Welcome to

Xclusively Jaguar

Newsletter Archive

For all things Jaguar

Across the globe

Home

Car Sales

Parts & Automobilia

Facts & Information

Buyers Tips

Features

Newsletters

Newsletter Archive

Links

Contact

Disclaimers

Feedback

This Space Could Be YOURS!

Featuring edited highlights from past issues of XJ News

April 2009

The International XJ-S Cabriolet Register

Contents

1. Latest news from Xclusively Jaguar

2. Latest news from Knowles Wilkins Engineering

3. Diary of an XJ40 - Part 3

4. Bleeping S-types

5. A Unique Collection of Jaguar/TWR Automobilia

6. Performance Motorcare Detailing Advice – Part 4

7. Hyper Engineering

8. S.K.Jagtech

9. Parts, Automobilia, Books etc for sale and wanted

10. Cars for sale and wanted

11. Newsletter archive

12. Important notices and disclaimers

Facts and Information by Model

SS & Pre-war Jaguar's

1950's Sports/Racing

1950's Saloons

E-type

1960's Saloons

XJ Series 1-3

XJS

XJ220

XJ40

X300/X308

XK8/R

S-type

X-type

X350

XK

XF

One-off's, Concept's, Protoypes & Replica's

The Parts and Automobilia page has been updated and many new items have been added. Also, by scrolling down the Home page you will find a direct link to Black Country Jaguar's ebay shop where there are some terrific bargains - WHILE STOCKS LAST!

This month I have been cheeky, and put in two entries of my own, as one of them is on behalf of Brian Foster, in Spain, who previously wrote about his XJ-S being the first privately owned car to go over the Dartford bridge. Brian now owns an X200 S-type, and in common with my S-type (now sold on) it suffers from a mysterious bleep. Full details are given in my article below, entitled "Bleeping S-types" - Brian will, of course, be back next month with another interesting story relating his travels and the Jaguars he has come across!

You will notice from the top of the newsletter, and other pages on the website, that you can now translate the whole website directly into French, German, Spanish or Italian, or via one easy step on Google Translate, into almost any other language of your choice! Depending on demand, other languages may be added as direct links in the future.

Does anybody recognise an XJS with the registration number "APR1L"? It passed me on the A31 on Saturday 28th March, heading East - unfortunately I was heading west, and only got a fleeting glimpse....... what an amazing number for an amazing car - and rather topical for the April issue of XJ News! Come on, please own up if its yours........I want a picture of it on this website!

Back on the Road!

by Esta-jane Mace

My first big buy was a pair of Dunlop Sport 225/65/15 tyres - mainly as these were very close to the legal limit, but also to try and improve that good old fuel consumption! Most places I called were asking well in excess of £100 a corner, but fortunately I managed to get a great deal from my local tyre merchant, and KUH is now sporting a nice new pair of “boots”!

Before I began driving her to work, which is a good 80 miles a day round trip, I gave her a service. She had been standing for well over a year and no doubt she needed some nice fresh oil and new parts. Armed with my Halfords Trade Card I bought a new air filter and had to order in an oil filter as Jaguar Parts were shut! At least I got a discount here though! I then got my spark plugs from an independent retailer as they sold them as singles, rather than in packs of 4!! The service was simple and she was done and dusted in no time. The fuel filter had already been done back in February. There are still some things to do, but these can be done over time.

Brian has also informed me that he has a replacement front bumper as well, one with headlamp jets, as the one on the front of KUH at the moment it very rusty! Along with this should be the electronic key fob as well, as she has been equipped with an alarm, which I believe is quite a rare feat for this model year! I have met up with Brian for the first time since KUH passed her MOT, so for the first time in over a year, KUH and BLM (Brian’s X308) got to sit together catching up in a local car park whilst we went for a coffee to talk Jaguars!

Bleeping S-types

Some time ago, while sifting through a Jaguar magazine, I found reference to a “bleeping S-type” and immediately homed in on this, as my own S-type had a mysterious bleep, and I thought that I may find an answer here!

The S-type in question belonged to Brian Foster, now living in Spain, and apart from being a left hand drive, this S-type was in all respects identical to mine, right down to the finer details, such as full service history, replacement gearbox and, with similar mileage! Brian explained that ever since owning the car, from new, there had been a strange “electronic bleep” which seemed to come from the steering column area. Also in common with my S-type, there was no pattern as to when to expect the bleep to occur – it was entirely random and completely unconnected to anything else which may recently have occurred.

My own 2000 MY 3 litre S-type, purchased on 1st July 2007, was behaving in exactly the same way, even after a full service on 10th September, which included new pads, discs, brake fluid, top hose and coolant, in addition to oil and all filters, the bleeps continued. A number of perished rubber hoses were later replaced, along with a change of spark plugs, but she still bleeped! I must admit that I never actually perceived it as a “fault” or a “problem” - merely a “phenomenon” which didn’t seem to affect the car in any way whatsoever, so I never sought the advice of any experts. To me it was just a mystery which I eventually wanted to solve for my own satisfaction and knowledge, but unfortunately, I sold the S-type before I got round to it, and concluded that since I had never followed it up there could be a very simple explanation which I had completely over-looked.

Brian, on the other hand, had made enquiries of a Jaguar Main Dealer and elsewhere, only to be told that they had never before come across this phenomenon. Further enquiries resulted in the rather impractical suggestion that he “drive around with a technician in the car until the bleep occurs!” Have they any idea how much this would cost him? Fortunately, he decided NOT to take this advice! The bleep is so erratic that you could drive around with a technician in the car for a month and not hear it! My first thought was that we had just completed another 1000 miles, or other significant milestone – but we hadn’t. I started to think of other possibilities – had I recently reset the air conditioning? Audio equipment? Trip computer? Memory seats? Left the cruise control switched on? Boot/sunroof/door/window/bonnet/fuel flap open? Used the windscreen washer/wipers? Was it related to the central locking? The automatic lights hadn’t come on or gone off. The bleeps were too few and far between to be indicative of automatic gear changes. Neither were they an indication that I had changed up or down manually, engaged/dis-engaged Sport or Traction control. We never used the cigar lighter or electric rear sunblind. In fact, the bleep didn’t seem to follow or precede the function of any equipment fitted to the car. Tyre pressures were regularly checked and set as per details on the car. Fluid levels were all ok and there was plenty of fuel in the tank. There were no bulb failure warnings, or any other warnings.

A couple of times she bleeped at the same right hand junction – but I used this junction nearly every time I went out, so I quickly checked engine temperature – it was fine and the bleep could not have been to let me know that the engine was now fully warmed up as it happened so infrequently. Obviously with an S-type, I could not check oil pressure or charging rate – I can only say that I had no cause for concern and nothing untoward seemed evident.

The bleeps were completely random and I was very aware of them, taking in all possible conditions at the time. As far as I could see, they bore no relation to speed, or whether the car was under acceleration, idling, braking, turning left or right, or ascending/descending a hill.

Reading through the owners manual I found no reference to or explanation for these bleeps and when I consulted a Main Dealer they had never come across this phenomenon! Perhaps bleeping S-types are a lot more common than we realise – my husband was completely unaware of our S-type’s bleeps, and convinced that it was my imagination, so it is obviously beyond the range of some peoples hearing! There is also the point that anyone who uses the audio equipment would not be aware of them either!

Eventually I concluded that our S-type was just talking to herself!

Having said all of the above, maybe someone already has the answer and will share it with us?

Brian and I have now discussed this at length, and he has pondered all the same questions as I have, and put forward some similar theories. He still has his S-type and every time it bleeps he sends me an email to let me know the circumstances under which it occurred, such as, 3 times today, and each time while turning right at a roundabout then nothing for maybe 2 weeks, or 2 months!

We are not concerned by the bleep from a performance point of view, as it seems to have no effect on the cars, but we are on a mission to solve it! Can anyone help?

A Unique Collection of
Jaguar/TWR Automobilia

In October 2008 I wrote again to Leslie. By this time, I had a far greater knowledge of all things Jaguar, and as usual, with this knowledge came the realisation that the knowledge I had still to acquire seemed larger than I ever imagined and I now feel that I know less in comparison to what I thought I knew in the beginning – if that makes sense?

By contrast to me, Leslie is an authority on the Jaguar marque, but I am keen to learn, and try to spread my enthusiasm as best I can. In the intervening time since first contacting Leslie, I was able to tell him that my eldest daughter (Esta-jane), perhaps inspired by my enthusiasm, had become a Jaguar apprentice and was very fortunate to be the only candidate of that year chosen for the design department! Now living in Coventry, she is a JDHT volunteer in her spare time and keeps me informed of developments at Jaguar and the Heritage Trust. On the day that Leslie received this letter he was just off to the JDHT, who were celebrating the 10th anniversary of the opening of the museum at Brown’s Lane, and took my letter with him in the hope that he might meet my daughter, but alas she was working at Gaydon that day, so he did not.

My own involvement with Jaguar is not so easy as I live in Devon and my husband is disabled. In order to become more involved with Jaguar I had recently created a website and email-newsletter, which I had named XCLUSIVELY JAGUAR. My aim being to offer advertisements for anything which is Jaguar orientated (whether private or trade); to publish items of news and events; and to create useful lists which are not always easily accessible elsewhere - or at least give details on where to find this information, which is not always obvious to someone new to the marque.

My recent letter to Leslie had been to seek his opinion and some advice, and I had not expected him to respond in the way that he did, when he again chose to reply by phone. To my surprise, he asked me if I would like to advertise the remainder of his collection of Jaguar memorabilia on my website and in my newsletter. I was very pleased that I had written to him again, and felt honoured that he had asked me to help him in the sale of his collection. I felt that I now had something worth advertising!

In 2000 Leslie began rebuilding a series of Jaguar Group C & IMSA cars built to one-fifth scale and created by TWR designer Tony Southgate with authentic upper body panels and undersides for the purpose of accurate wind- tunnel testing. He has also restored 2 full-size XJR show cars to showroom condition but says that restoring the scale models, down to the last authentic detail, was harder and more time consuming than restoring the real cars! The show cars referred to were replica’s of an XJR8 and an XJR11, both in Silk Cut colours, and were used as display cars at race meetings where the “real” racing cars were competing. The XJR8 was acquired by The National Motor Museum at Beaulieu and is on permanent display and the XJR11 was purchased by an engineer from the South of England to be converted to race specification. Leslie has since lost touch with its whereabouts but would be very pleased to hear from the current owner. Please contact Letitia at Xclusively Jaguar if you know of the whereabouts of this XJR11.

The wind-tunnel models, parts and moulds, which included some interesting experimental ideas, represent the development of the XJR from 1985 and are part of the Jaguar/TWR Partnership prototype race series from the 1980’s and the early 1990’s. They were acquired by Leslie in 3 separate lots, the last batch being purchased from the receivers, when TWR went into liquidation. Due to their intended use as wind tunnel models, they were never embellished with logos and were devoid of the finer details which would feature on their full size equivalent. By the time Leslie acquired them, some of them were also in very poor condition.

All models built for testing in wind tunnels during the earlier years were made to one-fifth scale (about three feet long) the scale of which, is more easily visualized by reference to the photos which show a 1/43 scale model alongside them. Tony Southgate, TWR’s designer, supervised all stages of design, pattern making, mould making, then finally creating the finished mouldings used in the assembly of each individual model. Throughout the series, each chassis type underwent numerous changes and modifications in order to achieve maximum aerodynamics and running performance. This involved making a whole variety of model mouldings, all different in one way or another. Even when the cars were racing, new modifications were regularly being made and tested in an attempt to improve performance. All of this made for an interesting collection of models, many of them differing a lot from the actual racing cars appearing on the circuits. While most of them looked similar in overall appearance, the collection is made up of a whole series of unique models and as such, they are very rare collectibles on their own, without using them to construct finished display models.

As can be seen from the accompanying pictures the collection of main body sets i.e. nose section, monocoque and engine cover (tail section) panels contain some interesting variations. These panels, and much of the detailing, were made from fibreglass and resin.

They include the rare experimental spyder concept car, which never went into production. It is at the far end of the line-up, and below is a close-up.

twr spyder concept car

The blue sets are for turbo cars XJR-10 and XJR-11. Those in green represent V12 models from XJR-6 to XJR-12 variations. The body panels shown here,

and the underbody panels (below)

would have cost around £1000 (each) to have made by experts. The original hardwood patterns, from which the moulds were formed (as seen in this photo)

would have been very expensive to begin with, and each complete wind-tunnel model would, at that time, have cost around £5000 to produce! The pictures show only a sample of the total number of body panels, under-wing panels and moulds, which make up this unique and invaluable collection.

Leslie repaired the glass fibre bodies and fabricated missing or damaged parts from scratch. He then researched, reproduced, and applied, authentic decals for each model, in order to make them as realistic as possible. The many photo’s which Leslie had acquired of the real cars served to aid him in this task, and in the publication of his book. Leslie commissioned a local graphics firm to make copies of all manufacturers name decals – Jaguar, Silk Cut, Castrol, Dunlop, Goodyear, etc. all in various sizes, as seen on the completed models. The collection comes with a good selection of these, which will be a great help to anyone taking this project on where Leslie left off.

In total, Leslie has made up 7 complete display models, 5 of which have been sold. The two remaining are of the 1988 Le Mans winning XJR9 (chassis 488) and a particularly nice Castrol XJR-10 turbo car. Leslie may consider offering these for sale eventually but is not in a hurry as he rather likes them!

The first model Leslie made was the 1991 XJR14, Cosworth powered, 1991 World Championship winner. Built to 40% scale, it is 6 ft long and took Leslie 18 months to complete! This later Jaguar/TWR series wind tunnel model is one of the larger scale models and instead of glass fibre, they were now made in the much more expensive carbon fibre. This model is now in the USA, having been acquired by the lucky owners of the two remaining real XJR-14 race cars. Bearing in mind that Leslie had never made anything like this before, this was his first project! Not bad, taking into account that the panels were in an appalling condition, when he acquired them!

The 7 completed models comprise:

1. 1985 XJR6
2. 1987 XJR8 which features experimental grafting of a Porsche 962 long tail onto the body of this V12 engined race car
3. 1988 XJR9 Number 2 (chassis no: 488). The 1988 Le Mans winning car. This is a 1/5 scale model and is Leslie’s favourite!


4. XJR10 Turbo Sponsored by Castrol, it raced in the 1989, 1990 and 1991 IMSA Series (1/5 scale model)


5. XJR12-D Bud Light Daytona
6. 1991 XJR14 Cosworth powered, 1991 World Championship winner – 40% scale model (6 ft long and 18 months in the making!)


7. XJR16 Turbo Sponsored by Bud Light, it raced successfully from April to October 1991

Leslie is now looking for a dedicated model or car enthusiast, be it individual, group, museum, club or collector, to take on this unique and historically important collection for completion and custodianship. The project may appeal to a single model builder or group of friends/club members, who might be keen enough to happily spend years building up many of these models, one after another, for pleasure or profit. Alternatively, they may appeal to a museum or collector who just wishes to preserve this historic collection as it is - the possibilities are enormous!

Due to the nature of the collection, Leslie’s wish is that the complete collection will be sold as one “lot” to someone who will appreciate the immense value of this important part of Jaguars heritage. The completed models have been valued at approximately £2-3500 each, and any number of models can be created using the available moulds. The asking price for this collection is £3500, and bearing in mind that all the items would certainly have cost many tens of thousands of pounds to produce, the figure quoted is based on what one or two of the finished models have been valued at.

Making up completed models incorporating panels from the collection requires a certain amount of dedication but after the first one, the process becomes a lot easier. In addition to the main body panels, as seen in the photos, the collection includes a huge amount of other ancillary pieces such as wing assemblies, wheels, wing mirrors, wheel covers and many other parts needed to construct a fairly detailed model. They vary considerably and Leslie has used them as a guide to reproduce new sets of whatever is needed. The sheer number of components is very extensive, far too many to be listed. There are numerous boxes of them. Leslie advised me that the purchaser would be required to arrange collection, and nothing less than a Transit van would be needed to transport it.

Leslie is willing to advise on the rebuilding project, but due to other long-standing interests and family commitments, can no-longer continue to carry on with this project. He is willing to impart his knowledge and expertise on the future custodian by offering as much help as possible.

Anyone interested might be surprised to learn that when Leslie first obtained the original batch of components, he had never made anything like it in his life. He had never been a model maker so embarked upon a fairly steep learning curve. Leslie’s book “TWR Jaguar Prototype Racers” explains much about the development of the cars and will be a very useful guide to livery etc.

Leslie’s intention is to retain a small collection of panels not seen in the pictures, purely for his own interest. He also has a few other body moulds, not part of the XJR Prototype Championship Series, which will be sold separately, including one unusual set to make up one-fifth scale XJR-15 body mouldings. The others are for making up parts of racing cars which Leslie has not been able to identify. As with the main collection, any purchasers will need to learn the art of working with fibreglass and resin. This is not too difficult after a little practice.

Genuine enquiries for the purchase of the above collection should be made to Xclusively Jaguar. Please refer to our Contact page.

Below are details of the book which was written by Leslie as a by-product of his research into the topic.

Please note that this collection has now been sold.

£17.50 – available from the JDHT
(follow link on “Links” page)

Many manufacturers are now launching their own brands of wheel sealant, some of the most popular being Poorboys Wheel Sealant and Smart Rim Wax. Similar to the process of applying wax to your bodywork to seal in the shine and the hard work you put in, wheel sealants provide a protective barrier between harmful contaminants such as brake dust and salt and the surface of your wheels. Especially important if you have bare metal alloys which are particularly prone to such attack.

Generally these products are applied using a soft lint free cloth or applicator pad, left to dry to a haze and then buffed off. You can also apply one or two more coats for added protection.

If you don't want to add any further products to your detailing arsenal, then you can also achieve similar results and protection using a good quality synthetic sealant or wax such as Meguiars Synthetic Sealant #21, Meguiars NXT Tech Wax etc, that you may already have in your supplies.

You can also use a more natural carnauba based wax but these do not bear up so well to the heat of the wheels and do not last nearly as long.

It is one thing to keep your wheels clean, and quite another to get them gleaming......

Whatever type of wheels you have; chrome, aluminium, steel, wire, there is often one extra step you can take to get that blinding shine on them.

Whilst the following was written as a follow-up to Ali's guide on wheel detailing, much of it will also be relevant to other parts of your car i.e. chrome trim, steel tail pipes etc.

Polishing Chrome

Chrome is one of the most difficult finishes to keep really bright. Although providing a tough mirror-like finish it is very susceptible to rust, brake dust corrosion and harsh acid cleaners.

However it is possible to bring your chrome back to a life of shine and brightness, if the corrosion has not firmly set in and is just coating the surface.

For the brave you can use extremely fine steel wool or a fine wire wool soap pad, to remove the surface rust and caked on brake dust. Please note however that even though chrome plating is very hard it will still receive fine scratches using these products that will need to be separately polished out.

Alternatively and to reduce chances of scratching, plenty of elbow grease and a specially formulated chrome polish, should be used and applied with a lint free cotton or microfibre cloth.

One of my personal favourites is Briliant Chrome and Hot Environment polish. Although a liquid based product, rather than a paste, I find that it still has very good "cutting" properties which help cut through the contaminants as well as being easily applied.

Polishing Steel & Wire Wheels and Steel Tail Pipes

Stainless Steel is again another very hard metal that is notoriously difficult to keep clean. If you have scratches in your steel then it is unlikely that you will be able to remove these without resorting to machine cutting and polishing. However if your steel is just tarnished or you are looking to add that extra gleam to your stainless steel tailpipe, then again one of my favourites is the range of Luster Lace products.

Especially if you have areas that are difficult to get all the way round, like wire or other spokes or the tail pipe. The Luster Lace strips wrap all the way round and with a back and forward motion can bring your metal to a gleaming shine in minutes.

Polishing Aluminium

Aluminium is one of the easiest metals to polish to a gleaming shine. Although one of the most common mistakes and misconceptions we come across are owners of clear coated aluminium trying to polish them with a metal polish.

A clear coat on aluminium is effectively a layer of "paint" without any colour pigment and requires treating as paint for polishing purposes or if peeling and bubbling, possibly removing altogether. If you are not sure if your aluminium is coated and you have a metal polish - if after rubbing a little of the polish onto the metal you do not get a black residue forming then in all probability, it is coated.

To polish bare aluminium my personal favourite is the Mothers Mag and Aluminium polish which will bring dull tarnished aluminium back to a bright shine. If going that extra step for a real mirror like shine, but using a little more elbow grease, I will usually go for the Mothers Billet as the finishing touch.

If you are looking to polish rough aluminium parts, you will first need to sand to a smooth surface. It is best to use a stage approach from course, through to medium and then fine sanding and followed by ultra fine wet and dry (used wet). And then do the final polish. Depending on the initial roughness the sanding could involve several steps from 200 to 2000 grit.

Remember also when sanding at each change in grade of paper, sand in a different direction i.e. 90 degrees to the previous.

Finally for anyone considering applying a permanent protective clear lacquer after polishing I would recommend the Wurth Clear Lacquer Spray.

I hope this has helped and look forwarding to seeing some blinding metal passing us by on the streets.

For details of products mentioned in this article, please follow the link to Performance Motorcare on our Links page.

What I like about SKJagtech are those little touches which are often over-looked but are important to me as a customer and would be high on my list of priorities if I had a business. Things which are very simple, but very often over-looked, even in large well-established and respected Jaguar businesses. When Steve arrived to greet me, the first thing I noticed was his Jaguar Racing sweatshirt and Jaguar jacket! When he took notes – he used a Jaguar pen……..and when the coffee arrived - it was in Jaguar mugs! It says a lot about the business……….not least that you are a dedicated enthusiast!

Letitia