| This ad show the Mk2 Jaguar 3.8 Sedan for the US market. It is a rather odd ad in that it depicts the car in some kind of storm, but the car is so small you can hardly see it. The Styling and performance are the two big buying reasons for the 3.8 mk2 and this ad doesn’t really accentuate either of them. What is the secret of its splendid indifference? The Jaguar 3.8 Sedan, unlike most cars on the road today, has been engineered without compromising motoring excellence. Race-tested XK engine, proven 4-wheel disc brakes, “four-square” suspension system, quite […] On the 17th of September, 1965, my E-Type rolled out of the factory in Coventry, and was dispatched on the 5th of October to Fayetteville North Carolina. The first owner, was Spencer Augustus Folsom, Jr. It shows how far car technology had come in the preceding 50 years, in that when this car was manufactured, a 50 year old car was a horseless carriage, yet now this car despite being 50 years old can still function well as a car on todays roads. In 50 years on the road, this car has been driven cross country, stolen and recovered, slain […] In this world of monster 4 wheel drives with inattentive drivers at the wheel, a horn is an important feature of a small, low sports car. However, the horns on my E-Type had not been working. I had previously checked the actual horn units on a 12v battery and got a very feeble croak out of them, so since they looked rather rusty, replaced them. However, the car was still not able to honk appropriately. I had been able to hear the relay click when I pushed the horn button, so I was pretty confident that the button was working, […] The British Car display is probably the best show each year in Sydney, and this year was no different. Although the Eastern Creek show is bigger and has a more varied mix of vehicles, plus the parade laps to see the cars moving, The British show has more cars that you keep coming back to have another look and always seems to have something new. Last year the show was rained out, but there was no chance of that for the 2015 British car display. The biggest showing was put on by the Jaguar club, with a nice selection of […] Today the JDCA organized a run up to St Albans, which is just north of Sydney. I hadn’t had a chance to take the E-Type on a long run, so thought it would be a good opportunity. It was one of the biggest car club runs I have been on with nearly 100 sign ups and at least 20 E-Types joining in. E-Types ranged from early 3.8 flat floors right up to late S3s, with most of the major variants covered. The run started in Glenorie (I took Galston Gorge which is a far nicer drive in an E […] The JDCA E-Type register had an unofficial new year breakfast run yesterday up to Dural, and a good opportunity to take the Jag out for a drive. It was quite a hot day (around 34c), but the coolcat fan kept the temperature at or below 90 degrees, even in traffic or going up Galston Gorge on the way back. As this was an unofficial run, club plated cars were not allowed, but there was still a good selection of cars, with around 10-12 E-Types on display. In the photo above, there is an XK120, and two Series 3 E-Types. […] A while ago the E-Type speedo bezel and glass that protects the speedometer had fallen off. I had tried to replace it in-situ, but the bezel fell off the next time I drove the car. I later learned the correct way to do this and it is not very hard. The panel under the dash that protects all the wires is easily removed providing access to the back of the instruments. The speedometer has two thumb screws that hold it secure against the dash board. They are hard to see, but can be felt. They had slowly worked loose, letting […] I had to be in Canberra today, so I swung by the 2014 ACT Terribly British Day. It was quite a nice little car show with a decent mix of British cars. I was glad to go as the Sydney show was rained out this year and I had not taken the 450SLC on a good road trip for a while. Some of the cars I liked were a very original looking Bentley S1 Continental, a couple of nice Jaguar XK140 FHCs, and a former vice regal Rolls Royce Phantom V that took Sir William Kerr to make his announcement […] I recently attended a JDCA drive to Bulli organized by the Grand Tourers Register (i.e. XJS, New XK). The drive started in Southern Sydney and took the grand pacific drive through the royal national park. Unfortunately the event organizers Jag (a lovely XJS convertible) developed an issue and had to pull out of the event, but overall it was a very nice day and some nice cars on display. The video below is a sped up version of the JDCA drive to Bulli. It shows the route through the Grand Pacific Drive, sea-cliff bridge and in to Bulli. The […] after checking all the connections, the Retrosound Model 1 is now back in the E-Type and I also replaced the cigarette lighter while I was at it. The cigarette lighter had rusted internally and was no longer working – and on longer drives the battery in the GPS was not cutting it. Replacing the cigarette lighter was fairly easy, although the replacement had a shorter collar which I needed to extend with a piece of pipe from the hardware store. It is good to have a working radio in the car. While on the test drive, the glass cover […] | |
