The Curfew XJ-S - V12 manual
Discussion
So I've bought another XJ-S, and this time it's the XJ-S that starred in the recent Sky series 'Curfew', which stars Sean Bean (who drives this car). It got delivered last night after I purchased it at the H&H auction in Buxton on Wednesday - and its already taken a bit of a battering over on the Classics Spotted thread.
Obviously the car isn't standard, and amongst the modifications is the addition of a manual gearbox, upgraded suspension (from the brief look I had under the car), a hydraulic handbrake, a tiny race fuel tank, wider arches and wheels and the side exit exhausts. I was a bit curious to see how well the hydraulic handbrake works on the original inboard brakes but it does work quite well from what I've seen so far. The side exit exhausts aren't actually connected up and the original exhaust is still in place, but finishes just after the centre muffler under the car and then is directed out to the side.
I knew the car had no MOT, and in fact no MOT details show up on the online checker, meaning it was off the road at least before 2005 until it was modified for Curfew. I'm expecting some work to get it back on the road and I'm planning a few modifications of my own. We tried starting it this morning and though. it was turning over fine, it just wasn't firing. Fortunately cleaning the spark plugs helped and it started up ok after that, so its safe to assume it might have been sitting for a while. It was running a bit rough but cleared itself out a little and ran fine after that.
It certainly isn't as pretty as it could be, but it is an exciting car and I'm hoping it will be a lot of fun when it is on the road (and perhaps on track too).
Obviously the car isn't standard, and amongst the modifications is the addition of a manual gearbox, upgraded suspension (from the brief look I had under the car), a hydraulic handbrake, a tiny race fuel tank, wider arches and wheels and the side exit exhausts. I was a bit curious to see how well the hydraulic handbrake works on the original inboard brakes but it does work quite well from what I've seen so far. The side exit exhausts aren't actually connected up and the original exhaust is still in place, but finishes just after the centre muffler under the car and then is directed out to the side.
I knew the car had no MOT, and in fact no MOT details show up on the online checker, meaning it was off the road at least before 2005 until it was modified for Curfew. I'm expecting some work to get it back on the road and I'm planning a few modifications of my own. We tried starting it this morning and though. it was turning over fine, it just wasn't firing. Fortunately cleaning the spark plugs helped and it started up ok after that, so its safe to assume it might have been sitting for a while. It was running a bit rough but cleared itself out a little and ran fine after that.
It certainly isn't as pretty as it could be, but it is an exciting car and I'm hoping it will be a lot of fun when it is on the road (and perhaps on track too).
Watchman said:
M4CK 1 said:
Well that's whole lot of awesome.
I'd be surprised if you can get to the end of the road on a tank of fuel.
What's your plans?
Personally, if it was mine, I'd be ripping those seats, door cards and steering wheel out and fit a nice nardi classic wooden steering wheel, cobra classic bucket seats in and source or die black the door cards.
It certainly lift the interior but still give it a real classy look.
I'd continue by getting rid of the green strip and side pipes too but then I'd sticker it all up and use it as a Le Mans visitor car every year. I'd be surprised if you can get to the end of the road on a tank of fuel.
What's your plans?
Personally, if it was mine, I'd be ripping those seats, door cards and steering wheel out and fit a nice nardi classic wooden steering wheel, cobra classic bucket seats in and source or die black the door cards.
It certainly lift the interior but still give it a real classy look.
Definitely awesome and I especially love the deep dish wheels.
) and it used half a tank! I'm developing an idea of what I'd like to do with it. It will still be predominantly a road car so some comfort needs to be retained. The interior has been painted green and that needs to go - and I like the idea of a wooden steering wheel but needs to be fairly chunky to fit with the interior. I might rip out the rear seat and fit a half roll cage. Also planning a colour change and the bumpers need restyling etc.
I've made a walk around video but can't post it here because of posting rules.
Greendubber said:
Is that a snake head gear shift?!
Class, maybe the small tank is due to it being used on the drag strip maybe?
It's certainly different.
It is indeed! With a little red flashing light for an eye. It is also rather flimsy and painful to use. Class, maybe the small tank is due to it being used on the drag strip maybe?
It's certainly different.
The tank is foam lined but I only know the car has been used for Curfew, where it did a bit of drifting around etc so most likely would have been for that.
A few more photos for anyone interested.
So far we've discovered it won't go into first gear or reverse, so the clutch needs attention, the power steering doesn't appear to be working correctly, and the brakes seem to be pretty poor. I'll get it up in the air on Monday for an inspection and will take some photos of the underside at the same time.
So far we've discovered it won't go into first gear or reverse, so the clutch needs attention, the power steering doesn't appear to be working correctly, and the brakes seem to be pretty poor. I'll get it up in the air on Monday for an inspection and will take some photos of the underside at the same time.
rufusgti said:
I absolutely love those wheels, they look like truck wheels. What are they??
Good luck, I'd imagine with something like this you get to be very radical with mods, getting it just how you like it. It's never going to be standard car and has already been seriously played with so you can go at this in any direction you please easily.
I have no idea what the wheels are, but I'll try and find out. The tyres are 265s on the front and 295s on the back! Good luck, I'd imagine with something like this you get to be very radical with mods, getting it just how you like it. It's never going to be standard car and has already been seriously played with so you can go at this in any direction you please easily.
As you said, there is no real limit for a car like this. Its nice to be able to modify it without worrying, and there is so much you can do with an XJ-S. I've got a 6.5l car and I'd love to see how much slower this one is.
I've been looking at the Jenvey throttle body set you can get for the Jag V12, however £3k would be too much to drop so early on, and I really need to focus on getting it on the road and seeing what is good and bad about it
Olivera said:
Looks an interesting project!
First thing I would be doing is de-tating the front bonnet and putting on lower profile tyres to reduce the 4x4 ride height.
Yes it is quite high (and would look even higher without the exhaust I think), I'm going to see what it drives like.First thing I would be doing is de-tating the front bonnet and putting on lower profile tyres to reduce the 4x4 ride height.
The scoop will be coming off, luckily they didn't cut a hole through but rather just bolted it on. I'm unsure if I like the bonnet lights or not, but I'd really like to see what they're like at night!
Mr Tidy said:
Lovely car OP. :thumbsup:
A mate of a mate used to race a manual XJS in the JEC series until the engine broke a few years ago, and he hasn't managed to get it rebuilt yet.
But what a great car!
A V12 or a straight six? I've got a 3.6 manual racer that is road legal and a lot of fun, but I really need to get it on track! A mate of a mate used to race a manual XJS in the JEC series until the engine broke a few years ago, and he hasn't managed to get it rebuilt yet.
But what a great car!
neutral 3 said:
samoht said:
It's presumably inspired by the Group 44 racing XJ-S
https://www.pistonheads.com/news/general/showpiece...
If it were me, I'd be looking to those cars for further inspiration, ie continue down the road of making it more like the racing cars in looks, albeit it's staying a usable road car. Could be a very cool project.
Perfectly said !! Definitely THE way to go with it!! A Group 44 clone would be awesome. What a way to go super car hunting.....https://www.pistonheads.com/news/general/showpiece...
If it were me, I'd be looking to those cars for further inspiration, ie continue down the road of making it more like the racing cars in looks, albeit it's staying a usable road car. Could be a very cool project.
Serious hp can be got from these cars, they have a excellent chassis and with a load of weigh Lost what a hoon it will be....
M4CK 1 said:
What's your plans with the engine. Might be worth keeping an eye out for an ex TWR or how about a Lister 
There is a lot that can be done to improve these V12s as they can be a bit stifled in standard set up (and the worst hinderance is the original auto). At first I just want to get it on the road and see how it drives, then I'll look at upgrades. I've got a. 6.5l one and that is a quick car, but I think this one could benefit from being more rev happy and I've certainly had the thought of those Jenvey throttle bodies rolling around in my head. I also want to rip off the exhaust and try something a bit different there too. It would be beneficial to try and strip some weight as I go along too as there is a lot that can be easily removed, although I'm going to have to put a standard tank back in for the moment as the current one makes the car effectively useless.
CanoeSniffer said:
You need to get out and join us! Such great racing.. no excuses!
RE straight six/V12- the series is dominated atm by 4.0 AJ6s and AJ16s (and the 4.2 six in the series XJ6s), it takes a brave man to run the V12! Though we do have one regular on the grid, a 6.0 in fine fettle and producing lots of lovely noise and horses.
Yes I really should! Like anything though its having the time to do it. This is my racer RE straight six/V12- the series is dominated atm by 4.0 AJ6s and AJ16s (and the 4.2 six in the series XJ6s), it takes a brave man to run the V12! Though we do have one regular on the grid, a 6.0 in fine fettle and producing lots of lovely noise and horses.
Got the Curfew XJ-S up in the air a short while ago, just for a look to see whats going on and if anything jumps out that needs doing immediately. I've also had a brief look online to see if I could find any tyres at the current sizes (265/50/R15 at the front and 295/50/R15 at the rear), unsurprisingly there were none, so that might be an issue in the future.
I'm not sure how interesting all of you will find the underside of an old car, but here you go. On the whole its pretty solid though there is evidence of repairs and of course all of the over spray means it doesn't look too pretty.
Here you can see where the exhaust has been cut off after the centre boxes and rerouted out to either side. It sounds a bit gruff.
As you can see here the car has Gaz adjustable shocks fitted all round which is a nice (and most likely costly) addition. Not a job for today but we can see about getting the car set up to maximise its driving characteristics. The brake callipers have also all been refreshed or replaced, and my suspicion that the rear brakes being hydraulic handbrake only were unfounded, the brakes all work as usual.
The side pipes will definitely come off at some stage.
With the gearbox conversion (supplied by Simply Performance) there is a new prop.
Obviously some modifications have been made on the fly....
Obviously the underside of the arches is a bit rough and ready but I knew that already.
The front has a bit of rot in it, right where the splitter/scrape strip is attached.
I'm not sure how interesting all of you will find the underside of an old car, but here you go. On the whole its pretty solid though there is evidence of repairs and of course all of the over spray means it doesn't look too pretty.
Here you can see where the exhaust has been cut off after the centre boxes and rerouted out to either side. It sounds a bit gruff.
As you can see here the car has Gaz adjustable shocks fitted all round which is a nice (and most likely costly) addition. Not a job for today but we can see about getting the car set up to maximise its driving characteristics. The brake callipers have also all been refreshed or replaced, and my suspicion that the rear brakes being hydraulic handbrake only were unfounded, the brakes all work as usual.
The side pipes will definitely come off at some stage.
With the gearbox conversion (supplied by Simply Performance) there is a new prop.
Obviously some modifications have been made on the fly....
Obviously the underside of the arches is a bit rough and ready but I knew that already.
The front has a bit of rot in it, right where the splitter/scrape strip is attached.
shalmaneser said:
What did you pay for that if you don't mind me asking?
The gearbox, prop, brakes and suspension have got to be worth a few quid!
Might be a good thing having been off the road since at least '05 if it's been dry stored...
£5,600. The conversion kit from Simply Performance isn't cheap, but worth its weight in gold in my eyes. The gearbox, prop, brakes and suspension have got to be worth a few quid!
Might be a good thing having been off the road since at least '05 if it's been dry stored...
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