Hello Everybody.

I had another thread where I was asking advice on the purchase price of an Series III XJ6. Whell, I found one here in New England and it is pretty rust free and in good shape. I knew when I got it that it had some issues. Now I think it is time to start inventorying them. I have been busy since I got it so I haven't had time to post pictures. I got it exactly one week ago and I've been poking around the interior. Which by the way, is in terrific shape. It has the original **** rug floor mats. All the books (including a legible wiring diagram!). Funnily enough there was also a copy of Isbell's book in a three ring binder.

I drove it 75 miles back and noticed a few things on the drive. The speedo was working but the trip counter wasn't. The odometer counted 45 miles from beginning to end and it was actually 75 miles, so the mileage isn't accurate for sure. The trip computer doesn't work. The radio (One of those removalble faceplate ASI models) doesn't work. The Cigar lighters didn't work. I poked around the dash electrics and found all kinds of splices. The car had a "Fox" built in radar detector and an Ungo alarm system. The installer had cut the purple wire behind the trip computer to get power for the Ungo. Removed the splice and reconnected the purple wire and the lighters are working again. Oh I forgot, the lighter's fuse was blown too! After two days of hunting I found the in line fuse behind the trim panel next to the heater box. Also, the rear lighter case had been pushed in. I fixed that with a quick bodge with a bit of plastic and a dremel tool. NBD there.

I know the suspension bushings will need replacement. The car was a bit (not horrific but there) loose with the steering. I haven't had time to take the wheels off to see exactly what's what but will be doing that soon. Although, maybe not. I turned the car around and was listening to the engine. I'd read the Isbell book in my spare time this week and remembered the words "Sewing Machine". They came to me as I was listening. I couldn't swear that that was the sound but it could be. I know the car doesn't have the stakedown kit so that and the Valve Covers might be job one. I'll get some opinions on that when I am ready to start.

So there's a small oil leak, it looks to me like at the Valve Covers. So I'm thinking that maybe engine work before suspension.... Ah who knows... I'll get some pictures tomorrow and post some of the mysteries I found and ask people what they might be. The Ungo looks like it is going to be a barrel of monkeys sorting out. But overall I am thrilled with the car. The brakes worked well. The engine was smooth. The transmission was smooth. No squeaks or clunks. Did I say the interior is in great shape?! LOL. Pictures coming soon.

 

you fix one thing at a time and if by chance or miracle another gets fixed by fixing another, then that is one less to worry about.

the rack & pinion in these cars is known to sway side to side, so the fix is a kit sold by John's Cars in Texas which includes red polyurethane bushings, spacer washers, and a metal shield. You replace that in one afternoon and you're done with the swaying to the music.

looks like you have studied the symptoms and it doesn't look like much work. If something isn't working, it's probably the fuse, so you check those FIRST, roll them in place, the element inside might look ok, and it may not be. And any electrical work that you do, disconnect the battery. Lots of problems arise shorting wires with the battery connected.

 

I'd say the place to start is to park the car in your driveway, sit in a lawn chair with a beer in hand, and spend an evening gazing at your beautiful new Jag!

Congrats man!

 

Congratulation on the new car

Two things I would check before anything else is cooling system and rear brakes.

Cooling system is a weak point on these cars (based on experience of a few going through our club). Make sure its in good order, the XK motor does not seem to have a good survival rate through overheating events.

Rear brakes can be either expensive or time consuming if you let the rear pads wear down and score the rotors. The inboard brakes are more labour intensive than the normal set up. Best to check pads early and replace early, also gives you a chance to look at the calipers for weeping. Then you at least know wher you are at with the brakes.

If you own one of these cars the S57 wiring diagrams are your friend. Great diagrams , segmented by function. There are a few inline fuses scattered around and the cig lighter is one of them.

 

If you can afford them, these are very, very, useful books ! Nothing beats having the book.

https://www.angloparts.com/en/catalo...153903/190.633

https://www.angloparts.com/en/catalo...153906/190.406

The parts manual has all the layout drawings and can be more use sometimes than the workshop manual.

 

And Questions of course. So I am thinking first order of business will be the engine. There's an oil leak clearly. I attached a bunch of pictures showing where I saw oil. Looks like most of it is coming from the Valve Cover, but also a little down on a pipe at the front. I showed the oil color in one so people could see it isn't cloudy so I think the head isn't leaking at least yet. Oil on the underside of the engine, but included a picture of the underside so you can see the kind of shape it is in. I have a bunch of other pictures of Brakes, Bushings and some electric mystery wires and components. Noticed a little wetness (not shown on pix) on the fuel injector rail (the one that goes down the center of the head) so I think there's a pinhole leak there.

Today was the first time I looked at the care with the wheels off. I'm really happy with the brakes. They look great. I think they must be recent calipers all around. They have the thinnest surface rust and that is it. Once of them still is clean metal. On edit: I forgot to mention the gas tank. I went looking for the antenna and noticed duct tape where the fuel line went through the trunk wall. Do you think that means the fuel tanks were serviced? Surely they weren't installed that way? Same tape on both sides. Oh and the first mystery electrical bit. Anyone know what that is I am holding?

Cant' say the same for the suspension. Looks like most of the bushings are all cracked and rotted. I'll post some pictures of that when it is time to dig into it. The question I'd like opinions on is the engine. Clearly it is going to need a Valve cover gasket on both sides and the stake down kit (should that be done both sides as well?). What I am wondering is should I just do those or take the engine out for a full tear down and refit? It is running pretty nicely right now and the only concern there is the leaking oil and the noise that might indicate tappet problems. But I really don't know if I'll end up band-aiding it endlessly. On the other hand I ready Langoria's thread where he rebuilt the engine only to have it leak coolant. So, there's that.

If you think that I should just fix the obvious problems will those posting be so good as to list some other things that you'd do as long as I'm there?

If the recommendation is only fix what's clearly broken, what would you prudently do while you were at it? Mileage is somewhere between 88,500 and 136,000. I know that's a range but the odometer is broken. It registered 45 miles when I'd driven 75. So it could be only registering 65% of actual. On the other hand, I do know it was owned by an old lady so she might not have put much mileage on it either.

Please let me have your advice. Thanks in advance.

 

The oil leaks don't look that bad, actually, as far as old 4.2s go. If they're dry it just means they've run out of oil. I'm pretty tolerant of oil leaks, though. it takes a real gusher for me to be concerned...but that's just me

The vertical pipes to the center on the cylinder head are air injection pipes, not fuel injection pipes

The connector in the last pic looks like the thermal fuse and wiring for the a/c compressor; normally clipped to a small bracket on the a/c compressor itself.

Safety items first: replacing underhood fuel hoses is a good place to start unless there's reason to think they've already been recently replaced.

More later

Cheers
DD

 

it is the Thermal Fuse for the air conditioner compressor, there is a little bracket at the compressor itself, behind the compressor clutch, where it is normally mounted with a small bolt and nut.

as to the duct tape, yes, the factory used black duct tape over the wiring harnesses and at the antenna cable. So if it is the silver duct tape now, it must have been replaced.

if it doesn't leak, it's not a Jaguar.

 

Thats a lovely xj, Yes, the xk engines all leak some oil. be sure to replace the half moon rubbers at the back of the cams on the cylinder head when you do the valve cover gaskets. And it looks as though the the front crank oil seal could be leaking too by the oil stains on the front of the sump, This can be replaced with the engine in the car but i think you need to lower the sump from what i remember.

 

You're gonna have Such a lot of fun working on this car!
And, we're gonna have Such a lot of fun watching!
Let the fun begin!
(';')

 

Double ditto!!!


Early on, I learned that the S57 was a great friend. Still is!!!


Mine purrs, at least for the moment!!


Carl

 

The car looks to be in amazingly good condition, underneath as well as on top and your photos show just a few small problems. I wish my Series 3 had been like yours !! Having said that you'll probably find a few jobs needing doing that you have yet to identify. As you drive the car around these will become apparent.

 

Hello Again

So I spent a half hour with a flashlight looking over the fuel system. While it is dirty and has a little oil residue, damned if the rubber doesn't look good. I couldn't see any cracking on the outside of the rubber connected to the fuel injection. I think I will start by taking off the air filter, throttle body and MAF sensor and giving those a good clean. It will give me a chance to inspect some of the hoses to see if the interiors are rotted.

I actually checked out all the hoses and they mostly looked good. The coolant hoses had maybe a bit more give to them than they should (anyone can point me to a good coolant flush write up?) and there were two larger hoses connected to the fuel system (they connect to a metal pipe going right across the top front of the engine) that looked like they were kind of "kinked" where they turned.

I'm also getting excited about the oil leaks because on close examination it looks like its all coming from the Valve Cover, so when I do the stakedown and VCG hopefully that will sort that out. There's also the issue of the stupid Ungo Box wiring. There's a wire spliced into the starter solenoid (I'm thinking part of the alarm kill switch?) and running off somewhere. If someone who has a good picture of a clean stock engine would post it (so I can see what wires ago where) I'd be grateful. I'm looking for the starter solenoid, the firewall and the firewall just behind and inboard of the brake booster.

I work in an office during the week so hard to do much. I'm going to need to get a proper light. I'll try to get some more pictures of the hoses. I also purchased the Parts Catalog off e-bay so that I can see what I am about to take apart before I do it! Thanks Fraser Mitchell for a good suggestion!

I'll post some pictures of the conditions of the brake calipers front and rear just for fun! Whee!

 

to begin with, out with the Detector and alarm. Even if the devices are sound, the install is usually poor and the source of trouble.


At ne time, a driveway coolant flush was OK. No longer, Glycol is not good for the environment and kills cats and dogs. and, they like the sweet taste!!! Spend the money and have it done by a shop that can capture the old stuff and dispose of it safely,


That is a very nice car. Enjoy it...


Carl.

 

Just looking at the photo of your front suspension, you might like to check the bottom ball joints to see if they are the old shim-adjusted type, or the later "fit and forget" Lemforder joints. The later joints last a lot longer than the earlier design that goes back to 1955 and the Mark 1 saloon. They were never designed to take the steering loads of modern tyres, so if you have any wear there just fit a set of the Lemforders; you won't regret it.

 

That is a beautiful ride, you snatched up there....
The oil leaks are rather non-existent...no more than a minor sweating.

Always remember: if a British car doesn't leak oil, it's time for new oil....

 

As to lights. The local "pharmacy" sells a light bar, About 18" x 6". Rows of LED's. A built in charger and cord. I gave one to my son as one of the Xmas gifts. He is delighted. Beats a flashlight, aka torch by a country mile


I was at that store the other day, I was tempted. Might be there later, hmmmm


Carl

 

Had a little time today and finished surgery on the Ungo Box. It was delicate, but happy to say successful! Picture of the spider web of wires associated with the Ungo Box.

Also, have a not so good picture of an unused fuse connector. It's coming out of or attached to some kind of hard connection. I have no idea what it is. Might have been related to the Ungo but don't know. Anyone with a Series III recognize what that red wire might be? There's also a "Heavy Duty Flasher" zip tied to the wire leading to the Oxygen Sensor. I'm thinking that is Ungo too.

 

Ohhh, Vampire clips!! Doncha just Love vampire clips?!

I have about a bushel of them under the console and dash.

Some are for the Viper alarm system I'm sure, others bypass a melted wire, or maybe two. Still others are sucking off a known hot wire, probably bypassing a hidden in-line fuse.

Everything still works so I'm leaving the Vampires Strictly alone (it ain't broke so I won't try fixing it).
(';')

 

Welcome! You have jumped deep into an adventure with your new prized possession. My son and i have done a LOT of small and big projects on his 87 XJ6 since we purchased not quite two years ago. It is his pride and joy so I understand how you feel. They are a classy car and one of the more comfortable drives I've experienced. We still need to redo the valve cover gaskets and rear brakes and caliper seals on his. I'm waiting for him to be more available so he can participate in the repairs and learn something rather than Dad doing all the work. Hopefully this summer before he heads off to college.

Enjoy the ride!