C type build
Entry posted by CL290005
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Well just to give you a bit of understanding on how I got to this
I consider myself a bit of a petrol head, I studied mechanical engineering but have a reasonable understanding of most things I have completed 3 kits to date, first been a Robin Hood with Redtop engine using a manta gearbox on twin 45's, then had a bit of a break from Kits as I tried motorbikes for a bit but found out even though I have a love for bikes they were not for me, (I was too scared worrying all the time about would I get home in one piece)
Then I returned buying my first Westfield which had a RS1.8 silvertop this soon was modified but the urge for more power saw that get removed and in went a ST170 with stage 3 head and a megasquirt ( I hear a few growns) ecu with a set of Hayabusa throttle bodies, the gearbox was changed to a straight cut and had a twin plate clutch (nightmare on road) this did not las long.
After a good few years with this I was looking again for another project when I came across my current Westfield which had a poorly running engine due to the carb setup, this was ideal for me as I wanted to put an Ecoboost engine in, Ive always been of the opinion a Westfield should be a small engine and these modern engines are truly amazing. So lots of planning research saw me talking with a few members who were on similar paths, so a steep learning curve as there was almost no information out there on the net to help. so some of the decisions were trial and error, I had hoped to get it completed so I could take to Stoneleigh but that was not going to happen due to contracting a really bad cold (worst I have ever had) anyway this project was completed and I took it to the classic at Silverstone. I am still impressed with this car drives great so I intend to keep this.
Where we live there are some great classic events so my thoughts went should I buy a classic I looked around and could not find anything which really took me there were some close calls E type, TR5 and 6 but then I saw a C type and fell in love with it everybody I talked too agreed on its beauty, so I was sold, next job was to get my wife to sign up to the project. Oh I could not afford a genuine so Kit manufactures were googled, then the decision should I have a GRP or aluminium body, well this became a no brainer I was not going to pay at least another 30k for an alloy body as lets face it this will always be looked at as a kit, plus the GRPbody is more durable to stone chips etc.
So the decision was made Realm Engineering 3 visits to the factory oh this is a real culture shock if you are from the current day thinking of what factories are like, but as I've been around a bit longer it was like going back to my apprentice days.
So before I commit to buying I need to find a series3 Jaguar but these are starting to get collector status so finding one a a good price is not easy, so bit of scouring all the usual places I found one that met my criteria (cheap) as it had been partially stripped, so prior to Christmas the deal was done and I would collect in the New Year.
My next attention was to look for a gearbox for the kit, I need a W58 supra box I finally found on in Czech Republic a deal was done and it arrived safely in the new year, these are like Hens teeth so bit annoying that I just found another one 10miles from where I live at less money, oh well never mind.
So last few weeks I have been slowly stripping the car Daimler XJ6 4.2 for the bits I need.
So here is the doner, it looks much better than it is and a image of the future
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