Brendan, these cars were designed in a much cooler climate than where they now live. Not only that, they were designed some decades ago, when expectations, even for Luxury cars, were somewhat lower than now.
If you want a concourse car then you don't want to drive it very much, and personal comfort and reliability mean less.

If you want a car that looks Fabulously Classic but still has some modern amenities then you sacrifice originality. As you have already mentioned, some of those original ideas were Awful, some others were silly in the context of today.

In the end it's YOUR car, and YOU will be driving it and looking at it every day. So whatever you do to make it fit YOUR needs should not be of concern to anyone but YOU.

It takes a lot of fun out of life to be constantly worried if you're doing the "right" thing in someone else's opinion. Make your car fit YOUR personality and needs and then Drive the Wheels off it and Enjoy the thing!
(';')

 

Well said!!

 

I have had two S1 XJ's with V8's - still have my '71. Putting in a modern GM radiator, dual GM fans and GM cross flow AC condenser is "drop in".. only
cutting is for radiator cap hole in top support. That can be replaced to restore back to stock very easily (why you would want to is beyond me?).
Note no cutting done in the photo, just drop in GM rubber isolators, put radiator into place, put in top isolators and clamp back together with hole for cap.

Using a Camaro/Firebird radiator (cost is around $100 USD with lifetime warranty) you can get the snap together dual fans and AC condenser that
snaps in on the outside.

I added side metal covers to the sides (photo) to direct all the incoming air into the radiator and condenser, plus AC foam was used to seal the top area.

Our So Cal weather is hot in the summer, gets to 111F in my town and I have never had a over heating problem in very heavy stop and go traffic with the AC on most of the year.

If interested, have full sets of pictures and wiring for the fans etc.. drive the car and enjoy it...use the installed AC and make it even better than new.

Whatever is wrong with your AC can be fixed... be sure to check/replace the expansion valve and if converting to R134, adjust the screw inside for more fluid flowing since they never made a valve for R134... no stock Freon is available (legally) in the USA for auto use...most of the alternatives cause problems.

 

as far as fan noise goes , i have never seen or heard of a silent fan, all fans work by cutting chunks and pulling air thru the raditor.

but if someone does come up with a silent fan,that would fit in an automobile, patented, would become a millionaire!

have you listened to a 2014 Mercedes, pulling into a parking space,' terrible noises.

 

Thanks for the replies. LnrB probably summed up the options nicely. For me, the car will fall into the category of 'usable classic'. I will keep it looking as good as possible however I will carry out the mods mentioned,. It won't win any concourse's and frankly I didn't buy it for that purpose, or to polish it and let it sit in the garage - I bought it to enjoy, to drive it regularly.


Regarding the fan noise, I understand the car is 41 years old, designed for a cooler climate and designed using the engineering of the day etc. I am realistic and before I bought this car I drove a number of cars over the last 18 months and interestingly they had a variety of cooling fans fitted by previous owners - fixed, viscous and one with an electric fan. Ronbros, yes they all make noise however I have had the benefit of hearing the difference - it does depend on the weather/driving conditions however the fixed fans are noisy all the time, the viscous fan noise varies and from memory the electric fans of course made no noise except when they were operating. I only mentioned it in my original post as part of the reason we buy our cars is for that 'Jaguar Experience'. A Series 1 in good condition with good door rubbers etc etc can still be a very quiet car and within reason I am just trying to ensure that my car is as quiet as possible.


Roger, thanks for your insights on radiators & fans. I will contact yourself for further info.


Brendan

 

Brendan

Reply to my email address = mabryroger@hotmail add .com (so the robots cannot use it)
I will be happy to correspond and share info on potential projects for your very nice Series 1

 

I drive mine every day,rain,hail or shine(it's rained 3 days since I got it). I park where I want,I leave it on the street overnight when I have to( 2 car spaces and 3 cars,2 bikes,2 trailers don't quite fit).
I let my daughter drive it on "L" plates and my son is planning on taking it to advanced driver training (skid pan etc) in a couple of months when he gets his "L" plates. So he can learn how to control slides etc. We enjoy it.

Whisper silent and smooth to drive anywhere, 70 mp/h on the freeway is almost as quiet as being parked at the lights.

The only annoying thing is the creak in the front right on speed humps.

 

Split Vee Mount on the front crossmember?

Graham

 

The round rubber bush with holes through it, I did notice it was broken through when I was checking for power steering leak. But I am planning a front end rebuild when finances allow, I had budgeted for it and was researching it when the rear end caught fire,lol.

Hang on I'll go take a pic (11pm, dark and rm'd)
I assume you are referring to part No2 in the diagram?. The one I noticed broken was part No 3 I think. I will have closer look in the morning with daylight and slightly cloudy head.

 

Hi Brendan, has that car arrived in Vic yet?
We look forward to hearing more about it.

 

Hi, yes the car arrived from QLD in one piece and frustratingly I have been away due to work commitments - so I have tinkered around a little however there is still a list of jobs. The dead brake pedal was due to a vacuum leak, I replace the hoses, checked that the one way valve was still working and now I at least have some assistance - there may be further work required however at least it is a start. The AED wasn't working correctly so it is being replaced with a manual choke cable, just waiting for the cable and some other bits to arrive. The carbies are also off and being rebuilt and I am expecting them back in a couple of weeks. I have also drained the fuel tanks as a precaution and will be replacing the fuel filters etc. I have also ordered new plug leads and plugs and would like to fit electronic ignition. If anyone has any thoughts/experiences on different brands etc it would be appreciated. Having a lot fun tinkering around with the car however I am very keen to sort out the problems, do sme maintence and start driving it! Brendan

 

Hi Brendan, do please give us updates on the tinkering and if issues emerge. Your car is such a nice clean S1 I'd love to hear more about the old girl.

Graham

 

Series 1 XJ fans, I just learned of a pair of Series 1 cars in a barn, for restoration.

one is a parts car. asking price is $1,200. seller says he has clean Titles.