Does anyone have a timeline on the year to year changes in the XJ-S from 1981 though 1997? Also, what's the first year for the lumbar support in the bucket seats?
Thanks,
BQ

 

I believe 1989 was the first year for lumbar support in the XJS.

 

Thanks for your help. I'm looking at a 1990 parts car that has a large tear. I was wondering if I could use the upholstery of my '82 and put it over the '90 seat frame to get the lumbar support?

Also, are the iridium spark plugs lifetime? It would save a lot of trouble with how difficult it is to change the plugs.

BQ

 

The seat floor fixings of the 1982 are not the same as for the 1990. The seat frames are also different, as is the width of the seat runners and between the floor fixings. I would be more inclined to put the lumbar cushion apparatus into the original seat. Not that difficult, the seatback leather skin just rolls up and off once the clips at the bottom are undone.

The V12 XJS, at least with the Lucas ignition, I am told, needs very specific plug characteristics and the gap of 25thou is very important so as to not stress the ignition system. I think using Iridium plugs would be a gamble unless you could ascertain for sure that their characteristics were suitable.

Also, changing the plugs forces the owner to get in there and look at everything. rather important with out cars.

greg

 

Thanks Greg! That info helps a lot! Here's another question, I'm looking at a 1994 XJ12 with a 6.0L as a parts car for my '82. It has 117,000 miles on it, but the engine sounds very good. I also like the newer technology with the newer transmission with overdrive, air cleaners and such. Is there any reason I can't use this XJ12 as a parts car and upgrade my '82 while I'm rebuilding it? I'm wondering if I can even swap in the XJ12 rearend with the outboard brake disks? I figure I can drive the XJ12 and fix any problems I find. What does everyone think?

Oh. I'm also curious if the cast wheels on the XJ12 would work okay on my '82. I figure the bolt pattern is okay, but perhaps other dimension about the wheels wouldn't work well. They have to be better than the 50 spoke wire wheels.

BQ

 

I am currently in the process of changing out my 89 5.3, using a 94 6.0 from a XJ12. I can tell you first hand, there is a huge difference. Physically, the 6.0 engine will work, but everything else is different. If you are looking at the budget, figure on sending your ecu to have it reprogrammed for the 6.0, and plan on buying a aftermarket controller for the transmission. The 82 ECU, and the 94 ECU are WORLDS apart in function. Forget using the 82 transmission at all. Bell housings are entirely different. Also, forget usung the rear suspension. Two totally different animals as well. Not compatible at all. The rear suspension from a 94 XJS? Maybe. XJ12? No way.

 

This is very interesting. I understand that if the XJ12 has a wider wheel base, the rear end would have problems fitting in, but what's the difference between one shell and another? Why can't the wiring harnesses be spliced together incorporating the features of the XJ12? ABS brakes, dual air bags, better wiring circuits, etc? If the 6.0 is mounted with the GM4L80-E , then it's a matter of making sure that drive shaft matches up properly to which every rear end that's used. Does the XJ12 have a different rear end gear ratio? How is this different than swapping in a Chevy or Ford engine into the XJ-S?

I just checked. The XJ12 is 113 inch and the XJ-S is 102 inch. Why not just swap out the central transversal or the gears?

BQ

 

SC6 is dead right. How bad is the later facelift shell? It would be probably easier to remove what had to be removed from the later car and fix the shell and then put it all back.

Either that, or, 100% strip the later car and 100% strip the earlier car, and then put all the later bits, I mean ALL (entire loom, dash, engine loom, both ECUs front and rear suspension, radiators, aircon, instruments into the earler shell, which you would have repaired, de-rusted and painted by then!

The only things you would retain in the earlier shell would be the lights, doors (utterly diferent eg framelss windows) and all the glass, and the seats if you did not want to weld the floor fixings to accept the later seats.

Sounds a lot of work, and it is, but wonderfully informative and you would really know the car inside out. Remember that the later car's panels would NOT repeat NOT fit your earlier shell.

Why not buy a better car of the same era? A re-shell like this is never cheap, but of course you can spend the cash when you have it, bit by bit.

Greg

 

Greg,
Thanks for your insight! Would even the cast wheels from the XJ12 be unusable?
BQ

 

I really am having a hard time keeping my opinions to myself here, lol. I was looking at eBay, as I always do, for anything interesting. There is a 88 white xjs, with supposedly 44,000 original miles on it listed. Looking at the under the hood pics, the 44K is very believable. Yet, the car isn't running. $2200 Buy it now price. I again humbly offer the opinion, that you seriously consider another XJS to put your efforts into.
While I had the running XJ12, I looked the car over very very carefully. I emailed Roger Bywater about integrating the 94 36CU ECU into my 89. He stated that it was very difficult to do. Also, the ECU on the XJ12 is located under the dash, along with the Marelli ECU. The harness is much more integrated. The 36CU has far more inputs, outputs. I have the factory wiring schematics. Far, FAR more complex than the 89, which was slightly more complex than your 82.
Again, in my humble opinion, IF the car you currently have, were a very low mile beauty that needed no paint work, no interior work, then you "may" would consider the mechanical updates you are considering.
The 89 I currently have is a convertible. Beautiful paint, interior, tires, wheels, etc. But a bad engine (now). If I hadn't put a new top on it before it dropped the valve seat, I most likely would have parted it out. Yet, because I already had several items in my possesion for a Jag, (aluminum flywheel, 5 speed, etc), and the "luck" of running across David at everydayXJ, I am proceeding on what most sane people would consider a bit crazy.
Not opinion, just statement of belief, that if you were to set this car aside, and start looking for the most car your finances would allow, you will come up far more ahead of the game than you currently are, or maybe ever will be with this car.

 

SCTR6,
Once again, thank you for your insight, opinion and information. The only way that I can evaluate my possible solutions with this '82 is to explore them for feasibility. This is part of the process. Believing anything a seller says about any vehicle generally proves to be a mistake as is the case with this '82. My purchase of it non-running is an expensive one in many ways. I'm trying to make it work without digging my hole deeper.

From my experience, EBay and Craig's List is always a mixed bag of con-men, decent, informed, ignorant, questionable unreliable and just plain nut cases. Getting them to answer simple questions let alone follow up with the buying process is shockingly disappointing and difficult. The oddest type of seller is the one that backs away from a deal simply because someone is interested in buying and they suddenly think that they're cheating themselves.

I was working on a deal on a '81 V12 and the guy upped his price simply because someone told him that the attached GM400 transmission was worth a lot of money and he found people trying to sell Jaguar parts on EBay and Craig's List for big money. Both the mileage and status of the engine and transmission were unknown due to the fact he is liquidating his father's junk collection. Seller's remorse is rather nuts when they have a pile if crap they're trying to get rid of.

I'm trying to communicate with a guy about a non-running '90 for parts, but I can't even get him to give me the trim code number off the door jam. More Craig's List insanity.

BQ

 

Which model, which year?

greg

 

Greg,
1994 XJ81 V12. That's the one I've been referring to here with the 6.0L engine.

BQ

 

For me, I completely backed away from the 94 4L80-E when I realized the gearing of it. It appears that if using this transmission, the 3.54 rear gear would be a must, not a wish. It appears the 4L80-E allowed Jaguar to get much better performance, yet maintain high speed cruising.

For me, I drive my Jag mostly around town. I am a hot rodder at heart, with a affinity for Jags.

I may be the odd ball here, but I have great stories to tell about eBay purchases. I have bought at least 6 cars on there, and only one was slightly misrepresented. For what it takes to own on of these cars, for me, buying one that needs paint or body repair marks it off the list immediately due to the cost of properly painting it. There are so many Jaguar enthusists on here, that I feel you could EASILY get one of us to go and look at, evaluate a Jag for you, should you decide to buy one without actually being able to go look at it. I bought my XJR off of eBay based on the sellers previous feedback. Bought a one way ticket, flew in, and drove it home 800 miles. It seems a great car. I would be glad to offer myself if you found one anywhere around upstate SC. We all love this, or we wouldn't be here.

One more thought....have you looked into any local Jaguar clubs to you? I have found fellow club members to actually offer a great deal to someone who they feel will continue to keep the car in good condition, and enjoy it.

 

That's good to know. I'll keep that in mind. An educated opinion and eye can save the day when trying to make a good purchase.

Here in the heart of the land of ice, snow and salt, a body that's not rusted through and frames hollowed out from the inside, are hard to come by. That's why I bought this California accident free '82 even though I had questions about the engine. Once the body has cancer, there's little use in caring about what makes it go. Work has had to stop due to sub-zero temps, but it's given me time to explore engine solutions. If anything, this '82 has been educational.

Something the fellow said selling the V12 XJ81 is the it wasn't much around town, but took off on the highway. Maybe it was geared too high or there were more problems than I thought. No heat from the heater core without any leaks seemed odd.

Well, a car from the sunny south may be the best solution is the upholstery isn't rotted and vinyl not baked into brittle shards. The rubber is going to rot no matter where it's stored.

I will admit, watching the Jaguar segment of Mad Men has stuck with me a long time. "Something beautiful you can finally own!" ;-]

BQ

 

This model has nothing at all in common with an XJS of any era. Even the ignition and fuelling system is the completely different and far more modern distributorless Nippon Denso system. Wonderful but forget it if it goes wrong ever.

FWIW, if your 1982 body is good structurally, buying a second hand V12 from an XJS pre facelift pre 1988 is your easiest and cheapest solution, but needs work. Or, as we have already said, search for an buy a decent running XJS. Probably the same cost overall, but option 1 is easier on the cashflow!

Greg

 

I bought the DVD and both the Haynes and Jaguar XJS manual, my DVD or Dvd drive stopped working properly so I found one on E-Bay and its a downloadable manual and is the same as the DVD. I not only downloaded it but saved a copy to a USB stick. here is the link to the one I bought
Jaguar 1975 1991 XJ s XJS He 5 3L V12 Factory Workshop Service Repair Manual | eBay


Lick you I am currently going thru ALL wireing under the bonnet and am about to finish up making the FI Harness. Also am going to reroute ALL wires out of the "V" and the other wires as much as possible. Already redone the inside, recolored the seats and recovered other parts and revaneered the wood, new seals for the front and back glass and added a 3rd brake light since I found a back window at a good price,. since I had the interior out, which took me about 9 months to do, ( certain injuries from military days), went thru the wireing there and all seemed good. Like everyone said, take your time and you will do well, when you get a bit frustrated, stop and take a break, and I say Tame that Cat!!


also you can get some great deals on E-Bay, as long as you don't go buying the first part you come across, I just put them in my Wish List or Watch List but I have found some great buys

 

Thanks Greg and Dave for you info and support!
BQ

 

Greg,
Thanks for your thoughts. If I were to buy another XJ-S for parts to fix my '82, why would a facelift '90 be a bad idea? I know the ignition is different, but wouldn't most of the other parts swap?

BQ

 

If you really mean a facelift, and not a late model Marelli ignition pre-facelift, none of the panels would swap nor the boot lid. The engine would providing you swapped the ECU and the looms associated with the ignition and ECU. The seats, all the glass, and doors would not. The aircon is a later model so you would have to swap out the dash and dashboard loom and aircon dash hardware and blowers. The tank is different I think and I think the pump is in tank on the facelifts. Probably all of the loom is different with different connectors, the dash loom and instruments are different.

Better to buy a facelift and fix, or buy a pre 1988 (with the same seat type as on your 1982) as a parts car for your 1982. If yuo cannot find a decent one, buy a late Marelli ignition pre-facelift and fix that, or use the engine from that, (either shoving into it your Lucas dizzy and ignition or installing the Marelli ignition stuff with the engine) at least your panels will fit and the doors and dash and most of the loom and other bits will identical. But the aircon will NOT be identical.

Greg