I think that the plate I refer to is best viewed on any part supplier website. SNGBarrats seem to use Jaguars drawings but may be somewhat easier to use than Jaguars. It is on the rear face of the head- facing the firewall above the transmission . It is almost impossible to see at all because of wiring harnesses, the wiper motor, the main air injection tube and at least one vacuum line. I have tried repeatedly to look at mine with bright light, mirror, from the bottom , yadayadayada, and have given up until such time...... As far as the suspected coolant on the steering rack, dont rule a drip from your flush out so fast. its not that far back, and once you take the thermostat housing off, you get stuff running everywhere although you may not see it. Im suggesting you May Not have a problem there. Please get a look at those brakes. The parts arent hard to get or very expensive (at least not in the US). Keep up the good work!

 

had the car up on ramps yesterday but couldn’t really see anything making too much smoke, and it took me driving around the paddock for it to start, didn’t dare get it back onto the ramps to see where the issue was due to family etc but couldn’t see anything that would be causing the issue. Father in law says it seems/smells like an oil burn yet oil level has remained almost identical since first start, still could be related to that or even a leaking exhaust which I’m not discounting either. I’ll try have a look at the head the next time I get under, definitely going to get the brakes bled before I do much more, hoping that bleeding them off will go at least some way to helping them and will change anything else in the system that needs it from there.

 

They hold a lot of oil, so its possible for it to be leaking enough to smoke and smell like oil without a visual effect on the oil level.

 

Hi Wsz,

I can't remember if anyone has mentioned how common it is for the camshaft cover gasket to seep or leak oil onto the hot exhaust, resulting in smoke and burning oil smell. In my experience, the most common leak point is at the rear of the cylinder head, near the firewall.

Another common oil leak is from the head gasket just above the distributor. The original head gasket did not seal well around a small oil passage in that area and allowed oil to drip down the forward right side of the block below the head.

Regarding the plate on the rear of the cylinder head that Jerry mentioned, Jaguar calls it the "Rear Cover." It is part number 9 in the diagram below. Its gasket is part number 11. The cover is so close to the firewall that it is difficult to see even with an inspection mirror.
You can view the parts diagram here:

https://parts.jaguarlandroverclassic.../brand/jaguar/

Cheers,

Don