Howdy folks.
In my trawling of marketplace, I managed to find a 96 "1 out of 8" XJ 305 with the short wheel base for 3000. As usual, nothing cheap is without issues and this one has the worst of all, a blown head gasket. The owner knows his jags, as he has had s-types, and currently also has a 91VDP. I guess, would it be wise to buy this rare bird? Head gaskets aren't difficult, just laborious to replace. What do y'all think?

 

What caused the blown gasket is the big question. If it's overheated you have a lot of issues to consider

 

owner got back to me. Said it just sat for a decade, radiator is cracked as well. Also, that it never overheated on him. Likely no head warping then.

 

The margin of a fully properly operating cooling system as it was designed on the V12 and a over temp is so small it would be hard to " catch it "

That would put the odds of warpage high and you would have to get an estimate on the cost of milling it back flat

Probably lost fluid until eventually over temped the heads

And since you have the heads off you would probably be considering a valve job and it's cost

You would still have to resolve the radiator

I'm not saying it's not worth saving but you would have to have a cash reserve

I do not have the V12

 

If it's 'only' a head gasket, this 'knowledgeable' jag owner would have repaired it long ago. He probably knows, as we do, this is the BEST case scenario.

I assume he's asking little money for this vehicle as it's a non-runner? If you have the expertise to tackle a top end rebuild on a Jaguar V12 yourself, the parts cost alone may come as a nasty surprise but it just about makes economic sense. If you're considering putting it out to a specialist for a rebuild, the bill will be enormous and you'd better really love the vehicle to pour that kind of money into it because you are never going to get it back.

Graham

 

where are you located?

 

goodwin3026SA is located in the BANNED members for posting 'For Sale' in the Model forum.

Graham

 

To protect what you have in further service you can test the coolant system that it responds correctly

On the rear lower left on the radiator there is a 3 wire connector to a coolant temp switch ( not a sensor )

With a paper clip in the connector from one white wire to the black will give you one fan

Remove the clip and place in the other white wire to the same black you will have both fans

This is a low current portion of the fans circuit so no arcing hazard

This can be seen on page 101 right side

http://jagrepair.com/images/AutoRepa.../jagxj1996.pdf


Next would be to ensure the coolant thermostats open far enough

There are some good write ups on these thermostats and the specifics in testing to ensure proper cooling performance

 

This was my car, I sold it back to the prior owner to get my s type r back. Owner did a full restoration exterior restoration before the head gasket went and sold it along w a v12 7 series, xj40, and xjr. I think the head gasket went from age since it sat unused for over a decade. I'm also pretty sure it doesn't exist anymore I saw my old xj6 series 3 for sale and in the add it mentioned a v12 engine coming with the car out of a 96 xj12(car was a 95 but easy to get mixed up)
so unfortunately I think it's dead along with my series 3. Here's the vin in case it ever comes back up SAJMX1343SC737570 just wanted to leave a conclusion to that story.