On the move: Steve with a Jaguar Mk2 & Lotus Europa
A temporary respite from the deep freeze created an opportunity to reshuffle our work areas. We were ready to start tuning work on a series 2 E-type which has undergone a fairly major brake & suspension rehab in our cellar service bays. Because of the relatively poor winter access, and the fact that subzero weather heaves the floor enough to wedge the doors closed, we decided to move it topside for tuning work and deposited this late 5-speed big valve Europa in its place. Beginning Monday, Patrick will be its technician. This car had been sitting outside for at least 12 years, meaning lots of things, beginning with the engine, are stuck.
John monitors the drip feed to an E-type
This series 1 E-type is another car long off the road. When we encounter a car which has been sitting for many years we like to start by getting them running on fresh gas, not the accumulated shellac that used to be gasoline in the fuel tank. This is truly Shade Tree Repair 101, but it works. We take a soda bottle and attach a length of fuel line to the carburetor fuel inlet and set up a gravity feed. Usually we just hang it off the hood catch, but for some reason this Jaguar needed more fuel velocity so we hung it off the fluorescent light. Butch is running up the engine while John is monitoring the fuel delivery. Now that we know the engine runs O.K. we’ll clean the tank and the fuel lines.
Butch fettles the carburetors & linkages
But let’s back up a little bit. A scummy-gummy fuel tank is Prima Facie evidence of a similar condition in the carburetors and vice-versa. Secure in the knowledge that this was almost certainly the case, Butch checked the carb piston & suction chamber assemblies for ease of operation and had a look at the condition of the float chambers (aka fuel reservoirs). He pulled the front carburetor to free it off, adjusted his linkages and replaced a carb float that was damaged. Now it’s on to resetting the front torsion bar ride height and looking for a window of opportunity to evaluate this car out on the road.
For the record, cars moving up & down in the queue today were E-types S1 & S2, the blue Mk2 sedan, the Lotus, a TR6, two MGB’s, an Austin Healey 3000 MkII, and two TD’s, slightly more than half of them under their own power.
Wednesday morning: Studded tires make it safe
