This week in the workshop 29/08/20

This week, there has been a buzz around the workshop following Stirling Moss' XK120's London Concours success. Talk has been of when we can get back to events and some of the exciting projects we have in the pipeline, which we are sure will have similar success and attention at shows. Focusing on the jobs in hand this week, we have had a busy time in the servicing and maintenance workshop. This week we will be looking at a full range of XKs and a lovely little Alfa Romeo.

Jaguar XK120 Clutch Change

This stunning XK120 fixed-head coupe was fully restored here over ten years ago and is still looking wonderful. This car has been used extensively for touring and rallying over the years and has stood up well. It was, of course, built to a specification to make it suitable for such use. The upgrades on this car include upgraded front suspension, adjustable shock absorbers, disc brakes, hydraulic handbrake, electric cooling fan, alternator, a five-speed gearbox and much more. This time around, the car is in for a clutch change. Our five-speed gearbox conversion makes a clutch change a much easier job than on a standard XK. Rather than having to remove the whole engine and gearbox together (creating considerable work), we are able to remove the gearbox tunnel and then take the gearbox out through the car.

Jaguar XK120 five speed gearbox clutch

Jaguar XK150 new owner check over

This Jaguar XK150 drophead coupe has recently been purchased at auction. The car was brought directly to us to be checked over and to agree a range of upgrades. We have reported back to the new owner and from our report have agreed on a programme of works to bring the car up to the standard required. If you are looking to by a classic Jaguar please do get in touch as we are always happy to offer buying advice even if you are not looking at a car in our showroom. We are happy to inspect prospective purchases both on our premises or at other locations. Additionally, with over 35 years maintaining and restoring XKs we often have historical experience of many of the cars which come to market.

Jaguar XK150 servicing

Jaguar XK140 accident repair

Accident damage is an unfortunate reality of classic car ownership, especially for cars like XKs which often do quite a lot of miles as they are so usable and reliable in the right specification. This XK140 came in to have some accident damage on the front end repaired and has just returned from being repainted. These cherished classics are not deserving of a "local blow in". They demand specialist attention to strip down, repair and prepare for paint. Then the painter must paint enough of the car to ensure that the repair is not going to be visible as otherwise it remains a constant reminder of the accident. With that in mind, it is important to get insurance from an insurer who understands classic cars and will let you use a specialist of your choice for any repair work. We have many years' experience in undertaking insurance work and work with insurers directly to keep the repair process as simple as possible.

Jaguar XK140 paint and bodywork

Jaguar XK150 oil leaks

Oil leaks are a common issue on XKs. Some are more easily resolved than others but again specialist knowledge makes the process of locating and resolving leaks much easier. This very original XK150 3.4 S came to us with oil leaks at the front and rear of the car. On inspection, we found the leak at the rear of the car was the differential pinion oil seal which is a common fault and easily remedied. The leaks at the front tend to be more complex to locate and resolve. In this case, the car was suffering with a number of leaks including cam covers, oil breather housing, front main bearing and rear main bearing. All of these are being attended to including an uprated front main bearing oil seal being fitted. We also offer an improved rear main bearing oil seal however this has to be done as part of an engine rebuild as the rear of the block has to be machined.

Jaguar XK150 3.4 S oil leaks

Alfa Romeo Giulia track day preparation 

We try to feature something non-Jaguar each week and this week we had in the workshop this cracking little Alfa Romeo Giulia. The owner uses this as a track-day car. He brought it to us for a check over and to have the tracking set up before its next outing. This pretty little Alfa attracted a lot of admiring attention, both from staff and from people passing the front of the showroom.

Alfa Romeo classic car Hampshire

Classic car storage and transport

We offer a full range of services to support our customers and their classic cars including secure storage and transportation. We completed a full nut and bolt restoration on this Jaguar XK150 last year for a long-time customer who also owns one of our fully restored XK140s amongst other classic cars. As a result, there is not quite enough room to keep all the fleet at home all of the time. So we have kept the XK150 FHC (the winter car) in our secure store over the summer. At the customer's request, this has come out of storage, been checked over and will now be delivered to his home and we will bring back an SS100 for some work before it goes into winter storage.

Jaguar XK150 restoration