thanks, yea i've heard the insurance inspections in europe are pretty harsh.

 

keep going, hope it all works out. Let us know when startup day rolls around, we'll all throw our support in!

 

hopefully the engine will be going back in the car today,it should have been going back in yesterday but as we winched it up I noticed the 2 oil cooler connections in the new engine were blanks about an inch into the block, good job I spotted that as we have to change the bottom cover over, that would have been a PITA if it'd been back in the car.


i've posted this in the tech help forum but i'll post it here as well in case I get a faster reply

when we removed the timing cover the long chain on the LH bank was loose, enough to get my finger behind it, also when we rotated the cams the flats didn't line up in the LH bank but they did in the right.

The engine came from an accident damaged car but shows no sign of damage other than a cracked rocker cover,because the new engine is newer the VVT system is different which means swapping the cams over which we completed yesterday.

We put the new cams in and set then so all the flats are level then turned it over by hand twice to make sure there was no contact between pistons and valves

My concern is the chains are now tight, my understanding is the tensioners operate on oil pressure and should tighten when the engine is assembled and turned over with the fuel system disconnected to raise the oil pressure without starting the car.

should they be tight prior to turning the car over, he's a competent mechanic but this is the 1st one of these he's done, as for me this is the 1st time i've looked in an engine and seen all the valves and cams turning, fascinating

 

I'm told the tensioners don't put enough tension on to damage a chain even at full tension so that's reassuring .

I think startup day is here, we spent a couple of hours gently lowering the engine and transmission back into the car yesterday, you have to lift it almost vertical to get it in, a worrying time , today it's connecting it all up and turn the key.

i've bought a new battery as well as I have no idea how old the one in the car is and it's stood for a while so i thought i'm in this far what's another £80

 

I've now stripped the old 1997 engine down to all it's components in order to sell as much as i can to recoup some money, what a shame, this car has been loved by someone in the past, the block looks new in comparison to the rest of the engine, it's been changed to a steel lined one.

It also has Mk III upper tensioners in it , I think it was the last owner that killed it by not getting the head gasket fixed, all the shells are scored and one was in 3 pieces which would be why the engine had a knock.

I'm glad I changed the tensioners in the 2001 engine as one of them had started to crack.

we had a go at starting it today but it wouldn't fire, it was late so we're haing another go tomorrow, fingers crossed

 

This post should be a sticky at the top of the forum!

 

If parts for the Secondary chain tensioners can be ordered from a Lincoln dealer, can they also install the parts at a lower cost than the Jaguar Dealer? I own a 2001 Jaguar XKR with orginal tensioners probably 2nd generation and 75k miles. I am planning on having the work done this fall but may reconsider the Jaguar dealer doing the replacement vs. the local Lincoln dealer. Has anyone had their secondary tensioners replaced by a Lincoln dealer?

 

I can't see a problem with them doing the job correctly, my mechanic had never seen a jaguar engine before but managed to change the cams over from one engine to another and reset the timing after fitting the new tensioners.

changing the tensioners is pretty simple by comparison as all they have to to is lock the cams and flywheel with the kit they must already have if the engine is the same

 

Hi, Can anyone recommend a RELIABLE Engine reconditioning company in the UK Preferably in or around the East Midlands, It seems that there are very many Cowboy Outfits around! I believe my Head Gasket has blown, The engine was originally rebuilt by Jaguar at 60,000 due to Nikasil problems, there is now 121,000 on the clock.. and from the service records there has been coolant loss in the past which was never put right, When I got the car I discovered that the plastic coolant pipe joining the two cylinder heads had a hairline crack in it which only sprayed water out when under pressure!..
So I am unsure which way to jump, Recondition the existing engine or buy a low mileage second hand engine?.. Can anyone offer any suggestions please!

 

What method did you use for getting the engine out? Just winch it out the top or drop it out of the bottom? With the transmission attached or not? I'm going to have to do this myself soon so looking to gather information. A link to a good write-up of the process would be fantastic.

 

Thanks for listing these part numbers. All of them work except no. 7. When I enter no. 7, I get an error message from Ford parts online. Can you re-check the part number please?
Thanks,
Napoleon

 

Hello, Colleagues. I was offered an engine, but I need 4.0 litre V8 for my XK8, '99. What kind of engine is it? I am just afraid of not getting the 3.2 one..
Thanks in advance!

 

This is a FANTASTIC post!! I can't wait to see how it all buttons up!!!

 

I should hope that this car is finished by now. Or in a scrapyard

 

If anyone knows of a good looking broken XK8 for sale let me know. I have gravel roads with magnesium chloride on them and don't have the heart to drive my jag on them in the winter so why not convert one into a 4x4 with chevy drivetrain?