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Just want to share this with you guys. My name is Paolo, I'm 24yrs old, and I became the third owner of this 1990 Vanden Plas. I want it to look as well as it drives and have it for the next 40+ years. But all in all, will update you guys on everything that I restore in it. thats me<3
Thank you and I hope this keeps your dreams alive in owning a car you really appreciate.
Welcome Paolo: It's great to see a young man such as yourself have an interest in a 30 year old 4 door sedan. How did you settle upon the XJ40? Did you always admire it? I bought a '79 Eldo when I was your age. I've been buying old cars ever since and I'm pushing 60. Make sure you buy a service manual(s) either in print or on cd, which is what I have. You can easily get them one ebay. Take/post interior shots. The outside looks really nice. Are there any mechanical issues that you need to deal with? It is not uncommon for the top bushings on the front shock absorbers to wear away over time causing an annoying knocking sound. In fact, my car did not even have any bushings on the left side. With some basic tools, a manual, a curious mind, help from some very knowledgeable forum members and patience, you will improve this car in no time. Welcome again. Ren
Welcome Paolo: It's great to see a young man such as yourself have an interest in a 30 year old 4 door sedan. How did you settle upon the XJ40? Did you always admire it? I bought a '79 Eldo when I was your age. I've been buying old cars ever since and I'm pushing 60. Make sure you buy a service manual(s) either in print or on cd, which is what I have. You can easily get them one ebay. Take/post interior shots. The outside looks really nice. Are there any mechanical issues that you need to deal with? It is not uncommon for the top bushings on the front shock absorbers to wear away over time causing an annoying knocking sound. In fact, my car did not even have any bushings on the left side. With some basic tools, a manual, a curious mind, help from some very knowledgeable forum members and patience, you will improve this car in no time. Welcome again. Ren
Ren,
Thank you so much for all the advice and stories. When I moved to America, this car was at my neighbor's back parking spot and I would always see it coming out to the alley. Not until recent years that I was drawn to the elegance of it and detail. It just made sense that, "Wow, this will be my first car." Something I still smile about everyday, so thankful. It came with everything in it, including the phone haha But I was reading through the manual not too long ago. The one mechanic issue right now that I'm facing is a blown Breather hose, its the only thing that it's not passing smog because of a failed PCV section. But all in all, it runs very quiet. I will also get it diagnosed when I get it checked by a Jaguar Specialist, that still has the old computers for it. But other than that, I would love to make this car look as great as it runs. Since most of the wear has been exterior like the hub cap chrome fading, the passenger side mirror is taped up, and the sunroof carpet is sagging.
Today, I will surprise my dad, who's pushing to be 69yrs old this year. He's a big Beatles fan and I bought him Paul McCartney tickets for Christmas last year and today is finally the show! I can't wait to see what the car looks like after it gets a paint buff!
Thank you again for the kind words,Ren. You're awesome!
VandenP: You are welcome. The car looks new on the inside, WOW. The mirror is pretty easy to replace. You should be able to find a good conditioned one easily enough at a local junk yard. It looks like you have at least 5.25" speakers in the door. I was able to mount 6.5". The sound in the xj40s isn't quite up to today's standards but you can make improvements without breaking the bank if you place any kind of importance on that. Also, I can only imagine what the paint would look like if you gave it a good multi-process cleaning/waxing/polishing. Nice work on the car so far. Ren
Proud Owner of My First Car I Bought
