New headliner

I really wish I had some photos to show how horrible the old headliner was. It was sagging down so low that it would rest on your head when you sat in the car. You couldn't even see rear passengers from the front seat. You had to hold it up with one hand to see anything from the rear view mirror.

A workshop charges around $800 to do the job. It involves either removing the rear window or front seats and taking the roof biscuit out . The fabric is then glued to the biscuit and then installed into the car. Easily 8 hours of work.

I didn't want to take the car apart just to put in a new headliner and I wasn't about to spend $800 bucks on it. Being the first time I've ever done anything like this I knew it wouldn't be perfect but I'd be content with just doing it myself if I could do a semi-decent job of it.

Pulling off the old headliner was child's play. It was only really still stuck on at the edges. A lot of glue residue was then brushed off using old paint brushes. I then wiped the surface with a wet cloth and allowed it to dry.

The material and glue cost me a total of $20. With the help of a friend, it took about 3 hours to scrape off the residue and glue on the new material. Even wearing masks it was quite intoxicating gluing the headliner while in the car.














Its definitely not perfect. But I'm happy. I think when I get round to redying the seats I'll stick something nice like sued or alcantara ontop of the current material. A thicker material is a lot easier to glue without getting kinks.

2010 All British Car Day (ABCD)

55,000 miles

The Jag just rolled 55,000 miles today (Canada Day!). After installing the new ignition amplifier the car has started running much better. However there was still a backfire from the rear left carburettor. The backfire can only be caused by a sticking exhaust valve as the timing and mixture are set correctly.







A fellow Ottawa Jaguar Club member suggested I try a product called "Guaranteed to Pass". He and some others have had great success using this product when doing their emissions test.

I had nothing to lose and as such I tried it out. I poured it into a full tank of fuel and went for a long drive. After 50miles of highway driving, the sticky exhaust valve seems to have freed itself as the backfire has completely gone now. I'm very happy with the result and I recommend the product to anyone trying to delay a top-end rebuild. Its called CRC "Guaranteed to Pass" and I bought it from CanadianTire.

The engine is running the smoothest it has ever run since I got the car. There is still quite a bit of valve chatter but overall the strong oil pressure is reassuring that I'm on the right track.
I will have to do a valve adjustment soon. I'd like to do it this year, but feeling lazy. Its a very time consuming job just to get down to the valve covers, let alone do an adjustment on 24 valves.

I've taken the car to both "16 Service" and "Autobahn" in Manotick for a valve adjustment but both of them refused to even touch the car. Mechanics these days are so pathetic. All they seem to be able to do is replace parts. Actual hard mechanical work is becoming very rare. Anyways, if you want something done right, you do it yourself.