Faster, quieter, quicker to stop
At the end of September I really enjoyed the XK on the Octane Hotel de France Tour (sponsored by EFG Private Bank) through France and around the utterly beautiful La Chartre-sur-le-Loir, staying at the perfectly restored Hotel de France.
The Jaguar is just perfect for these long road trips. It will whistle along fast roads in quiet, overdrive comfort and then attack more challenging country lanes with enthusiasm, thanks to its grunty 3.8-litre engine, quick gearbox, sharp rack-and-pinion steering and narrow footprint.
It was carefully prepared by Classic Motor Cars of Bridgnorth prior to the Octane Tour at the Holyroodhouse Palace Concours of Elegance, in early September, as well as the following French Tour, but Nick Goldthorp had advised me to have a few things attended to this winter. So now the Jaguar is back at CMC.
As I mentioned last month, the rear axle needed a new nearside halfshaft and wheel hub, due to some injudicious bodging. With that done it became apparent that the rear springs were worn and moving laterally under the chassis. The XK’s rear suspension is alarmingly simple: solid axle bolted onto two leaf springs, which are attached to the chassis fore and aft. As you can imagine, the spring mounting points are critical as they take all the forces, so the worn spring eyes have been replaced. The CMC team also discovered a rusted section on the rear nearside chassis rail. That obviously does not help with rear suspension location, either. New metal means the rear chassis section is now as firm as new.
With new front brake pads and rear shoes fitted just before the 800-mile blast around France, I had to take things gently. The brakes did not feel as sharp as usual but, after a couple of hundred miles on the tour, I took a few moments early one morning to adjust the rear shoes. This ‘spannering’ was conducted in the famous Hotel de France courtyard, where John Wyer’s team Astons, GT40s and Porsche 917s were fettled by the Le Mans race mechanics. Pulling up the rear shoes helped but it seems there remains an issue with the brake servo, which the CMC team are now rectifying.
Engine-wise, the XK is running beautifully thanks to new HT leads and a good tune-up at CMC. The engine is very quiet and, being stretched from 3.4 litres as a result of lipped competition liners (important, as they preserve the block’s torsional rigidity) and lightweight pistons, it revs ever so smoothly. All this attention is improving the XK’s performance and civility and, in fact, it’s now so genteel I’m thinking of fitting straight-though exhaust pipes for a little more aural stimulation. Please talk me out of it!
thAnks to CMC, www.classicmotor-cars.co.uk; Hotel de France, www.lhoteldefrance.fr.