My father purchased his '67 XKE back in 2005. He passed away in October of 2015, so I have inherited his vehicle. I am planning on getting it cleaned up and running to sell. I'd love to keep it, but I'm only 24 and planning to move soon.

He had it fully restored and was in running condition up until about 2013. Since then it has been sitting in a garage. Last I remember the Temperature sensor was bad, and we were going to replace it before he passed.

I am asking for help on where I should start:

The battery is dead and doesn't hold a charge (obviously that's where I should start).
I got it towed to my house and attempted to push it into my garage.
I cannot push the car. I tried putting it in neutral and had a friend hold the clutch while I pushed. It only rolls about 1 foot then seems to lock up. I believe the clutch pedal is disconnected from the clutch, but the clutch is engaged still with the engine.

Can someone please help with where I should start? I majored in Mechanical Engineering and took a few automotive courses, so I'm not blindly ignorant. I would like advice, so I don't screw anything up.
Giving me a short summary and pointing me to a shop manual would be great.

Thanks in advance!

 

Update:
I'm going to Jack up the rear and see if spinning both wheels turns the engine.
See if the front wheels will spin. If the front wheels lock or the back wheels do not act correctly, then I should have a brake issue.

 

Good luck with the project. Two years isn't that long to sit so hopefully things won't be too bad. I'd start by putting a couple tablespoons of two-stroke oil in the cylinders while you work on the brakes and/or clutch.

Here are a couple of online references that might help. They spend a lot of time on body work but the mechanical are there too.

Goodfellow's Jag Restoration threads

McKenna's Garage


John Carey's YouTube channel

Dave's 66 Jaguar YouTube channel

Those should get you started on the fixes once you've completed the initial diagnosis. Like all things mechanical systematic and methodical is the way to go.

Jim

 

Jaguar clutches always had an unfortunate tendency to stick to the flywheel if the car is left for any length of time. Two years is probably enough for that. I forget the technique to release it, but it is a bit brutal, I'm afraid

 

Emergency brake could be source as well, or brakes in general with corrosion on rotors. Front brakes easy to deal with rear brakes are, well a bear do to being inboard.

 

If the clutch plate is stuck then there is a way I know to release it... but not easily. My XK150 had a stuck clutch plate many years ago and my fix was to roll start the car in gear (second if I recall correctly) and then with foot on clutch pedal I locked the brakes and that "broke" the bonded plate. Of course this was not done with any other traffic around, and I do not suggest it is the only or best way to fix the problem.

 

If car is out of gear clutch shouldn't matter?

 

True, my old XK150 rolled in neutral, just could not get it in gear with the engine running.
Hey OP did you get it figured out yet?