it was 1000$ and it runs, couple minor patches 5 at most small, one gas tank leaks, interior kinda worn, 90k miles, auto.

I dont know any thing about Jaguars. SO, i come here.

Things i have found out. Transmission wont shift right away after started, noticed fluid was low (not sure what kind to put in)
Fuel Selector seems to be broken working only on the right side which has the leak.

What do i need to look for in fixing this up, what shouldi do first. Which areas are critical areas to be conerned about? Im Lost in this world of jags need help!

 

Change tranny fluid with Type F or Dexron III. Filter kit:

http://www.motorcarsltd.com/item.wws?sku=IN102393

Does the selector switch stay in when you press it for the LH side? If not buy it here:
http://www.motorcarsltd.com/item.wws?sku=IN100174

I have renewed fuel tanks for $350 plus a $250 core charge. These are recoated through and through and offer a lifetime warranty. Count on another $25 in gaskets, seals, and filter. Shipping is high. These are big!

 

Congratulations!

the first thing you need to do is to find out where the tank is leaking, it could be a gasoline line connectionleaking,or the large plug at the bottom of the tank,not neccesarilya perforatedor rusted tank.

To get full access to the tank, you need to remove the half-moon body Panel underneath the tank, those panels are removable. First, there are some big phillips screws running the length of the panel, front to rear, and then there are bolts under the bumper's end requiring the removal of the bumperend.

Also, you need to de-pressurize the fuel system before working in the tanks or in anything dealing with the fuel system. Be very careful when dealing with gasoline and gasoline Vapors. No smoking. Keep lookie-loos away.

To depressurize the fuel system, there is a black box/switch in the passenger side, at the right bottom corner of the Dash, it has a black cover that you can pull off, then you disconnect the wire harness Plug, then you start the engine and let it run until it shuts off by itself from fuel starvation, the system isthen depressurized.

If you are planning to do all these things yourself, and you are not familiar with the car, then you need to buythe FactoryShop and Parts Manual, around $25.00. (there is a link here toa company that has them on special).
If you are not mechanically-inclined to do these things, then let technicians with the experience and the right tools repair the car.

Overall, be extremely careful when raising the car and working underneath, these cars areextremely heavy and weknow stories of owners who were killed when the car collapsed on them. SAFETY FIRST.

Again, buy the Service Manual before you buy anything else for the car. You will get your money's worth ten times.Fix one problem at a time.

 

Very helpful jose thank you.

I have bought a Haines manual.

With the fuel situation, im not sure which tank the setting is stuck on since the button is broken. i believe it is on the left and the right has the leak. im not one to get gas covered on my self however i will if i need too. I have done work on previous cars before mostly DSMs (Eagle Talons) rebulding turbos and replacing heads etc. Jaguars, they are a whole other animal to tackle. I will be taking the panels off today and just to take a look. the Plug was loose and tightened it and it is still leaking now from the back end of the tank.

EDIT: Also i have the "Jaguar" and the "Vanden Plas" Emblems. I do not know where they go i think the came off the back of the car but im not 100% sure. They are 2 rectangles about 1 1/2 by 3 inches across. Im going to try and look for pictures and see where they go.

 

you're welcome.

the tank is not a big deal to remove, if you're handy. If you remove the rear tail lamp assemblies, there is access to the Tank float and Sender assembly, though those are easier to remove with the tank outside, you can get them out with a small screwdriver and mallet to undo the ring-nut. Also, there are fuel lines and hoses to be disconnected inside the trunk, you need to remove the two, side upholstery panels, held by clips.

And the most critical part: you need to depressurize the Fuel System before disconnecting anything. Buy the factory Service and Parts Shop Manual CD, there is a link (to a place that has them on special) in many previous posts here, just go backwards until you find it, or I will post it again.

but since you're probably going ahead before you get a Manual, here's what to do to de-pressurize:

On the passenger side of the Dash, at the bottom, innercorner, sort of hidden from view, above the right kick panel, there is a Switch-box called the Inertia Fuel Cutoff Switch; It has a black finisher cover on it held in place by a spring-clip, just pull it off; It has a grey wiring Plug connected to the bottom and there's a push-button at the top.

1) disconnect the wiring plug (careful don't break the plug "lock");
2) start theengine and let it run out of gas, (disconnecting the plugturns Off the Fuel Pump);
3) the fuel system is now de-pressurized.

4) when you want to restart the engine, reconnect the plug and push the black-button at the top to make sure it did not "tripp";
5) it might take a few minutes of cranking to get fuel back in the system.

If at any other time in the future the engine does not start, you might check this Inertia Switch button because once-in-a-blue-moon theytripp. If it has tripped, you will hear a 'click' when you push down on the button.

TANK: I would first take the tank to a radiator or tank shop to test it under pressure, it might be something simple, though those tanksare known to start separating at the seams when the pressure becomes too much, I still think they are repairable. If you can get it repaired and tested, you'll be a better man.
NOTE: there is a fix for the tank "sswwooossshhh" when you open the filler cap.( too much pressure buildup).


BADGES: the two badges go on the left and right of the rear license plate, closer to each tail lamp. The Jaguar badge on the left, the VDP badge on the right. Use double sided foam adhesive Molding tape, 3M makes it for cars.

and this is just my opinion, but I think the Series III XJ-6 is very easy to work on and fix. I have owned mine for 17 years, yes seventeen. There's many parts suppliers, lots of information pages online, anything can be repaired, these cars have a large following of owners who seem to keep them forever, like me.

Jose

 

Oh no! I was driving home from work today and the trasmission was oscillating and acting very funny, switching gears when it wasnt supposed to. Seemed to be slipping griding at times!!! [:@]

I just spent a ton of money to get the ball joints, steering rack, steering column, new tires, and new shocks replaced. and the tranny starts to act up even worse [&o].

I know its bad, but how bad am i looking at price wise for a rebuld. approx?

 

I don't know what the labor would cost. I have the soft parts kit:

http://www.motorcarsltd.com/item.wws...p;sku=IN102078

and would recommend the filter kit along with it from the above post. If you need hard parts, that will be an issue.

 

check the fluid level while theengine and transmissionhave beenwarmed/driven for at least 25 minutes. If the level is fine (note there is a COLD and a HOT mark on the dipstick, make sure you are reading the HOT side mark).

If the fluid is fine, and everything checks ok, thenit will probably need a rebuild, anywhere between $1,800 to $3,000. At least that's the going price over here in Orlando.

In the alternative: I know of a 1985 with asmooth shifting tranny selling for $600.in Melbourne, Florida. The transmission was rebuilt6 monthsago. Might be worth it to you to buy the entire car for parts. (although the car is a driver, the engine is overheating, might need a head gasket job or else it has a clogged radiator).The owner is a friend, he doesn't want to bother anymore, he parked the car, transferred the license plate to a new Hyundai (!!) and called me up toofferthe carto me, or tofinda buyer. I don't have a place to park it or I would have grabbed it already. I drove the car. Worth buying. Many parts like anice conditionred leather interior, great brakes, steering rack, hell, even the engine runs good (until it overheats). Might be cheaper for you to rent a car hauler and take it home. Unless you're in California!!

 

im in ohio, bought the car from Kentucky. I already called up a mechanic who is going to look at it. when i explained it to him. he said he has worked on 4 of these same types of transmissions, and said that it shouldnt be a big problem to fix. I will check fluids againbefore going ahead with anything. I added the Mercon III stuff dunno if thats what caused it. i might try and drain the whole thing and try it putting high grade mercon III.

If that doesnt work its off to the shop.

I can see where people would give up on such tasks, but i know the end result will be a very nice car. Just gotta keep going with it.

Def buying that fuel switch btw some good deals.

 

I don't think the fluid caused it, it's the same fluid I use in mine, otherwise I would have contradicted Ken already!I've also heard about Type F fluid, you might try that.

 

well i took it to a trans place. they opened it and parts were falling out. its 1500 to rebuild not that bad i was expecting 2000 to 3000. Hopfully a week should do it. *crosses Fingers*

 

you'll be fine.

 

Well trans is fixed and bought all new hub caps since mine were missing. I have 2 dash swtiches (fuel,Rear defrost) and i am clueless on how to put them in. The manual i bought just tells me how to get the window switches but nothing on the dash. Anyone know how to go about doing this?

 

some people say the switches can be pulled, but in my 1984, removing the old switches and installing new ones required removal of the vertical panel where all the switches/lighter/computer/dimmer are, and to do that, you need to remove the horizontal "Ski Slope" panel first (where the ashtrays and window switches are). And the radio must be removedto be able to movethe panel where the A/C controls are, forward.

It was not easy or fast. The switches have tangs at the rear that clamp themselves onto the rear of the panel. Unless you can break the old switches without damaging the panel, then the new ones should only need pushing in place after reconnecting the wiring plugs. (disconnect the battery first).

 

Jose and ken@bp....you guys rock! I need a fuel tank for my 1986 sovereign (one is leaking) - now I know where to order and how to do it. Much obliged.

 

youcan take the tank to a radiator shop to get it tested under pressure and sometimes they can spot-weld the seam where it leaks. Just another option.

 

Kamak86. As noted above, take the tank to a radiator shop for testing. They canweld up any small holes they find, very inexpensive, compared to the cost of a new tank. Mine had a small leak, had it boiled out, fixed, then I purchased POR15 off the internet. The 3 part kit cost, as I recall, around $85.00. Very simple to apply to the inside of the tank, as well as the outside if you like. The repair will last another 25 years. The POR15 will actually seal small leaks without repair, but better to have them repaired first. The tank will not rust after its applied. The instructions are very specific about not getting any of the sealer on threaded fittings, as its almost impossible to get off after it dries. The POR15 actually forms a very hard liner inside the tank after slushing the entire inside, and will not peel or flake off, not dissolve in the gas. No affliation with the product, just extremely satisfied with the product and results. The Haynes manuel is lacking in a lot of areas, but is actually pretty good when describing the fuel system of the XJ-6, and how to remove the tanks.

 

Since its in the winter months now, i have yet another problem on my hands. HEAT. which is taken for granted when you have it when you never gone without it. However, this is my problem. In the summer/fall when i got the car i noticed that the car would put out an amazingly ammount of heat which sometimes made it unbearable, that started to change in the dead of winter. It seems the servos that control the heat randomly flip from time to time from cold to hot. I figured out that i have a slow coolant leak on the top of top of the plastic coolant resivaor(spelling) where the screw is near the filling cap. When i add coolant the heat returns for about an hour or two and then the servos turn back to cold. This was a small quick fix for abot a week. Now if i add coolant nothing happens and its just cold air. Also my temp never goes above 90C in fact its always around 80-85....even if i have no coolant. Im not sure if it is the thermostat or what, but looking at how im gonna replace the thermo if i need to looks like an all day task. Any help is appreciated. Thanks

 

Sounds like you answered your own question. If you know the tank is leakingfilling the tank solves the problem and filling the tank solves the problem, I would replace the tank. It sounds like the logical place to start. Buy one here:

http://www.motorcarsltd.com/item.wws...p;sku=IN101522

 

This is a great help, im concerned that something else is broken with it due to the fact even if i fill it up now the heat still does not come back anymore.