The 'E' Type Forum

Hello All,

looking for recomendations for an engine rebuild in the UK,area is not a real issue.
Is it best to go for a rebuild to standard spec or go for a few more horses,
and what should i budget for a good rebuild ?

many thanks
john

Wow, answer is "how long is a piece of string"
Depends on if you're going to get the engine out and take it somewhere or just take the car in and say "do it"
CMES in Bracknell do a good job if you take the engine in yourself, and remarkably cheap. Normally about £6k, although did the engine of a friend of mine (on this forum,) for £5k. He's very pleased. They do the engine work for Angus I believe, moderator on here with a very well respected restoration /repair/sale service.
If you don't want to take it out yourself, budget about £12k?? according to what is needed for top and bottom end.
In terms of extra horses, that's down to you. Some go all out, others (like me) stick to driving it the way it was meant to be.
Where are you based?

Keep it standard...it has plenty of power and that’s how Jaguar designed it
Less hassle with tuning and running every day I guess too

My view is that the quality of the machining is vastly more important that the person who actually builds the engine.

I've built around 20 E Type engines, and I'm actually a doctor, not a mechanic. I use the best machinist in town though, and I know everything will be perfect and on spec. See who is the best machine shop in your area (ask the boy racers) and ask that machinist for recommendations on builders.

Standard rebuild is the way to go. This forum is replete with threads from people who can't get their car to run because of "tuning upgrades" like cams, Webers, fancy distributors etc etc. E types are fast enough.

Always replace the liners, especially in a 4.2 (use top hats) and go back to standard bore. If the machinist or rebuilder doesn't think this is a good idea, find someone else.

The sludge plugs MUST come out of the crank and the drillings cleaned out.

Make sure you use a Jaguar or Land Rover branded bottom timing chain tensioner. The Rolon brand ones fall apart.

Use 8:1 pistons; if the block/head has been skimmed much at all you'll end up with too much compression with 9:1 and it will ping.

Get the whole head done properly and use oversized (1.4") long skirt buckets.

WRT budget we charge about AU$12K for a 6 cylinder rebuild. That is around $5.5K for machining, $3K or so in parts and the rest labour. We are probably a bit cheap.

Hi I restored my engine completely throughout finished it September last year.
So I called Rob Beere For a price, came out more than I was expecting so I did it myself.
Had all the engineering work done at gosnays in Romford, well respected family engineering firm been around for decades, well known.
It’s a 4.2, I had the block washed out, rebored 20 thou crank grind etc etc.
Oh yes have the sludge plugs taken out and clean inside crank.
I bought all the parts from Rob Beere racing, upgraded chains, high flow oil pump, H beam rods, then the lot fully balanced.
Head I didn’t oversize the bucket guides to 1.4 which was a mistake looking back, but everything else was done.
Essentially engine was standard but fitted with upgraded items, and a 123 distributor.
Hayward Scott exhaust and here I believe is the best part, 5 hole progressive 45 Webber’s .. bought from southern carburettors for about £2300, jetted ready to go, all i can say is fantastic, no smell, no hesitation in pick up, give them a fist full of throttle at low speeds and it just picks up n goes like a rocket!
Doing the rebuild myself cost about 4/5k + carbs and exhaust..
Gosnay engineering are nothing short of excellent.
Rob Beere racing .. most helpful/knowledgeable fella you could ever meet, with fantastic upgraded parts.
Tom Barclay Racing, is another outstanding engine builder, all top guys I dealt with and recommend without hesitation.
good luck hope this helps a little..

How about putting a late xj6 series three engine from the 1980s in?
You can still pick up good engines and it fits in fine
Visually you wouldent know the difference once fitted
Also by going this route you get more power and a big valve head Technically this was the best xk6 cylinder engine jaguar made
You can just store your old engine if you come to sell the car or decide to re fit it at a later date
Should save you thousands
Joe

Hello Everyone,

thank you all for the feedback,lots to think about.

john

I’m not a engine builder by trade but a helicopter engineer. With all the engines I have rebuilt, from car and bike engines to racing outboards. I always get the machining work done for me at a local shop and then methodically rebuild the engine myself. It’s quite a simple process but cleanliness and patience is key! I always balance the engines both in static and dynamic, my 4.2 crank required a lot of grinding to get it in balance!

Rebuilding an engine yourself is very rewarding but ensure you get it balanced.