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@jose wow. Very impressed and a bit jelly! Would love to have one myself. That and a couple
ok so changed the fuse Nd no luck. I can hear the switching of I get my wife to press down on the horn.
put your ear in front of the horns as she presses the horn button;
can you hear the horns TRYING to sound?
(note: ignition switch must be in the ON position).
let's go back to WD40; Spray WD40 into the horn openings to see if the inner horn diaphragms unsticks. WD40 will not hurt the horns.
yes? no?
next step if no sound: There is a flathead screw surrounded by a nut on top of each horn. Remove the horn from the bracket, Holding the screw with a screwdriver,
loosen the nut about 1/4" inch. While she presses the horn button, turn the screw counterclockwise and clockwise to where it was originally, this will decompress and recompress the diaphragm and the horn should blast when you reach the "sweet spot".
These horns will not die, they just get stuck for lack of use. Maintenance will wake tthem up.
NOTE: the interval between the Low Note horn and the High note horn is a Major Third. Example: If the Low note is C, the High note is E. If the Low note is G, the High note is B.
For Danny who requested more S type pics, The last two pics show Gene Baker next to Governor Morris of California in 1926, and Led Zeppelyn pictured with an S type in 1972.
Jose,
Thank you for posting these pics. Your car is GORGEOUS! I love it. And the pic with Led Zeppelin, one of my favorite bands BTW, is very cool.
Your car car must be fun to show. I imagine a lot of people enjoy seeing it. It’s a real treasure. Thanks again!
@xjdanny I cant imagine how excited you are. I was like a school kid just looking at mine and then driving it home. Every morning I look at it in the garage and I just say, wow. The feeling just gets better! Now all I want to do is clean it, maintain it and drive it! This forum is awesome. Have learned so much already, thanks to all the guys posting and helping out. My first Jag. Lucky fellows we are!
@xjdanny post some pics when you get it!!
Chris,
i will post some pics after I get it. After I bought it in May I posted some pics in this forum to introduce myself and the car. They were pics the dealer took and put on AutoTrader where I found it. The car looks amazing in the pics and the mechanic who inspected it for me (who owns a Series III himself) said it’s immaculate. Keeping my fingers crossed!
I know exactly what you mean by being excited. I’ve been into Jags since I was a teenager and when my parents owned a white Series II XJ12L. That was such a special car and I got bit by the Jaguar bug and have been hooked ever since. I’m so passionate about them! I have a 2002 XJR and a 2014 XKR convertible in my garage and I never get tired of polishing them, fixing this or that, taking them to car shows, and of course, driving them. Sometimes I just open the door to my garage and look at them. It brings such a smile to my face! And I ALWAYS look over my shoulder after parking them for another look. Someone on these forums once said, “If you don’t turn around to stare at your car after parking it, you don’t own the right car.” 100% agree! I must admit, it took a little convincing on my part before I could get my spouse to have buy in on me getting a third Jaguar. Not that I couldn’t have just bought it without but what fun would that be if we weren’t on the same page? So after some explaining that I’ve ALWAYS wanted a Series III and how they’re the most beautiful sedan ever made and there’s really nothing left for me to do on the other cars and how much I enjoy something to work on, I got the green light!
I am so excited to get my ‘87 VDP I can hardly stand it. I’ve literally wanted one since 1988 when I realized 1987 was the last year. It’s been a long wait! :-) Here’s a pic from the dealer. I can see one of the headlights doesn’t match so I already bought four new halogens and replacing the lights will be project #1.
Had to laugh, Musical notes in description of a electro/mechanical flaw. By whom, a musician, of course!!!
Tis been years since I messed with my silent horns on my Jaguar. I just might have created a flaw where there was none!!!! I recall getting them to toot, one at a time, by applying 12 volts to each directly. I think my issue lies in the wiring adjacent to the relay . As I don't place toots very high on my list of priorities, silent, they will remain.
However, on a past critter or two, percussion has "fixed" one or more. A sound whack with a rubber mallet is enough Weak pun intended.
You suppose that the fellow that swapped in anew light did so for the same errorenous reason that I did!! OIn other critters, lamp goes dark, the fix is clear. Swap in anew one. but, of course, not that simple in a Jaguar....
Danny, if a headlight doesn't come on, it is usually a corroded contact at the 5-Fuse fusebox located by the coolant tank in the engine compartment, driver's side. One fuse per headlight. The 5th fuse is the fuse for the auxiliary electric Fan located under the front bumper behind the lower grille.
to clean the contacts, disconnect the Positive battery cable first, then take a nail file or a small brass "toothbrush" and clean the spring brass contacts of each fuse. You can also bend them inwards if the fuses are lose using needlenose pliers. Note that the battery needs to be disconnected to do all this, otherwise you can fry wiring harnesses.
Will try your advice. Will i have to raise the car at all to get to the horns???
@xjdanny Nice car! Love the colour. Same wheels as mine no? The more i look at my car the more i love the shape. Its pretty damn easy to spot in between all the generic cars out there while parked. Have had plenty of compliments. Although I cant take credit for any am afraid. Thats down to the previous owner hahah
I've been messing with my '84 since 1989, so you learn something everyday. I have not calculated how many days have passed since 1989, I never liked geometry or calculus!
Whatever I can help you with, I'm happy to.
For engine troubleshooting, you'll have to enlist Doug, all I can do is change spark plugs, filters, fluids, belts, mufflers and pipes, radiators, fans, steering racks, steering wheels, water pumps, you name it, been there, done that, otherwise I'm not a technician, I'm a trial-and-error-nician.
The Good News? there are many experienced owners in these forums who can help fix these cars.
xjdanny Nice car! Love the colour. Same wheels as mine no? The more i look at my car the more i love the shape. Its pretty damn easy to spot in between all the generic cars out there while parked. Have had plenty of compliments. Although I cant take credit for any am afraid. Thats down to the previous owner hahah
Thanks, Chris! There is no more beautiful sedan than a Series III in my opinion. We do have the same wheels! The PO told me they were like a $5,000 option. I’ve noticed there are a good amount of ‘87s with these wheels. I believe the dealers installed them but the factory didn’t install them and have advised against using them. But the factory’s recommendation may simply be a matter of them wanting their owners to only use what they sell. I think the wire wheels are beautiful but I’ve never had wire wheels before and am wondering how to clean them. I have heard some wheel cleaners can discolor the spokes so you might want to be careful in what you use. I bought a brush made for wire wheels but I’m guessing they aren’t easy to dry off after washing. I read a post on JagLovers about wire wheels. Some people love them and others recommend not using them. Here’s a link: https://forums.jag-lovers.com/t/xj-wire-wheels/189542/4
If you read the link, you’ll see some people recommend the newer 70 spoke wheels vs. the 60 spoke. I can see in pictures my car has the 60 spoke wheels. I hope I’m going to like them.
Originally Posted by Jose
Danny, if a headlight doesn't come on, it is usually a corroded contact at the 5-Fuse fusebox located by the coolant tank in the engine compartment, driver's side. One fuse per headlight. The 5th fuse is the fuse for the auxiliary electric Fan located under the front bumper behind the lower grille.
to clean the contacts, disconnect the Positive battery cable first, then take a nail file or a small brass "toothbrush" and clean the spring brass contacts of each fuse. You can also bend them inwards if the fuses are lose using needlenose pliers. Note that the battery needs to be disconnected to do all this, otherwise you can fry wiring harnesses.
Thank you, Jose!
Hopefully, they’ll all work but I’ll keep your recommendation in mind if they don’t. The new ones should work because the mechanic said the current ones all work. I’ve never done anything to a Series III but being sealed beam lights, I imagine changing them out is a straightforward job. If there is some unusual thing I have to do to remove the old bulbs, I’d love it if you let me know. I decided to change them out to new halogens because the one doesn’t match and they all need to match so I didn’t think I could buy one new one without replacing all of them. Plus, I’m guessing at least three of them are the original bulbs and I have to think new 55 watt halogens must be brighter than the originals from the factory.
wire wheels are a pain to clean, ask me how I know!
Meguier's sells a "cone" brush designed to clean wire wheels.
to dry them, I use my HarborFreight pancake compressor with an air hose and "pistol" adapter to instantly remove any water, then polish them with the cone brush attached to a drill. It is a Sunday job.
Danny replacing the sealed beams is easy, just try to not alter or move the 2 large aiming / alignment bolts when removing the old lamps.
@xjdanny I love and hate the spokes hahaha I have spent a good 3 hours cleaning and detailing the car. Got a ton of stuff from Chemical Guys. They some nice waxes and some fo the stuff smells like bananas hahah
I found that using a somewhat used toothbrush works wonders. I wash the tires then us a non harmful degreaser then use the toothbrush then wash down again. Jose mentioned using a cone brush. Unfortunately i had the foresight NOT to get one. They look good after applying some polish finish. Again from chemical guys. Pic attached
If you want a list of stuff I got just drop me a message.
@jose. I couclnt hear anything out of the horns when i tried last night. I took one off the bracket but of course i didn't have the right size nut wrench / spanner. There is no screwdriver type bolt. Unless i am looking at the wrong thing but all there was was a nut and bolt, fairly small .I am borrowing my friends this evening to try out.
I am also working my way around the bulbs, just so i know how to change them. I got to the door lights (on the edge as you open them, but can't seem to open them up to get the bulb out??
twist the squared end on the back, where the wires come out of. It's been so long since I replaced a bulb in one of those I can't fully remember, but yes it is from the rear of the little lamp.
@xjdanny I love and hate the spokes hahaha I have spent a good 3 hours cleaning and detailing the car. Got a ton of stuff from Chemical Guys. They some nice waxes and some fo the stuff smells like bananas hahah
I found that using a somewhat used toothbrush works wonders. I wash the tires then us a non harmful degreaser then use the toothbrush then wash down again. Jose mentioned using a cone brush. Unfortunately i had the foresight NOT to get one. They look good after applying some polish finish. Again from chemical guys. Pic attached
If you want a list of stuff I got just drop me a message.
Chris,
Your wheel is so pretty. I can imagine I’ll have a love/hate relationship with mine too. I actually did buy a cone brush. It’s impatiently waiting for the car to arrive next week! I also bought Mother’s Chrome Wheel Cleaner that’s supposed to be for wire wheels. I’ll test it out. We have a professional leaf blower and I’m wondering if that’ll be an easy way of drying them after I wash them. I’ll try that out too. Trying to think outside the box! Here’s a pic of one of mine...
07-18-2018, 05:07 PM
