Hi there
My XK140 project came with a 4.2l XK engine which I plan to pull out of the car. The engine number is 8L19563 I. It has three SU HD8 carbs on it.
According to the list here: http://www.jag-lovers.org/xk-lovers/library/engine_numbers.htm this belonged to a XJ6.
Is that correct, and where there really 3 carb sets available, or is that something that was added later? What production year is that?
Thanks,
Chris
The 8L blocks never had three carbs. The much older (and lower engine number) MkX/420G and of course the E Type came with three carbs.
8L sounds a lot like a S3 XJ6 engine with fuel injection. It has frost plugs in the head where the old engines had bolts, and larger intake valves. The block has head studs that extend all the way down through the coolant passages. They have slots between the cylinder bores to help against cracking. For the production year I‘d say early 80s.
You can have a look at xj6data.com and try to find a close engine number, although i can’t get along with the search on that page you might.
(I know a block that is supposedly 8L97861-H. No idea how that fits in there, either. The H should be for high compression; 9:1 whereas 8:1 is S. H was the norm for us Europeans. The mentioned block is 1979-1982).
Good luck.
David
Dave,
Thanks for the detailed answer. The “I” at the end of that serial number could very well be a “H”, its hard to read. That would make more sense in a way, on the other side that engine came from the US…
Anyway, I guess shipping costs will exceed the value, so I guess I’ll just get rid of it.
Thanks,
Chris
Are you sure it’s not L? Unlikely with a EFI engine, but even less worth shipping. Where is it? CA?
Pete, it is L, you are right. I had a closer look again and brushed some corrosion away.
The engine used to sit in an XK140 in CA, but now it is in Switzerland, Europe.
I tested compression rates, they are all between 9.5 and 11.5bars
Chris