Hello! My name is Dave and I am the new owner of a 1986 Jaguar XJ6.

The Good

I purchased the car 3 weeks ago for a delivery and sales price of $4,300. It is outfitted with the original 4.2 Liter inline 6 cylinder engine with 74k miles on it. The exterior is in good condition with just a few minor rust marks at the bottom of the back window and front windshield. These marks were mostly taken care of by the previous owner and at the moment I'm not too worried about it. The car received new spark plugs and a new ignition coil within the last 3000 miles from the previous owner. The underbelly is pretty rust free which was a surprise, and overall, I'm happy with the exterior for now. I'll need to replace a few emblems and badges but nothing crazy. The interior is in very good condition despite a tear on the drivers seat. Everything else looks good. I put a new battery in the car and it fires up and drives beautifully. The paint is a wonderful Grosvenor Brown ( This may be changed to a brown/burgundy/red in the distant future).

The Bad

I took the jag into a shop and found a number of things. It looks like all 4 ball joints are cracked (lower and upper for both sides in the front). There is a large oil leak at the front of the engine. The right rear axle is leaking on to the brake rotors and pads. The transmission slips in reverse on occasion. While most of the electronics work, the Moon roof won't open, the AC is out, the right high beam is out, the left side marker is out, and the back windows only roll down from the master switch up front. The other leaks are: oil cooler lines at the filter housing, transmission oil cooler lines leaking by the radiator and some of the coolant hoses are spongy and oil soaked. Alot of deferred maintenance, it looks like I am the 5th owner.

I am really bullish on this car, I've wanted a jaguar since I was a kid and I'm elated to finally have one. This is serving as a weekend driver, and I intend to keep it for a long time. My goal is to make fixes and improvements to retain the originality of the car. However, I want to make changes if it makes sense financially. While my intention is not to sell the car, I would like to know that the money I'm putting into it is adding to its value should I decide to part with it. I'm 29 and time is my friend!

So just a few questions for you guys! Does anyone have any thoughts on the extent of the issues described? Where do we see the S3's value in 5,10,15 years? Did I buy it for a good price, or am I a dummy?! I really appreciate all of your feedback, good and bad. I'm new to Jaguars and classic restorations, so it will be a journey!

 

Well, looking at your photos of the car, you certainly are NOT a dummy to buy it as it looks in exceptional condtition and the mileage is very low for one of these. However, these cars always needed careful and regular checking and maintenance which it does not seem to have had. Your car is one of the last six-cylindered cars, so will have been built with all the improvements that came in from about 1982 onwards. The early Series 3s were pretty badly made (like the one I had !!!), but those of the mid-80s are pretty good.
What I suggest you do is prepare a list of items needing attention, then rank them in importance of fixing. You say the ball joints are cracked, but I assume you mean the rubber boots covering the ball joints. If so, and if you want to use the car straightaway, you need to replace these boots, and can buy these on the internet, if the ball joint itself is OK. If the ball joints need replacing, you can replace these yourself, and the parts are not expensive.

Here's a listing of your faults description with my comments: -
- All 4 ball joints are cracked (lower and upper for both sides in the front) - needs immediate attention
- There is a large oil leak at the front of the engine. - needs inspection - may be the front main oil seal
- The right rear axle is leaking on to the brake rotors and pads. Diff seal gone. not an easy job, best left to a Jaguar specialist unless you have a well-equpped garage
- The transmission slips in reverse on occasion. - check fluid level. Trans brake bands may need adjusting
- Moon roof won't open - leave it alone for now, and fix whenever
- The AC is out, - no refrigerant is the most likely reason. Get an air con specialist to service and check for leaks
- The right high beam is out,- either the bulb has failed or there is a break in the line
- The left side marker is out - as above
- The back windows only roll down from the master switch up front. - leave alone for now and fix whenever
- Oil cooler lines leaking at the filter housing - may need new lines, but check for tightness of connections
- Transmission oil cooler lines leaking by the radiator - as above.
- Coolant hoses are spongy and oil soaked. - replace as necessary, but make sure the replacements come from a reputable source.

Good Series 3s will be a future classic as they are the last of the line esrtablished by Sir William Lyons in 1967. I can't see you losing money provided you keep it for a few years. The ride quality is superb

Hopefully Doug Dwyer who has the V12 version will come in and comment.

 

if it doesn't leak it's not a Jaguar !

 

the right side high beam:
there is a 5-fuse fusebox in the engine compartment, next to the coolant expansion tank. It has a little plastic cap which can be black or clear.

4 of those fuses are 1 each for each headlight. Check them one at a time or roll them in place until the headlamp comes on.

the 5th fuse is for the auxiliary cooling fan located under the front bumper.

the left side front marker:
blown bulb most likely if the other is working. Remove the bulb from the right side and stick it in the left side to confirm.
If the bulb is blackened, it is blown.

sunroof does not open:
could be the sunroof motor, but those rarely if ever go bad. It could be the motor brushes too, there is a place that has the replacement brushes if you are handy replacing motor brushes, or contact David at www.everydayxj.com for a good used motor. If David does not have one, contact me.

 

My left high beam was out when I bought my '88, and it was just a loose connector behind the headlight housing. It looked fine at a glance but just needed a firm push to seat it properly.

Same story for your marker light, probably. Could be a burnt out bulb too; my right front marker burnt out on day 3 of my ownership.

With respect to the windows, it's probably just the switches that are oxidized and not making good contact. I had the exact same problem; rather, actually my rear windows stopped working entirely, from the front and back switches. The fact that the front switches work means that there's nothing wrong with the windows or motors themselves. Removing the rear switches and cleaning the insides will likely solve your problem. Removal entails popping the trim piece they're held in off, and pushing on the sides of the switches to release them out the top. Disassembly of the switches and cleaning the contacts inside is very easy; here's a YouTube video showing how:


Good luck and enjoy!

 

Hello,
You are gonna have SO much fun fixing all those incorrect items!! And while you're at it, you will find yourself Bonding with the car in a way no one but another Jag owner will understand, and you won't be able to explain it.

If they understand, no explanation is necessary. If they don't understand, no explanation is sufficient.

Welcome to our playroom from ElinorB.
(';')

 

LnrB said it best! You WILL have a "relationship" with your Jaguar.

 

the XJ-6 with sunroof up to 1987 came with a little hand crank tool to manually open and close the sunroof in case the sunroof motor failed.
The tool was placed in the glovebox or in the trunk.

If not in the glovebox, it might be in the trunk covered by the removable panel that has two black plastic screws holding the upholstered panel to the wall behind the rear seat.

in my car I found it strapped there to a square hole near the sunroof motor.

If not there either. you can see these cranks in my website: http://jagupgrades.webstarts.com
in the PARTS page.

you insert the crank to the pin at the bottom of the motor and turn it, just like a residential window crank, to open or close the sunroof.

And by the way, you should keep the Grosvenor Brown color. It is a rare color AND your car's paint looks excellent. Only Carl and me have Grosvenor Brown XJ. Everybody loves Chocolate.

 

My advice is to fix the safety related issues right away (how are the tires?). Then you can enjoy the car on weekends and fix the rest when time and money permit. If you try to tackle everything all at once you may get discouraged.

As Jose said, leaks are part of the game. As long as it's not coming out faster than you can pour it in. The old saying, if it's not dripping it must be empty. At a car show I saw a guy that had an old MG that had built a sheet metal tray under the engine and he would spread out a paper diaper down there to catch the oil so he wouldn't stain his driveway.

So, are the ball joints themselves cracked or just the rubber? If the metal, then fix ASAP; if the rubber, fix it when you get around to it.

Welcome to the Forum. We are here to help.

Jeff

 

Hey all!

Thanks for the feedback, it looks like just the boots are cracked, so I can imagine dirt, grime, and debris can get into the ball joint itself. I don't believe the ball joint itself is compromised. Likely just old boots. The metal seems to be fine but I wouldn't mind replacing at some point soon anyway. I just followed the instructions from the "living with a classic" jag owner and the window trick worked like a charm. The S3 window switches in the back are a bit different than the ones he described with the S1 and S2 but not so different and I got to where I needed to be. I jimmied it and was able to address the issue. The gunk/corrosion wasn't bad, however once that was cleared the back window rolled down perfectly from the switch in the backseat. Issue resolved!

To answer the tire question, tires are great, the previous owner put all season Firestones on there in the last 3000 miles and I'll keep them in the interim. What is the original tire make for the 86 XJ? Also, has anyone looked into increasing power or engine performance with the inline 6? I'm well aware of the "stately" acceleration and I'm totally fine with it, I'm just wondering if anyone has gotten a few more horses out of it?

Next task is to look into the side marker and high beam. This is a great forum, I really appreciate the help

 

The original tyre makes for the Series 3s varied over the years, but were usually all British or made in Britain, (Pirelli have a factory in Stoke-on-Trent, and there was a very large Goodyear factory in Wolverhampton, apart from the Dunlop works next to the Jaguar factory at Castle Bromwich. Size on my own 1980 was 205/70 VR15 and the V12s had 215/70 VR 15. The ratings are a bit different now. Tyres were also all-weather from the factory as far as I know and it was only in later years we got summer and winter tyres. I had Avons on my 1980. All tyres are the same size including the spare wheel, and not directional.

There isn't a huge amount you can do to get more power, and I would recommend against it anyway, as the engine won't really support it, I'm sure you don't want head gasket failure ! Keep it stock is my advice and enjoy the Magic Carpet ride.

PS: here's a UK supplier and their recommendations. You can't get the original Dunlop tyres anymore.
https://www.longstonetyres.co.uk/cla...aguar/xj6.html

 

when I bought my 1984 it had 5 Pirelli 215/70/VR15. which looked worn and original with the Kent wheels.

Since I don't trust Pirellis based on my bad experience with Pirelli Cinturatos in the 1970's, I went with Dunlop SP Sport 235/60/15.and XJ-40 Teardrop wheels.
Dunlop have been the best tires I ever had. They changed the character of the XJ and provided quietness and safety.

 

Welcome aboard. Great looking car Sure has a lot of challenges for a low miles car!!!

My car is Grosvenor Brown. The color was my initial attraction to it that lead to me buying it...
That and the buckskin interior what a contrast. Unique, Few if any orher "brown" cars roam the neighborhood...

Carl