Jaguar XJS Master

Help For The Jaguar XJ-S Owner by Kirby Palm Updated: May 21, 2009 EXPERIENCE IN A BOOK

EXPERIENCE IN A BOOK Help for the Jaguar XJ- S owner by Kirby Palm Compiled by an XJ-S owner, Experience in a Book is a unique type of automotive resource providing the sort of how-to information not found in either owner’s handbooks or repair manuals. The information provided includes maintenance tips, common problems, suggested modifications, and some sources for parts. The book is not intended to replace a repair manual, but rather to complement it. This is not a small pamphlet; the book is 739 pages when printed with a 10-point proportionally-spaced font, and includes quite a few illustrations and schematics. It grows as more information becomes available. Experience in a Book may be downloaded, free of charge, from the World Wide Web at: http://www.jag-lovers.org/xj-s/book/ Yes, you read right: This whole thing is free. If you have a computer, internet access, and a printer, all it costs you is the effort to log on and download plus the paper and ink to print. There are no catches; this is a hobby, not a profit-making enterprise. This book -- along with a great deal of other Jaguar-related stuff -- is also available on the Nine Lives CD-ROM. There are links to online ordering from the URL provided above, or you can order it directly from: Coltrane Productions PO Box 932 Morgantown, WV 26507 The cost is $2 plus shipping, and shipping is $0.97 in the US, $1.20 to Canada, $1.66 to Mexico, or $3.40 to the rest of the world. Experience in a Book is a work in progress and is revised when new information becomes available. If you have learned something about your XJ-S that the rest of us should know, please visit: http://www.jag-lovers.org and log on to the xj-s@jag-lovers.org or v12-engine@jag-lovers.org e-mail discussion lists and post your discoveries there. Most of the contents of this book came from these discussions.

CONTENTS THE JAGUAR XJS.......................................................................................................................................................1 SHOPPING FOR A USED XJS..................................................................................................................................13 GENERAL...................................................................................................................................................................15 Repair Manuals ...................................................................................................................16 ENGINE.......................................................................................................................................................................32 Leaks..................................................................................................................................39 PCV System.........................................................................................................51 Fault Diagnosis ...................................................................................................................53 ENGINE WORK..............................................................................................................................58 Top.......................................................................................................................59 Front.....................................................................................................................89 Bottom.................................................................................................................97 Performance Upgrades......................................................................................................103 Intake Upgrades.................................................................................................107 Other Modifications..........................................................................................................113 IGNITION SYSTEM......................................................................................................................118 Lucas Ignition (up to 1989)...............................................................................................126 Vacuum Advance...............................................................................................131 Centrifugal Advance...........................................................................................137 Lucas Opus Mark 2 (pre-1982)..........................................................................147 Lucas Constant Energy Ignition (1982-89).........................................................153 Marelli ...............................................................................................................................159 XJRS................................................................................................................................172 Distributorless Ignition......................................................................................................173 COOLING SYSTEM......................................................................................................................173 Overheating -- Causes.......................................................................................................178 Fans..................................................................................................................................214 Post-Shutdown Cooling....................................................................................................228 FUEL SYSTEM..............................................................................................................................232 Fuel Fires..........................................................................................................................232 Fuel Odors........................................................................................................................234 Fuel Lines.........................................................................................................................238 Fuel Tank and Filler ..........................................................................................................244 Hess & Eisenhardt Convertible...........................................................................249 Surge Tank and Fuel Pickup -- Pre-1992..........................................................................250 Fuel Pump.........................................................................................................................254 1992-on Fuel System........................................................................................................257 Vapor Recovery System....................................................................................................259 Hess & Eisenhardt Convertible...........................................................................263 Throttle Linkage, Idle Speed Adjustment..........................................................................264 Electronic Fuel Injection...................................................................................................273 D-Jetronic...........................................................................................................284 Cold Start Injectors..............................................................................286 Digital P..............................................................................................................289 Cold Start Injectors..............................................................................306 Early 3.6 AJ6 Engines.........................................................................................307 XJRS..................................................................................................................307 Fault Codes.......................................................................................................................307 Passing Emissions Tests....................................................................................................309 Fuel System Upgrades.......................................................................................................310 AIR INJECTION............................................................................................................................312 i

EXHAUST SYSTEM.....................................................................................................................315 DRIVETRAIN............................................................................................................................................................324 BORG-WARNER MODEL 12.......................................................................................................324 GM400............................................................................................................................................325 ALTERNATIVE TRANSMISSIONS............................................................................................339 TRANSMISSION MOUNT...........................................................................................................342 Borg-Warner.....................................................................................................................344 GM400.............................................................................................................................344 DRIVESHAFT................................................................................................................................348 FINAL DRIVE................................................................................................................................349 SUSPENSION & STEERING...................................................................................................................................354 Front Suspension...............................................................................................................362 Steering.............................................................................................................................373 Rear Suspension................................................................................................................384 Rear Swingarm Outer Pivot................................................................................390 Wheels and Tires...............................................................................................................403 BRAKES....................................................................................................................................................................418 Master Cylinder/Reservoir/Booster...................................................................................433 Front Brakes.....................................................................................................................435 Inboard Rear Brakes.........................................................................................................437 Handbrake..........................................................................................................447 TWR Rear Brakes..............................................................................................451 Outboard Rear Brakes.......................................................................................................452 Handbrake..........................................................................................................452 ABS Brakes......................................................................................................................453 Teves Mk III ABS system..................................................................................455 Teves Mk IV ABS System.................................................................................461 ABS System Removal .........................................................................................462 BODY.........................................................................................................................................................................464 Water Leaks......................................................................................................................466 Hess & Eisenhardt Convertible.............................................................484 INTERIOR.................................................................................................................................................................485 CLIMATE CONTROL.............................................................................................................................................493 Common Features.............................................................................................................493 Compressor & Freon Circuit...............................................................................499 R-12 Substitutes.................................................................................................517 Delanair MkII (up to 1987)...............................................................................................530 Delanair MkIII (1987-On).................................................................................................544 ELECTRICAL...........................................................................................................................................................551 Relays...............................................................................................................................562 Starting Circuit..................................................................................................................566 Starter...............................................................................................................................569 Alternator..........................................................................................................................572 Installing a GM Alternator..................................................................................576 Battery..............................................................................................................................584 Fuses and Fuse Blocks......................................................................................................587 Instrument Panel ...............................................................................................................590 Instruments and Gauges......................................................................................591 Hess & Eisenhardt Convertible.............................................................595 Warning Lights...................................................................................................596 Trip Computer..................................................................................................................601 Windows...........................................................................................................................603 ii

Mirrors..............................................................................................................................613 Locks................................................................................................................................615 Windshield Wipers............................................................................................................617 Lucas Solenoid-Park...........................................................................................622 Lucas Reverse-Park............................................................................................625 Electrolux...........................................................................................................629 Windshield and Headlight Washers...................................................................................629 Light Bulbs .......................................................................................................................632 Headlights.........................................................................................................................639 Four Round Headlights -- US through 1991.......................................................649 Cibies with two H1 bulbs -- non-US through 1980.............................................652 Cibies with one H4 bulb -- non-US 1981-91.......................................................653 DOT-approved Carello -- US 1992-on...............................................................655 E-code Carello -- non-US 1991-on.....................................................................656 Fog/Driving Lights............................................................................................................661 Horn.................................................................................................................................663 Radio................................................................................................................................664 Antenna.............................................................................................................................667 Miscellaneous Interior Stuff ..............................................................................................670 Cruise Control...................................................................................................................671 STORAGE..................................................................................................................................................................682 MODIFICATIONS....................................................................................................................................................684 WEIGHT REDUCTION/RELOCATION.......................................................................................684 COLD WEATHER.........................................................................................................................685 LPG.................................................................................................................................................686 WHERE TO FIND HELP, PARTS, ETC................................................................................................................690 NEW PARTS..................................................................................................................................692 USED/REBUILT PARTS...............................................................................................................697 SPECIALTIES................................................................................................................................698 Interiors............................................................................................................................698 Body.................................................................................................................................701 Restoration/Rebuilding ......................................................................................................703 Exhaust.............................................................................................................................705 Electrical ...........................................................................................................................705 Steering/Suspension/Final Drive........................................................................................708 Wheels ..............................................................................................................................709 Miscellaneous....................................................................................................................710 PERFORMANCE/MODIFICATION.............................................................................................713 ACCESSORIES..............................................................................................................................721 PUBLICATIONS & PERIODICALS.............................................................................................722 MODELS........................................................................................................................................724 INTERNET SOURCES..................................................................................................................725 CLUBS........................................................................................................................................................................730 HERITAGE CERTIFICATE....................................................................................................................................731 The door locks are electric, so they are discussed under Electrical. However, the handles themselves are discussed under Body. Cover design: Glen MacDonald iii

I live in the US. This book has been distributed worldwide, and upon rereading and editing I constantly notice comments I have made that have a distinctly US bias, like how such-and-such part can be found at the local Walmart. I have made the decision that I will leave the book this way, rather than trying to qualify each of these instances for all the people in various parts of the globe. Those in other countries will know better than I how the advice given will apply in their area. The XJ-S is sold in countries where they drive on the wrong side of the road, so there are left hand drive (LHD) and right hand drive (RHD) models. To minimize confusion, in this book the location of an item will nearly always be described as being on the left side or right side of the car -- meaning left or right as viewed sitting in the car facing forward. The terms “driver’s side” or “passenger’s side” will only be used to describe the location of items that switch sides between LHD and RHD models, such as steering column, pedals, glovebox, fuseboxes, etc. Please note that I have made the decision not to cover the six-cylinder AJ6/AJ16 engines in this book in any detail (there are a few minor exceptions). Since it is the same engine that is in the XJ40/X300, it shouldn’t be too much trouble to find information on this engine elsewhere. The parts of this book covering non-engine items should still be of some value to owners of AJ6/AJ16-powered XJ-S’s. I also make no effort to cover features unique to the XJ12. Owners of such cars would probably be well advised to acquire both this book and Jim Isbell’s book on the XJ6 (see http://www.jag-lovers.org ) and use the parts of each that apply. There will still be some shortcomings -- neither will properly cover the carburetor setup on the early XJ12, for example -- but the owner is still likely to benefit greatly from both books. DISCLAIMER My own car is a 1983 XJ-S H.E.. Understandably, this book is likely to be more complete and accurate for similar vintage cars than for the early (B-W tranny, non-H.E.) cars or the newer (ABS, revised bodywork, 6.0 liter) cars. It also cannot be expected to accurately cover the differences of cars sold in countries other than the US. While most of the information (both from my own experience and that sent in from others) has been verified on my car, obviously I cannot be responsible for the applicability to other XJ-S’s. I am not associated with Jaguar, and have no means for verifying configurations of other cars. Therefore, the XJ-S owner should take advice accordingly and determine for himself if it applies to his car and will serve his purposes. It should also be understood that an owner performing even minor work on his own car can affect his warranty. If there is any doubt whether or not the item in question is covered under warranty, the owner is advised to take it to his dealer prior to doing any work himself. If the owner is told by the dealer that the item is not covered, then the owner can make his own informed decision how to proceed. Finally, an owner making changes to his car is responsible for making sure he is not violating emissions laws or safety or other regulations applicable where he lives and drives. There have been a few comments made in this book about regulations in various areas, but they are to be taken as general info, not legal advice. iv

IS THIS A REFERENCE BOOK? Many XJ-S owners may consider this book reference material, and don’t bother to look at it until they need to work on something or spend some money on the car. Unfortunately, sometimes the money spent could have been saved if they had read about how to avoid problems in the first place! And, yes, sometimes the money saved can amount to thousands of dollars; both the Lucas and later Marelli ignition systems have faults that can cost you an engine or even the entire car in very short order. Hey, it’s up to you; it’s your car, your time, and your money. However, I highly recommend you read this book! Jaguars are not drive-it-and-forget-it cars; they demand a certain amount of awareness on the part of the owner, and reading this book cover-to-cover will go a long way toward making the owner aware of his car -- and possibly save him loads of $$$ in the future, as well as making Jaguar ownership a more pleasant experience. If you cannot be convinced, at a minimum please read about the following topics: • Ordering manuals and catalogs starting on page 16. • Hot shutdowns on page 34. • Centrifugal advance mechanism seizure (pre-Marelli ignition) beginning on page 137. • Reread the discussion of centrifugal advance mechanism seizure beginning on page 137. • If you still haven’t overhauled the distributor by this point, reread the discussion of centrifugal advance mechanism seizure again. In fact, keep rereading it until that distributor has been overhauled. Am I getting through yet? • Relocation of ignition amp (pre-1983 models), page 148. • Catalytic convertor meltdowns on page 161 (Marelli ignition cars; if you have a car with Marelli ignition, do not fail to read this section!). • Shortcomings of the cooling system, recommendations, and “How hot is too hot?”, starting on page 173. • Advice on using cooling system sealers on page 189. • Fan cracking on page 214. • Engine fires on page 232. • Fuel sump pickup problems on page 251. • Fuel pump power supply concerns on page 255. • Soft shifts on page 337. • Replacing the steering rack bushings on page 375. • ABS brake testing (on cars so equipped) on page 454. • Radius arm mount rust problems on page 464. • Brake fluid level switch problems on page 596. • Saving the stereo from water damage on page 665. v

THE JAGUAR XJ-S WHAT’S IN A NAME?: First and foremost, it’s high time to quit abusing the name “Jaguar”. It does not rhyme with “quagmire”! According to Jim Isbell: “At a recent Jag Club meeting they showed a video of the history of Jaguar from the Swallow to the present. I was most interested to see how the owners and perpetrators of the Jaguar company pronounced it. There were several old voice interviews and I listened very carefully every time one of them spoke. The pronunciation I got from those interviews was: Jag-u-wer. I think the people who invented it must know how to pronounce it.” The name of the car that this book addresses is the “XJ-S” -- or, at least that was the name. Up until 1982 the dash actually had its own part number, since the four characters on the back end of the car were four separate pieces; through the rest of the 80’s, the four characters on the back of the car were a single badge, but the hyphen was still apparent. Since the badge on the car itself has to be considered the ultimate authority, up until 1991 anyone referring to the car as an “XJS” was in error. This was a very common error, since XJ6 and XJ12 do not have dashes in the names and it was commonly assumed that this was normal Jaguar naming convention. Unfortunately for anyone trying to keep such things straight, even the folks at Jaguar were guilty of this error, as evidenced in several of their brochures and manuals. According to Paul Skilleter’s book “Jaguar XJS: A Collector’s Guide”, when the bodywork was revised for the 1991 model year the name of the car was officially changed to “XJS” to emphasize the change. I will also mention what a “Daimler” is. Daimler was a British automobile company that was bought out by Jaguar in 1960. However, Gottlieb Daimler also founded a German automobile company that merged with Benz & Cie. in 1926 forming Daimler-Benz AG (later DaimlerChrysler, still later Daimler AG). The Mercedes manufacturer registered the name Daimler in the US, so Jaguar cannot use the name in the US even though the former British company by that name belongs to them. Daimler-Benz always called its cars Mercedes (after somebody’s girlfriend many decades ago), so there are no cars known as Daimlers sold in the US. While the British Daimlers were originally a distinct line of automobiles, eventually they became variations on Jaguars. Regarding the cars covered by this book, the Jaguar XJ12 was also sold as the Daimler Double Six in some countries, with detail differences including a distinctive fluted grille. S TYPE: From “Great Marques - Jaguar” by Chris Harvey: The S type saloon There was a considerable demand for a more luxurious version of the compact saloon, and Lyons decided to combine the major improvements of the Mark X with the established features of the Mark 2, once the Daimler had been launched. The result was the Jaguar S type saloon introduced in 3.4-litre and 3.8 litre forms in September 1963. These cars were similar to the Mark 2 in most dimensions and running gear, except that they had the new independent rear suspension. The S type (no hyphen) and most other lines of Jaguar saloon were discontinued when the XJ6 was introduced in 1968. In a shameless attempt to capitalize on William Lyons’ glory of years past, Ford/Jaguar introduced a new S-type (with hyphen) in 1998. David Berman says, “The S-TYPE is related to the Lincoln LS6/8. This is known as the DEW98 platform.” So why is all this discussion in a book on the XJ-S? Because some people insist on referring to the XJ-S as an “S-type”. Makes sense; the rolling phallic symbol known as the E-type in Europe and elsewhere was marketed as the XKE or XK- E in the US, so it naturally follows that Jaguar’s marketing department must be similarly misguided regarding the XJ-S. Connoisseurs of the E-type sometimes get huffy if you are so base as to refer to their cars as XKE’s, so people may actually think they are using the more proper term for the XJ-S when they call it an S-type. 1

So, how common is this error? Believe it or not, it spread to the marketing department at Jaguar again! The 1981 XJ -S sales brochure said: Jaguars have always been distinguished by a special grace of form and a rare poise in motion. Yet even among the legendary Jaguars of the past, this new S-type stands out. The XJ-S does what Jaguars have always done -- only better. It is quick and responsive, stable at speed, silent in motion and notably luxurious. Despite the disinformation tactics of those goobers, it’s really not proper to refer to an XJ-S as an S-type; the mid-60’s car was an upscale compact saloon, and even the 1998 knockoff appears to follow along that same theme. The XJ-S is clearly in an entirely different class. VIN NUMBER DECODING: There are two different VIN numbering schemes for the Jaguar XJ-S. All cars have a VIN number stamped into the sheet metal dead center in front of the hood seal, and this VIN corresponds to the scheme described below, based on input from Richard Mansell, William Noorloos, and Paul Skilleter’s book. Position 1-3 denotes manufacturer SAJ = Jaguar Position 4 denotes marque J=Jaguar D=Daimler 5th is model N=XJ-S S=XJR-S T=Special edition 6th is class A=baseline J=Japan K=Japan with airbag L=Canada M=Canada with airbag V=USA spec with manual belts W=USA spec with driver airbag Y=USA spec with passive belts. 7th is body type C=Cabriolet D=Convertible E=Coupe F=2+2 Convertible 2

8th is engine type B=3.6 4VB C=3.6 4VC or 3.6 4Y D=3.6 4VD or 4.0 4Y E=3.6 4VE K=5.3 F S=6.0 V=5.3 A W=5.3 B X=5.3 C Y=5.3 D Z=5.3 E 9th is Transmission and steering 3=Auto RHD 4=Auto LHD 7=manual RHD 8=manual LHD 10th is model or year change A=XJ-S original spec B=HE coupe C=AJ6 coupe and convertible D=V12 convertible E=facelift (1992-) except for USA, Canada and Korea where from 1981 the 10th letter indicates year of build starting with B=1981. Skip the letter I, so J=1988. 11th is emission control equipment (up to 1987: manufacturing plant, C=Browns Lane) 12th-17th are the vehicle’s unique number. Andrew Stott says, “My car is UK spec, pre-HE, made in 1979, D-Jetronic. The VIN is JNAEW1AC101185. One confusing thing is that the character in the VIN that denotes the transmission and steering is a '1' and according to the books it should be a '7' as it is a manual RHD car. In Skilleter's XJ-S Collectors Guide, he gives details of the last production XJ-S manual. It was made in 1979 and had a VIN of JNAEW1AC1018xx; this would suggest that the '1' in the transmission character position is valid for a RHD manual car.” Now, if you have a US-spec car, there is a tag within the left edge of the windshield that carries a totally different VIN number. This VIN corresponds to the following scheme, from the “MOTOR import car crash estimating guide” for the US: 1st-3rd Position - Manufacturers Code SAJ=Jaguar, United Kingdom 3

Jaguar XJS Master

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