Daimler V8 250 1968 restoration

[jehu]

There are at least 2 other threads detailing restoration/rebuilds of Daimler 250 V8s. I began posting on Goldenrust's thread a while ago ( forum.retro-rides.org/thread/210509/1968-daimler-ready-next-stage ), but to save confusion I have moved here. 

I bought my Daimler sight unseen (I had it checked over by an independent mechanic) early 2019 and drove it 1600km home to Tasmania. It just managed to stagger the distance before expiring with fuel problems. The battery boiled on the way and had to be replaced along with the tyres which were so out of round and had to be replaced also. It obviously had not had a long trip in many years. Safely home it sat in the garage for nearly a year while I extended my shed and put in a hoist - then to work - (very slowly compared to Goldenrust's amazing progress). 


I will not fill in all the details of the work so far unless or until someone is interested. Suffice to say at this stage, engine and trans removed, gearbox and torque converter overhauled, engine re-bored new pistons, valve seats cut and new valves fitted etc. Starter motor, alternator and distributor all cleaned and checked through. Heater upgraded. All now ready for reassembly. 

[jehu]

At present I am trying to sort the wiring which is a bit of a mess and probably was the cause of the battery boiling - it was obviously not the first time as the engine bay had a patina of rust right through it. I have since had that grit blasted and painted.

The other job I am working on at the moment is the steering column which had been messed with by a previous owner who had fitted an inappropriate late model daimler steering wheel. Somehow it had been put back together without thr bottom bush in so the shaft was flopping around it the tube where it enters the engine bay.

[jehu]

[jehu]

Some idiot had fitted an engine immobilizer to the car. Finally pulled all this out and found it was wired into the fuel pump in the boot.

[jehu]

wiring starting to look neater:

[daver555]

Looks pretty solid and a great base to start your project, love the colour too. Look forward to the updates and more information.

[goldnrust]

Looking at that shot where you can see the crows feet in the front of the underbody, and the engine bay, I’m jealous of your very rust free looking body shell!

[Alpina99]

Nice looking project and appears to be a great base to start from,
Nigel

[blackpopracing]

We are always interested in the full build info - post away.

[jehu]

Thanks for the encouragement. After looking at some of your cars on the forums here I am very thankful we do not put salt on our roads in Aussie. The only body rust I have been able to discern is a couple of bubbles at the base of the boot lid which I only noticed this week. Although it has has a respray at sometime I can see no evidence of rust removal.

On the other hand the front brakes were certainly rusty and I'm too scared to look at the rear ones.

[homersimpson]

If you had issues with the battery overcharging it might have been a fault with the charging system (most likely the regulator) which would allow an over voltage to the battery.

Generally when charging you shouldn't see more than abou 13.5-14V on the battery.

Like Goldnrust i'm envious of the lack of corrosion you have with these cars, over here anything that can rust did rust and the cost of rectification by a professional usualy far outweights the value of the finished vehicle.

With the brakes you can have the cylinders sleeved in stainless to prevent a reoccurance on the front and depending on how concerned you are with originally you can either do the same for the rear of fit rear callipers form a 420/E-Type Series 2 or XJ6 which are all the same but have the seal in the calliper body sliding on the pistons so a rebuild just needs new pistons and seals and is a bit cheaper.

Thats what i've done with my MK2 and i've gone for 420 front brakes although you also need to change the uprights so its not bolt on, the other option is to fit Volvo front calliper and voucherboy did this to his thread and again this gets a more modern design calliper.

[jehu]

Thanks homersimpson, I suspect there has been more than one issue. I have now had the alternator and regulator cleaned and checked by an auto electrician but he found nothing suspect but like you he thought they were the most likely culprits.

The other issue is that the battery used to intermittently completely die overnight apparently. The previous owner just dealt with it by having a battery isolator switch installed which he used when not running the car. I thought he was imagining things as it seemed to be fine until one day it wasn't. The battery was so dead my trickle charger wouldn't get it going. The battery guy I took it to said my new battery was now something less than it should be.

The wiring was somewhat dodgy in places and I just took apart the engine immobilizer which is pretty fried.

[jehu]

As for the brakes, a pity I didnt meet you guys earlier. I have already purchased new piston assy's for the front from David Manners. There is no one local that does sleeving and the cost of sending them to Melbourne is not much less than replacement. The master cylinder has been sleeved so I have just put a new rubber kit in that. I will make some enquiries re E type or XJ6's to see if there is a cheaper way of fixing the rear. The rear calipers don't look as bad externally but no doubt they are unlikely to be clean and shiny judging by the front.

[pollystag]

If you want to stay original you could use E/Type calipers on the rear, I thi k they are 2.3/4".

[homersimpson]

Feb 24, 2022 15:38:19 GMT pollystag said:

If you want to stay original you could use E/Type calipers on the rear, I thi k they are 2.3/4".

The later e-type (Series 2 and 3) are apparently the same as the 420 and also the XJ6 series 1 and 2.  You have to use the handbrake callipers off the MK2 and I think you use the retraction forks (the brass bits) from the 420/etype/series1-2 XJ6.

[darrenh]

i don't understand why the immobiliser has so many components !

[goldnrust]

Feb 24, 2022 19:33:44 GMT homersimpson said:

Feb 24, 2022 15:38:19 GMT pollystag said:

If you want to stay original you could use E/Type calipers on the rear, I thi k they are 2.3/4".

The later e-type (Series 2 and 3) are apparently the same as the 420 and also the XJ6 series 1 and 2.  You have to use the handbrake callipers off the MK2 and I think you use the retraction forks (the brass bits) from the 420/etype/series1-2 XJ6.

Yes. You also need new longer mounting bolts (or I presume E type bolts?) and some washers to space and and centralise the caliper. I’ve done several thousand miles on my s2 Etype rear brakes with no complaints 🙂

[jehu]

Feb 24, 2022 19:54:57 GMT darrenh said:

i don't understand why the immobiliser has so many components !

don't ask me re electronics but there was an alarm as well. All of that stuff was poked under the dash board except for the siren. 

[jehu]

Feb 24, 2022 21:03:43 GMT goldnrust said:

Feb 24, 2022 19:33:44 GMT homersimpson said:

The later e-type (Series 2 and 3) are apparently the same as the 420 and also the XJ6 series 1 and 2.  You have to use the handbrake callipers off the MK2 and I think you use the retraction forks (the brass bits) from the 420/etype/series1-2 XJ6.

Yes. You also need new longer mounting bolts (or I presume E type bolts?) and some washers to space and and centralise the caliper. I’ve done several thousand miles on my s2 Etype rear brakes with no complaints 🙂

Have done some phoning around and it seems e-type parts are rare and expensive here. And then cost of sleeving is about the same as shipping new caliper, pistons and cylinders from David Manners.

[varelse]

1600km would have put you somewhere near Brisbane or out past Adelaide to start with?
Bit of a drive!

My Cressida also came with an immobiliser of unknown origin and wiring.
I'm yet to dismantle it as the central locking still works, and the alarm was already disconnected, haha.
The key fob feels like it's going to give up at any minute, though.