Hola muchachos, please welcome me to the world of Jaguar ownership!

I've just bought a '94 V12. It's mechanically very good - much quicker than the other V12s I looked at, very fast throttle response, clearly the ECU and engine sensors are fully sorted, owner did full strip of gearbox to fix the not-downshifting issue.

But it's scruffy. I'm going to get it resprayed. It's currently green, and I want Moroccan Red, so I'm contemplating hoicking the engine so that the engine bay can be done too.

It does leak a bit from the rear seal and the diff - but then, don't they all? The leak is clearly not bad enough to worry about.

If I have the engine out - given that the car is mechanically working fine - what other tasks should I get done at the same time? Should I get the engine pulled by AJ6 engineering or something so they can fettle it? Replace all hoses and brake lines? In short - what will I kick myself for later if I don't do it now?

Also - can anyone recommend a spray shop?

I'm in south-east London, but will travel if I have to. Will pay trailer cost if it makes sense to have engine and spray done by separate shops. I'm not made of money, but I'll spend if it makes sense.

 

Welcome to the forum, the car sounds great. Leave the engine alone from the mechanical point of view, it needs nothing. If you decide on the AJ6 upgrades, they are all bolt-on engine in place.
Obviously the respray will be better engine out, but I would be far more concerned about rust protection of the body than anything else, which is far easier engine out, and by far the most important consideration cosmetic or mechanical. If you are going to keep the car it is an absolute must. It is not that dear to do, but to be thorough quite a bit of the interior needs to come out; again not difficult.
If you decide to do it, or have it done, then specifying exactly what the rustproofer must do is vital. I have a three stage process I used in 2010 and my car is 100% rust free still. If you are interested, post here again and I will explain it. Wax on its own will not, repeat not, stop an XJS rusting. Also, engine out, the front shocker wing strengtheners, which are a notorious rust place as water gets behind the strengthener and rots the wing, are far easier to weld up and protect. Ditto the under-radiator crossbeam.
As for the rear axle, I would get it done - they don't all leak - and do the rear UJs while they are about it!

 

You could do worse than these guys; not local (Newbury) and certainly not cheap but they do know their onions.
https://www.kwecars.com/

 

FH,

Welcome to the forum and congratulations on your new toy...

Greg,
Not wanting to hijack the post but I'm in the middle of sorting out all the rust on my Xjs at the moment. So far I've uncovered it around the windscreen scuttle, seat belt anchor points, inner wings etc etc and would be very interested in your three stage process to provide long term protection against the tin worm...

 

Paddy
Assuming all holes welded up, etc etc. The basic truth is that you need a rust killer/converter before anything else. I use stuff called AquaSteel, which is absolutely top notch as used on oil rigs stuff: https://aquasteel.co.uk/
It can be sprayed or painted, but the most important applications need a sprayer. The places that need it are: Chassis rails upper and lower in the engine bay (drill holes for access as needed); sills, front wheel arches (remove wheelarch baffles) especially under the shocker strengthener, radiator bottom cross member, inside headlight nacelles, over any welding around the windscreen, inside and outside the A pillars, inside the boot in the exhaust tunnels/outer wing gap, push the probe right up into the rear wheel arch so the stuff runs down into seam and the cabin side of the arch, under the rear seat where there is a large cavity (the floor of which cavity the rear radius arm cup is welded to on the underside), in the chassis rails that go over the rear wheelarch. Also pay particular attention to the seams round the rear wheelarch and the exhaust tunnels under the boot floor.
Then, after letting it all dry for a few days everywhere you sprayed the Aquasteel also spray in some really top notch industrial strength paint such as Indestructible Paints of Birminghams zinc chromate paint: https://indestructible.co.uk/product...romate-primer/
I used this, or some variation of it they suggested. Very expensive at about 200 quid a gallon, but the stuff is magic.
Then, after this layer has dried, everywhere you sprayed the paint, spray Bilt Hambers: https://www.bilthamber.com/dynax-s50
As far as the inside of the floorpans go, these rust out from the inside, owing to damp carpets etc etc. Pull all the carpets and scrape off the foam sound deadening glued to the floor fluting. If at all rusty do the aquasteel and paint - no wax. Once done I used stuff called Rust Bullet over the entire floor and up the sides of the sills and tunnel a bit. I think POR make something similar. It dries to a thick plasticy coating and is 100% waterproof. Now, wet shoes = wet carpets = damp meet an impervious layer so no rust. Boot floor is also worth doing.
Finally, after the above treatment, I coated all the wheelarches and the floorpan underside with waxoyls underbody stuff that is painted on and very thick: https://www.carbuilder.com/uk/hammer...al-500ml-black. This has worked really well for me, but I do slap it on thick. Or Dinitrol 4914 is meant to be good too, but i have not used it.
All this sounds a lot of work, but once the body is empty, each stage only takes an hour or two to complete. And it will work!

 

Thanks Steve M, KWE Cars is well outside my budget (they mentioned around 15-20k but for a very comprehensive restoration). I grant that they do look very professional, but I'm hoping to spend about 2k on the respray, 4k absolute max.

Greg in France, thanks so much for your detailed post. Do you mean that the steering universal joints are a known wear item? Or are you talking about drivetrain UJs?

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/p/Corroseal-8...on/11027047543

corroseal is another one, marine grade and supposedly paintable but I've never used it as such, mostly on hidden areas where finishing work isn't necessary.

 

Hello Freddie

Welcome to the forum.

Yours is much later than mine and much better in the rust protection from the factory. I had mine resprayed last year with the rust cut out where possible - there was some rust that could not be dealt with the engine in.
Windscreen scuttle area (As Paddy mentioned above), due to water not draining out of those two drain pipes correctly. Underneath the brake master cylinder - there is noise deadening here that keeps the sub frame damp longer than it should if the drains don't function correctly. So have a dig around those areas.

Regarding paint - I am assuming that your current paint has a solid base
To respray the car the same colour, cost is quite cheap, I just had my misses car painted - cost $1200 (Australian) so about 700 pounds. To change the colour of the car - it can be substantial as all the door jams, etc needs to be painted - otherwise it will just not look right. This means dismantling.

Enjoy the journey and post some photo's of your toy

Cheers
Steve

 

Rear axle UJs, as I have just done!
https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...ebuild-225834/

 

Being a 1994, I suspect a 6ltr V12.

The rear seal is a standard full circle flaseal, and NOT known as an issue. BUT, like the 5.3, most leaks are from above, cam cover gaskets, cam cover "D" seals, oil switches, and so on.

With the monster out, I would do the rear seal, simple enough, IF it is the leak.

Also the oil pump o/rings INSIDE the sump area.

ALL the coolant hoses, and I mean ALL.

The 6ltr has a different water rail system on top of the heads, to the 5.3, but any gasket or seal related to that would be sooo simple out of the bay.

JUST BECAUSE, I would consider the transmission front seal. AGAIN, not a known issue, but while its out and the trans is split from the engine to do the rear main seal, why not.

 

Im gonna say... if its green leave it green. Thats the best colour of all for any British car.

 

Brewtech, that's because you've never seen the XJS in Morocco Red:

Trust me, photos don't do justice to the colour.

 

yes I have... I live in Beverly Hills and I saw a few of these when they were new. And I can drive over to a Sunday show in Malibu where Im sure to see one. Stay Green. Im in the camp of never changing the color if its Green. Yes, Morrocan Red is gorgeous but so is Green.

 

Grape drink purple.

Jaguar is best viewed in racing green or signal red. I will make a single exception for the yellow-**** carpet 1970s XJS. The rest of you I'll knife fight.

 

I always wanted a deep blue car. Years ago I had a charger, lime green (not racing green) that had a real bad paint job. So the statement was made that I would get it painted. 4 years later I sold it still with the same lime green paint work.

So when I brought my yellow XJS, my missus did not like the colour, so I took my chance and I know have my deep blue car. Best thing I have done, as my misses know appreciates and admires the XJS almost half as much as I do.

So if your going to paint it - do it early in your ownership, otherwise it might never get changed.

Looking back on things, I still wish I had my charger.but that is another story

Cheers
Steve

 

fried_hippies,

Morocco Red is a great colour on the late cars but I would undoubtedly keep it green. If it does have to be resprayed, I would have it done it in the original colour. On an XJS, you'll never be able to disguise the original colour on the floorpans, boot interior etc, and the VIN plate gives away the original colour code.

Green is a also good colour on an XJS and one day in the distant future you'll sell the car. It will undoubtedly be worth less if resprayed in a different colour.

Good luck with all the work.

Paul

 

Paul, assuming the paint job turns out nice, I doubt many people would care that much about the colour change unless we're getting up to councourse money.

If we fast-forward to some mythical future where the project is finished, it'll take more than money to prise the beast out of my hands, whatever colour it is under the carpet. My wife dyes her hair, and I've never considered resale value on her either ;-)

 

fried_hippies,

Whatever colour you get it painted, I would check all over the usual XJS rot-spots (there are quite a few, as I'm sure you know!) and remedy before you send it in for paint. I would also not trust anyone else to remove the windscreen chromes as they are SO easy to distort if not treated with care. And you will need to do it because that windscreen flange is one place that you really must check for the inevitable rot that happens there and in the scuttle.

Cheers

Paul