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I took my E-Type out for a couple of drives this week. The state of NSW has been in lockdown due to COVID19 since March. Until last week, it was illegal to be out and about without a valid excuse. This precluded the use of the E-Type as unlike some of the more modern cars it isn’t so suitable to use to do a shopping run. For starters the boot is minute and the car doesn’t like stop/go traffic very much. On the first drive, I noticed a bit of a fuel smell. It seemed like it was coming from […] I changed the differential ratio of my E-Type about two years ago. My car was first delivered in the USA, so it came standard with 3.54 ratio. Most of the 4.2 cars were standard with 3.07. When the car was restored in the 90’s, it was converted to 3.07. However, the previous owner converted it back to 3.54. My conversion put it to 3.07 again. The car still has its original speedometer, which means both the speed and odometer were incorrect. This page lists the different Jaguar E-Type differential ratios. There are generally two ways of accounting for the differential […] My E-Type has a habit of eating batteries. I seem to get about 2-3 years out of them before they struggle to start the car when cold. You might be thinking that these batteries are left discharged all the time – but not so! The E-Type is connected to a trickle charger when not in use and is parked indoors in a moderate climate. I think there are a few reasons for this. Firstly, the battery is quite small, and like many things on the E-Type is under specified for the car. The series 1 radiator fan is the classic […] At least in Australia, by far the best month of the year to buy tyres is June. Both the tyre retailers and manufacturers offer attractive end of financial year sales. Most people don’t realize, but tread wear is not the only reason to replace tyres. As the rubber ages, it hardens. Once the tyres harden the handling, particularly in the wet is compromised. When I first purchased by 250SE I nearly spun it in the rain on an innocuous corner. The tread in the tyres looked fine, and I had thought no more of it. But on closer inspection they […] Last September, the electric fan on the E-Type stopped working. This is a particular problem in the E-Type as there is no mechanical fan. At the time I assumed the coolant temperature sensor had failed. It would seem that many people have trouble with these sensors. I knew the coolcat fan was fine, as it roared into life when I applied 12v directly to the fan. When I had bypassed the switch, I broke one of the connectors off the Lucas relay that controls the fan. Therefore, I ordered an upgraded temperature sensor from Coolcat. I also ordered a new […] Unlike most cars of its era, the E-Type uses an electric fan rather than one driven by the engine. This was probably due to room in the engine bay, as other Jaguar models of the era used engine driven fans. True to form, Jaguar used a very cheap fan (actually a windscreen wiper motor) with two blades like a propeller. This fan was barely adequate in the UK in the 1960s and is completely unsuitable for the Australian climate. When I purchased my car, it had been upgraded to an aftermarket fan, but not a great one. I replaced it […] The 2018 British Car show was held on Sunday at the Kings School. This is probably the best car show of the year in Sydney. As usual all the British marques were there. Also as usual was the lovely display of cars. Overall it was a great day with excellent weather and interesting cars to see. Having said that, the Kings School made some changes this year that were not for the better. This year the Jaguars were moved from the top paddock to the middle one. This pushed clubs like Rolls Royce and Daimler down to the bottom paddock. […] About 18 months ago, I had my E-Type upgraded from sealed beams to Halogen headlights. Last night, I took the car on the first extended night drive since the upgrade. What a difference! The Halogen upgrade also included relays and wiring directly from the battery to the lights. Before this upgrade I never felt particularly comfortable driving the car at night. With this upgrade both the dipped and main beams really illuminate the road. I took the car on a drive through Galston Gorge and then up the Old Northern road, almost to Wisemans Ferry. Hawkins lookout is a nice […] The Jaguar Heritage Collection was displayed near the historic Jaguar Factory at Browns Lane until that site was redeveloped in 2012. The collection is now split across a few museums, but the bulk of it can be found at the British Motor Museum. During a recent visit to the UK, I was able to tour the British Motor Museum. The Jaguar Heritage Collection is housed in the same building as the overflow collection. The collection has a good representation of Jaguar vehicles from swallow sidecars to the current models. Key models include the SS1, SS100, the first and last E-Types […] My E-Type has had ongoing problems with the brakes holding on. This has been on and off since I bought the car in 2010. Over that time, I have pretty much renewed the entire braking system. Turns out, that might be part of the problem. What I have learned, is that the reproduction E-Type Master Cylinder can be problematic. So much so, that rebuilt units are probably better. The unit on my car was only around 18 months old, and it was clearly the problem here. When removed and bench tested, the piston was obviously sticking in the bore. The […] | |||||
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