Hoovie's Garage - 1966 Jaguar E-Type
 

You have to go on Youtube and catch the latest edition of Hoovie's garage, which shows Tyler's latest acquisition, a BRG 1966 Jaguar E-Type roadster, sporting whitewall tires, a not-uncommon tire choice for US-residing E-Types of the day. A little bit of a spoiler alert in that Tyler gives those whitewalls a proper roasting through injudicious application of the throttle and some adept sidestepping of the clutch pedal. He should probably google "wire wheel hub splines" before he makes a habit of doing this...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kwj9dkxFkD0

I owned a '64 E-Type years ago. I like to tell the story of when I tried to sell it to the Jaguar dealer in Walnut Creek for $4000 and they did not want it. Black plate SoCal car.

Was a good watch...

I’ll give him credit for apologizing to the car for the burn outs, I guess if that’s all he ever does he can be forgiven. I don’t think I’d put that kind of stress on equipment that old and well preserved. No need to tempt fate for cheap thrills.

That said, it was an entertaining watch to be sure. I of course have heard horror stories of various aspects of lower quality than expected. I saw an XJS a while back at the boneyard with an excellent body, couple small dings, the seats looked mint. And yet, there it was at the boneyard.

I looked into buying one of these back in the early 70s but since I lived in Texas it was not something I could use. The problem with the early cars overheating could not, at that time, be overcome.

That and few of these came with A/C.

But I loved watching Tyler's video. His honesty at just what he has makes one happy for his find.

I’ve posted before about my fortunate early experience with an XKE. In Roswell, New Mexico my best friend’s father bought a 2+2, it was in ‘66 or ‘67 I’m pretty sure, I got to ride in it a couple of times, me and my buddy in the back “seat“ with our knees in our throats.

I didn’t realize at the time that the 2+2 is sort of funny looking compared to the two seater models, but the inside experience was still plenty good. I got a real kick out of that car.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2xoO43u32pg

So the second video in the series is out. Although it's nice to see younger people taking an interest in vintage cars, I think this guy needs a new hobby. This is a car that's going to need a complete bumper to bumper tear down and rebuild. The little spot of rust on the left dogleg used to be a fatal condition, before these cars became too valuable to scrap. This isn't just a skin panel, as it is with most cars. The sill is the primary tub structure, and at the dogleg, it intersects with a crosswise box section. they tend to rust from the inside out. I don't understand the hand-made floors, as this was never a flat floor car, and even if the panels needed replacing, they never went out of production. Hand making those panels would have cost three times what off the shelf metal would have cost, I don't get it.

The rear main seal leak is a big f'n deal. Contrary to what Mr Wizard thinks, a slim jim has no shot. The repair will require removing the bonnet, then pulling the engine and transmission as a unit. The transmission, flywheel and clutch are then removed and the motor flipped onto a stand. The oil pan, timing cover and bearing caps need to be removed so that the crank can be pulled. Bearing clearance needs to be checked, because sloppy mains could have caused the leak. And then a new seal installed using the proper sizing tool. Or the crank can be machined to accept a modern lip seal. And replace the front main at the same time, because it's next.

There 's a long list of while-the-engine-is-outs that need to be addressed. First on the list is a new clutch and resurface the flywheel, because an oily clutch is a bad clutch.The release bearing should be replaced at the same time, because it's a $50 part that can't be replaced with the engine in the car. Replace all the hoses (there are a LOT of hoses, coolant, hydraulic, vacuum, brake and breather on an E-Type). There are coolant pipes that run through the bulkhead that should be replaced with stainless while the engine is out. Then may as well drop the rear and install fresh brakes and seal the diff, and with the whole drivetrain out, that's the time to address the rust and paint, and that's where we get to money squared.

The lesson here is that, as with all cars, the most expensive example is a cheap car. This isn't the cheapest original E-Type, it's a down payment on an expensive restored E-Type. Don't buy an exotic without a professional opinion.

The car probably sat for a long time, allowing the rope seal to dry out. Then a new enthusiastic owner romps on the car a bit, allowing the spinning crank to abrade the dry seal and allow the engine to reprise the grounding of the Exxon Valdez...

If I had the funds, I would definitely put some money into this car, particularly if it is confirmed that the engine and paint color are original to the car. 1966 and 1967 were arguably the best years of any generation of the E-Type (Series II? Yecch!), and a 1966 BRG roadster has nowhere to go but up in terms of value.

I love the look of a E type especially the coupe. I agree that abusing it makes no sense.

I like Tyler, I respect what he put together, but there is an element of “easy come, easy go” in his routine. If he had sweat a little harder to get the vehicle, might have looked into the details a bit more.

These rope seals will last a long time. I can see why the auto makers quit using them as they have to be hammered into place by a skilled worker.

Jag would have such people then. I know Mercedes must have had such folks because the rear seal on my 6.3 was a rope seal. And it lasted for 160,000 miles.

But replacing it was $$$$$$$.

You have to consider the theme of his channel, which is car enthusiast makes rash purchase, then gets hosed. If he only purchased cars which ran like clockwork, viewership and channel income would definitely go down.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fHu3aaKIcQ0


If getting hosed was the goal, mission accomplished. The rear main seal really does work, if it's installed correctly.

Frank mentioned earlier the only correct way to do this was to pull the engine, removed the crank, etc.

And he was right. The latest video on this shows that the rope seal was replaced without doing this and it is still leaking.

When the seal on my 6.3 went I was shocked at what was involved in replacing such a simple part. But with a rope seal it is not simple to replace. It is simple to install when the engine is being built but back in those days, when you were lucky to get 85,000 miles out of a car and hitting 100,000 was an event, automakers didn't think about replacing a component that was surely going to outlast the rest of the car.

Some late 60s economic thinking: My friends would buy American cars. Nice ones but still American to the core. Everything was worn out by 90,000 miles. But that didn't matter because you would have replaced it long before then.

People thought I was nuts to pay so much for a German car that would last an easy 150,000 miles. They would point out that while I paid $6500 for a car they paid only 4500. They could easily afford to buy a new car when their got old.

I told them to consider the advice you would get from the Rolls Royce salesman: Yes, the first one is expensive. After that the next one, with your trade in, was less in cost than any American car.

It also helps to keep in mind that the cost to maintain a German car, or a Royce, is far beyond the cost of an American car. Today a routine maintenance job on a 6.3 or a 600 is close to $15,000 at the dealer.