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My step father just recently picked up this xj6 with a chevy 350 conversion and th400 trans.
He was only interested in the motor and trans.
The car has pretty bad rust on the body, but most of the chrome is still good.
I was going over all the receipts from the previous owner, pretty much every kart was replaced before it was parked 13 yrs ago.
I'd hate to see this car head to the scrap yard.... what would be a good option for this car? Find a local jag group to see if anyone needs the parts?
Im in swFL are there any groups around here?
I'd advertise it on Craigslist. And I'm sure there's a Jag Club in Florida with a monthly newsletter where you could advertise it. And/or list it in the advertising section of this forum.
Or, if you have the space and enthusiasm you could sell off the parts yourself. The return on labor invested might not pay off, though.
Yeah, parting out has it's risks. When one sells off the good stuff, one is left with a carcass. Then what. If only a buyer could be found that had trhe need ands the space for a parts car?
Notice the inner windscreen rubbers drooping in the edges?
That is THE most vicious cause of rust....
When the rubbers age, they dry out and shrink, letting water get between the window and the window frame. Once there's water, rust will soon follow, especially when the windscreen has been replaced once before....
Why not find a Jaguar engine and transmission and sell the thing as a running car.
Can't understand why in the USA all these beautiful cars are being given a Chevy engine though.....what is so special about a normal Chevy engine (HEMI not counted) that it has to be slammed into a british piece of art?
Are the british engines to complicated?
No parts available?
THe cars are worth lots more when the original engine is still inside...
As a complete car, I don't think it's worth the time. When I said it had bad rust..... I wasn't kidding.
If the item is chrome.... that was the saving grace for it... it looks as if when it was painted in 2002, the prep work wasn't thorough. There is some bubbling under the paint from previous rust.
The hood is a pain the open, rusting along the edges in one or two spots.
Im trying to come up with some cool ideas for using the bumpers as an accent item.... maybe the border to an outside table or mini bar...
most of the interior is rough..... if I pull the carpet up on the driver floor, there's not much floor left.
Its a shame, there was a lot of time and money invested in this car in 2001-03.... then it sat since.
I'd say an incorrectly fitted windscreen were the start of all of that poor car's woes. Too late now though. There's more rust than metal in that thing, which you'd find out if you ever dipped it in an acid bath.
1. If not needed, the "Jag to Chev" lump stuff might interest a buyer.
2. With a lot of work and imagination, a section of the boot could make qreat "Man Cave" sofa. Light up tail lamps and all. Not an original idea, I confess.
3. Pull the front and rear suspensions. Give the tin to the scrapper.
Notice the inner windscreen rubbers drooping in the edges?
That is THE most vicious cause of rust....
When the rubbers age, they dry out and shrink, letting water get between the window and the window frame. Once there's water, rust will soon follow, especially when the windscreen has been replaced once before....
The best way to prevent the rust would be to remove the rubbers entirely. The result would look like hell but you wouldn't have any rust!
The rubbers around the glass exist only to hold the bright trim and close out the gaps for cosmetic purposes. They were never fit well enough to keep water out....that wasn't the intent.... but were very effectively at keeping water IN !
...
Can't understand why in the USA all these beautiful cars are being given a Chevy engine though.....what is so special about a normal Chevy engine (HEMI not counted) that it has to be slammed into a british piece of art?
These cars Are automotive art, which is why so many Amercians try so hard to keep them on the road. They're just plain Beautiful! And, the Chevy doesn't get 'slammed' into the car until the XK has failed.
Are the british engines to complicated?
Not necessarily too complicated, but considered by most Mercans as less reliable than the tried and true Chevy 350. There are several reasons for this:
1) Blown head gaskets between 5&6 are not uncommon ("it just uses a little water")
2) Plastic timing chain tensioners in an interference engine
3) Dropped valve seats are a known characteristic of these engines
And the thing we despise most of all,
4) Head bolts through the water jacket.
Americans simply aren't willing to put up with this perceived foolishness when a 350 can be installed, even Professionally, for less than the overhaul cost of an XK; where there is no guarantee it won't blow another head gasket next week.
Most of all, Mercans are addicted to V8 power and performance which a straight 6 simply doesn't have (V6 doesn't count).
No parts available?
Parts are available, for the cost of an arm, leg, and the rights to your first born. If you have no children, body parts are accepted instead. And then there's the wait for parts to come across the Pond.
In contrast, Chevy parts are readily available Anywhere in USA from any corner parts store, at a fraction the price of Jaguar parts. Parts are also plentiful used at our local wrecking yards.
THe cars are worth lots more when the original engine is still inside...
Not in the US they aren't! Only collectors and serious Purists require the original engine. A well done conversion in a good body will sell for Far more than a car of similar condition still with its XK engine.
(';')
Last edited by LnrB; Jan 28, 2017 at 04:23 PM.
Reason: fingers faster than brain
1. If not needed, the "Jag to Chev" lump stuff might interest
3. Pull the front and rear suspensions. Give the tin to the scrapper.
Carl
Whent the motor comes out, I'll be sure to hang onto any mounts and brackets....
would you pull the suspension for resale? The entire steering system was also overhauled before being parked...
my stepfather was hoping to get $500 out of the entire rolling chassis.... I told him I would look into the possibility of that....
If I had the space, I would hang onto it and dismantle and catalog parts for future interest....
The area I live in is pretty much a city HOA.... we employ more code enforcement officers than police lol...
If I had the space, I would hang onto it and dismantle and catalog parts for future interest....
That's the dilemma faced by many of your potential customers who might otherwise be interested on buying the hulk as a rolling chassis. Where do I store it while I dismantle it for the parts I want? And, are the parts valuable enough to make the effort worthwhile? How do I dispose of the carcass when I'm done stripping the parts?
From a part-out-for-resale standpoint, big stuff like suspension assemblies are usually attractive only to local buyers as shipping costs are prohibitive.
In my experience small items (shoe-box size or smaller, let's say) sell easily on Ebay....but you'll not get rich doing so.
Bigger items are best put on Craiglist for local buyers.....although your field of potential buyers is also just local, obvously. You might be tripping over suspension assemblies and big items for months before you find a buyer, though.
mhh...point taken on the reliability of a Chevy engine...
Actually I do understand why these cars are being converted. Do I like the idea?
No, not neccessarily....I tend to believe in the engineer who designed the car. I guess that makes me a purist then... ;-)
If I had to do a conversion like that, however, I guess nothing less than a big block or a Hemi would go in though...
About the windows:
I resqued my Cat just in time, I believe. The window frames and the rear left fender are rusted through completely, but this is something I can fix myself.
As co-owner of a body repair shop, I bought the V12 mostly as advertising object.
Hope to show it off at classic car ralleys in the near future and I hope to get some nice contracts from it.
Luckily on mine, the floor panels are mint condition, although the entire car was soggy because of the leaking window frames. A few hours in the paint booth at 60 degrees celcius and it will be dry.
Will I reinstall the rubbers? Most certainly not! I'll figure something out with black sealant rather than risking another rust attack because of leaky rubbers...
There was a factory fitted big block option on these cars. It was called the V12. Yes it comes with it's own list of problems. But from what I can ascertain these arise mainly from a poorly designed & badly maintained cooling system, which can be cured with many aftermarket kits. If I wanted a big hp XJ I'd be looking at what TWR did to extract the Neddies out of their race engines, & notching it back to street level reliability. Now THAT's one for the Purists alright!
mhh...point taken on the reliability of a Chevy engine...
Actually I do understand why these cars are being converted. Do I like the idea?
No, not neccessarily....I tend to believe in the engineer who designed the car. I guess that makes me a purist then... ;-)
If I had to do a conversion like that, however, I guess nothing less than a big block or a Hemi would go in though...
Nuthin wrong with Purists, someone has to do it, it's just that many of us aren't. As I understand it anyway, Chevys aren't so readily available in Europe as they are in the US.
I agree with the idea of Big Block Hemi, and if I could afford it (or wanted to have the car down for that long) I would go for it in a heartbeat! MORE POWER!!
(';')
Chevy 350 units abound here, as indeed they do in the U.S. Plenty supply = cheap to buy, easy to maintain, viable alternative lump. Here, the marinised version is just as common in speed boats as the standard unit is in local GM derived cars.
As for the purist topic, I can never resist jumping in to stir the pot whenever it arises - so here I go: It's often been inferred that I'm a purist because I have a certain respect for originality, 'though I prefer to call myself a traditionalist. There is a clear difference. My definition of the Purist mentality is that they can't sleep at night if an incorrect screw is used on the car i.e. everything must be to original spec. Traditionalists on the other hand enjoy retaining principally what the originating engineers intended in deference to their skill and knowledge, but not to the level of virtual paranoia. So, plenty is "incorrect" on my car, but it's reliable heart is definitely and proudly feline. Many accused purists are really just traditionalists, whereas true purists usually hang out in the concours arena - different breed altogether.
Seems like an unimportant debate, but hey, it distracts us from politics and all the other unsavoury garbage enveloping the world on a daily basis, so maybe not so unimportant!!
There was a factory fitted big block option on these cars. It was called the V12.
I'm nearing completion of my own 'lump' project...turning an XJ6 into an XJ12. It's been lots of fun and, judging from the first (and so far, only) 50 miles of driving, a smash success
Yes it comes with it's own list of problems.
Not problems. Interesting design features
But from what I can ascertain these arise mainly from a poorly designed & badly maintained cooling system, which can be cured with many aftermarket kits.
Cooling is the bugaboo, yes. But experiences vary.
If I wanted a big hp XJ I'd be looking at what TWR did to extract the Neddies out of their race engines, & notching it back to street level reliability. Now THAT's one for the Purists alright!
Traditionalists on the other hand enjoy retaining principally what the originating engineers intended in deference to their skill and knowledge, but not to the level of virtual paranoia.
I'd say I'm a traditionalist as well. I enjoy all-things-Jaguar, even the stuff that is flawed in design or execution. But I'm not a slave to absolute purity or perfection. There are many ways to enjoy the car hobby and I've sampled several of them in my life.
What to do with an 86 xj6?
