There are many really rich people in the car game. Just go to a Coys or whoever auction.

 

If you own a mint flat floor Series 1 E Type this is a mere bagatelle. Good ones go for approx €225,000 ~ My buddy from Dallas just sold one for that price from his Netherlands showroom.

 

The ones I've met are more likely to be searching on eBay with the intention of spending £143.40. As I recall from Ron Beaty, a popular version with XK120 racers was a 4.7 litre with 3 1/2 on the side of the block.

 

LOL!

 

I went to a Coys auction in Monaco arranged to line up with the F1 GP week. I then learned just how far some people are out of my league.

 

I want to use the ATI Super Damper Harmonic Balancer 918173. Has anyone had experience with this balancer. How about pulley alignment with a stock water pump?

 

I don't know anything about the damper you mention. The standard crankshaft dampers are generally considered to work well, certainly as well as an elastomer type damper can. The main shortcoming is that the elastomer ages. If I were looking to upgrade, I'd go for the Rob Beere fluid damper (especially if the price on his website is still valid). It's race proven and will allow you to rev the engine without fear of the crankshaft suffering from torsional vibration. Rob Beere knows high performance Jaguar XK6 and V12 engines better than just about anyone - he was responsible for an E-type that made Ferrari F40s look slow.

His dampers come with any pulley you want and being engine specific should not have any alignment problems.

 

The oil pan on my 3.4 is steel and the sump pan has been brazed onto the main pan, not factory. Was the original 3.4 pan steel or aluminum? My 4.2 oil pan is aluminum, but won't fit a 3.4 will it?
At some point the 3.4 current pan was on an engine that threw a rod, there's a few dings in the pan.

 

The 4.2 pan will probably fit, but transfer the 4.2 oil pickup pipes. Oil pump should be the same, transfer the pipes with the pan.

 

I mounted the block on an engine stand today and found a few interesting issues. There is some odd stuff, like the patched oil pan, and most of the main bolt lock plates were not installed correctly. One was made from a Coca Cola steel pop can.
The block will be stripped so I can ball hone the rusty cylinders. There were so many mud dauber nest inside that there's plenty fine dirt particles everywhere, it will get a heavy duty wash before reassembly.

 

i would be very reluctant to use an engine that was put together like that. demonstrates a complete lack of good judgement. there's literally no telling what sort of abuse it's been subjected to, when rebuilt, assembled and/or driven.

 

The engine is completely disassembled and the only major issue is some minor rust spots in 3 cylinders, they will clean up. So far the machine work is looking good. The water jacket is spotless, the surfaces and ports show no indication of corrosion. The oil galley is also spotless. There's no damage to the crank bearings or surfaces and it does rotate freely. There's been NO broken studs or bolts, and no stripped threads. The engine has never been started, so the hack assembly did not damage anything. The oil pan does have damage due to a rod failure, that does not mean the oil pan was mounted to this block when the damage occurred. The balancer is the only bad part, the rubber has rotted.
I've built an engine test stand specifically for a Jaguar engine. The engine will be thoroughly tested before it's installed.
I paid $200 for the 3.4 engine with the Moss 4 speed. The engine had all new parts, with a machined block and crankshaft. The transmission had all new gears, bearings, shafts, synchro's and shift forks.
The car will only be driven to local car shows and Cars & Coffee. So it's not a daily driver and will never be abused or raced.

 

Harmonic Balancer Rebuild Service (US)

new home page H.B.

 

Don't doddle around with it either, no way quicker to destroy an engine with short cold runs.
Running it down the highway at 60 or 70 mph for few hours isn't abuse.

And if you won't do that, then change the oil once a year whether it needs or not, and keep it in a heated garage.

 

When re-assembling the engine, it is fairly straight forward as long as you follow the workshop manual.
The big challenge is the rear crankshaft seal, unless you get this installed correctly you will have an oil leak.
The old rope seal installation needs careful attention to detail.
There are modifications to allow use of lip type seals however the cost of machining etc. is not warranted for your intended use.

 

I agree with the oil change regime but a heated garage? Only in Canada I suppose. In the UK our garages are small and cold and airless so my S Type is kept outside all year long but under a car port. Keeps it dry and allows the air to circulate and dry it out. Putting a wet car in a cold garage is a recipe for rust in the UK same if you put it under a car cover. I used to have a lovely water proof car cover but I could put the car away looking dry, cover it with the car cover and a couple of days later the car has sweated out into the car cover fabric. Ideally a dehumidified plastic bubble in the garage but my garage is long but narrow. If I could get the S Type in the garage I would not be able to open the doors to get out.

 

In winter, Oxford can get colder than what Basil Fawlty used to call the English Riviera. As I'm not a tough outdoors type, both my workshop and my garage are heated and dehumidified. Also, I had my garage doors widened to make access more comfortable; even the XK goes through nicely with its mirrors out. I try to dry my cars as much as possible before taking them in out of the rain (it saves on car washing), but, if I don't, the dehumidifier takes care of it. I definitely agree with Rob on car covers - a total waste of time and effort that do far more harm than good.

Jaguar (and most other makes) engines benefit from a good thrashing. That's Italian tune up, pedal to the metal, not beating with a stick. Just make sure there's a safe straight road in front of you before you floor it.

 

I would agree with Jeff. A constant temperature location prevents condensation in the fuel tanks and crankcase caused by daily temperature swings or frost forming and melting. As you noted, the daily temperature variations causes water to condense both on and in the parts of the car, so a heated garage keeps all that away. That's part of the reason for the recommendation fuel tanks are filled to the brim if needed to be stored for any length of time.

 

About 5 years ago I was asked by a friend to go with him to look at a deceased estate MK1 for sale.
It turned out to have been stored outside under a "good" car cover.
Upon removal of the cover, we found the hood (roof) completely rusted through with holes and the bonnet (engine cover) severely rusted.
My friend wisely declined to buy the car and later on it was acquired by a Jaguar workshop specialist for parts which was all it was good for.

One of my brothers was a keen restorer of the Australian made Holdens. He said he would not even look at a car which had been stored under a car cover.

 

The pickup tubes that came with the 3.4 were damaged buy a broken rod. The oil pan is steel with the sump added on at the rear of the pan. I posted a comment about the pan looking like it was home made, apparently it's an original. It looks just like the one in the factory manual illustration. Does anyone know if the sump pickup tube is specific to this pan or are there any other ones that will work?
The tube from the block to the oil pump should be the same as most other years, correct?