I spent most of the day with Jerry Mouton’s wife Kate, giving MIK Jaguar a good going over in preparation for finally putting it up for sale. It had only been for a couple of short drives since Jerry passed away in Sept. '17 while on the Oil Leak Tour. It started right up, and ran just pretty much flawlessly, as usual.
Cosmetically, it looks probably better than ever. The “new” paint (about 3 years ago) is gorgeous.
Very few issues to sort out before it will be 100%. There were a couple of fuel leaks at the filter, which were easily fixed by just tightening the hose fittings and the thumbscrew under the bowl. The idle speed was too low - it kept stalling at idle. And there were several jingley-jangley rattles from the mud shields on the RH side of the engine. An hour of tinkering got those all sorted out.
Anyone know where in the Bay area to get wire wheels balanced? One of the front wheels is clearly off balance.
I’ll go back next weekend to pull the center console and sort out a balky shifter - it’s very hard to find first gear, and there appear to be a couple of small oil leaks on the engine - most like the cam feed pipe.
While we were tinkering with the rattles, one of the neighbors walked up and started talking to us, and is now seriously considering buying MIK! He rode along on a couple of my test drives. He has a '70s 911, but said the E-type was always his “dream car” since he was in grade school.
I know two Oil Leak regulars that are very likely interested in MIK. Kate will not have a hard time finding a buyer at a good price. I’d love to see MIK on another Oil Leak.
Ray, the only place I know in the Bay Area that can balance wire wheels on the car is Dependable Tire and Brake in San Rafael. They’ll balance them on their wheel balancer first and if they still vibrate while on the road will balance them on the car.
Sorry, guys. Typo. It was 9/11/17, not '16. Just over one year.
Someone is going to get a GREAT E-Type. MIK is the best-driving E-Type I’ve ever driven, including my own. It’s almost worth the price for the sound alone!
Ray, a good place to get the wheels balanced is Riteway Wires and wheels in Walnut Creek. Jose is the owner, very knowledgeable and nice guy. I’ve used him for decades.
Just out of curiosity, about how old is the neighbor.
Maybe I’ve come to view the classic car world through an Instagram filter, but when I hear Bay Area + Long Hood 911, I tend to think of a guy in his late 20’s to 30’s.
I would guess he’s late '30s, or early '40s. He’s also a French import. He just like the simplicity of older cars, and seems to have varied tastes. He’s also owned an MG-B, and a first-gen RX-7
For the last 6-8 years, a long-hood 911 has been the ultimate car for 20’s and 30’s “car hipsters”, and with their unbelievable rise in price recently, it seems logical that some would come sniffing around the E-types.
I think there are other factors that are preventing that from happening in larger numbers, but those could change over time. Glad to hear the car could stay local.
Advanced Wheels here in Morgan Hill has the adapters, know what they are doing, and balance all the wheels for Bill Hiland’s British restoration shop here.
Would love it if MIK would stay within the Jag-Lovers group. Somehow I feel that every E-type I see must be here on JL but of course not so. MIK will have a special place for those of us here and its still a shock to think about Jerry.
pauls