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Entering my first concourse w/ XK150S - what to prepare? (See pics)
Hi everyone!
I am preparing to enter my first concourse in September in our XK150S 3.4 Roadster. This car has been in the family since 1960 and has been very well looked after and restored, and has a matching numbers JDHT Certificate. Since this will be my first concourse d'elegance ever, I am wondering what I should focus one when preparing the car, or what to think about that might not be so obvious. Thank you for your time!
I have ordered and am prepping to apply the correct Pumpkin Orange head paint. I ordered the paint from SNG Barratt.
Nice car, got some points for you.
Wiring around the fuse box is a mesh.
There should not be as many loose wires, and tyraps are a no go for concours.
And what is that big resistor doing around the front of the Carbs.
The Xk's never used a coil resistor (that what's what it looks like )
The engine bay certainly needs a bit more work. The rest of the car looks outstanding though lose the sticker on the rear bumper.
Sometimes it's just better to do your best and let the judges decide. They are usually a friendly bunch and will give you pointers on what to do and what not to do.
While you're there take photos of the winners cars and use them as reference tools.
Download the judging papers from the JCNA website. Engine compartment needs work. They will want everything shiny, clamps, water sender and relays and switches. You might want to go in driver's class first time to get the feel. These Jaguar judges can be pickles. It took 8 shows for us to get a #1 car in the 90's, a V-12 XJ, and we were protested a few times. Usually three different clubs judge at one time so you can get a 2 out of 3 decision on an appeal. Good luck!
Thank you all very much for your responses! I have spent the past days pouring over concourse-ready XK150S's and pictures of many, many Jaguar engines. I will spend much time cleaning and repainting the head so that the Pumpkin Orange appears much brighter. I will then focus on organizing wiring and making sure everything is correct, and just work from front to back cleaning grime and lightly polishing all metal surfaces (those which should be polished). I think cleaning up wires, generally getting rid of grime, and the new paint should really do a lot. I will also look into the correctness of the coil being in front of the engine, and the metal cylinder in front of the carbs. If anyone has any info on these items, it would be much appreciated! Thanks again!
In a JCNA concours (note: there is no E at the end. The word "concours" means a competition; a concoursE is a large open space, as in an airport concourse!) the principal issue is DIRT. Your car must be spotless everywhere, especially the door jambs, and other areas of that sort. Most entrants lose points because of dirt (totally within the entrant's control) rather than other issues. If you cannot prepare the engine compartment fully this year, it is best to enter it in the Driven category; the expectations are the same but neither the trunk nor engine area are inspected.
Our Australian responder is correct with respect to Australian rules, but not JCNA rules. Your car needs to be as close to factory issue as possible, but not better. In fact "over-restoration" is penalized. The object is NOT to dissuade the owner from using his/her car, but exactly the opposite.
My comments are from my experience as a JCNA Chief Judge.
When we took our XJ-12 Saloon thru the process, I used a factory picture of the engine compartment. I used original hose clamps, including the GM A/C clamps instead of the Jubilee clamps. I was flunked by 2 out of 3 Judges, because of the clamps alone, but was passed on a silver boot in a green car. I lost one time to a XJ6 Coupe, which had the brake inspection covers painted body colour, when even the work manual says they are black. It all depends on the Judges and their interpretation of the rules. Filing protests and going thru the rule book and factory pictures finally helped reach our National Championship goal. Kinda weird, as our radio was fake and the car did not run good with XKE performance cams ( not for FI cars ).
Thank you everyone for your advice! Since the event is a few weeks away, I still have some prepping to do (I.e. Taping up wires, etc) but for now I have made good progress! Check out my new pictures!
08-22-2016, 09:13 PM
Entering my first concourse w/ XK150S - what to prepare? (See pics)
