In that vein:
I am also in the process of disassembling a Series III that sat for 25 years in protected but not humidity controlled storage, and can tell you you should assume that all rubber parts have degraded and water channels are likely in rough shape (although hopefully not as bad as Craigâs photos!). Brakes and carbs (and other things) will almost certainly need rebuilding. On my car all mechanical systems are getting attention before I start putting it back together. The engine, however, turned out to be pretty good. I chose to tear it down before even trying to turn it over in fear of having stuck valves cause damage.
One more thing. Portions of the heads are open to the water jacket and my head gaskets were in a very bad state. In general, my own experience is that the deeper you dig in one of these unattended cars, the worse it gets. I am not trying to discourage you, but if you get into it, do it with eyes open on the possible issues. Also, someone probably had a good reason to stop driving it 20 years ago. If the MOT means it runs and stops, that is a good start.
If you are in Germany and the car has been stored in Germany can the seller provide a current TUV inspection certificate? The British refer to âTin Wormâ which is RUST. Just sitting, especially in a non-climate controlled environment, the body WILL RUST!!! To what degree you must determine via a through inspection.
What part of Germany are you (and the car located)? Several Forum members are from Deutschland and will most likely provide you some good tips and advice.
Every system, brakes, cooling, suspension, differential, etc. will have to gone through to insure the car is roadworthy. Passing a TUV inspection is tough as you probably already know so if it has a current TUV then youâre miles ahead!!!.
If you can post pictures of the car, engine compartment, interior and boot (just for a start).that will help Forum member in their advice and comments. Another thing to check out first is how old are the tires? Wire or disc wheels? Does the engine run?
Look forward to hearing your progress.
Happy Trails,
Dick
well I am all planned to post up more infos about my plans and what Iâm looing out for etc, but I canât see how to upload pics
is it easy or do I need to piut up links
sorry new here
I had to post links in another forum that I used for my Ducati motorbikes which was very tedious- I hope itâs easier here . .
sorry
Ian
ok
I think Iâve found it- test : )
That is not a series 3
here we go . .
want an E type
dream: 6 cylinder, OTS, manual in grey/dark blue/black/ something nice but not red/yellow/ light blue/BRG
but they are mostly over my 100,000euro budget for a daily driver
like this series 1 for 105,000 : (
and seeing as my wife (Brigitte) and I visited E types UK last year where we were very kindly shown around, informed and allowed to sit in all types of E type- it might be more reasonable to get a series 3 whiich is bigger inside for my 6 ft 2 and 110kg body ; )
I will try to answer all the lovely people who have already replied to my thread.
and the replies so far are very informative- I will get back âŠ
Ian
right so I can only put one image per post- so back pedaling- break the post up into lumps . .
follow up #2
so I have these on the âshort listâ at the moment
all looks nice and even a hardtop but burgundy is borderline and they want 97,000
and the subject of these posts
5 pics in total, patience required : )
5 speed conversion : ))
no side lights
white is borderline in my taste but acceptable
itâs the 20 years off the road thing that worries me
roof also looks ok
paint looks nice
PS this car is about 200km from my home in Germany- taunus NW of Frankfurt
As some of you have said- rubber pipes !
hydraulics
which I would consider absolutely necessary to change on a car like this
plan would be
new ignition components, fluids, coolant hoses
pretty much anything that could have deteriorated in the 20 years
What else can I say?
any tips welcome
I am also not yet fixed on this car- every couple weeks- something turns up where I think- thatâs nice would be good to take a look/see . . .
more soon . . .
BUT I have just reached the post limit- so no replies until tomorrow or after tomorrow . . .
sorry but thanks anyway
Ian
Thr most important thing you should do, is pay for a knowledgeable person to inspect any car you may buy.
I would expect that a car that has been off the road for so long would provide you a significant lever in negotiating a (much?) lower price. What is the asking price for the white one? It ~looks~ surprisingly rust-free but âRust never sleepsâ and it starts from the inside and works outward. I donât see a license plate on it - does it have an H suffix?
I donât know the exact count of posts a new member is required to make, - but after 5? (10?) posts, you ought to be able to add multiple photos to a single post. If you are not there already, you soon will be.
This is a STRETCH (in time (40 years) and in distance (400+ KMs)) - but in the early-80âs I was stationed in Munich with my 1972 V12 OTS at McGraw Kaserne on the south side of town. I used a nearby repair shop (Auto König). Was it on EggenfeldenerStr? Run by Peter?? I am sure Peter is retired â he was about my age so would be 70 today. But the shop may still be in operation. He also worked on a Morgan +8, a Countach, BMW M1,and others. May provide an expert set of eyes. â More useful may be reaching out to the Old Timers organization. I realize they tend to focus on pre-war cars but surely there is a Jag expert in the bunch.
hi Craig
thanks for the reply
the white car is up for 82000 but I am more interested in getting a driver, which is why Iâm trying to get smart on what to look for. I just donât have the time to work on all this stuff- just sold 4 motorbikes because I donât get round to doing them justice : ( donât worry still got 7 here but need to get a couple of those out the door too.
of course the âlowerâ price makes the car attractive, but condition is top priority right now . .
yes Germany is a nice place to be- came from the UK 30 years ago and am definitely not going back : ))
I actually have a classic car shop in my village ! and I know the guy, maybe he would spend some time with me on a viewing trip : )
all the best
Ian
Sounds like you are in good stead and well connected in selecting the proper Jag.
Good Luck - you are taking a prudent and careful path in selecting your ride and the best step on that trail is joining this forum.
Youâll find your Jag and itâll be a good one
taking my time, no hurry : )
Paul wiggles has given the best advice along with yourself to get somebody to help check it over.
Iâll probably do some updates on my progress when something actually happens
thanks
Ian