series 2 federal spec air filter

[whitesnake]

Hi, Am in process of converting my series 2 OTS 4.2 to RHD and all was going well until tried to fit federal sp eck air filter back to my strombergs ( stranglebergs ). It will not fit by about 1 inch too low and fouling the pedal box. Is there a solution to this out there? or do I have to source after market air filters ie: K&N or AirRam. Did think maybe the engine sits too low but after checking the mounts look OK and in good condition.
Any solution welcome. Apart from this I am nearly there with conversion.
Steve

[mgcjag]

This was posted a while ago...similar problem viewtopic.php?f=3&t=11833&p=96274&hilit ... nts#p96274

[johnetype]

You don't say but I guess you've got a late Series 2 car, circa 1970 with an engine number greater than 7R7973. The earlier Series 2 US cars (68/69) had the same twin Strombergs but retained the standard canister air filter fitted to all other Series 1 & 2 E types.

Anyone whose converted from Strombergs to triple SUs as part of their LHD to RHD conversion could have the triangular interface box that links the carbs to the canister air filter now spare (C28712 I believe) so find one of those and you can join your Strombergs to a standard air filter canister with no clearance problems.

BTW, I know they are often called "stranglebergs" but they are actually very good carburetors, it's just the inlet manifold that does all the strangling and that's easily fixed.

[mgcjag]

You may also want to look at this link viewtopic.php?f=7&p=96217

[Bigcatfrankie]

Hi Steve,
I have the same problem on my Series 2, 2+2..........doing exactly the same as you are doing, swapping the steering over! I wondered if the Series 3 air cleaner might fit, but so far no-one has come up with an answer as to whether it does!...........see my query in Technical Forum. Let me know if you come up with a solution.
Tim

[whitesnake]

Thanks for everyones input on this but having measured and trial fitted my rectangular air filter I think I will attempt to modify the rear of it to clear the pedal box. It will involve taking about 1 inch off the underneath rear corner for a 4 inch length, cutting the paper filter to fit and welding a patch over the hole to make good.
At first glance it will not be noticable and keeps originality. Nothing to lose really, if it does not work I can try and source a drum filter that fits.
On Johns comment about Strombergs I agree they are good carbs and when RHD conversion is complete I will do the modification to release their full potential.

[mgcjag]

A photo of your problem would be good to share......someone might also come up with an answer for you.. Steve

[tim wood]

Hi,
I have a spare drum filter if you are interested ?

Tim

[PeterCrespin]

On Johns comment about Strombergs I agree they are good carbs and when RHD conversion is complete I will do the modification to their full potential.

Depends what you mean by “good”.

These small non-adjustable carbs were fitted to lots of 1800cc and 2.0L four cylinder MGs and Triumphs, (or indeed one per 1325cc of a V12). If you feel that the same carbs are equally suited to a six cylinder of more than twice the capacity without strangling the top end (when the secondary throttles are least obstructive) then we have different definitions of good.

On the other hand, if you were a Jaguar engineer or product manager and someone said that fitting Stranglebergs would enable your cars to continue being sold in their biggest market, and you to keep your job, I’m sure they qualify as A Very Good Thing.

With the secondary throttles removed or jammed open, the carbs are adequate.for city driving and country cruises, with the 3.54 diff coming to the rescue at the traffic light grand prix. At motorway speeds, if you want to floor it in third and watch the bonnet rise, not so much...

But then any E in any configuration, remains a thing of wonder, so in the grand scheme of things, small twin carbs are not a huge issue. My FHC still has them, although I’ve had a set of Lonsdale refurbed SUs for five years.

[johnetype]

By good, I actually meant well made and good at metering fuel effectively and on those points better than SUs on both counts.

Jaguar didn't choose Strombergs by chance to save someone's job, they chose them because they were able to meter fuel more accurately than SUs and sustain that accuracy over thousands of miles enabling Jaguar to satisfy the emissions regulations. Lotus had the same challenge and went the same way. The Strombergs would have been more expensive to buy so no doubt Jaguar only did so through gritted teeth but as you say, something had to be done to maintain their biggest market.

I agree a pair of them is a bit small but then no regular E type produced 265HP and certainly very few of us drive in a way to notice any missing horses at the top end. I suspect that the limiting factor on a US spec engine is not carb size but the awful manifold even with the secondary throttles removed or held open. Most XK engines ran on twin carbs and it would be an interesting experiment to fit Strombergs in place of SUs on a standard UK twin carb manifold and see what the performance figures were.

As we both agree, with the manifold secondary throttles held open the Strombergs provide adequate performance and for me rather than spend £3000 on a set of SUs and manifold, I plan to go the fuel injection route. Maximum performance and drivability for less money.