The 'E' Type Forum

A pic and a video from the show. This is the Classic Jag corner of the estate and by no means the whole grounds. Pictured here is a 1970 Coupe, an original survivor right hand drive built for export to Australia but never got there, which is why it has the reflectors. On the other side of mine (in the middle) is a 1971 early Series 3. Interesting to compare the common transition stuff across all three.

Further up this thread, I wanted to get two cam covers without the notches to go with the SU's, but someone here pointed out that theirs had the 2 notches, so I left mine as original. Interestingly, the survivor car pictured was built around the same time as mine, and upon inspection, it has one fully ribbed cover and the other cover has the notches! Clearly near the end of the Series II run they were cleaning out the parts bins and prepping for the transition to the series III with a venn intersection at the froth line. How would one go about properly / fairly judging that stuff.. Interesting, indeed.



Here is a short video that started out at the engine bay and the expanded outward to get a sense of the pleasant mood and chit chat that surrounded the the venue. Vancouver is a great city.

A look at the car and venue

The end of an interesting 7 Month Bucket List Marathon for me. Back from Vancouver, survived the ferries, over to the Oak Bay Yacht Club in Victoria for Breakfast. 150 miles on the odometer, 350 to go for the engine break in. The car is effortless to drive, smooth as glass with bags of torque, eager to run. I just love it.

Great work Dana

Geoff

Gorgeous....you must ( and should ) be very proud and happy....
Jonathan

Gfhug wrote: ↑

Mon May 21, 2018 4:38 pm

Great work Dana
Geoff

265bhp wrote: ↑

Mon May 21, 2018 10:12 pm

Gorgeous....you must ( and should ) be very proud and happy....
Jonathan

Thx guys. And to all to chimed in on the decision process along the way, a special thx. I'll keep updating as we go thru the fettling process. The car has been amazingly good from day one, so it shouldn't be too onerous..

My Newbie tip for the car. Now that I'm stretching it's legs I wanted to find a reliable solution for changing a wheel simply. It occurred to me that a used BMW jack that crossed quite a few versions and models might work.

I found one on eBay for about $50 that was in good shape:





The Series II XKE rocker panel Jack retainer fence is 27 mm square and 8mm high, so I milled the BMW jack pad to fit in the retainer thusly:



And the proof of the pudding ; really easy to use, minimum effort required.

An interesting video of the All British 2018 Field Meet at VanDusen as produced by Richard Owen. If you are interested in the full ambiance, it really is 28 minutes of entertainment.

The XKE at the 2018 All British Field Meet at VanDusen

Enjoy.

So here's the Best of Show - First Time Entrant Plaque we got for the All British Field Meet in Vancouver. A shout out to the excellent fast track 7 month restoration plan and all the diverse skillsets that it took to deliver the car in that timeframe with such perfection. I just had it out for a drive on the Malahat today, and it laps up the hills, curves and the miles effortlessly. Can't wait to get it past the 500 mile break in as it's so good even now. Only 150 more to go.

As mentioned earlier in the thread, this car is not just a pretty face. It's the real deal; - first and foremost, a flawless driver.

Well done Dana, there'll be no holding you back soon

Geoff

Looks great, gets those miles on her.

Hi Dana,

Just read this thread from start to finish as been away from the forum for far too long. A stunning car and a real credit to your enthusiasm that comes across in the post. Enjoy.

Steve

SteveG wrote: ↑

Sat Jun 02, 2018 9:59 am

Hi Dana,
Just read this thread from start to finish as been away from the forum for far too long. A stunning car and a real credit to your enthusiasm that comes across in the post. Enjoy.
Steve

Thx Steve. It was a fun project, full of interesting people. I've been both lucky and fortunate that in this bonus round of life I am still able to enjoy it fully. The time left is far more important than money

For the record, here is a partial list of those who were critical to getting it done on time:

Dana Ferguson – Owner (Me)
Michael Owen – Owen Automotive (Master Mechanical lead)
Richard Owen – Owen Automotive (Project Manager)
Jason Stoch – Jetstream Custom Auto
Sean Barnes – Jetstream Custom Auto
Eli Layfield – Jetstream Custom Auto
Dave – Jetstream Custom Auto
Geoff Chrysler – Rightway Heritage Trimming
Scotty – Blast It! Do-it-yourself Sandblasting LTD
William Wigglesworth – SNG Barratt USA
Frank Vieira – SNG Barratt USA
Randy Hunter – Electro Shine Metal Finishers Ltd.
Hugh Pite – Original Parts Supply
Mike Eck – www.jaguarclock.com/
Oliver Bienz – Instument Repair.

I've already done the 500 miles on break in oil etc, Burlen has figured out their Production issues with the SU's for delivery, and the car runs like a new car under warranty is expected to perform. The Universe unfolds as it should.

Some relevant real world feedback:

Earlier in this thread, we discussed putting the Engine back to high compression and there was caution expressed by some on doing that. The Engine is a -9, so came from the factory as High Compression, but it had Low compression domes installed in California back in the last century. The executive summary was beware, as it was felt that the engine would be prone to knocking (pinging as it seems to be called in Europe) because of the lobotomized fuel available these days.

In real world driving, it doesn't knock at all, even laying on it with real world grunt. My butt Dyno tells me it's just fine, even with the longer 3.07 diff. I do use Chevron 94 (North American) tho. Between the high compression and the triple SU's it's a really nice setup, noticeably nicer than the dual Strombergs and 8:1 were at the outset. Of course it didn't hurt to have the engine blueprinted in the process with that new racing front crank damper and high performance pistons. Love the way it easily throttle rev matches on quick double clutching downshifts. Makes my day in crowded 4 lane traffic coming up to a light. Fully analog, fully engaged. Take that, you digital rev matching ECU paddle shifters...

Someone asked me how the engine went back in after rebuild. Richard Owen did this video at the time for anyone interested:

Putting the Engine and Drivetrain in the XKE

I've not posted for a while - too busy putting on the miles. Here we are back at the Oak Bay Marina for the basic walk around video. The car is just a lot of fun to play with, as the regulars here already know. Now for some warm summer weather so I can park the hardtop for a while and head out topless.

The generic walkaround view

For those interested in the Burlen SU Conversion kit as discussed along this thread, Richard put together a interesting video of it all. The part I like is how smooth the engine is at the end. The blueprinting of the engine really shows. Almost looks like a still photo across the RPM range it's so smooth. Just like the car. Such a great driver. Me happy

The Burlen Install Video

Car is back from the initial break in (500 Mile) service.. Basically look at everything, tighten up, retorque, check for leaks, change appropriate fluids and so on. All good.

Some general engine bay pics just for fun after the inspections if you want a fresh screensaver.. Car still looks good, and amazingly, no real leaks. Someone told me that would never be the case. Who knew?

Today I took the car on a hill climb up the Malahat Highway on Vancouver Island. Here'a a video snapshot of the fully fettled car. What's not to like about it, and like the energizer bunny, it just keeps going.. and going.. and going like a new car should..

Up the Malahat like it's not even there..

Oil pressure's a touch on the high side, isn't it?