I’m trying to remain positive but I’ve had enough.
I wont go into it at the moment but here is what I got for my $400,000 dollar 7 year full restoration to concourse winning standard. After investigating why it boiled over, after managing to finally drive it 30 miles for the first time in 3 months since delivery without it breaking down, this is what I found.
I can hardly speak I’m so angry
.
Presently working with the normally respected restoration company as to why this and dozens of other issues relating to poor workmanship was allowed to happen to my car.
For now no names in the hope they will claim ownership and rectify this stuff before I completely loose my mind. You’ll be the first to know. x 1000
Hitting the like button doesn’t seem right. There should be a I feel for you button.
It may be that the thermostat was installed upside down with the bleed hole down and air got trapped. Just thinking out loud. What is the state of the radiator? Is the oil clean?
That brown swamp water masquerading as coolant cant be for real ?
everyone knows lack of bright green glycol will cause internal corrosion, and is always checked on any used car I look at
Presumably that Thermostat is jammed shut, and that must have caused its damage, and your ongoing over-heating problems ?
Is it the right one, how come it appears to show other physical deformation ?
Once its going again, I would demand they remit the ~$100 for an independant oil & coolant anaylsis, ( Nulon)…to detect presence of metals and combustion gasses where they ought not be
Poor and dishonest “workmanship” by professionals is what got me started on doing almost everything myself
I realise it looks horrible but I am wondering how long ago the engine was rebuilt in the 7 year cycle.
If it has been sitting around a long time they start to look like this and then with a good long run it pulls all the rust and dirt from inside the block.
Funny enough having spoken with restorer only a day or two before he delivered it to you on the trailer I did note to him why didn’t he drive it up!
With cars like this ie old blocks and after a rebuild it is always recommended to dump all the coolant after say a 100km and in fact I don’t bother with the coolant initially just distilled water.rainwater and funny enough you will get browning of the water for a while once you know it has self flushed I then put the coolant in.
But certainly the car should have had a couple of 100km put on it prior to being handed over to sort out teething problems, potential oil leaks etc etc
terry
Graham , Lets go slow, the deteriation on the housing looks 30 years old.
If the block wasn’t boiled out and resleeved or to that kind of restoration.
Its all old junk.
Im with you and many who pay for services BUT how long did this stuff sit?
Ive seen cars restored on rollers for ten years…The air and moisture destroyed all the rubber parts…
Time to do it again.
Just give us some more details.
gtjoey1314
Thanks for the comments.
Tony. You are correct. The thermostat is deformed.
On sending it to the restorer brand new in mid 2018 I was informed it was damaged during transit but that they had repaired and installed it. So that would mean the engine was not filled till after mid to late 2018.
That thermostat housing and thermostat are less than 2 years old.
Why even risk installing the thermostat like that?
Inspecting in the top of the radiator most tubes are blocked. The engine and radiator need flushing. Can you imagine the mess of the engine bay this will create.
There is inhibitor presently in the coolant. It is red and contributing to the swamp water look.
The car is booked in for an assessment / inspection next week. Yet another item to be added to the already large list of issues to be rectified.
I’d demand an accounting of parts restored, and a list of parts replaced.
This is the bare minimum we should expect when we pay our restoration house. If they fall short on the paperwork, what they do in the shop should be suspect also.
No receipts = it didn’t get done/replaced/repaired.
A 400,000 restoration on a pre etype ………would mean EVERY THING is restored to beyond brand new.
Today a complete concours flat floor will hit 400 grand along with a Aston Martin db4 or db5.
In short Ive seen a xk done for that money and EVERYTHING would be perfect.
That don’t look perfect boss…
Thats an extremely nice car. If it starts and runs then no mine isn’t as good.
I have my car booked in next Tuesday for a mechanical inspection and report.
From there we will see what the restorer suggests.
I’ll leave it at that for now.
Cheers, Graham.
I would immediately remove some engine oil for testing before they can get to it (only a very small amount is needed)
I would demand they take photographic or video evidence of what they find when that engine is examined. If it is possible I would have the vehicle examined by a Licenced Automotive Engineer prior to letting them anywhere near it
For the amount of money you spent, there is absolutely no excuse whatsoever for that amount of rubbish inside the engine
I can understand your fury, I would have zero confidence in them, and you have not even mentioned stated what other issues you had with the vehicle
I know of a bad case in Melbourne, dude paid $100k for his resto, and there was some poor work done.
In addition, I would expect they would have reported to you verbally & in writing any original parts re-used that were not in good condition, such as possibly the thermo housing
finally, I would want glycol coolant, normally maintained, not the red stuff
Maybe I am missing something. You spent $400K for a restoration? Based on the photos, no matter what you paid, it seems like a fraud may have been perpetrated on you. That ain’t right! When my engine was removed and the head redone, I took detailed photos of everything done from the trans, clutch and IRS rebuild to document all the work. Were you able to periodically visit these guys to examine the parts and what they were doing to your car? Maybe you better see a lawyer. I wouldn’t trust them to change a tire. I feel your pain. I hope it all works out for you. Just say’n…
For the amount of money that was shelled out and since pictures and video are so easy to do now, I would think the better shops would provide an ongoing progress report with lots of pictures as it progressed. It benefits them too since archiving your car’s progress on their website – the assumption being they have one – makes for a selling point towards the next client to come along.
There once was a company in LA which repaired/restored Jaguars. The owner once told me a story about a court case he lost which made him so picky about customers. He was concerned they were looking to sue him. He had overhauled a man’s Xj6 engine. He installed the rebuilt engine but used the old hoses (because “they weren’t leaking.”) The man paid his bill and set out for San Francisco. Halfway home, the engine overheated horribly and seized up. One of the hoses had developed a leak and had been losing water for a long time. I did not argue with the idiot mechanic/restorer, but if he was dumb enough to assemble and install an engine with used hoses of unknown pedigree he deserved to lose the case. There are some people in the business who just ought no to be.
x 1000
