T'was the Weekend Before Christmas!

Dateline - Dec 19, 2015 - Got two solid days of working on the car this week.  I had Thursday off so I could take the other Jag to the insurance adjuster to get an estimate on repairs after the small shunt I had last week (another driver decided they needed to occupy the same spot in the road that I was already occupying!).  I got most of that done pretty early in the day so I spent the rest of the day on Thursday, and all day on Saturday working on the car.  Lots of pictures to show.

Thursday:

First, I sandblasted all the red "anodized" paint that I put on the intake manifold because I really didn't like the look.  After that, I painted it with high heat clear, which made it a solid gray color.  I could have left it natural aluminum, but it would have stained again, so I decided to paint it.

While the paint was drying, I installed the brake pedal, booster, and new master cylinder.  It was an easy install and getting new stainless steel fasteners made thing look really sharp!

Brake Pedal, Booster and Master Cylinder

Next I installed the intake manifold.  I followed the Edelbrock instructions for manifold installation (e.g. throw away the end seals and use RTV instead), however I did put RTV around all the ports.  I know that they recommend that you only put RTV around the water ports, but the heads were not in the best of shape and I didn’t trust that the gasket would seal.  I think if you were working with freshly milled heads, it wouldn’t be a problem, but I didn’t want to have vacuum leaks around the intake ports, so I sealed them anyway.

Then I installed new, angled heater hose outlet fitting to the manifold, and put in all the other plugs and vacuum fitting.  Then I fitted the heater hoses and cut them to shape.

Next I cleaned and installed the distributor.  I’m using the original one that is the HEI type.  Easy to install and all the wiring is already there.  I do have to get a new cape because, when pulling a wire off to reroute it, the connector pulled out of the cap!  So I’m getting a red Mallory HEI one.  This should look really good with all the other red in the engine bay!

While installing the distributor, I found the lock down clamp was really rusted. So I put it through the sandblaster then through the nickel plate bath.  A few minutes with some metal polish and it looked as good as new!

Next I spent some time with the radiator hose spigot.  I’m using the one that was originally on the car, but it was in need of some chrome polish and a bit of filing to get it to mate flush with the intake.  I decided to replace the thermostat (no since in taking a chance).   

That was it for Thursday.

Saturday:

Kicked off the day by installing the carburetor, using a new set of throttle return springs.  I also hooked up the throttle and transmission kickdown cables. This wasn’t very challenging but it sure makes the engine look like an engine!

Next I installed the new billet aluminum fuel filter and new fuel line from the pump to the carb.

Then, I took each valve cover off and spend some time remove the squeezed out RTV from around the gaskets and cleaned each cover and polished the T-Handle bolt downs.  I still don’t know if I’m going to stay with the Mickey Thompson valve covers, but they are an easy swap out if I do decide to change them later.

I then started on some of the wiring.  The fans were the easy first choice because I know which wires were used.  Because I removed the original fan speed resistors and replaced them with the GM version that works with the interior controls, I need to do a little rewiring, but that mainly consisted of changing the wire ends on the fan leads from female to male spades. 

I then spent some time finishing up the brake installation.  I needed to get some brake hose to replace the old ones going from the reservoir to the master cylinder, as well as a bunch of stainless steel fasteners before I could finish things up.  So once I got the supplies, I finished up the installed.  I also needed to spend some time cleaning the reservoir cap and fluid level warning switch.  Got those nice and clean and the hooked up the wiring.

Brakes All Hooked Up Including Booster Vacuum Hose 

Next I spent some time on the wiring on the passenger side.  I have to figure out how I wanted to run the positive and ground cables from the engine.  I also needed to reestablish the ground point on the fender as well as wire in the battery isolation solenoid.  This is a bunch of niggly stuff that takes time and trial, but I think I have most of it figure out.  I do need to get a new ground cable and bit of cable to run from the solenoid to the positive pass through terminal on the body.  So things are not quite done there yet.

Finally, I started working on the last of the wiring.  I did some research and discovered that one relay I couldn’t figure out what it was for is the horn relay!  Yah!  The other two items I need to figure out are if I need the ballast resistor and the Lucas voltage regulator.  I don’t think I need either, but I need to get some time on the internet to figure that out.  Once I have that done, I can finalize all the wiring.

Here are pictures of the completed work from several different angles:

Front.  Note Radiator Hose Routing,  Fuel Filter and Brake Installation

Right Side.  

Top End: Distributor, Carburetor, Water Neck, Shiny Aluminium pulleys

So, outstanding work in the engine area:

Finish wiring

Install new distributor cap

Plumb vacuum lines to the cruise control, vacuum reservoir, and into the car for the air controls,

Install radiator

Install aftermarket fan system (will require some more wiring)

Tie up loose odds and ends

Check all wires, fitting, hose clamps, etc.

I’m still up in the air about what to do with the exhaust manifolds.  They are not on the car yet and I started to sandblast one of them. I just worry that painting them is not going to stay because rust will get under the paint eventually.   I should just sent them in and have them ceramic coated!  I need to make a decision!

Another Productive Weekend

Dateline - Dec 12, 2015 - Had a good Saturday working on the car.  Continued to focus on the engine bay.  I got the parts I ordered from Summit Racing and the red "anodizing" paint for the manifold.  So I got to work.  Installed the new fuel pump, which was pretty easy.  Nice to have clean new parts to put on:

New Fuel Pump Installed

I then focused on installing the battery tray.  I had a plastic tray that I had bought when I first got the car and decided to use that one.  It was much bigger then the battery the car takes, so I cut it down to size and installed it.

Battery Tray and Heater Hoses

Getting prepared for installing the intake manifold meant that I need to clean the heads and block making surfaces.  They still had quite a bit of old gasket and glue on them, so I spent some time cleaning surfaces.

Next I worked on installing the heater hoses.  This was a little work, but I'm happy with how they turned out.  I think I need to make a bracket or two to keep the hoses off the battery.  I will need to make another bracket to move the transmission oil stick/filler away from the firewall.  It's stuck under the heater hoses now and not that functional.

Finally, I started looking at the wiring.  There is a lot of wiring there from the original engine that has been bypassed or is no longer needed.  I'm not quite sure what all of it is about since the engine has been changed twice.  So I need to do some sleuthing to determine if I still need the ballast resister and voltage regulator.  I'm also not sure about the starter solenoid.  I'll figure it out.  I just need to get some time on the Interwebs and work my wiring diagrams.

While I was doing this work, I painted the intake manifold with the special paint.  I had to put down a silver base coat then the red color over the top.  I was feeling kinda "Meh" about the results, but wanted to let it sit for awhile to see if I liked it.

I also painted the brake booster black so that it looks clean and new.

Getting closer!

Back From Thanksgiving Vacation

Dateline – 12/05/2015  I took two weeks off from working on the car to go to California to see family for Thanksgiving.  It was nice to have a long break from work and projects to just relax and enjoy the company of my family.

This weekend I continued work on the engine bay.  I did a lot of odds and ends work since there are just a lot of odds and ends in the engine bay.  Things I got accomplished were:

• Installed the vacuum accessory tank in the left fender
• Installed the chassis number plate on the left wheel well
• Installed the cruise control actuator on the left wheel well
• Cleaned both through-firewall electrical posts.  These bring positive voltage into the cabin of the car to the fuse block
• Installed voltage lead that runs between the electrical posts
• Installed the hood latches including the cable activation system
• Installed Radiator overflow tank on left wheel well

I was going to install the brake pedal housing and booster but realized that I really want to paint the booster.  I thought it looked good enough after a solid cleaning, but after putting it in the car, I realized it really needs to be painted.  Since the booster and pedal housing need to go in at the same time, needed to wait to put it in until next weekend.

I have also purchased some VHT Red Anodized Color High temp paint (http://www.brandsport.com/vhtp-sp450.html)  I’m going to paint the intake manifold with this to see if I like the results.   I did some research over the holidays and found some pictures of engines that guys have done this too and it looks pretty sharp.   I like the idea of adding some color to the engine since everything right now is polished aluminum, chrome or black paint.  This may be a cheaper way to dress up the engine without needing to buy a polished intake.  If it looks good, I may do the same thing to the Mickey Thompson valve covers.  And if I don’t like it, I can always put it through the sandblaster and get it back to bare metal.  I  LOVE MY SANDBLASTER!

I’m also putting in an order with Summit Racing for a new fuel pump, Russel billet aluminum inline fuel filter, Continental Red Rubber radiator hoses, fuel hose, Spectra Performance Magna-Clamp Hose Clamps and a new battery tray.  I think that is going to give me all the odds and ends I need finish up the engine bay short of the exhaust manifolds.  I still haven’t decided if I want to have these ceramic coated or sand blast then and use high temp paint.  I don’t need to decide right away, but I probably need to get then done soon.

More Engine Bay Work

Dateline - 11/14/2015 -  Spend another Saturday working on the engine bay.  I got the power steering pump pulley cover during the week and put that on.

Next I installed the blower motors/fans.  This took a lot longer than I expected because I had rebuilt and painted the fans over the summer and tested them when I put them back together, but didn't test them with the squirrel cages on them.  Both of them squealed really badly.  Seems that I didn't lubricate the shafts well enough.  So I had to take them apart again, which required unsoldering the leads and brushes from the the windings and and remove a fiberglass board that holds it all together. So what should have been an hour job turned into three, but the fans are in.

Both blower motors/fans installed

Next I put in the windshield wiper motor and apparatus.  I know this was going to be a pain, and it was!  The worst part is that I spend about 1/2 hour looking for the darned bracket that holds the motor to the car.  Couldn't find it anywhere.  Looked in all my boxes in the garages, etc., but no joy.  Then as I was just about ready to call it quits, I remembered it was in the room with all the painted parts!  D'oh!

Windshield wiper motor installed

Windshield wiper shafts and mechanism

Finally, I put a few odds and ends on.  The battery cutout solenoid, the heater water control valve and the automatic transmission filler/dipstick.

Clockwise from upper left: Battery cutoff solenoid, transmission dipstick, heater water control valve  

I had to call it an early day because I was meeting some friends and going to a show.  I will not be working on the car again until December do to other events going on, so my next most will be in a few weeks.

Engine Dress Up

Dateline - 11/08/2015 - This weekend was focused on engine dress up.  I bought a March Performance billet aluminum Pulley Kit that replaced all the original steel V-Belt pulleys with billet aluminum pulleys, plus new brackets.  I also bought a polish aluminum water pump and a chromed power steering pump.  I spent most of the day doing the installation.

But first, I needed to finish putting in the brake hard lines.  I used marine grade Adel clamps to fasten the tubes down.  Then I cleaned and painted the suspension cross member that runs under the engine.

Brake hard lines running along firewall

Right side brake hard lines

Left side brake hard lines

Suspension cross member prep for painting

Once that was done I started putting the pulley kit on.  I started by installing the power steering pump onto the water pump while it was off the engine.  Then I installed the two pumps on the engine and put on the crank pulley and the power steering pulley and realized I didn't get the pump aligned correctly.  I ended up putting it on and taking it off five times before I got the spacing correct.  It was a pain, but it needed to be correct.

Parts for pulley kit on workbench

Water pump and power steering pump installed on engine (Note painted cross member and sway bar)

Crank pulley, power steering pulley and belt installed

Next was installing the alternator.  I had to removed the original pulley and fan from the new alternator (I had bought it when I got the car in 2009) and install the aluminum fan and pulley.  Then I installed the bottom bracket, the alternator and the upper adjustment turnbuckle. Finally I had to put the water pump pulley on and adjust everything.   It was pretty fast and straightforward.  The one thing I don't like is that the power steering pump pulley doesn't have a cover.  March sells one as an extra and it really needs it. So I purchased the and should have it next week.  Why they don't include it in the kit, I've no idea!

Alternator, water pump pulley and belt installed

View of engine from left

View of engine from right

I'm still up in the air about buying a new intake manifold.  Dropping $375 for something that works fine now is hard for me to justify.  So I thought why not sandblast the one I have and see how it looks.  So I pulled it off the engine and cleaned it up.  I think it is going to work fine.  I am wondering if I should put some high temp clear coat on it to keep it from staining.

Manifold before sandblasting (lines in the middle are an artifact from the camera)

Manifold after cleaning.

 Oh, and this is what fall looks like in my front and back yard!

The waterfall in my front yard

View out my bedroom window

Nice time of year!

The Jag Is Home!

Dateline 10/31/2015 - The Jaguar has come home.  The tow truck from Precision Tow showed up at Showcase Auto at 9:00 AM on the dot this morning and by 10:00 it was at home in the garage.  Of course, today was one of the wettest we have had in awhile, with serious wind and rain, but it's fall in the Pacific Northwest!  You can't let a little water stop you!  Here are pictures of the car coming home:

Loading car at Paint

Car arriving at house

Getting read to unload

Unloading

Landed in the garage

From the back

Front 3/4 view

Back 3/4 view

Clockwise from top left: Dash vinyl, paint test card, test panel (much lighter than the car really turned out)

 
The bonnet, boot lid, front wings, gas tank covers and doors are still at the point shop.  They will have them for a couple more months while I finish up the inside of the car.  I'm in no hurry to get them back since I'd have to store them someplace.

So now the fun begins! 

After getting the car settled, I spent some time drying it out and removing tape that was left on the car.  I needed to decide which part of the car I wanted to work on first, and decided it will be the engine bay.  I removed the exhaust manifolds to have them ceramic plated.

Exhaust manifolds

I also started putting the brake tubing back in.  It all needed to be cleaned and sandblasted.  I also need to get a bunch of Adel clamps to hold everything down, so things are just hanging right now.

Tubing from master cylinder (upper right) to the front and rear brake connection (lower left)

Left Front brake tube the runs under front body frame

I also pulled out the gas feed hose because it was almost crushed closed! 

Crushed fuel line from engine bay.  Don't know how this car got any gas!

It's going to be so nice put parts back on the car again, AND LEAVE THEM THERE!

The Jag is coming home!

Dateline 10/27/2015 - The day has been set!  Saturday 10/31/2015 - Halloween!  The Jag is going to return back from paint!  What an appropriate day to have my red car come home!

Yes, I'm excited!  Last weekend I spent about three hours cleaning the garage so that I'd have a place to put the car!  A summer of parts cleaning, sand blasting and painting, as well as a few home repair projects, had filled up the area the car was in with misclianious stuff.  Plus my workbench had gone out of control.  So, in prep I got everything clean, moved and floor swept, ready for the car to come in.

During the summer I filled up a spare bedroom full of parts that I cleaned and painted.  Everything isn't done, but I really did knock out a great many items, which will make assembly much faster!  Will I be done in a weekend?  NO WAY!  But, with luck, I think I can have it running and on the road by this spring!  That's really cool!

Stay tuned for another update next week with picture of the car coming home!