The DOT code CA347 means the tyre was made in week 34 of 1997 or 1987 or 1977. The code was three digits and didn't indicate the decade until year 2000. They should be, according to the official opinion, well past their use by date. I also have a set of Avons of the same type that I bought in 1981 or 82 and thrashed the hell out of for a couple of years. They were excellent tyres and they still look excellent. But it's probably not a good idea to use them to go for a fastest classic lap of the Nurburgring. They replaced a set of Pirellis that, after only 6 months, had developed a huge blister that caused an awful vibration at speed.

 

Great info and I concur with most of it.
Tires/tyres: I went back through the invoices I had with the car and I suspect the tyres were put on in 1997. I have mileage records and the car has done virtually no road miles since then. The MOT records are there to prove mileage completed. Because the restoration was so poor I can tell the car has been dry stored as I tried to wash it and the water poured in every door and seal so it was obvious.
The tyres need replacing (I have on been doing test runs no long journeys or any real speed). My time has been spent getting it safe to drive as a daily driver.

Engine stabiliser: I read all the instructions and did just adjust up until snug with no weight of the engine then locked off.

The centre support for the propshaft was a mystery as I have another Daimler and the number of washers above the plate was extreme on one and much less on another. I understood the propshaft had to be set correctly (as per WSM) and we tried to do this. This car had the holes for the support plate drilled out so some adjustment had been attempted by enlarging the holes in an L shape. On refitting we tried to get he proshaft inline with gearbox front to back. I used the tool I made to get alignment but it was not a perfect tool of course.
I agonised over the centre support but could not see any vibration when running with back end off the ground.
BUT that is the only real adjustable factor in the drive train. I did not find anyone else with this problem so wondered if it was this critical??

The UJ's were marked and replaced correctly. They are in correct plane - yes.

 

Yes, the alignment is critical. The vibration is torsional, as the shafts are trying to speed up and slow down, rather that movement off the centreline of rotation of the shaft.

The way the alignment is show in later service manuals is to use string and weights, like a large nut or washer. Tie a large loop of string around the shaft or the flanges at the gearbox, centre bearing and differential, leave perhaps a foot of two of free string , and then tie a weight onto the end of the string to ensure the string hangs straight down. A plumb bob works well too. This assumes the car is on a hoist.

The idea of a large loop is that the string is free to move and will hang on the centreline of the shaft. Then use a laser pointer on a tripod and adjust until the beam crosses the differential and gearbox strings. Then move the centre bearing until it also hits the laser beam and you have the shafts all in a line. Next is to adjust the height to bring the angles in the vertical plane equal across all the joints, that can be measured with a digital protractor.

See a photo guide in the X300 forum here: https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...gnment-138118/ There is a slight difference here, as the X300 has a CV style coupling at the differential, not a U joint.

 

The centre bearing joint should be a CV joint, A few others would do no harm either. Just Jaguar being cheap!. Even Opel got that right on their RWD cars (Commodore/Rekord) as did other German manufacturers.

 

Although Jaguar did use the 2 piece shaft with 3 U joints up to 1996 on the XJS and those cars don't have vibration. It can be done, just takes care to get everything set up right. Agreed, a CV would make it much less important. These cars were from an era when parts were expensive and skilled labour was cheap.

 

Opel used CV Joints from '67 ~ at least on SA production. Probably earlier in Germany. And a Jaguar cost a lot more than an Opel. These are the days when the Chrysler Valiant was the best selling car in SA for many years with it's 3.7 litre slant 6. The V8 models sold more slowly.

 

I'm abit confused by the above, i've just done my MK2 2.4 propshaft alignment in accordance with the workshop manual (2 piece prop) and it makes no reference to horizontal alignment. To align you just makeup a tool that is a set length with three points on it and when all touch the propshaft its in alignment.

To alter the alignment you can shim the propshaft centre up and down and/or adjust the engine rear mount.

I did the same on my 3.8 and it cured the vibration I had but that was really noticable when pulling away which is the same issue I have with the 2.4.

 

Is there any provision for side to side adjustment on the centre bearing? My S Type was a one piece shaft, so no bearing or mounting points are present.

 

OK so I need to go back to the propshaft mounting set up.
I did have the strings with sockets hanging off them prepared but do not have access to a lift unless I book in with the garage and he is busy so I am faffing about under the car and he does not feel that this adjustment is critical. I am now better informed on the subject so it has to be re checked.
The WSM says to make the jig and use this for the vertical alighnment as above and then use it along the sides of the shaft to get the horizontal alignment. It should work for both. See image.
I reckoned mine was within a couple of millimeters but if it is really millimeter critical then I will do it more carefully. There are slots in the centre mounting plate for sise to side adjustment. As said it makes sense that this problem did not appear from wheels etc. as I had just had all the drivetrain apart and this would likely be the root cause. I will have to buy tyres anyway.

 

You don't need a lift. Put the front wheels on ramps, jack the rear axle and rest it on axle stands so the car is close to its normal trim. If the floor is smooth and flat or you support something smooth and flat on the floor, you can do some arithmetic instead of making the special tool for the vertical alignment measure. The horizontal can be done with plumbobs and a straight edge. 'Smooth and flat' and 'straight edge' can all be substituted with a tensioned string or a laser beam.

I'm fairly sure my favourite Opel, and possibly to demonstrate my poor taste favourite German car, the Manta B Berlinetta, had UJs in the driveshaft.

 

I herniated a disc not long ago so doing this work on the floor is not ideal for me. I will get it re checked and report back asap.
Thanks all.

 

More than possible. I'm talking about 2 specific models that were the same car with 4 & 6 cylinder engines differentiating them. I had 2 as company cars and both had CV joints at the centre of the propshaft. Spacious 4 door sedans. The company was quite generous with choice of motor cars but you had to be able to carry customers in relative comfort. I enjoyed the 6 cylinder Commodore's effortless high speed cruising ability. Lots of wide open spaces in SA between towns or cities. The Manta was a pretty design.

 

The Manta was a tremendous car, very fast on mixed English A roads. However, it needed a torquier engine and an overdrive fifth gear. The Opel 6 might have been too heavy; a Rover V8 might have done the trick. It was a company test car I used to visit project partners and field tests. I got a tour of the underside thanks to the foreman of the RTL feeling obliged to explain its non-availability. There was some Jaguar Mk2 in it's geometry, though the realisation was decades more modern. It was a thousand times better than the Capri/Leyland Princess/Peugeot X0X that sometimes took its place.