Today I worked on the Jag for a little bit. I went to the Pick-n-Pull the other day for a second strike (I also went last weekend with a buddy and some of his friends to help them out, and I got a few items but realized I needed to go back solo with more time). There was a pretty nice Jag there that was a cash for clunkers victim, and I got a piece of brake line and some other bits. Both of the scrap Jags were Vanden Plas models, one even had decent door panel wood. You could tell the car had recently been waxed, had shiny paint, and new tune up parts-- like they had to get it running to kill it for the clunkers deal.

Our Jag appears to have run over something in a previous life, and it damaged the brake line, so I am banging out some floor dents and getting ready to install that new used brake line. I also repaired some wiring bits and am getting ready to replace brake rotors and repack the front wheels bearings. Then I think I will get it gassed up and try to start it for the first time in a few years since I first put it in the garage. I will disconnect the fuel line at the engine and pump some gas through till it runs clear. Then I will replace the fuel filter. I already dumped some fuel injector cleaner into the lines, and some Seafoam, hoping that will prevent the injectors from being stuck. I have cleaned out the gas tanks as best I could, there was about a half inch of sediment in each tank. The gauge sender floats were all scaled up and stuck. I cleaned them and they should work again. (A lot of this work has been done over time, not all just recently).

A request: if someone has a picture of the parking brake cable, where it passes below the driver's floor pan, I would like to see it. The cable apparently passes through a small piece that bolts up to the floor with two 5/16 bolts that are right under the front edge of the seat. This small piece got mangled and I would like to see what it is supposed to look like. I will probably have to go back to the junkyard and get one.

Pics show my single car workspace. I was working on replacing the brake booster at the time.

 

Excellent work.

You are lucky to have that space. I moved into a appt complex & have one OPEN space. Also have HOA, so it has to be kept clean. No over night jackstands.


I have a ok pic of that piece. I will go down in a few & take a better pic of it.

 

hope these help

 

Yes, my complex has garages available for additional rent. We made them a deal for two garages. I am glad to have the space to leave the project in progress. I feel your pain about limited space, I have been there.

Thanks for the pictures, I was surprised by the quick response! Yes it does help, looks like your triangular shield has been mangled a bit in the same area as mine. I wish my camera was working, I would share some more pics of mine. I had to get a new triangle piece since mine was missing, and I had to straighten the bolt boss that holds the parking brake linkage since it was knocked rearward. The brake line was somehow pushed all the way over to the little cable support clip, and the cable was not going through the clip. The clip itself was all bent up. Today I unbolted the clip and hammered it flat but it still needs to be replaced. Two of the four bolts involved are bent.

It is sad to see the rust there in those pictures. I am lucky mine did not come with much of that, the floor pans are clean. I am taking care to try and recoat any areas where the undercoating is flaking away with spray-on bedliner, to protect it for the future when it actually gets driven. Hopefully it will never see salty roads.

 

I have installed the new length of brake line, and the triangular shield. That old line was really mangled looking compared to the replacement. I bled a big bottle of brake fluid through the system, but the pedal is still mushy with the engine off, so there must still be some air somewhere. The other day my daughter pressed the brake pedal when the front rotor was out, and one of the caliper pistons popped out, so there is still probably air from that too. I have another big bottle of fluid to try again. I am using the gravity bleed technique since I am all by myself out there.

I cut the rivets holding the brake/fuel line clips with a chisel from the inside of the car. None of the local stores carry the right diameter of rivet, it seems they all carry 1/8" (too small) and 3/16" (too big). I had the Fastenal store order some 5/64" rivets that should work (SKU part number 0126174 for reference). These rivets should also work for the shield.

So for now my short list is bleed the brakes, get the clips and shield riveted on, replace front rotors, and fill with gas, then flush the fuel lines and prep for a test firing. Progress is slow due to cold weather and cold virus.

 

I suggest you get one of those auto-bleed kits because gravity bleeding does not really work well with these cars. Either the one that pressurises the reservoir, so you can bleed at the caliper end, OR the one at the caliper end with a one-way valve, so you just pump the brake pedal.

 

Thanks for the suggestion, Fraser. I was thinking about making one like the Motive bleeder (pressure type), there are some instructions on the net that a BMW guy posted.

I had good luck with the gravity method on my F-150 truck, but I don't want to waste a bunch of fluid.