Chris wheels in the gravity propulsion vehicle with Shot-Gun Johnny
Repairs commenced Wednesday on the series 1 XJ6 with the hole thru #5 piston caused by a dropped valve. Things are not always what they seem. The car was stored up in the barn and I took this picture from the back seat as Chris wheeled the car into the downstairs service bays completely under the effect of gravity. Those doors are a tight squeeze, but Chris is a good driver.
We want this car to go to the British Invasion of Stowe under its own power on the 3rd weekend of September. The Invasion is the largest all-British meet in the U.S.
XJ6 engine coming out
A strategy session on the pros & cons of an in-chassis repair program ensued. Taking that approach would have meant suspending the engine and dropping the cross-member from underneath it for access to the oil pan. Labor-wise we decided it was more efficient to just take it out and mount it on the big engine stand which was already set up for Jaguar 4.2 engines. by doing it this way, it also allows us to clean down both the engine and the engine bay, as well as making the engine repairs much easier.
Member of The Wedding
In other Jaguar news, this Mk2 was dumping copious amounts of power steering fluid from the pump when we brought it in the shop Tuesday. Butch hauled out the generator and power steering pump before he had to go home to rendezvous with the cable guy, so I pulled the pump down Tuesday night and re-kitted it in my spare time. It’s off to a Wedding this weekend. Butch & John loaded it up about 4:00 Wednesday afternoon and I delivered it to Sterling, Massachusetts.
Hoburn-Eaton roller pump
Pump drives off the generator
This is a later Hoburn-Eaton roller-type pump. The pump is driven off the back of the generator, those clever Brits. The leak, a large one, was coming from the housing seal on the generator end. It was a relatively simple repair to make once Butch had cleared the A/C compressor, Dealer-installed by Import Motors of Fort Worth, Texas. This took him a couple of hours because the layout was planned for ease of installation, without much thought given to service access later on. Well this ain’t Texas, so when he pulled it off, we left it off. Click on these pictures for more detail
Sunny Day: Mike & Kate head North
It’s been a busy week of comings & goings. This time of year one of our measures of success is whether we’re getting cars back out of here faster than they’re coming in. The past week has seen three departures and two arrivals, one unplanned. The Elva came in in May, but after a decision how to proceed was made, it was still two weeks before it was out the door again.
We have one malingerer, a Bentley MkVI Standard Steel Saloon, but the scheduling is strictly a space problem and no fault on the part of the owner or the car. That situation could be summed up by saying, ‘there’s always room for improvement’, we just wish we had a little more of it.
