classic jaguar specialist uk

Update – Working on the 1968 Jaguar E-Type 4.2

The 1968 Jaguar E-Type 4.2 has been in the Bridge Classic Cars workshop for our restoration technicians to tackle a couple of jobs on.

The first task the team had was to repair part of the radiator. The joint at the top of the filler neck had broken, it had previously been glued, and was bypassing the expansion tank. So, our technician Dave cut off the original to clean up the part and resolder the piece back on.

The next step was for Dave to work on the rear brakes and handbrake of the classic E-Type. The team have gone through and manually adjusted the handbrake on the car as well as fitting a new return spring to the near side rear and having to carry out a small modification to the system in order to fit the new spring.

Whilst looking into the brakes, the team noted the light on the dash, which indicates the brake fluid being low or the handbrake was on, wasn’t working. Upon inspection, the team found the bulb was actually gone from the system but upon testing they found the circuit itself was inoperative and suspect the issue is with the internal switch located underneath the interior of the car which would need to be removed to replace.

Also, the team discovered some paint blistering under the brake fluid reservoir but after inspecting the tank actually found the system to be overfilled and the escaped excess had dripped down and disturbed the paint.

Moving onto the engine of the E-Type, the team found a leak from the back of the Cam Cover on the straight-six. Upon inspection, Dave found an O-Ring from the rev counter mechanism had begun to leak so the team removed it from the back of the camshafts and replaced the seals before fitting it back up to the engine.

Tightened Up – Replacing and Retightening Trim on the 1951 Jaguar XK120 Roadster

The 1951 Jaguar XK120 Roadster has been in the Bridge Classic Cars workshop to have some smaller jobs finished off.

The team have gone through each of the trim pieces to tighten down the necessary hardware, with any marred or damaged pieces replaced. The team also took the opportunity to recheck the hardware used for fixing down the seats in the gorgeous 1950s roadster.

Delicate Work – Repairing and Refitting the Chromework on the 1984 Jaguar XJ

A few months ago, we repainted the bonnet and boot of the 1984 Jaguar XJ for its owner.

A couple of days ago the car came back to the Bridge Classic Cars workshop to have the team here repair and refit the chrome work to the classic XJ.

Scott, one of our technicians, carefully cleaned up and reshaped some of the delicate pieces to get them fitting just right into the recesses and curves of the car. He also had to repair several of the mounts needed to secure the trim pieces to the car. But, with gentle work, Scott managed to get all of the trim pieces looking spot on and fitted back onto the car for its owner.

Adjust and Inspect – Checking Over the Valvetrain of the 1951 Jaguar XK120 Roadster

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.

Gone Through – Inspection of the 1972 Jaguar E-Type V12 Roadster

The Bridge Classic Cars workshop have been working on inspecting the 1972 Jaguar E-Type V12 Roadster along with carrying out some small repairs on the classic Jaguar.

The team have checked through the underside and all major components of the classic sports GT and found some areas which will require attention in the future. There are some areas of corrosion starting to form on the underside of the car, several of those have been cleaned up and sealed by the team, as well as some pipework which is out of shape.

One of the jobs the team have done is to replace a split radiator hose which works to cool the V12. This had a quite severe split in the front section so the team removed it from the car and fitted a replacement piece before refill and checking the levels.

Run Through – Road Testing the 1951 Jaguar XK120 Roadster

The restoration workshop have been tasked to look into a few items for the owner of the stunning 1951 Jaguar XK120 Roadster. To look into some of those issues, the classic Jaguar roadster has been carefully road tested by the team.

Firstly, our restoration technician Jon has been testing the car to try and locate the mentioned unusual engine noise from the straight-six. The team will test the car in varying conditions (driven, idle, visual inspection) in order to look into any possibilities for the noise.

With the XK120 Roadster back into our workshop, tucked away in the Suffolk countryside, it will be moved onto one of our ramps to begin visual inspections of the car and some other items noted by its owner.

Set Up – Cleaning and Setting Up The Carburettors, and Sorting the Ignition Issue on the 1970 Jaguar XJ

The 1970 Jaguar XJ has been in the Bridge Classic Cars workshop for our technicians to look into some running issues with the classic saloon car.

To begin with, our technician Jon road tested the car to confirm the issue with the car and to find out the situation the issue would arise in. After confirming the fault, he could begin to work his way through the fuel and ignition systems in the engine bay.

After inspecting, decided to strip and rebuild the carburettors to make sure that they were clean, clear and working just as they should do. Once rebuilt, they could be put back onto the manifold to begin testing again. The issue had become better but it still had some areas that Jon needed to investigate. He noticed a broken wire inside the distributor which was repaired, and the car was retested but again did not resolve the issue.

The team then took the decision to upgrade the ignition system to an electronic set-up and programme in the correct timing gap and curve to work with the car. After road test, Jon reported that the car worked just as it should do.

Final Look – The Final Photoshoot with the 1973 Jaguar E-Type V12 Series 3 Roadster

The 1973 Jaguar E-Type Series 3 Roadster is due to leave the Bridge Classic Cars workshop any day now so, we thought we would take one final look around the car that the team here have built from the ground up.

Fern Grey, as the car is known to us, arrived from the US as a white and red 1973 V12 E-Type. But, it didn’t stay that way for long. The restoration team began to strip, assess and work on the car for one of our amazing restoration clients who has had several classics hand-built by us specifically for him.

Fern is on another level. There isn’t a single panel, component or piece which hasn’t been worked on by the term in the single-minded and absolute pursuit of perfection we aim to achieve on our projects. This E-Type is very special and it is due to go on and have a very special life with its enthusiast owner.

The car has gone through numerous test hours and checks, double checks and triple checks by the workshop team before being prepared to leave our Suffolk HQ bound for its new life away from us.

So with that, we all that we would have one final look at Fern Grey before it was loaded into our enclosed trailer and buckled in for the drive.

This Just In – 1985 Jaguar Sovereign Double Six

This beautiful 1985 Jaguar Sovereign Double Six has just arrived at the Suffolk restoration workshops at the Bridge Classic Cars HQ.

The car has been amazingly cared for by its previous owners but will be completely inspected and assessed by the in-house restoration teams to see if there is anything that this big classic Jaguar needs or wants for.

Coming Soon – 1985 Jaguar Double Six

Coming soon to Bridge Classic Cars is this stunning 1985 Jaguar Double Six.

The classic 4 door saloon will be arriving at our Pettistree workshops very soon to go through its full inspection and assessment by the restoration teams.

Expect to see more on the 1985 Jaguar Double Six very soon on the Bridge Classic Cars news page.

Coming Soon – 1954 Jaguar XK120 Project

Bridge Classic Cars will soon be welcoming this 1954 Jaguar XK120 to our secure storage facility, The Hangar.

This XK120 is an incomplete project with numerous spare and replacements parts in boxes, including a complete spare chassis for the car. The car, all the spares and the V5 have been acquired by us so while its future is decided it will be kept at our safe, dry storage facility.