New member restoration advice

The Borrower · Post by **The Borrower** » Mon Sep 24, 2012 10:11 am

Hello, My name is Peter (The Borrower) and I have the task of restoring a 1967 series 1.5 roadster (ex LHD Californian car) for my friend and owner of the car. I am the only one who has driven it in the last 5 yrs, (hence the borrower) and it is to undergo a restoration in the near future.
The things which I am looking to do is replace the twin Strombergs with tripple SU's, replace the interior, soft top, engine rebuild, xenon light upgrade, exhaust manifold, polybushes all around and uprate the cooling system as it has overheated the last time I used it. It is also having the bodywork rebuilt. It is not in bad condition but he wants it sorting properly this time. Last restored 15yrs ago but in need of a complete strip down and respray.
Would it be better to retain and repair the original bonnet with the open lights or replace the bonnet with a series 1? Is it better to buy a new tripple carb kit or try and source an old one and have it refurbed? I believe that the rear diff is different as it was a Californian export. What should it have fitted and is it worth changing it?
I know there are a few questions and these are only the start i'm sure. Are there any other suppliers than SNG Barrett and Hutsons who supply upgrades?
Regards and awaiting some advice.
Peter

Post by **Heuer** » Mon Sep 24, 2012 10:42 am

Welcome to the Forum Peter!

Hope you are going to watch the 'Classic Car Rescue' programme tonight on C5 as they are going to restore an S2 "in four weeks"

The E-Type seems to be one of those cars for which 'upgrades' do not significantly affect values and, if done sympathetically, can increase values (see E Type UK and Eagle). You do need to be circumspect howver or you could end up with a hot hatch that looks like an E-Type

so it depends on what you are going to use the car for - track-days, Sunday afternoon drives, touring Europe? Everyone will have different views on what you intend to do but here are mine. I started with a highly modified car and over the course of 42,000 miles I have moved it back towards standard.

1. Triple SU's are a great idea but sourcing a set with the correct manifold will be expensive - allow ?2,500 because a s/h set will need restoring

2. Interior - keep it standard but several of us have had good experiences of using Mazda MX5 seats for comfort and it is easy to switch back to original

3. Exhaust manifold - caution required. The cast manifold is very well designed, it improves low-down torque whilst controlling under bonnet heat and noise. Tubular manifolds can bubble adjacent paint and 'tinkle' annoyingly at low revs. If you are going down that route do not go for anything larger than 1.75" diameter pipes but bear in mind that stainless steel will discolour very quickly. Personally I think cast manifolds with stainless steel straight through silencers and resonators works best.

4. Poly-bushes - various experiences here but I think they increase ride harshness with no benefit. They can also squeak annoyingly.

5. A Kenlowe or Cool-Cat fan is a good idea.

6. Stick with the S2 bonnet, it is of its time and looks good. If you replace it you will also need new bumpers and over-riders (which invariably will not fit) and you will still end up with the rear end of the car looking out of place. On the other hand for the rear consider using an oblong rear number plate, ditching the stainless square backing plate and light clamshells, fitting Lotus Elan rear lights with integrated reversing lamps and S1 style exhaust resonators. You will find pictures on the Forum: http://etypeuk.com/forum/viewtopic.php? ... ight=lotus

7. The US diff is a 3.54 ratio. For use in UK and Europe probably worth fitting a 3.07 for relaxed cruising with little impact on acceleration. You could go to 2.88 but you really need a modified engine for that. A 5 speed box is worth considering.

8. SNG and Hustons' are not known for their 'upgrades'. Try Rob Beere or read through the Forum.

christopher storey · Post by **christopher storey** » Mon Sep 24, 2012 11:50 am

Just one word of caution : I think you will find that fitting xenon headlamps will lead inevitably to MOT failure : AFAIK they are not permitted unless the vehicle has a working self levelling device

Post by **Heuer** » Mon Sep 24, 2012 12:41 pm

Well spotted Christopher - missed that one! Problems with Xenon lights are two fold. Firstly they are, as you say, an MOT failure unless you have self levelling suspension and secondly they work on the basis of volume of light rather than absolute power. This is why the headlights on modern cars are large and include special prisms to focus the beam. The E-Type headlight design is totally inappropriate as it is physically not big enough to project the volume of light Xenon's require to work effectively. Also the lens design is not optimised for this type of light output so will dazzle oncoming drivers. In the past you used to be able to fit Xenon lights on dipped beam only but the new MOT regulations even prohibit that.

The Borrower · Post by **The Borrower** » Mon Sep 24, 2012 4:47 pm

Thank you both for the reply. Xenon idea is now ditched and ?250 to be put to another upgrade. To be honest the car hardly goes out at night anyway.
I have been looking for the carb kit and they seem to be around ?2500 + VAT making them around the ?3000 mark. Which supplier would be best to contact? I have also read about manifolds on other posts and the only reason for looking at replacing them was to remove the pipe for the US emissions which goes from the inlet to the exhaust. Another saving! It already has a stainless system, Coopercraft brakes and Spax shocks from the last restoration.
The owner has a concourse DB5 and wants the eType to be similar. Not much of a challenge for me then!! With a budget of ?35k i'm hoping the rest isn't that bad. I am going to rebuild the engine as it seems a bit daft not to when it's all in bits anyway. Having never tackled a 6 cylinder engine before, what would the approx rebuild cost if all parts are in good shape and how long should it take?

Post by **1954Etype** » Mon Sep 24, 2012 4:49 pm

The Borrower wrote:Thank you both for the reply. Xenon idea is now ditched and ?250 to be put to another upgrade. To be honest the car hardly goes out at night anyway.
I have been looking for the carb kit and they seem to be around ?2500 + VAT making them around the ?3000 mark. Which supplier would be best to contact? I have also read about manifolds on other posts and the only reason for looking at replacing them was to remove the pipe for the US emissions which goes from the inlet to the exhaust. Another saving! It already has a stainless system, Coopercraft brakes and Spax shocks from the last restoration.
The owner has a concourse DB5 and wants the eType to be similar. Not much of a challenge for me then!! With a budget of ?35k i'm hoping the rest isn't that bad. I am going to rebuild the engine as it seems a bit daft not to when it's all in bits anyway. Having never tackled a 6 cylinder engine before, what would the approx rebuild cost if all parts are in good shape and how long should it take?

Hold on! Did I read this right? You are building a 'CONCOURS' car for someone but don't know a great deal about E Types? What could possibly go wrong...

Post by **Heuer** » Mon Sep 24, 2012 5:15 pm

For the carbs SU Carb company is one source the other is David Lonsdale who is highly recommended: 07786 912011 david@classiccarburetters.co.uk and probably slightly cheaper if he has a set. For the engine rebuild give VSE a call as they literally have a XK production line going. Cost will be about ?5k, more if you opt for their VSE02 fast road option and the turn around is 'relatively' quick (6-8 weeks). Difficult to say what the cost will be if you DIY until it is apart.

Dave K · Post by **Dave K** » Mon Sep 24, 2012 7:45 pm

christopher storey wrote:Just one word of caution : I think you will find that fitting xenon headlamps will lead inevitably to MOT failure : AFAIK they are not permitted unless the vehicle has a working self levelling device

Not only must the headlights be self levelling but you also need a headlamp wash fitted because any dirt on the glass can seriously affect the beam of the xenon lights.

Dave

e-bygum · Post by **e-bygum** » Mon Sep 24, 2012 8:13 pm

I thought concours meant that the car was in it's original ex-works condition. No time for concours myself so could be mistaken but if not won't you have to remove all the "upgrades" already fitted and replace with original e.g. get rid of the Coopercraft and forget about any more "upgrades"?
Can a converted LHD ever be called concours?
What did you say the budget was?

The Borrower · Post by **The Borrower** » Tue Sep 25, 2012 1:40 pm

Thanks for the advice on the carbs. Spoke to David and now have a new set up ordered for next January. New manifold and reconditioned SU's, all linkages and fuel pipes for ?2250. That saves ?500 on a new set up.

SESH · Post by **SESH** » Wed Sep 26, 2012 8:25 pm

A set of triple SU Carbs and manifold on Ebay at the moment.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/JAGUAR-S-U-HD ... 2575d985aa

christopher storey · Post by **christopher storey** » Wed Sep 26, 2012 9:34 pm

That is from a 420 G . The manifold cannot be used, and the carburetters require considerable work to convert them to manual choke, and will need new linkages. Not really a viable proposition for an E I am afraid

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