P1B6929BW 3.4S auto

[John Quilter]

This is some totally unsolicited advice. I would be leery of totally dismantling the entire shell. This entails an enormous amount of work to dismantle and then to reassemble. You can do a lot of assessment of the car without going to this extreme. Unless your goal is to, at any cost, produce a 100 point concours car you can with much less effort and money, repair what is needed, body wise and mechanical, clean up what is reasonably accessible respray the car (with front and rear windows out) refinish the woodwork, reupholster as need and in so doing produce a very presentable and usable car.
I have seen too many cars that owners dove into with a complete disassembly and then got in way over their heads, time wise and money wise and essentially the project languished or was abandoned and were left with piles and boxes of parts the reassembly of which became a mystery over time, sometimes years.

[cass3958]

I totally agree with 99% of what you have said there John.

My problem was I started out wanting to do a rolling restoration, Use the car on the weekends and do a little bit each week. What I found was if I took something off the car to clean and tidy up by the time I was ready to put it back on the car I found the bit it had to bolt to was not up to standard so I had clean and paint that bit before I could replace the first bit and it snowballed to a total strip down, blasters and complete rebuild.

I am glad I did what I did in the end but totally understand the problem of people starting and never finishing. I had a friend with an XK120 in his garage which he had spent 22 years on rebuilding and still had not finished by the time he died. I think his passion was tinkering away from his wife in the garage rather than ever wanting to finish it as he then would not have had an excuse to lose himself in the garage.

[Glyn Ruck]

I'm pleased that I did a complete ground up restoration from media blasted body or I would never be happy with the car. That said it will cost more than you would imagine & you will be in for >4000 hours of work.

[abbirkin]

Wow, you guys are more than enthusiastic! I've also seen many starts but no finish to projects.
Personally, I would subscribe to the Jaguar Enthusiasts Club magazine - many months there are cars offered which I think are MUCH cheaper than the one you are contemplating overhauling and look in much better condition.
How do you know they are any better I hear you ask..... $64,000 question, but a few grand is always going to be cheaper than multiple grand on a complete re-build.
Barrie

[cass3958]

I don't think it really matters Barrie what you buy and at what price you just have to do your homework and inspect the car properly. Even then you can come unstuck. There are so many ways that rot and rust can be hidden even from the most enquiring eye.
I am half way through a post which I will possibly finish this weekend as the work is now complete concerning my rear wheel arch. The S Type I bought had been worked on by a Jaguar restorer in Hertfordshire. They had welded on new wings, sills, and rear wheel arch repairs. They had also supposedly cut out a lot of rust and welded in repair panels. I bought the car and took it to a blasters to remove the rest of the rust and filler, repaired the remaining damage and had it painted. Five years on and rust came through the rear wheel arch. Stripped out the repair panel on the inner arch to find they had welded a repair panel over the top of rust and not cut it out or treated it in any way.
Moral of the story is just because you pay a lot for a car don't expect it to be good. Just because you get a cheap car don't expect to get a bargain. Always expect it is a piece of shit and live with it when you find it actually is.
They used to say that yacht racing was like standing under a cold shower ripping up £50 notes. In a way classic cars are the same, once you repair one thing there is always another part that needs attention and they all cost money.

[paddyx350]

If you are only prepared to pay (or only have) 3.5k or less then you take a punt.
I haven't seen many S types for this kind of money without issues
If it's a really bad one then it's not the end of the world.. for me anyway. A disappointment yes, and a bit depressing Ok but that's all.
I don't intend to throw money at this project and will try to do as much of the work myself.
My intention is not to spend money on new chrome or a new interior or a full engine rebuild.
I'm an engineer (but not an experienced car restorer) but I love doing this kind of stuff, I love jags and the engineering that has gone into them and I think I'll get a lot out of doing this project.. hopefully not ALL trouble and strife!

[cass3958]

I am with you there Chris. Do what you can with the money you have. Clean and refurbish all the bits you have and make the car honest to its origins. I find too many people spent a fortune on their cars buying new, getting the best, upgrading the original spec. £30 to £40k later they have a perfect car worth £25k. I mean if you had the money why would you retain the Ambla vinyl seat material from a 1967 car if you could upgrade it for a full leather interior which costs 4 times as much. I kept the Ambla in my car, still looks good but period. New leather looks good but it does not have the patina of old leather and then the wood does not look as good as it should and the carpets are not right and the door cards need replacing and ...... it goes on to make everything match perfection.
I have to admit though over the last five years since my car was on the road I have when money has allowed upgraded parts that I thought were letting the car down but as they say a classic car rebuild is never truly finished.

[paddyx350]

Just to update on the compression tests..

I drained the oil, got a new filter and started to replace the oil and filter with the intention of running the engine up to temp again to see if there was any change in the compression readings
When I tried to refit the drain plug I found that there was a helicoil in there and it had come loose and had broken up.
I picked out what I could of the broken helicoil and decided that discretion was the better part of valor and to call it a day on running the engine for now, not knowing what bits of the helicoil could have been pushed into the sump.
I will take out the engine and will get the top end/head refurbished and will sort out the sump plug then.

[Glyn Ruck]

Oversize sump plugs are available from XK's Unlimited.

[cass3958]

Don't talk to me about oversized sump plugs.
This is a copy of a post I put on the archive forum in 2015.

I had been suffering from a little oil leak around my sump plug. Tiny drip but persistent enough to lubricate the bell housing and gearbox. So I ordered a new sump plug part number C23435MAG. This is the sump plug with the little magnet in the head to extract any ferrous metal and it came with a new copper washer.
Today was dry so I decided to fit it on my driveway. Jacked up the front right hand side and inserted my trusty wooden block for safety. Removed the front wheel for better access.
I had decided on a quick change, old one out, new one in without having to drain all the oil from the sump. Climbed under the car with a small receptacle to catch the small amount of oil I knew I would release and undid the old plug far enough so I could remove it with my fingers. Right old one out, small amount of oil drained, finger over hole no more oil. New plug ready, removed finger, inserted plug only to find it was the wrong bl**dy size. Oil now gushing out from the sump plug and the receptacle was filling fast.
Don't panic I cried whilst the oil ran down the insides of my sleeves and up my arms as I desperately tried to extract the oh too small sump plug from the geezer that was gushing half of the Gulf of Mexico over my drive. OK got the new plug back out and put my finger in the hole before someone could call Red Adair to help.
Looking like some large Dutch child I am now lying on my back with my finger in the hole whilst an environmental disaster is flowing down my driveway towards the drain when I realize I have no idea where the old plug is.............
I manage to swivel around and look on the floor around me but can't see it. Bu**er. With the index finger of my right hand in the hole I plunge my left hand in to the oil filled receptacle. No time or ability to pull up my sleeve so that goes in as well and at the bottom I find the plug but have to spend another couple of minutes searching for the old copper washer. Eventually both were retrieved and the plug hole was sealed.
It seems at some point in past someone had over tightened the sump plug and stripped the thread in the alloy sump. The repair was to drill out the hole and re tap it in a larger diameter. Part number C23435MAG no longer fits.
Moral to the story is that taking short cuts is not the best course of action sometimes.
Anyone want an oily but brand new magnetic sump plug with new copper washer part number C23435MAG?