As I mentioned earlier, I had a very similar problem and the common denominator is the bonnet underpan. I had to rebuild mine because of accident damage and rust and you have rebuilt yours.
One of the things I observed was that if the bonnet hinge panel sat back a bit at the top (forward towards the front of the car), then the angles would push the pivot point downwards. This was not an obvious problem with mine, but I still had to use about 5/8” of shims above the hinge to get it right. With the bonnet on the hinges, are the hinges horizontal or dipping down at the front?
Paul
“…are you able to read my posts to others?..”
What does this mean Dave?
I use about 3/4 " of shims to adjust the vertical on my 62…just the way It is …also seen cases where the pivot section of the hinge was cut out and extended 1/2 " to make it all work…
I was hoping for an answer like that. The railroad had fitters for hand built castings and parts. I just needed a few opinions before I modified the front support fearing I would have to return it to stock later on because I overlooked a spacer somewhere. I have the bonnet square with the sill and bulkhead. I have about a full 5/8" from the rear edge of the wing to the stiffener. I will now modify the bonnet frame to fit properly.
Thanks for the input
From the back of the wing to the wheel well is 19-3/8 on both sides. The bonnet fits square with the sills and bulkhead and a straight edge lays flat coming off the top cowl across the top of the wings. The bonnet hinge mount hangs below the lower bonnet valance a lot.
Wasn’t sure if you could see my replys to others or not. I’m having a little hard time getting used to navigating this forum.
Thanks for the help though.
19-3/8 on the wing. Both sides.
Dave,
Not sure if this would help, but CJ offers a “increased adjustment bonnet hinge” that might help.
http://classicjaguar.com/cjparts/hinge.php
No affiliation, yadi, yadi, yatta…
Craig
Dave, there is a good chance/risk that the frame will set a little once you fit the engine. I had a perfect bonnet fit when I sent my car to the painter w/o the engine installed. It was perfect when it came back, but after I installed the engine, it was off sideways by 1/8" at the firewall. For now I live with the guiding pins being able to align it, but I might address the topic at some stage.
PS: Yours seems like a nightmare scenario.
Good luck … Ole
Nice, except I just ordered a new set yesterday from Terry’s! I already decided to rework the mounting frame seeing this is a very common problem. Easy for me, I do a lot of fabricating here. Those are nice hinges though.
Thanks
Shim the side of the mounting frame to the window frame on the side you need to push over from. 1/8 out should take very little. Mine would take a 5/8 block on each side to lift it in place!
Thanks
I feel your pain, Dave. Actually, I believe that most here feel it. I reworked my bonnet this past Summer and had a devil of a time getting it back together with a loose fit. No signs of impact damage or anything, it was just a real bear. One thing that I noted though was that it looked like Jaguar had to punch extra holes here and there to get things aligned originally.
Since no one asked and I didn’t read where you said it, is this the correct bonnet for your car? I don’t even know if they changed through the series but a question.
New to the car, but not a NEW bonnet?
The reason we ask, new bonnets come long on purpose, as they are to be trimmed.
No, it is a series one though which are all the same. I have another bonnet support and will cut the lower tubes off to extend the frame. Problem solved. Found out shimming these are very common.
Cut the lower tubes off what? The ones that support everything are bicycle tubing and are not to be welded but BRAZED and then heat treated. Just use big shims.
That’s the square tubed frames: the picture frame and the triangle frames are mild steel.
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Is that true? we cut up a perfectly good 531 race bike for nothing, when any old tube would do! I hope your wrong!!
Nope, Paul’s right. Only the engine (side) frames are Reynolds 531 alloy, the picture frame and “trapeze” are made from mild steel. The Renolds tubing will not handle welding as it makes the steel brittle and will eventually crack, and even re-brazing it won’t work for long.
Cool nick, I have a spare bonnet frame that was waiting for a donor bike to come along, ebay mild steel tube £3.60 a length. will be fixed by the weekend!
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