The XJS topic

[a8hex]

Simpo Two said:

DP33 said:

The post-Ford era cars were a lot better engineered; from body-in-White through to powertrain...

That's two threads that 'body in white' has come up. Had a google but none the wiser. What does it mean?

The car's body once assembled but, I think, before final preparation for painting.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Body_in_white

[Lotusgone]

A while back, I had a 1996 4.0 Celeb, one of the last to be made. Before that, I tested a 3.6 manual and loved it - but walked away as it had zero history. That's an itch still to be scratched, bit of a shame that a lot of them are now £10k+. Any faults to look out for that are particular to the manual?

[craigjm]

a8hex said:

Simpo Two said:

DP33 said:

The post-Ford era cars were a lot better engineered; from body-in-White through to powertrain...

That's two threads that 'body in white' has come up. Had a google but none the wiser. What does it mean?

The car's body once assembled but, I think, before final preparation for painting.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Body_in_white

It’s the structural body so no doors or bonnet etc

[Simpo Two]

craigjm said:

It’s the structural body so no doors or bonnet etc

So not the follow-up single to 'Lady in Red' then.

[Peter3442]

I remember back in the day one of the magazines, probably 'Car', comparing an XJS with a Merc SL. The testers were convinced that the Merc was faster and better handling until they drove one behind the other. The smooth, compliant ride of the XJS (and the series XJs) tends to mask its sporting capability. You often don't realise how fast you're covering the ground. Jaguar being the only manufacturer to fit speedometers that read slow can mislead as well.

[Simpo Two]

Peter3442 said:

You often don't realise how fast you're covering the ground. Jaguar being the only manufacturer to fit speedometers that read slow can mislead as well.

That's not legal is it? I thought all speedos had to over-read.

[lukeharding]

Simpo Two said:

Peter3442 said:

You often don't realise how fast you're covering the ground. Jaguar being the only manufacturer to fit speedometers that read slow can mislead as well.

That's not legal is it? I thought all speedos had to over-read.

I thought that too, my 4.0 definitely over reads

[lukeharding]

Lotusgone said:

A while back, I had a 1996 4.0 Celeb, one of the last to be made. Before that, I tested a 3.6 manual and loved it - but walked away as it had zero history. That's an itch still to be scratched, bit of a shame that a lot of them are now £10k+. Any faults to look out for that are particular to the manual?

You can still find reasonable manual cars well below that. Checking them over is basically the same as any XJS, just check that it engages gears ok really other than that.

[craigjm]

They never fitted speedos that read slow. There was some variation on accuracy back in the day but that’s a total myth that it was by design

[a8hex]

Simpo Two said:

Peter3442 said:

You often don't realise how fast you're covering the ground. Jaguar being the only manufacturer to fit speedometers that read slow can mislead as well.

That's not legal is it? I thought all speedos had to over-read.

Lady B8's uncle was a chauffeur, one of the directors at the place he worked at ordered an XJS and a colleague of the uncle was dispatched to the factory to drive it back. En route he was stopped by the BiB for travelling well in excess of the limit.
And what speed were you travelling at Sir?
70 Officer was was keeping a careful eye on the speedo.
Turns out the car had been fitted with the wrong speedo drive / rear diff combination.
So in this case the speedo was reading slow, very slow.

I know that at times my XK150's speedo couldn't accelerate as quickly as the car. It meant you had to be very careful when joining the motorway.

[Peter3442]

lukeharding said:

Simpo Two said:

Peter3442 said:

You often don't realise how fast you're covering the ground. Jaguar being the only manufacturer to fit speedometers that read slow can mislead as well.

That's not legal is it? I thought all speedos had to over-read.

I thought that too, my 4.0 definitely over reads

Yes, it is illegal. It's covered by the Road Vehicles Act 1986 and Motor Vehicles 2001. But a lot of XJS are pre-1986. By 1986 the under reading was generally restricted to the over 70 miles/hour range, but quite often still present. From around that time speedos were becoming electronic and would be presumably easier to calibrate. If you go back to 1960s and 70s, Jaguar speedos could read even slower. Jaguar were notorious for pushing suppliers on price and this sort of thing was the result.

[Lotusgone]

lukeharding said:

You can still find reasonable manual cars well below that. Checking them over is basically the same as any XJS, just check that it engages gears ok really other than that.

OK, been out and bought one. Knowing it needed paint...and some metal to replace gaps and filler...but it is a bit temperamental engaging second and reverse. Am I about to become a friend of Mr Getrag?

[Kevin-sz0nv]

Bought mine in the States 6 years ago for $6k a 96 Celebration that's now done just over 100k miles. I shipped it back to to the UK 2 years ago and had the car resprayed as the sun in Florida had bleached it. The paint guy said it was the cleanest Jag of this era he had ever seen especially underneath not a spot of rust, typical Floridian car never seen snow/ice therefore salt! I haven't bothered getting it registered yet but once I do I think I will sell it as I have enough cars and I've had the XJS one of the longest. It might be a good buy from a European being LHD.

[lukeharding]

Lotusgone said:

lukeharding said:

You can still find reasonable manual cars well below that. Checking them over is basically the same as any XJS, just check that it engages gears ok really other than that.

OK, been out and bought one. Knowing it needed paint...and some metal to replace gaps and filler...but it is a bit temperamental engaging second and reverse. Am I about to become a friend of Mr Getrag?

Post some photos up! Is it temperamental all the time, or just when its cold?

[Lotusgone]

lukeharding said:

Post some photos up! Is it temperamental all the time, or just when its cold?

Cold gearbox does seem to be when it's at its worst. Not too bad from a distance...

[url]
...but there are some paint issues,

|https://thumbsnap.com/g1hWxBUY[/url][url]

a few bubbles,
|https://thumbsnap.com/SdJGmdsT[/url][url]

one or two holes,
|https://thumbsnap.com/MFg6sPag[/url][url]
some less than wonderful areas of filler,
|https://thumbsnap.com/9psMCnzv[/url][url]

some rusty areas,
|https://thumbsnap.com/4FoJMNnJ[/url][url]
and absent areas.
|https://thumbsnap.com/XPs8wDci[/url][url]
The interior's not so bad,
|https://thumbsnap.com/M7oN1SZ7[/url][url]
though the headlining needs replacing.
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It'll need paint all round - but do I keep it as the original Alpine Green? It's not a common colour, so probably will.

[lukeharding]

That looks pretty smart in the first photo, though I think pepperpots are the wrong wheels for it. Its a bit crusty but not too bad on the surface, I know I own worse I'd definitely keep it that colour, as it suits it well.

The headlining is a bit minging isn't it! Reminds me of one I pulled out that had completely broken apart and gone mouldy behind the fabric, made me feel a little ill.