1948 1-1/2 liter Jaguar Saloon - Some Improvements

[msabbasi]

after being coupled (welded) the everpresent Mrs Zulfiqar Naqvi has taken up that duty.

Best choice was to get build your outdoor arsenal of tools. Include MAPP gas torch in those tools.

My welded unit is a landscape painter. She has converted one of the bedrooms into her studio. I on the other hand am confined to a 3mX3m space. All my stuff has to fit in that space. The justification of her having a proper work place is that her work generates cash while my work sucks up cash. We live in a 3500sft apartment with a two car parking space. So for the time being I have cannot call the garage my kingdom although I'd love to have a work space where I could set things on fire without being shouted at:)

[yasirsa]

nice and very well written abbasi sab (y) the brake shoe look thin to me but as you mention they are just 15k driven there would be independent adjustment for each drum i guess for balancing brake adjustment ?

[msabbasi]

Front brake is fixed back but road test is not conducted so I don't know if the problem is resolved or not. Road test will have to wait until I get the front suspension sorted out. Found a few problems here. First, the rubber bushes of the link rod connecting the shock absorbers to the front axle were shot (causing a rattling sound). Second, oil level in the shock absorber too low making its action erratic. The third job is to build spring gaiters for the front springs. The third job is a low priority one and will be done at a later date once I get the car running properly.

Jobs done so far: Removed the shock absorber out of the car cleaned up the muck on it (outside). Opened up the top cover, drained out the old Girling shock absorber oil. This has to be done because the old oil level is too low and needs topping up. The oil I have with me (CHF 11S) cannot be mixed with the old mineral based oil. So flushed the insides of the shock with CHF 11S prior to final filling. Flushing process is filling the shock with new oil, turning it upside down and operating the lever a few times through its entire stroke until no more oil comes out.

Shock all painted and looking pretty. Filler plug and top cover pointed out

More pictures below:

[msabbasi]

Some bad news. After refilling the shock absorbers, I set it a side to see if it leaks any oil before it went on the car. Unfortunately I have a leak from the shaft seal. See the picture below. Now I have to figure out a way to rectify the leak without destroying the shock absorber. I have done a bit of research into the repair procedures. Here is one guy who rebuild his shock absorbers (similar to mine) but on a MG TC: Rebuilding Luvax Girling Shock absorbers. Presently I am trying to track down freeze plugs and seals in inch sizes. Not too easy I might add. I suspect I'll have to alter the shock dimensions to accept mm seals and freeze plugs.

See the puddle of oil to the left of the screwdriver. That is after about two or three hours of standing in this position - Not acceptable

[yasirsa]

great going abbasis sab

[msabbasi]

great going abbasis sab

Thanks Yaser Sb. tomorrow being Saturday, I plan to head out to Pindi (Insha Allah) and see what i can find.

[basic]

BOL Abbasi sb.

[msabbasi]

BOL Abbasi sb.

Thank you for your good wishes and word of encouragement Nadeem Sb.

[msabbasi]

Went about the Pindi market auto market and found zero parts in the reqired inch sizes:(. Had no other option but to get parts in the nearest mm sizes. This was expected. So what I got is off my 0.2mm.

1 - The seal ID is tight by 0.2mm
2 - The seal OD is about the right size as measured 33.3mm (however I expect this to be a bit loose when fitted)
3 - Freeze plug is loose by .5mm

So it seems there is some work for my lath shop walla. As little alteration to the scock will be done. Tomorrow (Insha Allah) I'll take the shock absorber apart.

The thing that one has to be kept in mind is that the pressure generated within the shock during its operation is not seen by the seal (original sealing is by a felt ring).

[msabbasi]

Today I was able to remove the rear cover. As per what I read about it, the way to do so was to drill in the disc and carefully chisel it out. That was done and here is the (destroyed disc and the fibber gasket behind it.

After seeing the disc and its construction, my idea of using 28mm freeze plugs will not work. I now plan to get the biggest freeze plug possible maybe 35mm and machine out the exact required size from it.

Here is what I have in mind (please excuse the crude photo shop). If my lathe guy can get this centre bit out without trouble, I'll be a happy man. This will have to be a one shot operation. No mistakes allowed

[msabbasi]

Today I was able to remove the arm/shaft assembly out of the shock absorber body. But before that could be done, all the components had to be centre punched so as to mark their positions with respect to each other for correct assembly.

In this picture you will see the green arrows don't line up. That is because I forgot to take a picture before dismantling the shock. I have temporarily inserted the shaft for taking this picture

Shaft/arm assembly is out of the shock

Close up of the old seal. Note the direction of the seal. Very interesting. The pressure side of the seal is facing away from the oil. Why is that? :S. The answer to that question is that by doing so, there is purposely a small amount of oil meant to leak out. I am deliberately cancelling this feature after discussing the matter with the Jaguar club. Seal will be installed facing the oil side

New seal goes in. Since this seal is a bit smaller in OD. I have applied a bit of epoxy to make up 0.3 mm clearance between the housing and seal. In this way I have not altered the housing in any way. It still retains factory dimensions. Maybe I can find the correct seals at a later date

[yasirsa]

Silicon is better sealer against oil and water rest you know the actual satuation

Sent from my LT26i using PW Forums mobile app

[msabbasi]

Silicon is better sealer against oil and water rest you know the actual satuation

Sent from my LT26i using PW Forums mobile app

The seal is a pretty tight fit on the shaft. If I used silicone, there was a chance of the seal to move about in the housing. Epoxy has both properties of sealing as well as adhesive. That is the same stuff I used to repair my radiator earlier. Only time will tell if my experiment was successful or not. Shock is almost ready. Final paint and leak test remain. Insha Allah if the leak test passes, then it goes back on the car and then the road test. Same time I'll also test the brakes.

[msabbasi]

The job of replacing the shock seal is completed and now leak test is in progress. If no leak by tomorrow morning, then it goes back on the car and a road test will follow. Insh Allah.

[msabbasi]

Thankfully the leak of the shock is arrested. I fitted it back this morning and later took the car out for a drive. With this shock working to spec made a world of difference. Replacing the shock link bushes has ended that rattling noises from the front left of the car. Going over undulating road at speed used to previously make the car uncomfortable now almost unnoticeable. I am now beginning to think of taking the other three out and doing the same job to them as well. For one, they do not have the same viscosity oil in them as this one. So I'll begin by doing his brother on the right side so that both front ones match each other. No postings on this thread will be done covering the job on the remaining three shocks as it is the exact same job already covered.

The brakes were tested too and performed really quite well. My 26 year old son sitting next to me had to brace himself when I braked hard during the test (of course I warned him before braking). I have to say it has powerful brakes for it's time but these are no match to the power assisted four wheel disc brakes of today. Earlier I had to compensate for the car pulling violently to the left but now it stops dead straight. Another plus is the absence of the groaning brake noises it had earlier. When I restored that car initially about a year ago the brakes were not too bad but over the last year they had become progressively dangerous. With brakes in this condition I had stopped using the car. If I did take it out, it was just up to the local shopping Markaz about 1/2 km away during early morning when there is no traffic at all.

After the completion of these two jobs, the car has become infinitely more enjoyable and drivable. Yet another improvement.

[msabbasi]

A small update: Work is progressing well on the right front shock. Brake job on the right front side to follow (same as the left side) even though there are no problems therein; just worried if there is grease about to find its way onto the brake linings.

[msabbasi]

Sharing a picture I didn't share earlier.

The area around the filler hole looks dirty but it has been cleaned with petrol and then with thinner to make sure no dirt goes into the shock along with the oil

[msabbasi]

Another small update: After the shock has been repaired to my satisfaction, it is back on the car .... and the front left brake as been opened. After seeing its condition, I am a bit surprised why it too was not misbehaving like the right side one was. Maybe it would have in a few months. Good thing I opened it up.

[madhouse12]

a stitch in time saves nine!

[msabbasi]

a stitch in time saves nine!

Another update. Front right brake has been cleaned up, de-greased and fitted. Tomorrow, Insha Allah will be going for a road test. If all goes well, I will be taking out the front leaf spring. Once again, since, the job will be essentially similar to the rear spring (page 1 through 3), I will not cover it in great detail. Perhaps I'll just post before and after pics of the front springs.

In the holy month of Ramzan pace of work is a bit slow. My energy level falls off sharply after Zohar time. So what ever I plan for myself has to be done in the morning time:)