E-type déjà vu. The second rebuild
Discussion
Hooli said:
How can your chassis number be 92 less than #60? I realise this is probably just my lack of Jag knowledge showing up again.
My mistake I think. Mine is 152, so 92 on from that one sold near £120,000, with over £100,000 of restoration to do. Now look here at #80 so essentially the same car:-http://www.silverstoneauctions.com/1961-jaguar-e-t...
Didn't sell even with a full restoration behind it. The "outside bonnet lock" cars are rare, only 4 fixed heads and 91 roadsters being made in RHD before they changed the configuration and cars like mine, the "flat floor" models made until the end of January 1962 aren't far behind. They are rare. As regards aerials, don't forget that a roadster has a plastic rear window! Values are all over the place, with the "barn find" cars seeming to have a - for me unfathomable - mystique when restored cars fetch far less. Some dealers are asking a fortune and others are reasonable. You only have to look through the Pistonheads selection for sale to realise that; a 1962 roadster at £155,000 yet a 1964 one at £90,000, both fully restored. You only have to check around to see that some are flying kites, some are seriously trying to sell, and there are some to whom money is no object, but then a fool and his money are soon parted.
The point of my rebuild is not only the condition of the car but the fact that gnawing away at me for some time has been the fact that before I die she should go back to the colours she came out of the factory with; she deserves it. So should time grant me the space to do another 100,000 in her then I'll go to my grave knowing I did my best by her. And she'll be in gunmetal grey with red interior.
lowdrag said:
Hooli said:
How can your chassis number be 92 less than #60? I realise this is probably just my lack of Jag knowledge showing up again.
My mistake I think. Mine is 152, so 92 on from that one sold near £120,000, with over £100,000 of restoration to do. Now look here at #80 so essentially the same car:-http://www.silverstoneauctions.com/1961-jaguar-e-t...
Didn't sell even with a full restoration behind it. The "outside bonnet lock" cars are rare, only 4 fixed heads and 91 roadsters being made in RHD before they changed the configuration and cars like mine, the "flat floor" models made until the end of January 1962 aren't far behind. They are rare. As regards aerials, don't forget that a roadster has a plastic rear window! Values are all over the place, with the "barn find" cars seeming to have a - for me unfathomable - mystique when restored cars fetch far less. Some dealers are asking a fortune and others are reasonable. You only have to look through the Pistonheads selection for sale to realise that; a 1962 roadster at £155,000 yet a 1964 one at £90,000, both fully restored. You only have to check around to see that some are flying kites, some are seriously trying to sell, and there are some to whom money is no object, but then a fool and his money are soon parted.
The point of my rebuild is not only the condition of the car but the fact that gnawing away at me for some time has been the fact that before I die she should go back to the colours she came out of the factory with; she deserves it. So should time grant me the space to do another 100,000 in her then I'll go to my grave knowing I did my best by her. And she'll be in gunmetal grey with red interior.
Values are interesting, but I can't see me ever being able to afford one so they aren't that important to me. It seems strange to me as well that 'barn finds' are worth so much, I can see the attraction of an original car, but one that's going to need full restoration won't have much originality left will it?
Nothing this week from Lee, Dave, but I know he's replacing the floor pans and the A post. I just let him get on with it and he'll probably send me some photos at the weekend. Have discussed the engine with VSE and will go with the standard rebuild since I don't want 9.5:1 compression with petrol as it is and anyway, my track days and hill climbs are behind me now I think. Engine should be ready end of February as scheduled, completely rebuilt and bench-tested. They have, apparently, over 40 engines waiting for rebuild at the moment.
No, as mentioned earlier it was I who changed to this light blue during the last rebuild in 1988. What I did was to take a large sheet of steel and quarter it with duct tape, then bought a number of paint cans. I sprayed one quarter, and if I liked it I went to a half. Most of the cans went in the bin after one quarter, and I ended up with this light blue which I can now reveal isn't, as most people have assumed, opalescent silver blue but Ford glacier blue, from a Capri. So the cat is out of the bag! It is a lovely colour, brighter and to me far more attractive than opalescent, but that was in my younger days and now I am returning her to the colours she left the factory in - gunmetal with red interior. I might even prefer the blue, but I feel an obligation to a car that has served me so well for many years.
So, she'll be ready in about six months and I'm really looking forward to it. In the mean time the XKSS is at CKL and I am, for the first time since I don't know when, carless, bereft of real transport. Pass the me the bottle please.
ETA Looking at the first photo of the E-type I noticed the height of the bushes in the background. Those bushes are now over, in some instances, two metres high and so it must have been taken in about 2003!
So, she'll be ready in about six months and I'm really looking forward to it. In the mean time the XKSS is at CKL and I am, for the first time since I don't know when, carless, bereft of real transport. Pass the me the bottle please.
ETA Looking at the first photo of the E-type I noticed the height of the bushes in the background. Those bushes are now over, in some instances, two metres high and so it must have been taken in about 2003!
Edited by lowdrag on Tuesday 22 October 19:18
I DID have several photos which I lent to the editor of the JDC back then, well over 20 years ago - and he lost the damned things which really annoyed me. I have the green - not buff - log book and had contacted previous owners who had kindly sent me what they had, plus I have letters recounting their good times with the car. In all, I am now about to start the fourth ring binder containing all the bills I have had over the years, plus of course there are photo albums of JDC tours et al, plus loads of modern digital ones on the computer.
) The saga continues. The last news was that the car was being prepared for surgery, and the time has arrived. In a kind of "Back to the Future meets Fred Flintstone" moment, you'll note that the means of propulsion has lost a few horsepower:-
However, fear not, because once again we will be wafted along in the dry:-
Further inspewction of the shell found that, as I had feared, rust was starting to set in at the bottom of the wing and would have rotted the sills from within:-
The new A-frames have been offered up and fitted. These are from a company called E-type Fabrications and are without doubt the best to be found:-
A slight delay on fitting the A-post because, despite the box saying "Right hand side" it wasn't, so now the inner part is finished awaiting the skin:-
On now to something that Lee is famed for - his shut lines. He has offered up and reshimmed the bonnet:-
Looks inch perfect to me, and better than before of course. That's it for the moment, but there are of course times when things are being done that aren't really worthy of a photo, but progress is taking place nevertheless.
However, fear not, because once again we will be wafted along in the dry:-
Further inspewction of the shell found that, as I had feared, rust was starting to set in at the bottom of the wing and would have rotted the sills from within:-
The new A-frames have been offered up and fitted. These are from a company called E-type Fabrications and are without doubt the best to be found:-
A slight delay on fitting the A-post because, despite the box saying "Right hand side" it wasn't, so now the inner part is finished awaiting the skin:-
On now to something that Lee is famed for - his shut lines. He has offered up and reshimmed the bonnet:-
Looks inch perfect to me, and better than before of course. That's it for the moment, but there are of course times when things are being done that aren't really worthy of a photo, but progress is taking place nevertheless.
Edited by lowdrag on Friday 25th October 07:49
Have you used the standard frames from E-type fabs or the modified ones ? Even his standard frames are far superior to the originals as they have better detail design and thicker tube walls.
I agree, they are definitely the best on the market and I'm surprised at the number or restorers that retain the original frames without proper inspection.
The originals are only 0.8mm wall thickness (if memory serves) and were never designed for such a long lifecycle. They corrode from the inside as you would expect. When I restored my low mileage S3 E-type we gave the frames a good test with a sharp hammer and small holes appeared near the frame joints. They were immaculate from the outside.
The E-type fabs five speed gearbox is an excellent bit of kit too. Properly designed and made specifically for the E-type - unlike many of the T5 based lash-ups offered by other companies (not all are bad).
Are you at all tempted with one Tony ? They do improve the cruising immensely.
I have nothing to do with the company, just a satisfied customer who has visited and seen the standard of workmanship.
I agree, they are definitely the best on the market and I'm surprised at the number or restorers that retain the original frames without proper inspection.
The originals are only 0.8mm wall thickness (if memory serves) and were never designed for such a long lifecycle. They corrode from the inside as you would expect. When I restored my low mileage S3 E-type we gave the frames a good test with a sharp hammer and small holes appeared near the frame joints. They were immaculate from the outside.
The E-type fabs five speed gearbox is an excellent bit of kit too. Properly designed and made specifically for the E-type - unlike many of the T5 based lash-ups offered by other companies (not all are bad).
Are you at all tempted with one Tony ? They do improve the cruising immensely.
I have nothing to do with the company, just a satisfied customer who has visited and seen the standard of workmanship.
I've fitted standard frames on the basis that at my age they'll see me out anyway. for the rest, I shall keep the Moss box because I just love it. Call me a Luddite, but while I am now using an electronic dizzy and Zeus brakes, that's about as far as I will go in the restomod game. No electric steering assistance, no 5-speed box, etc. I love her for the character she had, not what she could have developed into.
Well, following on from the previous report, when the doors were stripped we found, to my surprise, that the passenger door was in perfect shape:-
On the other hand, the driver's door had been quickly repaired to put the car on display for Jaguar, and frankly I'm surprised it lasted this long:-
The driver's door is completely unusable, as evidenced by these two photos showing th shut lines when put back on the shell:-
Passenger side perfect:-
Now compare the driver's side:-
Rust was found under the screen above the door shut:-
And at the bottom of the B-pillar:-
The boot lid had suffered over the years being a bit dented and distorted but is salvageable with no rust:-
All in all, given the hard life that this car has led over the last 25 years, I am more than pleased with what we have found. I expected worse, and it is clear that if the problems hadn't been redressed now then in a few years the situation would have been far worse. More anon.
On the other hand, the driver's door had been quickly repaired to put the car on display for Jaguar, and frankly I'm surprised it lasted this long:-
The driver's door is completely unusable, as evidenced by these two photos showing th shut lines when put back on the shell:-
Passenger side perfect:-
Now compare the driver's side:-
Rust was found under the screen above the door shut:-
And at the bottom of the B-pillar:-
The boot lid had suffered over the years being a bit dented and distorted but is salvageable with no rust:-
All in all, given the hard life that this car has led over the last 25 years, I am more than pleased with what we have found. I expected worse, and it is clear that if the problems hadn't been redressed now then in a few years the situation would have been far worse. More anon.
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