2007-07-11 07:05:04 | pauls writes:

Ebay item 7/11/07
cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Jaguar-E-Type-1969-JAGUAR-E-TYPE-OTS-RESTORED_W0QQitemZ1 ...
Current bid $16,000 reserve not met, 1 bid, 6 days left in auction. Buy it now price $28,000.

Sellers description:
A 1969 Jaguar Series II E-type. Matching numbers, low mileage car. Never in an accident. This E-type originated in Lexington Massachusetts. The original owner of this car bought it for weekend trips to Cape Cod. He drove it for sport only. This car was a prize possession of his and he would move it into the shade if the sun moved over it. In 1971, the owner died and his wife, who was emotionally attached to the car, didn’t want to sell it. She left the car in their carport and it sat for 18 years. The car had only 9753 original miles on it. The mileage for any buyer is always in question. I have no reason to think that this figure is not true. I have gone through the maintenance stickers, last date of inspection and listened to the seller explain the story behind it. I also was able to look at the internal engine parts like valves, cam baskets, cylinder walls etc. These parts look like they had a short duty corresponding to the low mileage. This is the story I got from the person (second owner) I purchased the car from in June of 2001. This second owner acquired it from the original owner’s wife. The seller told me that when he was a child, he would see the car around the neighborhood being driven by the original owner. I bought this car in 2001 on EBAY. The condition of the car when I purchased it was rusted. The rust had eaten away the driver’s side floor and the passenger side was not much better. The outer rockers/sills were rusted through especially where the battery sits. The passenger inner sill was not too bad but the driver’s side was rotted around the battery. It appeared that the driver’s side of the car was exposed more to the elements than the passenger side. Additional panels that were rusted through were: The drivers side rear quarter bowl behind the rear wheel well, close panels for the sills in the front, battery box shelf and surrounding supports, driver’s side toe board, rear bulkhead panel located behind the seat backs, the rear apron that runs across the bumper on the upper side adjacent to trunk lid edge. The panels and supports that had repairable rust holes were: Headlight buckets/sugarscoops at 6:00 O’clock position. Two Holes about the size of a computer mouse in either side of the bonnet valance, lower edge of bonnet valance (hinge points were good) , rear trunk panel at the lowest point where there is a radius transition, transmission tunnel and lateral cross support, passenger side inner sill, The following is a list of the most expensive parts that were installed new in 2001-03 GAS TANK TIRES STAINLESS STEEL SPOKES BRAKE PADS, PISTONS, SEALS, FLEX LINES, FRONT BEARINGS COMPLETE NEW INTERIOR NEW TOP NEW HOSES NEW WEATHERSTRIPING CYLINDER HEAD MILL AND MACHINE NEW FUEL PUMP NEW RADIO AND SPEAKERS SANBLASTING SERVICES. ALL RUSTED PARTS NEW RESONATERS NEW ACORN NUTS, HARDWARE WHERE NEEDED CLUTCH SLAVE CYLINDER REBUILT ALTERNATER NEW SEALS, GASKETS, BUSHINGS, ETC. ALL NEW BODY PANELS WHERE NEEDED. PAINT The paint job was done by myself. I used a paint spraying gun with compressed air. 2 coats of base epoxy primer, 3 coats of color burgundy, 3 coats of clear. The paint finish is not a professional job. The finish is satisfying enough to have a “driver look” but is not your professional job. This finish is suitable for daily driving. Stone chips, gravel, bicycles, kids, toys are no worry with this finish. There is more wet sanding to do that would give it a much improved look. I think that there is a trade off. A perfect paint job will create stress for the owner yet win with the judges. A driver paint job will eliminate stress when driving and lose with the judges. The choice is yours. As you run your eye along the lines there is a lack of perfection in the reflection. This car has been enjoyed completely with the absence of stone chip worry. In the event that the next owner wants a perfect paint job, and has it done professionally, the value of this car would be higher. The original color for this car was Primrose Yellow. There is an area of leadwork located on the passengers side in front of the rear wheel. This is a joint where the sill meets the rear fender. The paint has cracked and it appears that the 2 surfaces have come apart. This is not from rust. It is the only one of 4 joints to have cracked. It most likely is just the 2 outer skins popping apart. This happened early on and I don’t consider it to be structural in nature. ELECTRICAL The electrical system is typical for a car this age. Just mentioning “Lucas” says it all. I have everything working that you need to drive it safely. All the lights work and accessories. The items that don’t work are the fluid level warning lights, emergency brake light, emergency flasher. The wiring should be replaced someday but for now, it’s acting like the common Lucas electrical we all hear about. ENGINE The engine runs well. I dismantled it down to the block as it was still in the car. I replaced a few core plugs and flushed out the water jackets. I replaced all the seals and gaskets I could find along with rebuilding the carbs and replacing the belts and any other accessories mounted on the engine. Upon driving the car after restoration, after the first 100 miles, one of the valves stuck and broke off in the cylinder. I repaired the damage by replacing the piston and valves. I had the cylinder head professionally milled, hot tanked, and new valve springs were installed. The engine has performed great ever since. I would definitely install an electronic ignition to take advantage of modern technology. The engine diesels or keeps running after its turned off sometimes. I believe that the carbs need to be adjusted. The float bowl jets should be replaced with quality jets. I always listen to the fuel pump to stop ticking when I turn the key to on. If the float bowls stick then the carbs flood. This can happen after a long winter of storage. This can happen on the most expensive, mint E-types as well. ENGINE COMPARTMENT The engine compartment was thoroughly gone over and all components were sandblasted and repainted factory colors. The subframe is not color correct to match the body color. I painted it silver on September 11, 2001. It was the morning of the attack and I had to do something to shake the thoughts. I painted the subframe silver. I decided I would not repaint it the correct color since it represents something. The underside of the bonnet is the body color without the clear coat. There is undercoating inside the wheel wells only. BRAKES The brakes work very well with one problem. There is a burr on either the master cylinder, or slave cylinder. Upon coming to a stop and then letting up on the pedal, there is a lag in the time that the brakes release. A lag of around a second or 2. This is a problem and should be fixed. You can drive off when the light is green but you can feel the hold momentarily. If you push down the brakes at a complete stop and let up on the pedal, then there is no lag. You can feel the rough spot in the pedal travel. WIRE SPOKE WHEELS I replaced all the original spokes with new stainless steel spokes. The rims are not show quality and the hubs are pitted. They don’t look too bad for a driver. The bumpers are pitted and weathered. The bright work is ok and there is the expected pitting. I never really found the pitting to be a big issue with me. It could all be re-chromed at a later date. BODY STRUCTURAL The monocoque body was restored by myself and it was not done professionally. I am a degreed mechanical design engineer but do not claim to call myself a professional classic car restorer. I also have done a few other car restorations along with 1920's motorcycle restorations. I systematically removed all rusted panels by either drilling out the spotwelds, chisel, or using a recipricating saw. Using new footwell pans, I had new floors fabricated. I welded them in using structural angle and tubing where needed. I replace the 2 outer sills and the driver's side inner sill with new panels from XK's unlimited. All signs of non original brackets or supports are not visible. You can see some pieces if you pull up the carpeting. I have never lifted the car using the car from the original jack points. I always lift it from the IRS unit. I have any shop that inspects it use a lift where it is raised as it sits. The reason for this is because I don't believe in exposing the body to forces that may cause a spalling in the leadwork. The car demonstrates a rigid strong body as far as I can tell. This is a point worth mentioning since I have claimed to not be a professional restorer. This restoration is not a rotisserie job. This is all information I believe the buyer should know. I will disclose all of these facts. I will not start out the ad where I burn off paragraphs about Malcolm Sayer or how the design is timeless. You already know all that if you are into E-types. IRS UNIT I pulled the IRS unit and completely restored the assembly. I dismantled it and cleaned and painted every part. Since the car had such low miles, The shocks and brake rotors were still good. I had the rotors (front and rear)skim turned by a shop. All brake calipers were rebuilt with new seals and pistons. The final drive gearbox was mint. Zero backlash. EXHAUST SYSTEM I was able to re use the original exhaust pipes and dual mufflers. New resonators were purchased to complete the system. INSTRUMENTS/SWITCHES/KNOBS The speedometer stopped working this Spring. I think it will need a new drive gear unit. The cable end does not spin. The additional mileage on the car would be estimated at 300 miles. The tachometer, gas gage, oil pressure, amp gage all work. The temp gage works occasionally. It may be the sensor. The parking brake, wipers, wiper fluid pump, fan, map light, horn all work. The flashers don't work. The wiper spray nozzles are not connected to the spray pump. The choke lever on the dash does not stay in the up position. There is a ratchet type mechanism that I believe is loose. I have a small wooden block I use to hold the lever up. The clock has a new quartz movement installed to resemble original clock. TOP The canvas top is new and looks good when up. There are no sags or ripples in the surface. There are a few things that are obvious. The chrome finisher along the front header bow is not going over the retainer clips. This could be fixed but I haven't attempted to hammer it in. I was waiting to get some advice on this common problem. There are some other small jobs that I have left. I opted out of the strapping on the inside frame. The closure of the top to the windshield is nice. The inner clamp toggles work well. There are slight gaps where the glass top edge meets the rubber when the windows are rolled up. I have not addressed this yet. The window mechanism may need adjusting. The hard stops may need to be backed off. There is no tonneau cover or chrome clips for the top when it's retracted. I do have the clips and a bag of hardware for the top. COOLING SYSTEM The radiator is original. It is in beautiful shape considering the age. It holds pressure and has never been a problem. The 2 cooling fans are electric motor driven. They were originally to be activated by a temperature sensor. I bypassed the sensor and now the fans can be turned on manually from the extra rocker switch on the dash. I did this since I wanted to make sure the fans were running at long red lights. The heater core is out of the car. It is bypassed with a hose. The car runs cool without it and is warm in the cockpit from the engine on a cool autumn day, but a new core would be a good solution at about $100.00 at XK's. GEAR BOX AND CLUTCH The gearbox is mint and the shifting is smooth. The clutch is tight and must be far from worn since the low mileage. I have absolutely made it a point to take it out of gear and let the clutch out at red lights. I don't have any doubts that there is a lot of meat left on the graphite throw out bearing. GAS TANK The gas tank was new in 2003 and is plumbed with fuel resistant hose. I have a roll of new original tubing that I never used. There is a trick to heating up the ends and installing it. I now have learned that the ends must be held in boiling water to soften it before putting over the fittings. SEATS AND INTERIOR The seats are new and the pleats are nice but not perfect. The contour from the listing rods is defined and has comfort. The seat slide mechanisms are not in the car. They were badly rusted and were thrown out. These are very expensive items and I decided to hard mount the seats to the floor. This means that there is no forward/back seat adjustment. I have not found this to be a problem. The seats are bolted farther back then forward. The springs that make the seats backs pop forward are not on installed. You must manually move the seat back up while clutching the release lever. I could not figure out how the springs fit in. I believe they need to tie in with the slide mechanisms that I omitted. The interior is nice. The carpets are nice. There are rubber floor mats that are custom for that car. The dash cover is new and the steering wheel has been restored. I made a wooden shifter knob but have the original knob. The trunk release handle is not installed. There is a pull cord that is used to open the trunk. The under dash hardura panels are not installed. OTHER PARTS The original jack is missing. I will include a new scissors jack. Also included is the wheel hub knock off tool. I will include a few books on the E-type along with a binder containing all the receipts, correspondence, vendors, copy of EBAY purchase in 2001 showing the low millage claim. Protecto plate from original owner. A box of all the remaining parts that are either not used or yet to be installed. There is no owner's manual. There is no front license plate bracket/swivel mechanism. I chose to leave off the front plate completely for cosmetics. WHAT TO EXPECT Before getting in the car there is a hidden switch underneath the car. This is there for antitheft. It also isolates the battery while in storage. After flipping this switch, the car can now be started. The choke lever is pulled all the way up. The key is turned to on position. The fuel pump can be heard ticking. After the fuel pump stops ticking, the engine can be cranked over while holding down the accelerator. On a cold start, a few pumps of the accelerator is needed. The engine will fire and the choke is needed for the warm up. I warm up the car for a minute or so before pulling out. After about a mile down the road the choke lever is released and the car is warmed up. The car accelerates smoothly and the engine sounds great. The high side of third gear is where the power can be felt. This is the punch zone. The steering is good but the front wheels need balancing. This is slight and not an urgent issue. After an average drive in the car, You will open the bonnet and look over the engine compartment. The oil on the dipstick will be like light maple syrup and show no moisture, coolant or any other contaminates. After an oil change the oil looks new and fresh for at least a few hundred miles. After that it still looks great. Then you will look at the coolant. The cooling system will be clear and the radiator will be dry on the outside. Then you will look at the cardboard underneath the engine. There may be a few drops of oil here and there but it will be as sparse as any 100 pt. mint E-type. This is all what to expect. I found that if I do the exact same thing every time I drive it, then I will always know what to expect. E-types are not for everybody. Do not bid on this car if you don’t understand the facts. British cars are temperamental. The car is pure driving enjoyment. SUMMATION I have tried to the best of my ability to disclose all issues with this car. I have taken it on a number of New York State Finger lakes tours and have some great memories to keep. The reason I'm selling this car is because I have had the Jaguar E-type experience. I have answered many questions and received many compliments every time I drive it. I have come full circle with this ownership. I am devoting all my time now to antique motorcycles. It drives well and is inspected until October. This car comes with a current New York State transferable registration. Upon auction close, the car will not be handled or driven by me, the owner again.

2007-07-25 22:10:15 | alproc writes:

Bid of $18,100 did not meet lowered reserve, 7/17/07. Buy It Now lowered to $24,000. 12,574 miles, apparently genuine, but car left
exposed in a car port for 18 years after owner deceased and required much metalwork replaced. Paint defective, other things not quite finished. eBay Seller willket2pmj sounds a straight up guy if you plough through all the copy. eBay #130133218170