Description
This is a recently completed 5yr restoration of a Series 3 OTS with a significant number of modifications to produce a car that is fast, comfortable and reliable.
I have put 2000 miles on the car since the build finished to thoroughly shake it down and I have then had it retuned to produce 335bhp. I’ve also had a bespoke air handling/ plenum box fitted to ensure only clean air is taken in.
The car was dipped after stripping and a number of panels replaced including floor pan, sills and inner rear wheel arches. The underside and interior were both Raptor coated to provide a durable waterproof coat. They were then painted the car colour which is Ferrari Titano Lucido which I thought was a warmer colour than the rather yellow Opalescent Silver of the earlier etypes.
The interior and doors are completely lined with Dynamat sound and heat shield material to make for a cooler and quieter drive.
The gearbox is a 5spd Getrag out of an XJS and these boxes are pretty bullet-proof. The diff is a lower ratio at 2. 88, also from an XJS and motorway cruising is a much quieter experience. Overall the Dynamat and hearing of the car result in a more contemporary car experience.
The engine is the original 5. 3l Having spoken with a Jaguar mechanic who built the original V12 engines, he told me that they had experimented with 6 and 7 litre engines but found the 5. 3 to be the smoothest. All of the pistons and crank were balanced before the rebuild but are otherwise standard as is the cam.
Fuel injection is Jenvey throttle bodies and crossovers and a wasted spark system used to replace the distributor and feed twin coil packs mounted on a shelf ahead of the header tank. This positioning keeps the leads to the plugs shorter and away from manifold heat.
Cooling is through an aluminium radiator with twin ten blade fans and I have used Evans waterless coolant mainly to avoid any pressure in the hoses should the car overheat plus it also prevents the head studs which run through the water jacket from rusting.
The exhaust is a four pipe Classic Fabs unit which is beautifully welded and with an exhaust manifold that efficiently handles gases to produce up to 10% more power. The four pipes go right through to the rear of the car and give an improved look over the original fan tail.
The manifolds are heat shielded and the plenum boxes shield the fuel rails from any residual manifold heat.
Handling is improved through uprated torsion bars, Anti-roll front and rear as well as six Nitron adjustable shocks which were made by Nitron for this particular car. Adjusting ride height as well as reverb allows you to adjust the car to exactly the drive you want. I have also used 16” Realm D style wheels as they don’t flex, are easy to clean and allow for a much greater choice of rubber.
The fuel tank is modified to take an internal fuel pump which sits in the swirl pot with an inspection hatch built in.
The interior is double stitched red Connolly leather, red Alcantara and red Wilton carpet with rubber mats sewn in. The rear box is leather over wood and lockable; it has luggage rails on top to avoid scratching. The seat belt retractors are hidden in the boot and the straps posted through lettterbox openings into the car. The sound system is Jaguar and I have used Series 1 speaker grills over the four speakers.
The black mohair hood is new and I have adjusted all three closing mechanisms to give a better fit when closed.
Overall the car looks very standard from the outside but is a very different car underneath. It’s a fast road car with much improved handling and better comfort - an easier car for a European trip than a Series 1 for sure!
