Jaguar XK120 Roadster
This fantastic early Jaguar XK120 roadster came in for a sympathetic recommissioning. It is scarcely believable that these survivor cars are still out there. And this one in particular has spent a great deal of time less than a mile from my front door!
The art here is to retain as much originally as possible, particularly externally, whilst allowing for sensible work and improvements to be carried out under the skin to allow the car to be used.
Read on below to hear what was involved.
Starting with a service, I fitted 6x brand new spark plugs. The original plugs were not even a matching set! I made a complete new HT lead set to replace the old set, as these were of unknown age.
I also fitted a new set of points as well as anew rotor arm (the original had a crack in it).
I then fitted a new oil filter and replaced the 12 litres of 20W50 mineral engine oil. The gearbox oil and diff oil were also replaced.
Onto the brakes next. The reservoir was full of an unknown concoction of dust and tar. This was thoroughly cleaned and fitted with a new section of hose.
A brand new master cylinder was fitted. The old one was found to be totally seized and beyond mechanical repair.
Additionally, 3x new brake flexi pipes were fitted – two at the front, and one at the rear supplying the rear brakes.
I also fitted a brand new bush kit to the front suspension, anti roll bar and upper shock mounts. The originals were so perished they had mostly crumbled to pieces.
Moving on to fueling. The photo below shows what the carburettor float bowls looked like. At this point I set to and removed the carburettors altogether for a thorough cleaning, check over and rebuild.
Needless to say – they were spotless when I refitted them.
The jet adjusters on both sides were seized solid and were wound and all the way out for maximum enrichment. The adjacent photo below shoes the jets after a careful stripdown and cleaning.
The car’s electrics were a case of – the more I looked, the more I found.
I couldn’t leave any of it like this, so a lot of the front wiring loom was cut out and either replaced and made good or removed altogether (some wires seemed to snake around everywhere and not actually connect to anything).
The front indicators were totally re-wired, replacing the Lego connectors with modern fittings and wrapping them in protective tape.
To top it off, all four front brake slave cylinders were seized solid. Replacements were fitted, brake pads were reconditions, and the drums were all sanded back. The two rear slave cylinders were seized but with a bit of perseverance and TLC were coaxed back into life.
The brake system was then flushed and bled.
Adjacent you will see the overhauled carburettors fitted back onto the car, complete with new HT leads.
Finally the car was treated to a bath. New tyres were fitted shortly after these photos were taken.
The car in my opinion is now in a very useable, honest condition. It is totally solid and rot free, with only minor surface rust in some places.
Sad to see it leave the workshop!
