Jaguar XJS V12 Tackling the Cooling System

Hello all! I've been very busy lately learning the XJS as I go, and I can't complain so far.
The biggest issue facing the V12 is cooling it. The radiator has been sent off to be recored, that should be done by the end of the week. In this video I briefly detail how I gained access to the radiator, and got it out.
Some parts I've missed, but feel free to contact me and I will go over any questions you may have.
I went to Welsh Enterprises for majority of my parts, speak to Eddie and Amy, they are very helpful.
For my thermostats with the 12:00 jiggle pin I went with JagBits.
So far I am waiting for more parts to arrive and I can commence the reassembly and tackling the ignition system. This is a huge project and I am no where near done! Stay tuned for more.

[poopie]

Hi! I have 3 v12 Jaguars and one of them is a 87 XJS. I used this video to tackle my cooling system. It took me 3 days but it runs perfect and very cool now. I didn’t replace the original radiator but had it reconditioned. THANK YOU! very informative and concise!

[bernhardlist]

Hi, I just took my E-Type V-12 engine apart because there was also a lot of dirt and a clicking noise which I had blamed on valve gap. What it actually was, I had 4 cylinders with broken piston rings. On the way of disassembly I found more than 2 cups of sand and 11 thumbsize pieces of neopren hose neatly deposited around the rear cylinders. The ignition was converted to another electronic system but they never installed a ballast resistor so the RPM reached its limit around 3500RPM. There was a lot more but that would fill a small book. Amazing was that the car was still driving good (at least up to the RPM limit)
Conclusion: it was more work than anticipated but when I am done I know it is like new again ready for the next 100k miles.
Wish you all the luck and check the compression (leak down test) and use a thermo-camera (Flir 1 Pro for the iPhone does a good job) to see how the heat distribution is around the engine (stuck thermostat .... there are two so one bad one can be overlooked easily)
Greetings Bernhard

[KennethITGuru]

Excellent video! I definately agree that the topside and possibly the front while you have access should be thoroughly cleaned before you proceed to the next step. Slow but steady wins the race because if any debris falls into a spark plug hole you're done. Game over. Not to mention that for these V12's to stay cool, they need to be clean or the sludge/dirt acts like an insulator and heat cannot escape. Not sure why you wouldn't want to keep your cruise control present after all the repairs. That's a nice feature for highway cruising. Also, definitely keep the smog pump on the engine. If you ever sell the car in the future, people want originality when it comes to these cars. Not to mention those same people get scared off if they think the car has been altered and might not pass emissions testing.

[tollyt]

You should always replace the rusty holding brackets and any other rusting fixings on an Xjs or they rot away and cause serious damage to the surrounding areas. Also if there's any issue with the cooling system on the V12, do a full chemical flush of the whole system or any gunk build up in the system will negate all the work you've done and cause overheating. It's a false economy not to do it. Otherwise very good video on how to do the job.

[purelofisounds]

Just bought an 86 that I'm trying to resto mod a little. Mine only has 75k miles and I would love to keep the original engine, just doesn't run, but not sure on how to really beef it up and make it more powerful. Or which parts to use haha. Very complicated engine to understand.

[pauldavies]

My car has been sitting for 5 to 10 years in a orchard and I have a mouse nest under the cruise control bellow, at least I hope its a mouse, what a mess they leave .

[jellypitzdude]

I have a 92 v12 that is over heatings and i cant figure out what it is. And my big radiator fan is blowing hot air into my toward the engine. And it gets stuck on zero rpms and goes back normal when it feels like it. Any tips?

[spartanreaper]

im having the same problem with a bunch of dirt and crap in my spark plug holes making it impossible to get the plugs out without it falling it, did you use a vacuum and pick at it or what?