Tag Archive: jaguar specialist

E-Type Into The Paint Booth

The body of our 1973 Jaguar Series 3 Roadster has made its way to our paint shop to start on the colour prep which includes coating it in epoxy primer. You can see the before and after video below.

Brian has also been fitting the second squab cover to the frame. He’s pulled the cover over the frame and stapled the front section to the bottom of the frame. Brian then stapled the rear flap to the bottom of the frame, fitted the brackets to the base of the seat, cut holes in the sides for the brackets to fit into and then bolting the squab to the base of the seat.

He then moved onto fitting the headrest stalk to the new headrest foam, fit the cover to the foam and stapled the cover to the headrest stalk. Brian then glued the vinyl to the headrest plates and screwed the headrest plates to the headrests.

June 18, 2021 11:45 am Published by

Barn Find E-Type’s Engine Re-works

Ady has been working on our 1968 Jaguar E-Type Series 1.5 Coupe. He’s taken the clutch mater cylinder off, identified that the pipe on the radiator needs re-soldering, the radiator needs reconditioning, the servo needs to be replaced, and both front callipers have been stripped, cleaned and put back on. Ady has also discovered the the near side rear calliper is leaking on the E-Type too.

The clutch slave cylinder and flexi pipe have been renewed, new fuel pump has been fitted and the carv fuel bowels have been cleaned out.

June 17, 2021 10:54 am Published by

Jaguar E-Type’s New Interior And Exterior

Our 1973 White Jaguar E-Type Series 3 Roadster is undergoing a double-whammy with both interior and exterior being worked on simultaneously. Brian has been assembling the seat bases by fitting the rubber diaphragms to the seat frames, marking out the foam and gluing it to the base, gluing the centre of the seat covers to the centre section foam pieces and then applying the cover. Brian then had to fit the seat belt switch and seat runners before finishing the bases.

Matt has been working on the bonnet so that its ready to have colour. The bonnet has been stripped down and covered in Epoxy and primer. Certain areas have been painted in the body colour ready for when the bonnet is bolted back together.

June 14, 2021 7:57 am Published by

Jaguar E-Type’s Leading And Drying

Our 1973 Jaguar E-type Series 3 Roadster is currently in the fabrication bay where James and Pricey are working on leading the body. This classic is in fantastic shape with very little bodywork needing to be done. Pricey tells us “I’ve never seen one this good and I don’t think I ever will. It’s amazing.”

Thanks to the dry conditions of California, this E-Type has survived the test of time without collecting too much rust, something our engineers are certainly thankful for!

Some of the external and internal parts have gone to paint to where they’ve received a layer of primer so that they’re ready for colour.

May 27, 2021 10:42 am Published by

White Jaguar E-Type Leading And Trim

The Jaguar E-Type Roadster Series 3 is back in the fabrication bay for some leading. The selection of photos below show inconsistencies in the front over-riders that need addressing to obtain symmetry and leading the spot-welded joints on the shell to ensure there is no cracking or sinking of fillers and paint later on.

We’ve also received the trim pack for our E-Type which is in a sophisticated muted green:

May 26, 2021 8:52 am Published by

Race Car’s New Clutch

We’ve now received the new clutch for our 1967 Jaguar E-Type Series 1 Race Car which can be fitted to replace the faulty one. We’ve also manufactured a bracket for the starter motor as it wasn’t engaging. Once everything is fitted back together again, it will need a test drive to understand if it is running correctly or not.

May 25, 2021 1:05 pm Published by

Jaguar Etype Bonnet Shaping

James has been shrinking the bonnet skin of our 1973 Jaguar E-type Series 3 Roadster to make profile match on both sides. Once he finished converting the left hand front bumper from USA to UK spec he fitted it with rubber and re-shaping it to give an even gap on the body. This is so that the runner is not pinched or deformed once assembled.

May 17, 2021 3:02 pm Published by

Jaguar XK8 Ready For Paint

Our 1997 Jaguar XK8 has been prepped for primer and paint. Matt has feathered out the block marks from the filler, sanded down the door and wing and removed any flaky paint.

The next step will be to apply filler primer, rub that down and then apply the final paint.

May 13, 2021 9:25 am Published by

Jaguar XK8: More Rust Reveal

Our 1997 Jaguar XK8 has become somewhat of a snowball restoration. Originally in for just a touch of rust repair, we’re now revealing more rust than previously thought. Scenarios like this is very common as rust repair is often like opening a can of worms and we believe its better to bite the bullet and sort it out rather than wait for the rust to get to an unmanageable and fatal point.

Pricey has started working on the rotten right hand front subframe point where he has removed the outer layer, then cleaned and removed the inner layer and zinc sprayed it all. He has then welded the inner layer and zinc primed that, before doing the same with the outer layer. Pricey has then rust treated the surrounding areas and epoxy primed, undersealed and cavity waxed the area. After this, he refitted the subframe bracket and bolts.

May 10, 2021 9:27 am Published by

White E-Type Begins Its Paint Journey

Before we get the body and panels of our 1973 Jaguar E-Type Series 3 Roadster in for paint, we need to start painting the internal parts in black epoxy. The majority of these parts will be totally or partially hidden either under the car or within it, however, it is important to have them all looking uniform and neat.

May 10, 2021 8:56 am Published by

Jaguar XK8

Pricey has discovered a rotten left hand subframe mounting point/chassis leg. To deal with this, Pricey cut out the outer layer to reveal a rotten middle section.

He then cut out the middle section to reveal rotten inner reinforcement. He’s also taken to cleaning up some of the corroded parts before building the reinforcements. Once these have been made, the chassis leg panels can be welded back into place, grounded down and a middle section can be fitted in. Once all the elements have been grounded and welded in place, Pricey then covered the underside in Epoxy primer so that its ready for an underseal.

May 7, 2021 10:39 am Published by

Jaguar E-Type Handbrake Stripped

Scott has stripped the handbrake callipers and sandblasted the parts so they could be painted. Scott then started to put the rear axle together.

May 7, 2021 10:08 am Published by

Jaguar E-Type Cleaned, Sand Blasted And Prepped

Our 1973 Jaguar E-Type recently came back from Abbey Protective Coating’s for sandblasting. Now that any excess rust has come off, we can start to work with all the stable metal that’s left. This E-Type is a particularly strong example as there was very little corrosion.

Tom has been sorting out parts which were then powder coated and sent back from Abbey sandblasters.

Scott stripped the brake callipers before they were sent away to be refurbished, as well as stripping the heater box down and checking it over. He made sure that the matrix was in good condition, then he got a load of the parts sand blasted so they are ready to be painted.

Matt has prepared the panels by striping them back to bare metal and given a protective them a rust proof coating.

Some elements have been painted in DTM black. These components are internal and are kept black to look uniform.

Brian has also started to take apart the seats and hood to be re-covered.

Scott has put the heater box back together after the parts being painted. He’s cleaned and polished the parts and replaced the foam seals and gaskets where necessary, so it’s ready to fit straight to the car when that time comes.

May 4, 2021 1:19 pm Published by

White Jaguar Etype In Pieces And Parts

The 1973 White Jaguar E-Type dismantling continues under the capable hands of our technician Scott who has recently been focusing on taking apart parts, cleaning and organise them ready be re-fitted. He’s then sorted through the chrome to find out what parts need repairing and re-chroming.

April 27, 2021 10:09 am Published by

Jaguar XK8 Wheel Arch Repair

We found some severe signs of rust appearing under the rear wheel arches of this 1997 Jaguar XK8. Although these are early signs of corrosion, its important to tackle it before it spreads too far. Pricey has fabricated new metal to replace the rusted area which he will need to repeat on the other side and then start and shape it all up.

April 27, 2021 10:00 am Published by

Jaguar XJS Just In

This stunning blue 1989 Jaguar XJS V12 has just come in. We’re due to give it a thorough check over and service before we decide its future.

Stay tuned for more updates.

April 23, 2021 3:43 pm Published by

Jaguar’s 9 Lives

Our custom build Jaguar E-Type race car has come back into the workshop for a new pressure plate as the one we’d fit had shattered and fractured during one of our test drives. Unfortunately, the element was faulty, thus leading to this dramatic fracture. Our beloved Jaguar has gone from a roar to a pur but we’ll have it back up and running soon.

We’ve also found that the clutch slave cylinder was leaking which we are now endeavouring to fix.

April 22, 2021 11:43 am Published by

Jaguar E-type Sheds More Parts

Scott has been dismantling more Jaguar E-Type elements and started to clean up and organise them ready for refitting. He’s sorted through the chrome and found out which parts needed repairing and re-chroming. Having come in as a working car, this 1973 Jaguar E-Type Roadster needs very little in the way of new parts and is simply needed to be dismantled so that Scott can clean up the parts and make small modifications.

We’ve also sent more parts off to be sandblasted.

April 22, 2021 7:24 am Published by

New Jaguar Prowling Its Way To HQ

Currently residing in Romford, this classic 1989 Jaguar XJS is soon to arrive at our workshop HQ. Keep your eyes peeled for updates surrounding this stunning Jag.

April 21, 2021 7:27 am Published by

White E-Type’s Front Suspension

Our 1973 White E-Type Roadster has had its front suspension fully stripped down as Scott starts dismantling the rear axle in order to repaint and refurbish all the parts.

This lovely E-Type came to us in working condition, so much of the stripping is purely to take elements apart to clean and tidy up, and to get to what’s around them.

The body of the E-Type has been placed on the rollover spit and is ready for media blasting. Our media blasting is done at Abbey Protective Coatings which includes blasting heavy-duty particles at the metal to strip the paint off be leave the base metal remaining in good condition.

April 15, 2021 10:29 am Published by

Jaguar MKVII Out Of Paint And Into Chrome

Our classic 1954 Jaguar MKVII has officially left the paint bay and gone back into the fabrication bay to have the doors re-attached as well as chrome elements such as window frames, door handles and door catches.

April 9, 2021 2:35 pm Published by

White Jaguar E-Type: Disassembling Continued

Scott has been removing the front suspension, all brake and fuel lines and rear axle on our 1973 Jaguar E-Type Roadster. He’s also started to disassemble the front suspension components ready to be refurbished.

April 8, 2021 10:44 am Published by

Jaguar E-Type 4.2 Farewell

Last night we said farewell to our 1968 Jaguar E-Type Series 1.5 after finishing its service. The final touches included tightening the steering rack, altering the high beams as their connection was poor, and finally, we cleaned it down.

One of the other final touches for this Jag before it left our workshop was to replace the diaphragm, which was making a strange whistling sound. Although this was a brand new element, we refitted it to ensure that the whistling stopped.

April 8, 2021 8:14 am Published by

White Jaguar E-Type Engine Removal Continues

Scott has been removing the engine and gearbox from our white 1973 Jaguar E-Type Roadster. He has separated the gearbox from the engine, ready for the engine to be rebuilt. He has also started to disassemble the front suspension as well.

April 7, 2021 10:02 am Published by

1973 E-Type V12 Wheels Worn

Our 1973 Blue Jaguar E-Type has had its front inner wheel hub replaced as the rings near the splines were showing serious wear from spinning whilst not being correctly bolted in, causing damage to the elements.

March 31, 2021 11:41 am Published by

Maroon E-Type: Sump Leak

With everything finished on our 1968 Jaguar E-Type roadster, there’s one last thing to do before we send it on its way. We found a leak in the sump which needs a new helicoil.

Mauro has also replaced the rocker cover and the brake hose pipe.

March 31, 2021 11:16 am Published by

E-Type Bonnet: A Blank Canvas

We’ve now begun stripping the paint from our 1973 Beverly Hills E-Type bonnet so that it can sit in bare metal and ask as a blank canvas to be reworked and repainted. James in the fabrication bay has started to smooth out the body and will start to correct any imperfections. The bumper also needed some fabrication and welding to repair some corrosion damage.

This is the bare metal work stage that comes before the paint prep. The fabrication bay will get the whole body down to bare metal and then make sure it all lines are perfectly and there aren’t any bumps or rust in the bodywork.

As seen below, the original British Layland factory stickers are still intact on the underside of the E-Type bonnet and go to show how original this E-Type really is. Asides from the addition of the red strips and American modifications, this Jaguar is a stunning original example. Among James tasks has been to take off the American standardised bumper and weld in the hole so that the original Jaguar chrome one can be re-fitted.

Scott has also continued to dismantle the body of the E-Type too.

March 31, 2021 10:03 am Published by

Beverly Hills E-Type Dismantling Continues

Scott has continued to dismantle our 1973 Beverly Hills Jaguar E-type Series 3 V12. He’s removed the bonnet, windscreen, top of the dashboard, heater box and various parts in the engine bay in readiness to get the engine ready to be removed. What was once a functional E-Type a week ago is now looking more like bare-bones however it’s exciting seeing it stripped down only to be built up brighter and better than ever before!

March 29, 2021 1:42 pm Published by

Jaguar MKVII Update: Paint Prep

Our 1954 Jaguar MKVII has most recently been masked, primed and had a guide coat put over the top to guide Chris and Matt when smoothing the panels. The bonnet has already been painted in the original paint and sets as a good guide for how the rest of the vehicle will look.

The doors were prepared ready for primer. The preparation includes making sure the surfaces are clean and the components are masked up. The primer was the applied by Chris.

Before the MKVII was able to go to the paint bay, James had to add some fabrication to correct some spots of rust and corrosion. The right hand rear quarter panel just behind rear arch was showing some signs of corrosion so James cut out the rust from both the inside and outside layers and then fabricated replacements which he welded in.

March 26, 2021 4:07 pm Published by

Almost Out The Door…

Our stunning green 1970 Series 2 4.2 had been completed and was in-fact on its way home with its owners when, just past the gate, the drivers seat broke. This is an area we hadn’t been working on as it wasnt requested but evidently was in need of some TLC. This is often the way with classic cars, bits break through usage and love but we always remind ourselves when things like this happen, that these cars have survived many decades until now!

We fabricated some new bolts and metal elements to fix the broken nut in the chair runner so that the seat now functions good as new!

March 26, 2021 2:41 pm Published by