Hi Steve, wait to you start buying/using repro e-type parts; that will change your
perspective.
Patrick
'66 FHC
2 Likes
I agree a lot with Demian. Best I can tell my engine has never been out of the car or apart in a major way. Yes it has some leaks that I keep a close eye on and compression is down some but I think it runs great with good oil pressure so I have no desire to do much to it as long as it stays this way.
I have 2 friends who bought a very decent Maserati Bora and the other a decent very original E around the same time I got my E. Both got the engines pulled and then restoration-itis set in. Both are still dormant in pieces after many years while I have been enjoying my flawed car.
I also think about some local guys who are much sharper than me that were taking a freshly, beautifully restored Series 2 on the Great Race. They completed it on their second attempt but the first year had a quick engine pull with a broken block due to failure of minor new part. I could tell you about some silly simple mistakes made in the 3 engines I have overhauled in my other cars that required other major work to correct. All worked out OK in the long term since last time I had to touch any of them was 1997 but the fettleing process can be an adventure at least for me when I get a case of the stupids. My 2 cents
David
68 E-type FHC
2 Likes
You have come a long way from your first post of wanting to get the motor running and drive. Now on the path of full resto. You seem to have the time and energy to get into this life time project of having a solid near perfect E. I am in the position of having a driver, sometimes, and trying to do whatever i can with the small time i have with the car. The problem is that many thing done end up needing redone with the full strip-down resto the car should have, but i can’t do, time and money wise. By tearing the whole car down You are going to not have to redo so many jobs, suspension,sub frames, Irs, brake lines, interior, and many more. If you can get it done one time you will be better off in the long run. Ps. has your daughter learned to swear like a mechanic?
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At 14 yrs old she is currently “refraining” from including the cuss words but she definitely has the “attitude” and long-windedness to compete with any one of ya…!
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Funny…on all previous cars I’ve owned, I have sworn like a longshoreman (too stereotypical?) when working on my cars. If I scraped a knuckle, it was the cars fault. If I broke something, it was the cars fault. If anything happened, it was the cars fault.
With my E-type, I feel sorry for her being so mistreated by previous owners that I end up swearing at “them” and apologizing to her for her mistreatment and current issues. It’s a new experience for me!
1 Like
A few of these latest posts puzzle me: you were supposed to just accept the “fact” your car/engine was going to be a decent daily driver (the rotted-out freeze plugs, alone, put the lie to that fiction), and should not have messed with it??
I beg to differ, and stand in support of EXACTLY what you are doing, Steve.
You belong to what may be THE greatest and most wizened Jag community on the planet, which contains the answer to any/all issues you will encounter. You have always asked the correct questions, never being shy in admitting you arent knowledgeable about the exact details of a Jag: not a worry! Many here have gone through the exact process, or far worse cars (Bill McKenna’s astonishing project comes to mind).
You have far and beyond proven you know how to tear into a project, in the proper fashion, and you have discovered your car had immediate and serious issues.
Overall, the engine looks eminently rebuildable, and all the hand-wringing about substandard replacement parts, though certainly not incorrect, are a bit over the top.
This community can, and will, keep you from making the mistakes others have made, and the community here is pretty all-knowing what the pratfalls can be, and how to avoid them.
In the end, this long and expensive process will make The Gray Lady your Jag, and when done, may be a project you and your kids will make an even deeper bond over.
Hang in there, and together with the massive brain trust that is JL, you’ll do just fine!
5 Likes
Working on the Jag has brought out previously unknown patients in me. Evolving long skinny fingers and a second wrist helps.
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Demian has a lot of valid points. I agree not every car needs a total rebuild. Each case needs to be evaluated on its merits. I believe Steve as largely done that. Wiggles has reminded us how Steve got to this point, and Steve’s other photos indicate the engines cooling cavities are probably pretty well clogged. I would hope this block will be thoroughly cooked out through some method, or it will probably have overheating issues. As to new pistons, boring, grinding the crank, I believe that only needs to be done if measurements require it. But new bearings and rings, to me are a given. Steve, keep moving forward! You are this far. Not everything may require replacement, but do it right.
Tom
3 Likes
All good points: to that end (“not everything needs replacing”) I told Steve to save the chain guides: they may be fine, and it appears a lot of newer ones are of inferior quality. Ditto for the chains, possibly the sprockets.
To that larger point, were I doing this again —shoot me if I ever do!!!— Id be chary to trust any parts not sourced from SNG.
Thanks for all the guidance. Demian’s post gave me pause… but I have adjusted my timeframe to be “when it’s done” and I will continue to use this JL source as my primary information stream. There is a limited money tree but, unless God has something new in mind for me, plenty of planet-Earth time.
Besides, it’s mechanical, what could go wrong!?!
-Steve A
3 Likes
Not an inconsequential reason I’m glad not to turn wrenches for a living, anymore.
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I need help disassembling the timing chain assy.
I’ve removed the 4 locknuts/starwashers and the circlip/washers on the back of the main gear. No separation. The tension adjustment sprocket will not rotate and the pin engaged with the teeth will not retract. (I have the tool) the flathead screw will not budge.
Flood the gear with PB blaster or equivalent, that pin should move out eventually.
Update. Got it apart with many “gentle” taps. The only remaining problem is the eccentric shaft seems fused to the alum plate. I’m noticing that there is NO thrust bearing/washer of any kind in either side of either dual sprocket. Doesn’t that wear down the two aluminum surfaces over time? Or am I missing parts? (other than the spring behind the micro set adjustment gear pin)
If I work fast, she will never know I was here!
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As I said…NO WAY that was a 14,000 mile engine!
I dimly remembered it not being a big deal, but it has been nearly 2 decades!
Congrats…and I hope you enjoy sleepin’ in the Jag…
Wow that’s weird. Was it just packed in there with decades old sludge or did something else cause it to lock up. Does it rotate freely now? I don’t think any sort of thrust washer is required here. That part only rotates for the purpose of setting the tension then it gets locked down. I’ve never heard of that mechanism wearing out. The most common failure with this assembly is that someone locks the cams to the aluminum rails then accidentally cranks it and the ears snap off.
When was the last time it ran? Looks like you justified your tear down for this alone. That had to be freed up.
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From the looks of it perhaps the oiling ports were clogged and just decades of sitting idol. To wiggles point I’m not sure it precludes it being a 14,000 mile engine, but it definitely signifies the need for a rebuild. I’m not sure how many parts are on a Jag, but I feel like I will have laid a hand on ever one by the time I’m done.
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Oh, you will, mate, you will.
1 Like