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Back in the day you could go into almost any Car Accessory Shop and they would make you Brake Pipes while you waited
Sadly those days are now gone, as no one wants to do anything that might otherwise contravene Health and Safety
And so I guess they now leave that to you, where as an aside I remember paying an 'eye watering sum' for a Set of Brake and Clutch Pipes for an MGB that I could now make with my Gadget for just the price of the pipe
Although I don't mind admitting that it takes a fair bit of practice, before they are good enough to pass (my own Self imposed) Quality Control, though like refurbing Calipers I'm gradually getting better
Having said that the Calipers on the Car that I have taken out of 'Mothballs' were I feel completely Shot away and I could never have got them off without the Heat from my Plasma Cutter, which is so precise that everything within about an inch of the Flame stays Cool (or Coolish relatively Speaking!)
Don't try this with a 'Non Pilot Arc' Plasma Cutter, as this could and probably would Fry all the Diodes in your Alternator!
So Yes! you were (ALL) right and I was Wrong! New Calipers were the order of the day on this occasion and I'm never afraid to change my mind when Confronted with Logic!
So big Thanks to the GF and to the Jaguar Gods, for being able to find me some at a Bargain Price! for not much more than the Cost of a Rebuild Kit!
This was without doubt the hardest job I've ever had to do on any Car!
Even taking the Cage out and rebuilding it, was a 'Walk in the Park' Compared to this, as it was either too Hot to Work or else it was raining and so it would have seemed so very easy to give up
But if you own and sometimes even drive! your XJS you either need a Big Wallet to pay someone else to do it for you, or else prepare yourself for Pain and Suffering, where all those who admire your Car and only wish the had one, will never know what you had to go through!
So to put things in perspective as to just how bad it was, I fell asleep on the Settee on Thursday Night at 8o/c after our evening meal and didn't wake up until 9am Friday Morning, where I didn't even know what day it was
And so I guess that maybe it was the relief of Stress at actually managing to finish the Job I started, that went wrong so many more times that I would care to remember
Greg@LnrB@NBCat@Jacobra@Paul(ptjs) Thanks for your Support Guys and Girls you helped to keep me going even when I felt like giving up, although giving up is one thing that I don't know how to do!
OB, I was always told you never fail. Until you quit trying! Quitting is one of those words I know how to spell, but don't have a clue what it means. Kudos on another Job well done!
We reap what we sow. The way I see it, the Jaguar Gods gave you a good slap on the wrist for not driving the car for so long. They decided to teach you a lesson by making those bolts so stiff. But because you persevered and showed you really did care about the car, they rewarded you by letting you find some cheap calipers and fit them easily!
So, you've been warned, drive the cars! Each journey you make is a homage to the guys on the production line from 1975-1996 and earns you some maintenance goodwill from the Gods of Browns Lane! And when you take it to shows in the eain, as i will do tomorrow, you get bonus points!
Cheers! good advice as always and also 'Perfect Timing!'
First of all the problem: My XJS Celebration Convertible is fitted with 16 in 225 X 60 X 16 Pirelli P4000 which they don't make anymore
Two of these are Good and Two keep losing Air and on one of these the Tread is very Bad and as previously mentioned maybe more than once, I am intending to fit New Tyres all round 'Ball Park Figure' £250-£300 Budget/Midrange depending
But once I get the New Brake Pads and Windscreen Wipers, which the GF will hopefully pick up on Monday, my priority is going to be getting her through the MOT where as much as I would like to, I cannot take to my 'Garage of Choice' because they are too far away
As it may not be a good idea with no TAX or MOT as even if I'm allowed to for a Pre-Booked MOT I think that it would make me a bit of a sitting duck for the BIB if you know what I mean
I am also reluctant to Splash out on New Tyres until She has passed the MOT although I will do so afterwards
As it so happens, I have 4 X 15 inch Lattice Alloy Wheels and Tyres all with good treads in the Garage, so can you see any problems 'Fitting Wise' if I were to put them on my 1995 XJS 4.0L where I would imagine the Speedo might read a bit under what is shown on the Dial
If they would fit I would keep them on for a Few Shake down runs, just to iron out any potential problems that may occur
As then all the Celebration Wheels would be off to have New Tyres put on Does that Sound like a Plan?
Good Job, Alex, and a hearty Congratulations from the Left Coast of the Left Side of the Pond!
I have always heard, "DO NOT LET A CAR SIT UNDRIVEN AS THEY ROT WHEN YER NOT LOOKING!"
Your experience here has been an object lesson in that.
I don't have even a fraction of your patience nor your tenacity. Faced with a similar situation I would have contacted my Junk Yard friend Alfredo to get on his "Auto Recyclers' Network" and find me a good pair of front hubs and I would have changed the lot.
I can only imagine how incredibly satisfying it is to have finally Prevailed!
Now, after all that, she had better sell for a Good Price which makes all this pain, suffering, blood, sweat and tears worth the experience.
And, Anything you post after this will seem Dull and Boring by comparison.
My life is too Chaotic for anything dull and boring, where as a matter of fact I am only just getting into the good Stuff now, having just been to Hell and back with those Calipers
Got the Brake Pads and the Windscreen Wipers but not sure what the Backing Plates on the Back of the Brake Pads are for or whether to take them off or leave them on (does anyone know?)
So putting on the Brake Pads and the Windscreen Wipers is the Job for today and hopefully a little Test Drive around 'Orange Blossom Towers'
What are these Backing Plates for? Take them Off or Leave them On?
Anti-squeal plates. Leave them on and smear with copperease (and the pad edges top and bottom). But if you have fitting problems, don't worry too much about taking them off.
The Pads went in OK but I do seem to remember I had a problem with backing Pads like these some years ago on my XJS V12 where they got jammed in the Calipers although I've left them on for the time being to see what happens
But what was mega annoying was that the New Fitting Kit with the Pins and Anti Rattle Springs, had an Anti Rattle Spring Missing!
It looks like the Poly Bag they came in had been hastily torn open to 'Ironically Rob Peter to Pay Paul'
GF didn't notice as they were in the same parcel as the Calipers and of course I can't say anything that might 'Rock the Boat' for obvious reasons, so that's the Test Drive out of the Window To-day
Maybe I can find a good S/H one in my box of Brake Parts as a Temporary measure
While we're on here it did cross my mind to get a Set of 20 Spoke 16in Alloy Wheels and Tyres off an X300 from a Breaker near me but would they look odd on an XJS without the big Center Caps or even with the big Center Caps
I thought it might be a good selling point to give her that 6 Litre 'Look A Like Look' (or maybe I'm wrong?)
Don't tell me you threw away the old anti-rattle springs until everything was working again?! Schoolboy error!
Personally, I wouldn't fit the x300 wheels (although I would fit genuine XJS 20-spokes). The reason being that if you're selling it, most amateurs who know what a Celebration is, and will expect it to have the Aerosport wheels. And those who really want the 20-spokes will know the difference between the saloon and the XJS variants. So I'd stick with the standard wheels.
Ha! No! of course I didn't throw them away but having got this far into the game and spent a 'Shed Load' of Money (even if it was only a very small shed)
I was overcome with OCD and wanted it all 'Bright and Shiny' just as I'm sure you would too
Just out of interest where can I get those 'Pukka' XJS 20 Spoke Wheels, as who knows I might treat myself and put some on my other Car 50 Shades although I would prefer the 15 inch ones if they do them
Of course, although if push comes to shove, you could perhaps wire-wheel the original back to bare metal and metal polish it up to sparkling!
As a salutory tale of not rushing something when the light is fading, today I had a squealing noise from my OSR wheel when braking in my C-class Merc whose brake pads I changed 2 weeks ago,
I took off the wheel and found the top edge of the anti-rattle spring tucked under the caliper pad recess and starting to tuck in between the disc and the pad!
How did I manage to do that? Well I guess that inexplicably I must have somehow positioned the top edge of the blade under the the caliper pad recess rather than outside it!
So it just goes to show that incompetence is not the privilege of the inexperienced! At least it only cost me 10 mins of my life to fix it, and not a mistake I'll make again!
As regards the 20-spoke XJS wheel they are really thin on the ground and make over twice as much as the x300 wheels. I can find very few on the internet - a refurb single wheel for $240, a painted one for $430 and a set of refurbed ones for 1900 Euros! They do come up occasionally as a set but sell very quickly. If you see a set, buy them! For your pre-facelift, I would put on a nice set of 16" lattice as it will then still look original
Those Mercedes Calipers are a PIA as is replacing the Fuel Pump
I would have put the Old Rattle Spring back but I've got the GF on the Case, so maybe I won't have to, although if nothing else it proves the Chaos Theory
As once upon a Time, in a Parts Store far,far away, a Mechanic was fitting New Brake Pads to a Jag, when suddenly his Screwdriver Slipped and then the Anti Rattle Spring Flipped and flew into the Air, where Sadly it was never seen again!
So said Mechanic went over to the Parts Bin and took one out of the packet without reporting the loss, while at the same time being Blissfully unaware of the problems that this was going to cause yours truly sometime furtherdown the line
As the one thing I really don't want to do, is keep on lifting those Heavy Jag wheels on and off, even with my Special Wheel Lifting Device, especially as I'm also buying New Tyres and also going to get her MOT'd
Although in Truth my reason for not test driving her today, is that besides cutting the Grass, I want to try and get the Ariel Working, as a little light Music or Ambience as they call it in Greg's neck of the Woods, always seems to go down a treat, when trying to make a Sale
P.S. ptjs, is that Patina under your Merc, or is it just that you just can't be bothered to Wash it!
Mines so Clean you have to put White Gloves on, just to look underneath!
Haha! 17 years old,120k miles on the clock, does 20k per year, 50mpg, cost me £2k when it had 66k on the clock and is usually as good as gold! My everyday driver, so sadly it perhaps doesn't get quite the kid gloves treatment that I apply to the other cars. Therefore it does have more "patina" than the other cars!!
I'm sure your GF will use her powers of persuasion and come home with a new spring and a tin of brake cleaner as compensation apology from the trader!
Oh good Lord OB, sand blast the dang used spring, and put it on the damn caliper, and be done with it. You are pissing in the wind over something very trivial. Function First, Beauty Later. LOL! Or go with your OCD, and get the new spring. I'd have been down the road by now. But to each there own. I just can't see wasting time over a dang spring, when I could be enjoying driving the old girl. Good Luck trying to get the new spring. LOL!!!!!!
My Merc is 28 years Old with 200,000 miles on the Clock
I'll try and get you a Pic underneath but every time I try and do that it looks like I'm taking a Photo of a Black Mirror! even my MOT Guy Shakes his head in disbelief at the Condition even though I'm far too busy to give her a Wash
At last Spring has now arrived! well at least the 'missing' Mechanical Anti Squeak, Anti Rattle one has, as overwhelmed by OCD I couldn't bear to put the Old one back, especially after Spending 'Shedloads' on New Calipers, Brand New Brake Pads and all the other Various Bits and Pieces
Where in case I forget to mention it, or you had not read my last post, I had to go to Hell and Back to get the Old Calipers off, which was quite simply one of the most difficult jobs that I have ever done on any Car
As even though there is no rust anywhere else on this Car, the Bolts that hold the Calipers on were all rusted absolutely Solid and it took an astonishing eight hours! of Blood Sweat and Tears to remove each one
Even removing the IRS Cage on '50 Shades' my Grey XJS was a 'Walk in the Park' compared to this and so at last I can continue with the re-fresh, where I'm not just all over it but really on it like an 'Easter Bonnet'
Grease is the Word! Hub Re-Greased and Re-Split Pinned!
Caliper1 complete with New Springs now on and ready to go!
Same with Caliper 2 (Note to Self: Don't forget to Re-Connect those Track Rods!)
Ok so what's next?
Bleed The Brakes and Put the Wheels on and then Weather Permitting take her for a little 'mini test drive' around 'Orange Blossom Towers' except of course that best laid Plan is now on hold, as it is raining!
Omg! and there was me, just about to Crack a Bottle of Bubbly, on a job well done but not any more, at least not yet! as having been rained off for a couple of days in the UK
Yesterday I was able to get stuck in and finally finish the Job
Old Calipers removed and then replaced with New ones, including making New Brake Pipes and putting these on, where for once or maybe twice, I even had a Proper Brake Spanner to tighten those up!
Not 'Stupid Tight' as Grant might say but 'nipped up and a little bit more'
Then once I had the New Calipers on, I put in yet another New Set of Disc Pads and then just for good measure another Brand New Fitting Kit: New Pins and Anti Rattle Springs etc (and just in case you're wondering and even if you're not, I didn't forget to reconnect those Track Rods!)
So what on Earth could possibly go wrong!
Okay for those who may not know my 1995 XJS 4.0L Convertible, has the later Teves Braking System with Triangular Reservoir and Separate ABS that is on the opposite side of the Car and is reckoned to be a lot less problematic than the Teves MK111
And so for once I followed what I'd been told was the Correct Procedure and Not Started the Car before I Bled the Brakes, that with the benefit of Hindsight was really maybe not the best idea but that's the way I did it anyway
Where once having done so, I then Bled all the Calipers all in the Correct order, as you are supposed to do, which then gave me a Perfect Pedal, that even though I say so myself, felt just as good as it gets
Then I put the Wheels back on and was able to turn them all by Hand quite freely, which was quite a Novelty as prior to fitting New Calipers, She was 'Bunny Hopping' on the Lawn!
So having done 'The Pre-Flight Checks' including Checking the Pedal one last time before a Test Drive, Round the Grounds of 'Orange Blossom Towers' I turned on the Ignition and then I Started her up!
Where the Engine caught first time, where unlike the Turbine Whine, I get from my V12 this was more like some sort of a Whoosh! that suddenly turned into a roar, as soon as you touched the Throttle
Although before I backed her out of the Narrow Space that She was in, I had to Adjust the Rake of the Steering Wheel, so I had room to turn around and see behind me, which somehow had me touching the Brake Pedal once again before I put her in gear
At which point the Brake Pedal, suddenly lost all of its very firm feel and sank down to the Floor, so obviously I turned that Engine off very pretty 'Dang Quick' where not being an expert on the XJS 4.0L Brakes, I must have done something wrong but not sure what
And so if anybody knows, then please feel free to jump in, although in any event I am going to have to Bleed those Brakes all over again Tomorrow
Weather Permitting!
Alex
What a sod. I cannot help as I know nothing of the ABS systems.But I am sure you will crack it! If the system has a master cylinder, then that might be the culprit, maybe?
She has a Vacuum Booster on the Drivers Side of a (UK) Car and all the ABS Stuff is on the Passenger Side and is a very reliable setup that's not known for going wrong, so from what I know, I don't think its that
Maybe I should have Started the Engine prior to Bleeding the System, although its a bit of a Trial and Error thing at the moment, so who knows!
07-14-2023 | 07:13 PM
