Saved from the scrapyard - A story of love and passion (and expense)!!

[Ladams]

FINISHED AT LAST – TRIGGER’S BROOM ... A labour of love.

I own a 2003 Jaguar S-Type 2.5v6 Sport (pre-facelift). I bought this car just over three years ago. It was well maintained and in superb condition with full service history from new by a well known Jaguar main dealer.

For the first two years it performed faultlessly, requiring only routine servicing. Then, in year three the expensive troubles began. It started with a blown head gasket which also caused damage to the radiator, hoses and associated parts of the cooling system due to pressure and gasses getting into the system.

At this stage, I think many people would have scrapped the car, but I loved it and the cosmetic condition was so good that I decided to invest money getting the faults remedied. The repairs to the engine and peripheral damage caused by the high pressure were carried out and all was well for a few months... then I started noticing irregular gear changes and some “lurching” when driving at a constant speed as though the gearbox couldn’t decide which gear it should be in. It was taken to a transmission specialist who confirmed that the torque converter was dying and many of the other gearbox components were badly worn. The only solution was a complete rebuild of the gearbox.

By now I had already invested so much in this car (including fitting a very nice sound system), that to scrap it at this stage would have meant most of that money going down the drain, so, I found a very good independent Jaguar gearbox specialist in Peterborough (Planet Gears) and the car was booked in. Their diagnosis confirmed the previous faults, plus they told me the prop-shaft bearing needed replacement. Having reached the point of no return, I commissioned them to “do whatever is necessary” to get this big cat back in perfect “as new” working order. The work took three weeks to complete, source genuine parts, rebuild the gearbox and they also took it to another Jag specialist in Peterborough for a full appraisal of the condition of the engine... fortunately no issues were found there!

Now that all the work has been done, this Jag drives and looks like it just came off the production line. The S-Type is becoming a bit of a “modern classic” as numbers of them are decreasing on our roads (possibly due to the high cost of maintenance!) and I have decided to keep it and love it.

Never one to be satisfied with driving a “standard” car I decided to make it something unique, a bit different to most other S-Type “Sport” on the road, so I have been making some cosmetic improvements using items from “Adamesh” plus some aftermarket enhancements such as new 18” alloy TSW wheels (ordered from America via R-Tech Auto & Design in St Albans). I have kept the modifications tasteful so It retains the Jaguar style and subtlety but looks a bit more sporty.

It has been a long and expensive journey, but a labour of love none the less and I am proud of the results. Yes, I could have given up, cut my losses and bought a newer car, but anyone with enough money can buy a “nice car”. What I think I have now is something a bit special, an S-Type Jaguar that stands out from the others and turns heads. It is also a joy to drive and I can feel proud that I saved it from the scrap yard. I also think what I have done has been good for the environment as I have effectively “recycled” it.

This car was nicknamed “Trigger’s broom” (Only fools and horses fans will understand) by my very understanding girlfriend Jackie, who has supported me through the whole project and “gets it” absolutely... she can see the joy on my face when I drive it 

Some people reading this will not “get it”, but others might appreciate what I did and understand why.

I would also like to thank the Jaguar Enthusiast club and it’s member who have given me some very good advice and help along the way.

Here is a list of the main work I have had done to get the car to this condition:

TRIGGER’S BROOM – Jaguar S-Type 2.5v6 Sport.
NEW PARTS FITTED
Head Gaskets X2 (V6)
Heater Control Valve
Climate Control Unit
Cooling Radiator & all hoses
Condenser Radiator
Mass Airflow Meter
2 x Front Wheel Bearings
2 x Suspension Arms / Anti-Roll Bars
Auto Transmission (full re-build)
Prop-shaft Bearing
Windscreen Wiper Motor

MODIFICATIONS

AUDIO
Pioneer AVIC-80DAB Head Unit / Sat Nav
Rockford Fosgate 100w/rms Stereo Amplifier
JL C5-650x 100W Coaxial Front Speakers
JL 500w/rms (8ohms) Monoblock Bass Amplifier
Rockford Fosgate 500w/rms 12” Subwoofer
“Shark Fin” DAB Antenna

COACHWORK
Adamesh Front Radiator mesh grille (colour coded to match vehicle colour)
Adamesh Lower Front Grille / mesh
Adamesh Smoked side indicator lenses
Chrome “Jaguar” side decals
Adamesh Polished Chrome Twin Exhaust trims
Some small rust bubbles on front wheel arch professionally cut away and replaced with new metal
All car park “dings” and any slight bodywork imperfections professionally repaired.
Detail deep clean & Polish.

WHEELS
TSW “Silverstone” 18” with mirror polished edge and Firestone “Sport” tyres

PERFORMANCE
K&N Air Filter
Titanium tipped spark plugs

MISC
“Silent Witness” Dash-Cam with front, Rear and internal cameras (24hr recording).

HAPPY MOTORING!

Les Adams

[GordonJ]

What a lovely looking S Type, I can see where you are coming from. I wish I had kept my 3 litre S Type now. There was nothing wrong with it when it went of to a museum in Britany but every day now I say why? as I do think these will be classic and scarce.

Gordon

[Montana5]

Hi Les and welcome. Glad you have the Car the way you want, pending further upgrades.

Doug.

[J44EAG]

It would be good to have this story in the magazine, Les. Material is currently a bit thin on the ground at Nigel`s end.

Easy to do. Cut and paste onto a Word document. Edit further as appropriate, then attach to an email sent to our Editor. All photos also can be added to the mail as separate attachments. The next thing you know, its in the magazine pages!

If you need any help, just let us know.

Mike

[classicmorrisman]

Looks great!

[jeff1954]

Hi Ladams. She looks fantastic, good on you. It will be money well spent.

Jeff

[Ladams]

What a lovely looking S Type, I can see where you are coming from. I wish I had kept my 3 litre S Type now. There was nothing wrong with it when it went of to a museum in Britany but every day now I say why? as I do think these will be classic and scarce.

Gordon

Thank you Gordon. I am proud of how it has turned out and I intend to keep it like this... and for a long time!

Yes I agree that the S-Type will be considered a classic one day as so many of them are being scrapped now because people can't afford to fix them and don't love them. It would be my wish that one day this will end up in a museum, but for now I'm just going to enjoy driving it

[Ladams]

Hi Les and welcome. Glad you have the Car the way you want, pending further upgrades.

Doug.

Thank you Doug. I think it is finished now I don't want to gild the lily. I can't think of anything else I would want to upgrade unless I want to improve the performance, but I don't drive it fast and even though it has the smaller engine it's fast enough for me.

[Ladams]

It would be good to have this story in the magazine, Les. Material is currently a bit thin on the ground at Nigel`s end.

Easy to do. Cut and paste onto a Word document. Edit further as appropriate, then attach to an email sent to our Editor. All photos also can be added to the mail as separate attachments. The next thing you know, its in the magazine pages!

If you need any help, just let us know.

Mike

I would be proud and honoured to have this story in the magazine Mike. I will get the copy together and send it in the next few days. Thank you also for the help you've given me on this forum recently.

I would certainly like to take it to a few jec event days and look at some of the other Jaguars belonging to members.

By the way, I am a "DJ" (radio producer and presenter to be precise) so I was rather pleased to find this registration number on the DVLA website a couple of years ago and just had to have it.

Kind regards

LES

[Ladams]

It would be good to have this story in the magazine, Les. Material is currently a bit thin on the ground at Nigel`s end.

Easy to do. Cut and paste onto a Word document. Edit further as appropriate, then attach to an email sent to our Editor. All photos also can be added to the mail as separate attachments. The next thing you know, its in the magazine pages!

If you need any help, just let us know.

Mike

Hi Mike, I did as you suggested a few weeks ago but no response as yet. I expect Nigel is busy, or maybe does not think the story is right for the magazine. We shall see.

I am continuing with some tatesful modifications... I have purchased a complete wood trim interior which I am having hydro dipped in Piano black. I think this will look very smart and make the interior a bit more modern.

Regards, Les.

[J44EAG]

Nigel has a huge mail bag, Les. He doesn`t always respond until he begins to bring up any copy for immediate insertion into the magazine. This is quite normal and is nothing to be concerned about.

I`ll be chatting to Nigel again shortly and will try to ascertain when your material is likely to go to press. S-type material is currently a bit thin on the ground so I would expect your story will not take long to make an appearance.

Thanks for taking the trouble to write up your car. It should make a good splash in the Forum pages.

All the best.

Mike

[Ladams]

Thank you Mike, I thought that might be the case so I will be patient.

I will submit pictures of the new interior when completed which may take a couple of weeks.

Best wishes, Les.

[Ladams]

It would be good to have this story in the magazine, Les. Material is currently a bit thin on the ground at Nigel`s end.

Easy to do. Cut and paste onto a Word document. Edit further as appropriate, then attach to an email sent to our Editor. All photos also can be added to the mail as separate attachments. The next thing you know, its in the magazine pages!

If you need any help, just let us know.

Mike

Hi Mike, the new interior is now finished and I have submitted an article with hi-res pictures which I sent via "we transfer" a few days ago as the original email was too large. It hasn't been downloaded yet but my fingers are crossed

Les.

[J44EAG]

High res images soon fill a standard email to overfill, Les.

If I find myself sending a large number of images or those with high Mb size to Nigel, then I try to break the total send down into several more manageable email batches. ie Mail 1, Mail 2, Mail 3 etc but all with the same title heading so Nigel can see what has been supplied in relation to a particular article.

As far as I`m aware, the majority of email systems will only stomach about 15Mb by way of data in any one email. If in doubt, tot up each image Mb size as you load a mail. That way you can have some idea as to the Mb volume you are adding to before sending your mail and avoid those frustrating ping backs which say it is not possible to deliver your mail because of its large bulk.

When I send my stuff to Nigel, I`ll attach my Word or Open Office document first. That makes it easy for Nigel to immediately take a sneek look at the contents and thrust of the article. You can help him further by just writing a couple of paragraphs in the email text box telling him the subject, the general story and the number of words contained in your text. The word counter on Word or OOD gives that information. Try to save the document in 97-2000 .doc format. Most of us still use that old format as most modern computers and indeed even XP machines recognise that format.

As I then load the images, I take the last three numeric digits from each JPG image and list each one in my text note to Nigel. This helps him recognise and identify a particular image and use a caption which I also provide. ie

JPG images and captions.
JPG592. "This shot depicts the dismantled air compressor pump having had its cylinder head removed for overhaul. Note the worn piston ring and the considerable quantity of oxidized aluminium corrosive deposit found between the cylinder head and the compressor body. " etc, etc.

JPG374. "Here we see the......" And so on.

Obviously the higher the resolution volume, the fewer images you will be able to load before your email sending capacity becomes overwhelmed.

Depending on Nigels work load, editorial daily progress plan, hols, meetings, shows, visits away from base etc, Nigel may not open or look at emails for a while. Always title your mail subject as fully as possible so that Nigel can clearly see what subject your mail refers to. He can then easily put S-type material in his S-type "storage bin" for ready use when he comes to look for good material for the next magazine edition or other future editions. Rendered material may not immediately be used because Nigel might also have had material supplied from other members which may have been sent a few months earlier. Rest assured though, that most material usually finds its way into the magazine eventually. Popularity of a particular model also dictates how much members material is produced. Sometimes though, material can be very scarce whereas another model might generate a flood of members material for future publication.

Hope that helps.

Mike

[Popsjag]

"Popularity of a particular model also dictates how much members material is produced. Sometimes though, material can be very scarce whereas another model might generate a flood of members material for future publication."

In your case, Mike, definitely a flood of material! I don't know how you find time to sleep - oh, mind you, that's when you get your brainwaves!!