Managing Director – Bridge Classic Cars
The 1951 Jaguar XK120 Roadster in the Bridge Classic Cars workshop has had our technicians looking into the source of some noises believed by the team to be coming from the legendary straight-six engine.
For this, Jon removed the cam covers on the top of the engine to inspect the tolerances on the tappets which control the valves. After checking these against the spec, Jon did the necessary adjustments to each individual piece until all were within the original specifications for the car. Whilst there, Jon noticed some slack in the cam chain which controls the valves in the engine. On the Jaguar, this can be adjusted to either tighten or loosen the chain which was adjusted until the chain tension was also as close to the original specification as possible.
After everything was checked and double-checked, the cam-cover could go back on with brand new gaskets as well as new breather gaskets to ensure a tight seal for the straight-six. Then, it could be run up and tested and Jon reported no noises occurring in the engine bay.
