Hello gents' I'm Will. I've been lurking in the shadows for a while now and I thought it was about time I showed my face so to speak! These posts are from another forum so I'll write the oate of the original posts at the top. Comments are more than welcome! Enjoy...

 

30th August 2014

I didn't want another car really, least of all another project! This was about to be turned over to the banger boys after finding no takers. I couldn't allow that to happen, especially if it was as tidy as the seller said it was. So, I took at trip over to Chesterfield in my Series 1 to view this on Thursday.



It's a 3.4, bottom end ruined and it has a very rough interior. The body is rock solid in all the XJ6 rot spots after going over it with a magnet. She isn't matching numbers so initial plans are to get it back on the road with a 4.2 engine on 2" SU's. I am considering keeping the Series 1 as it is and converting this to an AJ6 engine and 4 speed auto in the future. It's getting trailered here on Friday so more updates as I start work. The guy had a nice late S2 for sale as well but I would have probably been stabbed if I'd come home with 2 cats...

 

9th September 2014

Well, it's arrived. It turned up on Friday morning at 1am after being trailered over from Chesterfield. First job was a quick scan over it to see what was missing or what needs attention. Body wise, it's very tidy for its age, the only area of concern being the rear valance around the exhaust holes. The underneath just needs a good scrub and undersealing again.





The interior is a different story altogether...



All seats are ripped and torn beyond repair but I've managed to locate a full interior out of a V12 Sovereign that's been in storage for a few years after the car was broken up. It'll need a walnut dash to finish though.

The engine is bladder end. I haven't tried to start it as I don't see the point. I've dropped the oil and coolant ready for its removal in the next week or so for a 4.2 running 2" SU's. I am considering an AJ6 swap, anyone done that with one of these?

Anyway, a few shameless pics with my Series 1...









More soon...

 

20th September 2014

Well, after unearthing a few nasty surprises, this has now turned into something bigger than an engine swap and some interior titivation! I hadade a good start stripping the car down for engine and interior removal.



I was underneath removing the prop bolts when I was pulling myself back from under the car using the passenger sill as support and my finger disappeared through it.



Of course I continued to dig after this, quite shocked at the outcome, this pic was taken from the pilots seat looking at the left hand sill. The pictures don't really do the corrosion justice to be honest, the inner sill, outer sill and floor pan are joined together by good old fresh air. It saves weight but its not that strong I believe...





From the outside you wouldn't know any different...



It's my own fault, I've checked the drivers side and the rear of the passenger side sill before looking at something else and just assuming that it'd be alright. The signs were clearly there that something was amiss, really surprised it had an MOT...

I'm going to check the rest of the car over and weigh it all up and decide if its worth the time and expense, which is what I should've done before buying it! I refuse to bodge it up, it'll get done properly or not at all.

A lesson learnt there...

 

21st September 2014

I've taken the wing off and had a good old prod about and found a few more areas that need attention. The front crossmember is holed on the left hand side inside the wing at the front, the footwell/brace board above the sill end cap is holed and so is the inner wing itself. All repairable and there's lots of good metal to weld to as well. I'm gonna check the rest of the car out before starting work and if all's well I'm going to do it myself as the only complex part to make will be the outer sill repair section.

 

21st April 2015

Wow! Can't believe it's been 7 months since the last update and nothing much has happened with the old girl. Shoved into a corner and largely forgotten about.



In November I bought an injected 4.2 to replace the knackered 3.4. These XK's have the big valve head, same size as the D-Type. I was going to bin the injection manifold, as the 3.4 uses carbs and doesn't have fuel tanks or pump for an injection system, and strap a pair of SU HS8s on the side of it like my Series 1.



But after doing some thinking I thought it'd be a bit pointless to have the same running gear, same performance in what is essentially the same car. So, after a load of beer I decided to but one of these...



It's a 3.6 litre AJ6 as used in the XJS and XJ40. Out of the factory they were 220bhp and 240lb/ft which is more than the dear old XK would've produced. I also got the 4 speed ZF 'box as well to go with it, 4th gear should make it far more relaxed at motorway speeds. I'm on the hunt now for XJS engine and gearbox mounts and a radiator. Unsure yet whether to go with XJS or XJ40 for this. I'll also need to go to injection tanks and pumps and sort a whole load of other details out but I think it'll make for a more interesting car at the end of it. The conversion has been done a few times and I believe that they are great to drive if done well. I've also found an interior out of a Sovereign which is the same colour as the damaged one.

Before all the fun and games of the engine swap though, I have to contend with the tin worm. Metal cutting, bashing and joining should start the end of this week and there's quite a bit to do to add to more that I've found. Not as bad as what's shown previously though!





Has anyone on here done the AJ6 conversion by the way? If so, I'd love to hear from you regarding potential pitfalls or if you have any tips. Thanks for reading!

 

https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...engine-107712/

Nice project.

 

I have a series 1 with 4.0 AJ6 engine and the 4hp24 gearbox. Thread is on here.

runs like a dream!!!!

also used the xj40 power steering, J-gate and added a limited slip diff.

 

Nice thread !


You must be quite close to me if you're in L'pool. Im in Preston so if you're ever in need of a lift or want to sell some parts etc, i'll gladly nip over

 

Hello pal, yes the cars are in North Liverpool. Not much I need to part with at the minute but you never know! Thanks for the offer of help, if you're ever stuck get in touch.

 

A quick update. Work has finally started (only took a year...) by cutting out the rotten floor section and inner sill and getting a new piece in there. I found more corrosion next to the transmission tunnel but it should be nothing compared to repairing this little lot!

More soon...

 

Lovin' your work so far. I'm really keen on the AJ6 and want to do a conversion on my own car, but it won't be for a while yet. Looking forward to your updates.

 

Good work so far. Good luck with the rest of the work, especially the conversion.
Did you consider the AJ16 4.0 as an alternative?

 

Ultimately there's no difference in bolting in the AJ16, but the electrics are a little different, especially transmission wise. The 3.6 AJ6 and matching transmission have the least complicated electrics and therefore offer the easiest route to success.

Obviously, that doesn't mean it can't be done. It's just a little bit more effort.

 

Well. the AJ16 is simply better. It is an improved AJ6.

but the wiring seems a lot more complex. (read this, a failed conversion: CLICK )

The wiring for the gearbox on the 4.0 AJ6 is not really difficult. You just gotta have a complete donor car rather then only an enginge and a gearbox. for the 4.0 tranny you will need the J gate gear selector, as there is lots of electronics underneath which are required by the gearbox.

For a more clean swap, I would go for the mechanical automatic from the early AJ6 engines.

 

Just to close this thread off, I parted company with this at the beginning of December. The previous owner made me a good offer on it and my head had been turned by another project so I let it go. A shame, but at least I saved it from going to Banger Racers. The new (old) owner is initially going back to XK power before considering any engine mods.

Sad to see her go.