CHRISTINE'S LAIR
WEEK 7
28th July - race day.
The bootlid, an old, old fibreglass one now on its third car, is so rippled that no amount of primer is ever going to fix it, we have to accept that some things remain imperfect and there’s little point trying to do otherwise.
Interior wiring gets tidied, lots of tie wraps, cable clips and general merriment. Steering column goes in, and a pop rivet session to close all holes into the transmission tunnel with alloy pieces. Chequerplate goes into the driver’s floorpan, shortened this time after our woes with a sticking clutch pedal in the past.
Master switch fitted in securely, and the cut-off cable connected. At this point the extinguisher cable seizes solid for no reason. Joy.
With the inside about done we fit the windscreen. Not a fast or easy task, but it’s in. Screen trim refitted, then the wiper panel can go on. Electrics switched on, and what we call the smoke test. No wiring produces any smoke. That’s the David in action you see.
Distributor cap and rotor arm replaced. Bear sorts the electric water pump plumbing, the hidden cost being the mods to the existing pump, adds another £40 to the project. Nasty.
Driver’s seat and harnesses go in, and we have a cockpit again.
Doors and front wings get paint only Friday lunchtime, they’re barely dry before they’re hung. Front bumper takes mesh, that neat stainless kind looks so clean in a Jag front we’re converts to the cause, no more alloy for us in future. Fitted, and the car looks like a car again.
Last job is to fit the bonnet and boot. Simply laid in place and holes drilled for the pins. Easier for the boot, the front hooks under alloy plates, only the two rears to do. The bonnet is more scientific, you can’t just randomly pop holes down into the engine bay, you’ll hit something vital, but the same principal applies. 6 bonnet pins and we’re done.
Mad rush then with rivets and tape and silicone, attaching door cards, sealing holes, anything that shouldn’t be a hole to the outside world or through a firewall, what we’d call a scrutineering check.
We have electricity, fuel, lubricants and water, time to push the button and have her burst into life. Fingers crossed, toes crossed, Bear has even plaited his fur. But we don’t have a dizzy. Stewert forgot to bring it last weekend, and this one is bent, so we’re boned, we can’t test fire the car.
Of course having left booking a test day til we knew we’d have a car ready we find it’s now full, we’re 3rd reserve. We’re taking a new, untested car to a track the driver’s never been to, and hoping for the best. Shoot me now.
So at 2am Friday morning we pronounce the car finished.
At 7am it’s loaded and we’re en route to Silverstone. Very tired, hungry, we’ve no food packed, no provisions of any kind, just fuel, tools, race gear and 2 cars. The mechanical members of the team are looked after better than the organic.
At 9.30 with the intervention of chief engineer Christine fires up in the paddock, first push of the button. 6 weeks since we started to strip the shell to bursting to life as a race car. 7 days and 13 hours since Alex put the paint on the bare shell. We think that’s quite good.
A quick squirt round the paddock and nothing leaks, hangs off, explodes or breaks. It simply works. He takes to the track with no further ado, and despite orders to gently shake the car down he’s in the mid-pack pace instantly. Some might say that demonstrates how poor the mid-pack pace is. We think it shows how good the car is out of the box.
The amusing thing is no-one seems to know it’s a new car. It looks like the old one, just a bit cleaner, they don’t know that it’s stronger, stiffer, lighter, faster and that it’s been thrown together in a week. We see no need to tell them. Those that matter already know.
The second test session of the day and Bear doesn’t pick the pace up as much as he might. He’s 3 seconds faster it’s true, but he’s too concerned about pranging the new car to really commit.
So the race gods punish him. The old classic we’ve seen at least 4 of this season in the Jaguar paddock, the rear hub breaks. Not only does it break, but it then shatters the disc and the entire wheel comes off. Worse, the wheel flubbers free, still at full speed, bounces, arcs into the air and lands on the front wing. It’s not had paint on it 24 hours yet, and it’s now got a rubberised ding in it.
That’s test day over for the red devil then, and it’s ironic that it’s done for because of something totally unrelated to the crash or the rebuild.
Christine arrives on the back of a lorry, with the aid of XJ Motor Services she has a new rear hub before 5pm, and she’s back in action.
To race day then, which is where the rebuild story stops and the Bear’s tail, sorry, tale, begins…
Most played in the garage this week – we have no idea. What day is it?
Injury of the week – we don't know, we're bleeding a lot, but who and why, pass?
Helper of the week – Mr David, again.
Week 7, sleep is called off until further notice, but by Christ, we made it.
Doors were bare-metalled and take a while to remedy the underlying fluctuations in the metal, but more sweat and a pile of sandpaper and they accept that they can be smooth. Door handles etc refitted, minus the locks of course, why would we want those?
With the large mechanicals all bolted in and oil, atf, clutch and brake fluid added, that’s when we find that in the 2 months since Mallory the master cylinder has let go, we can’t bleed it. The fluid that leaks out is a nasty, noisome black., dead seals, no question.
A quick call to series sponsor Martin Robey comes up with nothing, out of stock. A call to my usual supplier, British Parts, shows it in stock on the website but the salesman without any clue that they even sold them, and a promise to call back that never comes. This is the part about racing Jaguars that annoys me a bit, it’s getting the bits. Were we playing with MGs we could have a dozen of them here by morning, but Jags just aren’t supported in the same way.
Happily, should have thought of it first really, a call to Classic Spares and the ever-helpful Ray Ingham, and bingo, one m/c on the way there and then, sorted.
8pm Thursday
Moments after engine start.
Man hours this week: 100 ish
Alcohol units consumed - about 2
Swear words per hour - 1500+
2am Friday
some dodgy mobile phone pics this week, sorry.