Series 3 storage damage

In that vein: :needpics:

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 Craig’s 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 “Tin Worm” 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 you’re 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 I’m looing out for etc, but I can’t 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 it’s easier here . .
sorry
Ian


ok
I think I’ve found it- test : )

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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 

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 ‘short list’ at the moment


all looks nice and even a hardtop but burgundy is borderline and they want 97,000

this one


grey : )) but steel wheels, US over riders and side lights for 93,000


88,000, looks good !

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
it’s the 20 years off the road thing that worries me


looks clean with new tires at least . .


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- that’s 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.

3 Likes

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 “Rust never sleeps” and it starts from the inside and works outward. I don’t see a license plate on it - does it have an H suffix?

I don’t 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-80’s 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 – 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. – 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.

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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 I’m trying to get smart on what to look for. I just don’t have the time to work on all this stuff- just sold 4 motorbikes because I don’t get round to doing them justice : ( don’t worry still got 7 here but need to get a couple of those out the door too.
of course the ‘lower’ 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

1 Like

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.

You’ll find your Jag and it’ll be a good one

3 Likes

taking my time, no hurry : )

Paul wiggles has given the best advice along with yourself to get somebody to help check it over.

I’ll probably do some updates on my progress when something actually happens

thanks

Ian