Rescuer of XJ6 Series 3 motor dumped and forgotten...
 

G'day all,

Mike F. here, from Perth, Western Australia. Joined the forum because, while I don't have a Jaguar per se, I do have the motor out of one that I spotted dumped and rotting in a paddock up in the Perth hills. All I can really tell is that it's an XJ6 Series 3. It was an absolute p-i-g to dismantle because the PO wasn't a believer in antifreeze/ corrosion inhibitor, and they also cooked the motor to the point it was junk. Then, with hoses hacked through and the motor unceremoniously torn out of the car, that could have been the end of it.

The thing that instantly attracted me to the motor was the fact it was a straight 6 with a DOHC. Luckily I enjoy a mechanical challenge and, never having fiddled around with a Jaguar motor before, well I had to dive in. It was in a pretty sad condition. I won't re-tell the whole story here as I've already covered it on my website -- https://www.theflyingbanana.com/jaguar_xj6.htm -- but suffice to say I got the motor running very well in the end. What beasts these things are, I'm hooked! I've just got a wiring question (see my separate thread on that matter) but apart from that all is hunky-dory.

Any advice or suggestions appreciated.

Mike F.

Hello, Mike,
So you FOUND an abandoned Jaguar engine in a field. And of course, you took it home.
Have I got that basically right?
Where I come from people sometimes dump Whole Vehicles out back somewhere, but as the engine block is so heavy, if they've gone to the trouble to pull it, they usually haul it in as scrap for beer money.

Someone will be along shortly to direct you to the best section (if you haven't already found it) where you can find advice.

Welcome to the forums from ElinorB.
(';')

Welcome to the forums Mike,

Good to have you with us. That saga on your website brought back some horrible memories of wrestling with inline six heads. :icon_lol:

I can see you've already found your way to the XJ6 & XJ12 Series I, II & III forum so there's no need for a link to it from me. The 'HOW TO' thread at the top is a good place to start for information on regular issues. You can also use the Australia - Western Region forum by following this link https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/a...ia-western-96/ to find other members in your region.

Please read the guidance for new members ( https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/n...ned-up-241802/ ) which answers many of the most frequent questions about getting started.

Enjoy the forums and good luck with the boat search.

Graham

Yes, the motor was in an advert online... and it was an absolute mess. But you know how some people just have to rescue the puppy with the busted leg, well I'm a bit like that with old motors :-D
The motor was locked solid, but to free that I had to get the head off. That alone took about 6 hours of wrestling using a jig I made to lift the head off the block. Then I was able to free the pistons. Bores were still within spec. after a hone, so a fresh set of rings, main bearings, big ends, camshaft bearings, etc. etc. and it was running once again.
I love the thing. It's my favourite engine configuration -- the straight 6 -- and with DOHC it reminds me of the inline-4 motorcycle engines I am fairly familiar with. Working my way through the motor I am just so impressed with the design and layout.
Thanks for the welcome, looking forward to learning more.

Thanks Graham, yes I had heard that the XJ6 heads can be difficult to remove. But really it's not hard: just use a corrosion inhibitor and there will be no problems... but the idea of preventative maintenance just doesn't get through to some people, alas! A friend of mine here in Perth has just bought a rust free XJ6 Series 1, so I am rather envious of that. Thanks for the welcome.

welcome to the forum - enjoy!!!

Welcome aboard Mike from the East Coast.

Welcome to the Forums.

We Aussies are a Special Breed.

Well done.

Welcome to Jaguar Forums Mike,

Good to have you with us.
Enjoy the forum.

If you haven't done so already you should add your car details to your signature to help others to help you.
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New Member
 

Hello, I'm Keith and I live in the Denver, CO area. I have a '63 Daimler 2-1/2 litre V8 that's in restoration and previously owned a '95 XJR. And I recently bought a 2006 Aston Martin Vantage V8.

The reason for joining this forum is that Ford owned Aston Martin, Jag, Mazda, and others during the naughty years and the different marques share common parts as well as a common diagnostic system, the Ford WDS. My current interest is in understanding the features of the WDS and some of the options that may be applicable to Aston Martin. I already enabled the cruise control feature (my car didn't come from the factory with CC).

Does anyone have any recommendations for features that can be added using WDS, or perhaps a list of common parts used between the Ford era cars?

Thanks

Hi Keith,
Probably best to start your own intro. thread? You should get more replies that way.
All the best with getting the WDS working for you. Unfortunately I know next to nothing about them.
Mike F.