Staples to Naples banger rally PART THREE: And theyre off The CM team and their 250 Jaguar

XJ head off across the continent. First though, a few repairs, rumbles and tweaks. MARTYN KNOWLES and BEN HACKNEY take up the challenge.
ith the day looming to set sail to France, we still had plenty of jobs to complete on our 1991 Jaguar XJ40. Plus, we needed to put some miles on the clock to make sure all was well, as thus far wed not driven it at motorway speeds. First though, the old oil was drained and a replacement Jaguar oil filter attached. We decided on a full service kit from Jaguar Classic Parts, which includes all ignition parts, belts and filters. Nothing difficult about fitting any of these parts as the vast engine bay is a pleasure to work around. One annoying non-working item was the central locking system. With the rear door release locks Sponsored by:

set way back towards the rear window, reaching (ie, climbing) inside to pull the locks up each time would be a real pain. We only had one ignition key and no remote as originally supplied from new and there was an aftermarket alarm fitted, J4827 JCP OPENING BANNER Car 03/07/2012 Mechanics 09:56 33x36mm although we believed it to be disconnected. Team chief mechanic, John Brennan, wanted to get his teeth into the Jaguar by fixing something, Purchase so I said Fix the central locking and Ill buy you a pint. John trained as a mechanic and price now works in IT, and hes confident with vehicle electrics. However, after some 15 hours on the case, John didnt actually give up, more we ran out of time to find the fault. We even had the

250

Meet the crew. Time to put the Jaguar to the test by heading off to Dover for our late afternoon P&O ferry to Calais. Without a swage line on the doors of the XJ40, we were able to get the stickers much bigger this year. Sitting on the bonnet is ex-CM employee Ben Hackney (now working for a caravan magazine!), editor Martyn standing behind, with two CM readers, Mark Nutter and John Brennan (aka the Brothers Bald), at the end. 70 Car Mechanics October 2012

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MoT repairs Welding

The rear end of the nearside sill had excessive corrosion. A few minutes poking around with a finger produced the gaping hole shown in the top left picture. A clean-up with an angle grinder took it back to solid metal. Welding in new metal produced a tidy repair we didnt need a concours finish. Even the corner and the wheelarch looked almost perfect.

donor Jaguar with working actuators to swap. Trouble was, the system was unlocking, but the signal to lock wasnt operating. Possibly the aftermarket alarm was to blame, as it had to be wired into the door locking system. None of the door locks or boot lock worked, but strangely the fuel flap locked with every turn of the key. Ill never forget the hours spent saying lock, unlock as I turned the key in the door lock, while John checked for a signal at the relay!
Doing a visual check of the automatic gearbox oil, we were pleased to find it a nice red colour. It also smelled fine.

Not wanting to waste any more time on a central locking issue, the main priority was to drive our Jag on the open road as I had a gut feeling it could all go horribly wrong. And it almost did. Guiding the Jaguar onto a dual carriageway, I took it up to 60mph, then slowed for a roundabout and could hear what I thought was a diff whine. On the M25, I set the cruise control at 70mph for ten miles. All felt good and the diff noise wasnt audible at this speed, but once off at the next junction, there it was again. I felt slightly depressed heading back home. The following day, I visited Kent Jag Centre (Tel: 01959 533305) for some advice. Being as helpful as ever, PIB 1859 was on their ramps straight away. First, they had to stop the nearside rear dust shield from scuffing on the rear disc, using a hammer and screwdriver as a drift. Once that noise was gone, we could concentrate on the diff noise. The conclusion was to change the oil and perhaps add thicker oil or an additive. I was still worried after the diff oil change. In fact, the oil that came out was pretty healthy looking, however the piece of metal that came out with it was surely not a good sign. Talking with John and Mark put my mind at rest. It was clear to them that a rumbling diff can go on forever in fact, Mr Nutters Merc 190D diff is much noiser and has trundled on like that for years. One other problem came to light. There was a vibration between 1st and 2nd gear through the steering wheel, and at full throttle from standstill, there was noticeable creaking. Wed read that the gearbox had its own mount and this could be a weak point. With days to go, I ordered the parts a foam buffer and two spring seat retainers costing under 30 to be delivered by post. Thanks must go to the guys at JAGtechnic in Eastbourne (Tel: 0333 666 1950) for the last minute swap of these components. The creaking at full throttle had now disappeared, but the vibration between the lower gears was still there. With no time left to dwell on the matter, we packed up and pushed on to Dover. Ben Hackney TURN will now take up the rally progress report...

While Ben arrived in an on-loan 12-reg VW Jetta TDI (Towcar of the Year apparently), John and Mark arrived in their everyday cars. In the background is Marks Mercedes 190D thats covered over 235k, with Johns 182,000-mile Saab 900 turbo in the foreground. Parking them up for a weeks rest before we set off, it dawned on us that the Jag, Merc and Saab were manufactured in 1991 the Swede being the newest on a J-plate. Build quality was good 20-odd years ago, obviously.

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Service Oil & filter

MoT repairs Rack gaiters

Two split steering rack gaiters were also on the failure list. We ordered up a pair of genuine bellows from our sponsors Jaguar Classic Parts. They retail at 35.50 each including VAT. Pretty much standard procedure to fit these onto the XJ40, with cable ties pulled tight to keep the rubber in place. A pleasant surprise. Our Cat C write-off XJ40, complete with no service history, has many genuine service items. The old oil filter was a genuine Jaguar part. We add 8 litres of fresh Comma Eurolite 10w40 semi-synthetic.

Service Coolant

Service Ignition

We fitted the replacement radiator in the last issue, so with all the coolant drained, Comma G30 ready-mixed was poured in.

A new set of genuine ignition leads (88.10) were ordered from Jaguar Classic Parts. A distributor cap (31.81) and a rotor arm (12.38) were also renewed. Six Champion spark plugs (3.84 each) completed the ignition side. The old components looked like genuine Jaguar items a good sign.

With speeds in excess of 100mph, we wanted some decent rubber to keep us on the road. Avon ZZ3 225/60 ZR15 tyres were fitted to each corner. Originally, PIB 1859 was fitted with Teardrop alloys from new, however, we believe they were probably shod with costly metric tyres and at some point a previous owner had invested in a set of used Jaguar lattice-style alloys.

The XJ40 can suffer from collapsed driveshaft bearings. To check for movement, we raised the rear end and applied force to the top of each wheel. Ours had no play.

continued

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Differential
A diff whine isnt pleasant on the ear. We visited Jag specialists Kent Jag Centre for their opinion. They raised all wheels off the ground and slipped the gearbox into D and listened. Their advice was to change the oil and perhaps add an additive. We decided on two litres of Commas thicker EP85W-140 gear oil and a Wynns additive. Except, once the old gear oil came out, a piece of metal came out too. Not a good sign.

continued

The rear UJs have grease nipples on the XJ40. A fair bit of bearing grease was forced in with the help of a grease gun.

Gearbox mount bush

A last minute job to hopefully rectify a vibration when the gearbox changed from first to second was to replace the foam buffer bush on the autobox mount. Located in the middle of the Jag, its a job made much easier on a ramp. The foam buffer disintegrates over time, causing the mount to move excessively under hard acceleration. 25 buys this shiny new orange foam buffer. Thanks must go to JAGtechnic (see Jaguar JAGtechnic on Facebook for more info) for doing this job with only hours to spare before we headed off to Dover.

Unknown to us, we lost about a litre of PAS fluid when changing the radiator the fluid is water-cooled. Finding we had non-existent steering on start-up, we switched off and added in a bottle of Comma PSF to the reservoir. Thankfully all was back to normal.

Oil pressure sensor

DAY ZERO

Eastbourne to Calais
We packed the Jaguar and set off from our Eastbourne HQ, knowing full well we were about to face another week of unpredictable challenges, fun, fear and full-on driving enjoyment all in an ageing example of motoring excellence with our 21-year-old premium ride. The ferry crossing went without a hitch, and soon we were motoring through Calais to reach our rally meeting point for registration. Within minutes of arriving in France, we had already adopted the Brits abroad stereotype on a small scale, as wed parked up on a roundabout to check the route and the aptly named Nutter had jumped out to take a leak behind a road sign. Calming things down and driving on, we met the Street Safari team to fill in our registration sheets and grab a beer while we affixed the final stickers in the dark. People had already started poring over our shining example of (nearly) TURN pristine Jag perfection, and the tone was set for a week of British brilliance on foreign roads.

Our oil pressure gauge was non-working. This sensor (foreground) screws in down near the oil filter on the 4.0-litre engine with an in-built resistor. This is a modified part from Jaguar, however our donor Jaguar had a transducer. No problem we just fitted this instead using a crowfoot wrench. Result a working oil gauge.

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Its early on Day One in Calais, and in the hotel car park we find Mr Brennan still working on the XJ40 central locking problem. He sure is dedicated.

DAY ONE

Calais, France to Sarnen, Switzerland

Alarms sounded for a 6.30am start. After a quick shower, I wandered down to the car to find John busy trying to fix the central locking. It seemed that the Jag wanted to be in a permanent state of unlock, which meant that we had to individually secure the doors and the driver had to constantly wind down the windows after getting in, to allow the rest of us to park our backsides when getting back in the car. It was some kind of earthing issue that would go unfixed, despite Johns best efforts, but we were sure hed be busy with more important fixes and fettles in the miles to come. The start line was impressive. Around 100 cars lined up, including all the usual suspects from BMW, Peugeot, Volvo, Citron and Ford. More uncommon rally options included an MX-5, a paddywagon Volvo limo, an Alfa 155 2.0 TS, a Chrysler Neon and even a tiny Fiat 126, with plenty of people putting in the effort for fancy dress with both their outfits and cars. I walked around admiring the multitude of costume cars and felt a much bigger sense of lighthearted, friendly fun than on some other rallies in the past. Its hard not to smile when youre walking past a trio of Tiggers, firemen, Oompa Loompas, as well as Leela and Zoidberg from Futurama complete with their Planet Express Ship Citron AX. The banter had already begun.

It didnt take long before we were moving. The rally had finally started. Snapping pics the whole time, we pulled to one side to watch everyone leave and really take in the scale of this iconic event. This year seemed much better attended than some road trips, and it was great to be rolling alongside everyone on the continent. Come 9.30 and we were well on the way. Soon we were heading past Lille, then out of France and into Belgium following a short lunch break. The sun was out and our Jag was motoring along smoothly this was looking promising. It got even better when we discovered how good the Jags cruise control was on some of the more boring carriageways. Wed already been lured into a false sense of security about how tough road rallies can be from the off.

continued

Perhaps the owners of this Rover 800 series work the Sunday shifts down at the B&Q...

This Jersey-registered
BMW 325i was said to be doing 9mpg.

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Plenty of banger rally contestants arrived in fancy dress for Day One. Some of them looking pretty scary.

Assistance from

continued

Commas products are available to professional mechanics and motorists alike. A large range of engine oils, gear oils, automatic transmission fluids, antifreeze/coolants, maintenance aerosols, greases and award winning car cleaning products. www.commaoil.com

The car was still great to drive, but we didnt get much of a chance over the second half of the day, as our journey was plagued by an abundance of traffic cones and slow-moving queues. Soon after we got shot of the tailbacks, we heard the screeching of tyres and a crunch as we looked back to see that an over-enthusiastic Punto had careered off the road and into a tree. Luckily it wasnt one of our rally crews, and we spotted a number of cars stopping to help, so we carried on. Its tough to keep track of exactly where the borders lie while on the move. You know where youre going, but youre never quite sure what country youre in until you go through an official border control. Still, with the chorus of phone messages and mobile operator service change alerts ringing throughout the cars interior, we could tell that we were covering not just France and Belgium, but Luxembourg and Germany too, before we were set to arrive at our Swiss destination later on. It had been a tough trek already because of the distance, but it was about to get harder. Back into France again (I know round the houses, much?) to avoid toll roads and the like, we stopped for a late dinner. Lateness was a theme that was to play a major part in the rally for us. Just as wed finished eating, it started to rain. Rain hard. Tonight was definitely going to be a late one. As it got dark, we began to realise that those continental types really dont like using the lights on major roads and motorways to illuminate the way (cost saving?). This wouldnt be too much of a problem, I suppose, but we were driving a 21-year-old car renowned for having electrical issues, with interior illumination thats brighter than the candle-spec headlights. With the rain bouncing off the road, it was increasingly difficult to see road markings. Its easier to drive looking for the turns on the satnav than it is looking at the road, said John. I didnt envy his stint behind the wheel. As the rain belted down, our Jags intermittent wipers reminded me of the Volvo we drove last year where we broke down twice on the Nrburgring and our windscreen wipers packed in whenever the rain was heaviest. Hoping against a repeat performance, we rolled on as I watched

the silhouetted mountains begin to rise around us, surrounding us with the twinkling towns above. The wipers held out. It was time for a driver change and fuel stop. Brilliantly, we started out the next leg on the wrong side of the road. Perhaps we were all getting tired. Too dark to see the map book in the car on the road, the satnav said that we didnt have all that many miles left to go. However, the time remaining stated that it would take us around two hours. This confused me on my first rally trip, but with a few under my belt I knew that it would only mean one thing it would soon be time for some twisties. With poor headlights, bad weather, rubbish visibility and no cats eyes or side-of-theroad markings, this was going to get interesting.

Whatever the conditions you are driving in, you want tyres that put you in control. In other words, fit Avon Tyres. www.avon-tyres.co.uk

P&O Ferries is the countrys leading ferry operator. www.poferries.com MoT carried out at: Humphreys Garage, Cudham Garage, Cudham Lane South, Cudham, Sevenoaks, Kent TN14 7QB. Tel: 01959 572318

welding for the MoT test apparently, this rusty barn-find Fiat 126, with added spotlights, was named Nitro Nutters. Will it make the 1500 miles to Naples?

Lots of

If you looked at a map, todays route was sure to be the biggest squiggle you could ever imagine. Eventually, after taking a steep mountain pass road with no illumination other than the glow of cattle eyes in our dim headlights, we reached the destination town of Sarnen at 12.24am. While Nutter had done a great job of navigating the intimidating mountain pass, he followed this performance by driving on the wrong side of the road in the narrow streets. As the town was quiet at this time, it was a welcome source of amusement for the team after 15 hours in the car. We successfully searched for a hotel and bedded down for about five hours of sleep before it all started again the following day.

Day 2 to Bormio, Day 3 to Viterbo and Day 4 to Naples

Next Month

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E: parts@JaguarClassicParts.com T: +44 (0)1865 381 193 W: www.JaguarClassicParts.com
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