favorite "go to" plastic compatible black paint.

Specialty Textured Paint For Plastic Spray Product Page

You may find it humorous, but this stuff is by far the best plastic paint I've used, and I've used/tested many including semi-professional paints by SEM, etc.

Of course, the color selection is pretty narrow (only black, green and sandstone... hey, this stuff is for painting outdoor furniture! ), but the black looks good with most typical black OEM treatments. The finish is a bit unusual though, as it is something of a "sanded" finish so it isn't perfect for every surface. But it worked out well for the repaint of my 1995 Buick Riviera dash, which you can see here with some more information/description:

Repainted dash and console black


But for the gauge fascia inside the binnacle, it looks fine to me and matches well. You can also see that in repainting the fascia, the "premium fuel only" lettering is gone, which for me is also a plus ....never liked looking at that

 

Photos follow.

I also had to replace the white "frame" that holds the gauges and lighting as a previous "mechanic" had overtightened the screws sometime in the past and broken the plastic. Good thing I had that salvage cluster, as it was an easy donation and swap to move everything over including the back programmable cover, odometer module and flexible circuit. I then reinforced the donor's mounting area with some JBWeld so it should be a bit sturdier in the future and hopefully not fail like the previous unit.

 

Here is the eBay listing for the rings as well:

JAGUAR XJ6 CHROME DIAL GAUGE RINGS SPEEDO CLOCKS SURROUNDS POLISHED ALUMINIUM | eBay

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Very smart looking upgrade, Al! They are going to sell more kits now thanks to you. I also like that you did away with that text, good thinking. Thanks for documenting.

 

what was the shipping cost from the UK?

 

They charged me the 6.99 pound (about $10.50US) they have in the auction as shipping cost to post it to the US. They are feather light.

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Here's a photo with the gauges backlit, not night but late afternoon:

 

I ordered a set and they arrived yesterday for the XJR. Slick! And beautifully made. Wow these should have been factory items... Can't wait to install them. Kudos to Tuning Shop for such an enthusiastic and passionate commitment to the model.

 

Looks great, Al. One question, though - was there any duty charges?

 

No, but I can't say what they may or may not be for Canada of course.

I've never had to pay any sort of duty charges for international shipping to me here in the USA.


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Here is a current set of rings on Ebay, the previous link is out of date

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/223247974...MakeTrack=true

 

I love these.
When I fitted them I took the opportunity to ‘upgrade’ to the wood effect dash.
The only think missing now is for them to make some for the oblong warning lights..... Some day....