1997 Jaguar XK8 convertible

[Rusted Pistons]

I've known about this car for about 7 years as it was my mate's summer daily. He stopped using it about 3 years ago when it failed its MoT on weldy bits. It's just been sat on his land the whole time - he decided not to sort it and bought a replacement. He'd been storing my MX5 track car on his land for the last 6 months or so and I went to pick it up last week. I spotted it again and asked about the plans..... it promptly became the newest of the projects How many projects is too many projects? Asking for a mate..

It's particularly special really as I remember being driven by my Grampy down past the local scrapyards when I was about 12 or 13 and him saying "oh, there's a big cat behind us" and I turned to see a brand new one of these. In my early 20s I had a job valeting cars in a local garage that sold tasty stuff and I used to sit in these and day dream.


Pics and more deets to follow later!

I

[Rusted Pistons]

A few pics from picking it up!

Where she's been sat for the last 3 years or so




After checking the oil and chucking a can if super in it, I pulled the fuel pump fuse and spun it over until the oil pressure light went out. Popped the fuse back in and jumped it from the van and the V8 started straight away.










And back at the ranch



I realised at this point that after a rev it sounded awful - I thought the bearings had gone! A quick YouTube search gleaned many similar sounds where the cats have broken up so keeping my fingers crossed on that one!

More pics when I've had a proper look round it 😎

[brachunky]

Love it! Definitely on my bucket list at some point. Keep us posted on progress please

[Rusted Pistons]

Nov 26, 2023 0:11:22 GMT brachunky said:

Love it! Definitely on my bucket list at some point. Keep us posted on progress please

Will do! I'm going to charge the battery today and have a better look around it - might even cross my fingers and try the roof!

[misteralz]

Have you ever seen the one from Tomorrow Never Dies? It was at Alford Transport Museum a good few years back and I managed to get a properly good look round it. Always kinda fancied one after that.

[Rusted Pistons]

Nov 26, 2023 19:49:25 GMT misteralz said:

Have you ever seen the one from Tomorrow Never Dies? It was at Alford Transport Museum a good few years back and I managed to get a properly good look round it. Always kinda fancied one after that.

Been a couple in Bond films I think. Didn't they use one as a bad guy car?

[Rusted Pistons]

So far I've managed to find out the battery is goosed and needs replacing and it's got some rather extensive sill corrosion. I need to get the wheels off and pressure wash the whole thing (caked in mud) so I can see what's what.

Now - I have more pressing projects (getting Capri ready for next season and getting the Type 2 camp ready for spring) but I can't help but want to check this over now.

I think I'm going to clean all the much off underneath and prod and poke all of the loose crumbly rust out so I can get a good mental picture of what's needed to be done. I think it's going to be a somewhat steep learning curve in terms of automotive welding but I'm happy to take that plunge! *Note to self - insert future feelings about this below 👇

[Rusted Pistons]

I'm going to need to be able to manoeuvre her in and out of the drive so I can swap cars about so I'm going to buy a battery for it


-edit-

I've just bought a battery for it 😁

[brachunky]

With weak batteries being the cause of many elecky glitches, buying a new battery is a wise move! Hopefully it will help not being led down the garden path by low voltage

[Rusted Pistons]

Hi all

here's a video of the day I went to the field to pick the XK8 up



Made a bit of progress so far - new battery in and working well, no lights on the dash now

I've tested the roof and it goes up and down well but the rear windows don't do what they're supposed to do and need manual intervention.

I've replaced the key fob batteries but not tested them yet.

Managed to get a pair of wings for free! One of my subscribers watched the video and got in touch - don't you love the car community? As it happens - the front wings aren't bad but one has a really nasty crease that would need filling so replacement is a much better option.

That's it for now as I still haven't managed to have a proper look around it.

Part 2 of the series will be a close look at the condition and what needs to be done. Hope you enjoy!

[brachunky]

Enjoyed part 1, sub'd

[homersimpson]

Thats a lovely looking car, you have done the right thing with the battery as Jags of this era are very sensitive to battery voltage. I had a 1999 and then 2002 S-Type and both had lots of odd problems when the battery started to fail that were cured with a new battery.

The 4.0 engine did have some issues with timing chains that might be worth looking into and a gearbox oil change is always a good idea despite the sealed for life claim that came with them when they were new.

Let the weldathon commence :-)

[Rusted Pistons]

Hi guys

Part two of the YouTube series is up - we have a poke about and see just how much of a project I've bitten off here!



Also - thank you and welcome to my new subscribers 👋🏻

[tubthumper]

Really enjoying the YT series and look forward to seeing how the Jag develops.

[Rusted Pistons]

tubthumper Thank you - really appreciate that!

[brachunky]

Just watched part 2 & man, as much as I love this model, that corrosion is scary

[Rusted Pistons]

brachunky - thanks for watching!

Yeah it's not the most solid motor vehicle I've owned! I'll sort it though

[brachunky]

Feb 12, 2024 14:52:06 GMT Rusted Pistons said:

brachunky - thanks for watching!

Yeah it's not the most solid motor vehicle I've owned! I'll sort it though

This is still one of the cars I'd like to own one day but to get a really nice one means saving up for some time or........I need to learn how to weld well

[Rusted Pistons]

Had a bit of disaster - it came with two keys and two fobs. Both keys unlock the doors and boot and turn the engine over, but only one of them turns the alarm off and allows the car to start. Neither of the fobs do anything even with new batteries. I've tried to follow a guide on getting the fobs to connect but couldn't get it to work.

Now on to the disaster - I've lost the key that starts the car and turns the alarm off 😞 I think it may have gone in the bin.

Nightmare. Any ideas, guys?

[westbay]

Try the dealer ... armed with VIN number and any key id you have ...


oh, and , Bu**er ...