It looks much better in the carpark than the barn.
I have read this thread with interest since I joined the forum, nice to see it on the road.

 

Well, thanks. It still needs a good cleaning though. I am hoping that step by step I will get it back in very good condition.

In response to Aussie. I connected the exhaust using flexible connecting part. That is so straightforward. the middle damper/cat part was not used. Doesn't fit, unless you mount is super low.

Concerning the xjs engine mounts. I only used the parts attached to the subframe. Just heard the other day I was supposed to use the engine brackets as well. then it sould be a straight fit. Still, the engine sits nice in my case, so I will not take it out.

But now, a new update. I already mentioned that the interior was next. the following picture should make clear why I neede to do some work on the interior.



obviously there were one or two things that needed to be hidden from view, and some parts had to be put back.

I startet with the centre fusebox. this fits nicely under the arm rest storage room:



Just like original

this means I also put back the centre console. And I also put back the wood of the dash, which has just had a fresh paint:


the dash need a bit of sanding and a fresh layer of paint, but the rest is nice. (on camera, the dash seems worse than in reality though)


I am genuinely pleased with the way the clocks turned out. (no, I am not revving its **** off, the indicator just turns on when handling the thing. applying a current puts it back to 0.



And for fun. the view from behind the steering wheel

 

Still nice work :-)


I would love to do all wiring routing.


Best Stig

 

I didn't realize xj40's had that many modules in them! looks like I have a few nights of fun picking the loom apart on the garage floor adding and removing all the bits and pieces. Ill probably try and build the xj40's trip computer and odometer into the series 3 trip unit and build the cruise control in too.

One question that dawned on me recently was the immobilizer / security system fitted to later xj40's. What year was your xj40 and did it have a transponder key? Did you have to do anything to the ecu side of things to get it going? Im not sure if the car im getting had a transponder system or not and the whole barrel has already been taken anyway.

Yours is looking great and inspiring me ever more,

Thanks,
Jay

 

There are a few important modules. the 4 liter has, obviously, the engine control module. Then there is the gearbox control module. And the central microprocessor. Now the central microprocessor doesnt do very much when you only use the engine and box, but many wires go through it. I believe in theory you could take it out, but that requires more work than findin a place for it and just using it. I also kept the starter relay, and then there are a few relays under the bonnet and a two in the center console.

wiring indeed is quite a job. Not really difficult, but just a lot. thats what makes it such a job. Loads of wire can be taken out though. Lights, electrics to the doors, heating etc.

I had a 1994 car. No immobiliser issues. I have been looking through the wiring diagrams so many times now, that I can assure you there is no immobiliser. I did use the xj40 key though. For two reasons. It works better than the original one. Just turnes smoother. second is that it earths a couple of relays, rather than powering them as does the S1 key. this way I could keep more wiring intact. The more you cut and reconnect, the higher the chance of failure later on. The original key is replaced by a button to power some stuff that would usually be powered thourh the key.

There was an aftermarket alarm installed, which got me fooled for a while, but that was not really integrated in the electrics of the car so could also be easily taken out, once I found out which wires it were.

But now up to todays work. This morning I woke up and though it would be good to pick up procrastination. I hadn't done it for a while, so the time was right.

that meant, all of a sudden there was time to work on the jag. First, I changed the oil pressure sender with the original one from my S1. It's the same thread, so simple switch. this means that the original oil pressure meter in the dash is working again! 1 down, 3 more gauges to go.

then I turned to the exhaust manifold. the rear one was cracked, and I already had another one. the nuts to the cilinder head were slightly over hand tight. I was already starting to smile, cause this was gonna be an easy replacement. Only the two bolts for the connection to the downpipe left. 1 of them came of easy. The other one turned out to be the reason why the previous owner didn't replace the manifold, but rather fixed it with exhaust paste. It took me about two hours i guess to get the single nut off.

But hey, here it was!




Put the new one on, thoroughly cleared all threads and greased them. Return was easy. Then my back hurt so bad, from standing over the engine for two hours straight, I took up a simple small job for a break. from this (its a part from the dash)


to this



now up to the coolant temp. indicator.

 

Out of interest what happens if you unplug the central processor. It looks like the tcu and ecu only have a few 'serial links' to it which I would imagine are for sending info the the diagnostics and trip computer ect rather then keeping the car running. they probably also send the info for the dash here too? Or is the dash, naimly spedo, a separate unit. I could live with using the 'microprocessor' or cpu or what ever it is if its needed to run the spedo but if all it does is onboard diagnostics and maybe the starter relay that is easy to bypass ide rather get rid of it. The 'serial links' worry me tho becuase maybe if they dont all talk to each other the thing wont start / run.

Is the spedo working now?

Sorry for my constant rambling / questions but its all helping me clear things up.

Im open to any ones input on these things too if ive misunderstood something or whatever.

Thanks,
Jay

 

Thats the point. When I unplug the central processor, it doesn't work. After all, its just a small flat box, and there is plenty of room in a big jag. It is far easier to keep it in place, and find a spot for it, and usign original connectors, than taking the wires apart and reconnect them, and hope it works. Maybe one day I will have loads of time, and focus on getting rid of the processor, if I think it should be doable. For now, I have a zillion other things to do.

My guess is that the speedo works, but I havent had a chance to drive the car yet. So cant be sure yet.

 

a simple way i did for a speedometer, was get a electronic kit,GPS very accurate, off Ebay.

mounted it in front of factory gage, i like it , night lights, variable color,depending on speed, turns red when GPS picks up an official speed zone.

this new hi-tech stuff is great!

 

Well, that is a solution indeed. But I have the gauges in place now, and the signal from the engine. So I will give that a try first. I still havent driven the car yet, so no clue whether the speedometer works or not.

Hopefully this week.

 

Okay, so it's been a while. Life and stuff keeping me busy.

Today I got one step further. The J-gate is quite big, compared to the original gear selector. So the center console required some adjustment. the pictures will speak for themselves. Seems nothing big, but because of all the curves and angles still quite a job. Next to do is find some varnish that will make it look the same as the dash, including the 'root' structure (literal translation from the dutch term for the structure of the dash). On the pics its just loosely in place, not tightened yet so there are a few small gaps. The screws at front, to the radio panel will be covered as well. holes in radiator panel are for heater control.

 

Its starting to take shape inside looking good


Cheers Ray

 

Keep us posted, looking good so far.

 

WOW what a difference of a couple months make!!
Last time I saw photos of your interior it looked like a bomb went off!
(';')

 

thanks. It's indeed really nice to get the car looking better every hour I spend on it. although progress is slow, it's getting there.

 

It's been a while, but there has been some progress lately.

first, the center console was painted to match the interior:


Then there were some wires that needed to be hidden from view in the passenger foot well.

The wood is already wrapped in matching blue leather, just like original. no picture however.

Next thing was installing lpg. Needed to take of inlet manifold to place lpg nozzles.


that's it so far. More progress this week hopefully.

 

Hi Wilfred, that car is coming along great. Love what you've done with the centre console and covering the modules in the foot well.

 

Safe to say, nothing scares this guy! I would've been happy to have that motor and trans in and running at all! He just dives right in to an lpg conversion too!
Good job Wilfred, I'm totally impressed.
Bill

 

Well, it’s been a while, and I am almost finished with the technical upgrades on the jag. Last week I installed an lpg kit, which works very nice. The car starts on petrol, and when the coolant reaches 50 degrees celcius, it automatically switches to lpg. This upgrades also meant that working on the car now looks like this:



Loving modern technology. No more dirty hands :-)

There are a few things left now. The spedometer and rev counter still dont work. I found out that the ECU provides a signal consisting of pulses. The faster you go, the higher the frequentie. I connected these wires straight to the dials. Unfortunately, the signal has to be converted to a voltage, ranging from 0-12 volt. Then it will work. So now I am searching for something that can do that.

Then all is finished.

Last week I took the car for a 200 kilometer drive. It’s really amazing to drive. Even the missus cant help to floor it every now and then just to feel yourself being pushed into the seats!
There is a annoying resonance at 90kph, or somewhere around that speed, and also at very low speed. I think the tires have a flat side, because the car has been standing for 10 years in the same spot before I bought it. So I will have to swap them. All in all, I am very pleased I got this far, and I love to drive the machine!

 

Wilfred,
Didn't the gauges come out of the same car as the engine and ecu? Shouldn't they already work together? Was there another interface between them in the original car?
Bill

 

Well, yes the gauges are from the donor car. But there was a whole lot more electronics behind the gauges, which I didn't use and which I will never be able to fit in the S1. There was a circuit board of about 15x30 cm. no way I can fit this in the S1 dash. I am assuming there are some units on the board that convert the frequentie signal into a voltage signal.

But i should be able to find a unit that does only this, and I still have the circuit board which means i only have to find out what part i need. :-)

Well keep you updated.