1968 E Type FHC (RF)
Driver restoration
Restoration Log by Dan Mooney



 
 

 
Specification (briefly) for this project is as follows:

Total restoration with significant performance and reliability upgrades, including a 4.7L Stage Two engine. Car will be finished in British Racing Green with Suede Green Suffolk & Turley hides.



 

 

Update report - November 27, 2019
Another restoration wrapped up just in time for the holidays! The following photos were taken earlier this week during final road testing.













































It was great to see you the other day! It is high time I uploaded some photos of the interior restoration for you, so here they are! Suede Green really is one of my favorite options for a Jaguar interior. You will see below that I compared the color of the new Suffolk & Turley hides to an original 1960's vintage Connolly swatch. The original Connolly hide part number for Suede Green was VM3510.

We will be firing the engine and running the car on the chassis dyno in the next week or so.



Always fun when our customers visit to check
on progress!
Suede Green Suffolk & Turley interior kit










1960's Connolly swatch book
The original Connolly part number for Suede Green










S&T hide an excellent match for the original
Seats are now trimmed and ready to install











Hector has been busy trimming the luggage boards










Engine bay now pretty much complete
Time to test run the car on the chassis dyno!




Engine and drive train now installed.






















Rebuilt IRS has now been installed and car is back on its (slave) wheels for the first time in a long time!








We have now installed the engine frames and the engine bay is filling up rapidly.



Installing the engine frames











IRS has been fully rebuilt
Engine bay filling up rapidly




I am delighted to report that we have now completed the painting process.




Gerardo preparing to apply 3M Rocker Guard
to the front inner wheel arches











Underside of the bonnet now British Racing Green
The body and doors being set up in the booth
for painting






















The bodyshell is now BRG
Body moved to the mechanical workshop for
reassembly











Next job will be to install the engine frames and
front suspension




Every piece of chrome throughout the entire car has been re-plated.





















I am pleased to report that the majority of the bodywork has now been completed and the car has been coated with Spies Hecker Raderal polyester primer.



Car is now ready for Raderal polyester primer
At this stage the panel gaps have been finalized










Masking the body and bonnet prior to priming











Raderal polyester primer now applied











Doors and tailgate are installed for blocking purposes
Another freshly minted E Type body!




Your suede green Suffolk & Turley interior kit laid out in the CJ trim room earlier today.









The stripped body has now been sealed in epoxy primer and the guys in the trim room have been busy restoring your dash panels.




Preparing to seal the bare metal bodyshell










Outer body now sealed with epoxy primer
Rebuilt gauges










Dash panels have been restored in the trim room












Refinished heater box




We have now stripped all the old paint, primer and bondo from the bodyshell. I am happy to report there were no nasty surprises lurking beneath the paint!









When embarking upon any bare metal repaint project, there is always some degree of trepidation about what we might find lurking beneath trim, carpets, and ultimately beneath several layers of paint and body filler. Unfortunately, more often than not, we uncover major corrosion issues that can significantly affect the scope of the project. On this occasion, I am delighted to report that the structural condition of your car appears to be remarkably solid. In fact, the main floors, inner sills and boot floor are as solid as you could ever hope to find in a 50 year old E Type!



Stripping away as much of the interior as
necessary to repair/replace footwells












Draining gad tank prior to storage mean the
original tank is in great shape!










Factory applied cosmoline still on spare wheel
Boot floor is bone dry and appears to be rust free










Main cabin floors are extremely (unusually) solid
New Team CJ alloy bonnet has already been fitted




Your firewall has now been stripped, repaired and repainted.



Repaired firewall sealed in epoxy primer
Stabilizer bracket now repaired and welded
back in place










4 coats of Old English White has the firewall
looking like new again
Nickel plated suspension and brake components




I am delighted to report that your Stage Two 4.7L engine rebuild has now been completed!



Preparing the main caps for an align hone











Align hone in progress
Main caps following the align hone










Measuring forged stroker pistons prior to
torque plate honing process












Balancing the billet stroked crank










Surfacing the block with timing
chain cover installed











Preparing components for final assembly
Carrillo rods and forged CJ pistons










Beautiful billet RBR oil pump











Measuring the deck height (zero)











Assembling the short block











Custom Cometic head gasket











Another Stage Two 4.7L stroker build completed!
Time to get the engine bay ready for the rebuilt
engine!





















To be continued!
Repair panel now welded in place





Lots of progress in the CJ engine shop...




Tearing down the cylinder head
Measuring cam saddle warpage (.015)










Machining cam cover rails
Custom CJ valve seats installed










Honing valve guides
Magnaflux crack checking block










Very healthy gains on the flow bench
following our portwork
Measuring custom top hat liners










Exhaust runner after porting
Porting intake runner picked up more than 50 cfm










Machining out old sleeves
Some minor cracks will be taken care of during
re-sleeving process










Machining exhaust gasket flange
Surfacing deck of cylinder head





I am delighted to report that we have this exciting new project underway. This car will receive a total mechanical rebuild featuring a host of high performance reliability upgrades. Once finished, this will be one of the fastest road legal E Types in the world.



Chris about to remove your engine and transmission











Car has a much earlier picture frame
Rear stabilizer bracket has been subjected to
some industrial welding in the past










Home made bonnet hinge
Engine and transmission rebuild already underway


Go to main CJ workshop