Did a mini exterior detail today, a light clay bar session after washing. Didn't get a chance to wax or seal it due to time constraints. Will continue tomorrow & also thoroughly get to the interior, it hasn't been done since our 2 rare bouts with snow last month lol.

She's running perfect & so,so quiet lol.

 

Looks great KC, especially that 3/4 rear view last one!

 

+1

 

Fixed the ever loose licence plate lights.

They get too hot, the plastic melts and disintegrates over 20 years, and the 2 parts of the housing don't click into each other any more.
I remedied them several times, but this time hopefully for good.

Took them out, cleaned out burn marks and old paste (still repair from the PO) as good as it went, glued the parts together, and finished it off with some heat reflective tape around the bulb.

Will let it all dry tonight, then take the plinth off tomorrow as they are too large to fit from the inside.

 

Yesterday I went to a race event with my Dad in Coventry, we took my XJ. It was a nice 2 hour journey there where the car performed faultlessly. The journey back was a nightmare because there was a problem on the motorway and we were trapped between junctions (exits) for 2.5 hours turning the trip home into a 5 hour ordeal. I'm glad I was in my XJ though, best place to be in a traffic jam.

She's officially "off the road" now for a month or so whilst I pull out my interior and fit my replacement seat skins and some other odds and sods.

 

Detailed the interior and exterior. Got my real gauge kit on Friday. Hopefully have time to install it this week!

 

Ok ambient temp's back wet & chilly 50° FH ish. I got the banging noise for about 2 minutes again on 1st start of the day.

This noise is unacceptable, the only thing I haven't changed is the tensioner arm/bracket as a whole. If I buy the EB arm & I still get this awful sound I will be @ wit's ends lol.

The noise is worse w/ the new components than what I was trying to remedy w/ them.

 

If you got 'banging' for about 2 min, you should be able to see what is causing it.

If it is belt related, I can only think about the tensioner, but I can hardly see how that itself can be the cause.
My bet is on an 'old' new belt, hardened up in a curve, letting the tensioner 'bang', but softening after getting warmer after some minutes.

 

I can see the new idler pulley exhibit a minimal warble but it is brand new so the bearing should be good.

Edit
Of note, the belt I replaced was the smooth type by NAPA, the new one is a Goodyear Gatorback w/ the ribbed teeth. I may go back to the previous belt as it appeared to be new as well. Also my old idler pulley had a lip, the new one does not.

I'm leaving for a mountainous winter adventure tomm. I don't want the damn car squealing & banging up there lol.

 

I remember your idler pulley was of the type without a flange for the bearing (not talking the lip for the belt).
Maybe the bearing is not straight in the pulley (as they had nothing to press against).

 

The lip isn't needed. I have none on my car and it is fine. Before both pulleys (tensioner and idle) had lips. Ditched and my belt runs right. So it can't be that. And if it wobbles, it doesn't matter either. Especially since the plastic one warp and wobble from factory. With a shot bearing they wobble like a drunken sailor!

 

Maybe try starting the engine without the belt installed (only for short period of time). If the noise is still there, then it's probably something more serious (crossing fingers that's not the case).

If the noise is only with the belt, then you can get an automotive stethoscope and CAREFULLY place it on the alternator, water pump, tensioner while the noise is occurring to hopefully determine the source.

 

Replaced the old lower steering column with the updated style. Much more of a fiddly install than expected, but it fixed the play in the steering! And I believe that helped further reduce the front end knocking that I've been slowly eliminating. Still get the damn pull to one side, but hopefully the new column will help there. Now I'll have a much better idea of what the rack is doing, where before I had maybe 4 degrees of play in the column.

Slowly approaching that expected Jaguar ride quality. Every one of these little things done makes so much of a difference in getting there.

 

Would you have a photo of the two columns?

 

If the wheel alignment is ‘as per factory specs’ then it may need tweaking.
My ‘92 XJ40, basically the same architecture had a constant drift to the left even after numerous alignments, there was a TSB issued that said if this persisted then it was permissible to shim the sub frame ‘V’ mount to apply a tad more camber. Something to think about?

 

I'll dig through the TSB's again and check on that, it may be the case... The car's had a front end repair sometime in its past so I've got a worry that the frame is slightly out of alignment enough that it won't ever be right. The second shop that did my alignment suggested defective tires, which could also be a possibility. I'm just waiting for a dry, free day to try swapping the fronts left/right to see if it pulls to the other side.

Check out TSB 211-06 as well, I've attached it along with the pic of my columns. Bottom is old, top is new, though the one in the pic is the parts one, not the one in my car. Found two and they were each missing needed parts, made them into one good one, the one in the pic is what's left over (so it doesn't show the lower coupling and the firewall grommet).

 

This colder West Va. weather has exposed my culprit, I watched the tensioner rock back & forth in unison w/ my dreaded bang. I will order the OEM arm/bracket off E-Bay & hopefully be done w/ this chapter.

But it's been a blast whipping around these mountainous spirals they call highways here !

 

Today was "Show-the-little-GTI-tw@s-that-an-old-Jag-is-still-a-powerful-car-day".

Was drivng along the A27 minding my own business and went to overtake. I was travelling at around 130 kph (about 80 mph) which is more than fast enough to overtake an 80 kph truck (about 50 mph). Next moment a Golf V GTI was behind me flashing his headlights, wiggling, trying to force me to move over or give gas...

Well, next moment I plop the tranny into S, turn the LPG system off and pull back to the right lane. Just as he is next to me, I floor it. The 237 shettland ponies start to take off and the front raises. The GTI driver floors it too but can't seem to keep up with me. So, back in the left lane (as I was passing another truck) I slowed down again to 130 kph. Let him catch up and again pull into the right lane after passing the 40t truck. He again floors it. Up to my B pillar and I floor it yet again... This time right up and again, I pull in front of him.

He did not like it much, as when my turn off came, it was his too. At the set of lights there, he wouldn't even look in my direction Ashamed of a puny little GTI with a "mere" 210 ps (as it is deutsch)... He may be faster from 0-100 kph (0-62 mph) but above that, the 2.0l TSI is a BOS

 

Changed the oil and filter today. Not really a big deal except that this is the longest I have ever gone between oil changes. One week shy of a year! In my defense I have only driven 4,000 miles since that oil change.

I forgot how much oil it takes! I bought 7 quarts and now I am on my way back to the store to buy more oil. It’s barely at the low full mark.

 

I washed my only key any suggestions on how to fix