An update...

It has been a good long while since the last blog post and there's a good reason why... LIFE!

Yep, the daily goings-on have taken over and as such I have had no spare time to do anything with the Jag, nevermind having the money to do anything with it anyway. Such is the lot of a Classic Car owner who also happens to be a poor student!

On a positive note though she does have a place to stay off the mean streets of Edinburgh, and now lives on my Dad's driveway in Dunipace near Stirling. This move became a necessity as the tax expired in March but it has been a blessing. The drive there was accomplished with no bother at all. Everything worked. Air-con, radio clock, lights, kickdown, all gears. Everything! All was well apart from the battery shenanigans which have now been largely resolved now thanks to a donated OEM battery from a sister 3.2 Sport (which is currently waiting either restoration or stripping for spares up at Mulsanne Motors if anyone is up for it - though I bagsy the wheels!). I must admit that it felt good to be back behind the wheel. Mind you, the brakes were still crap...

After a month on my Dad's driveway though it was time for an MOT. I'm afraid to say that the Jag failed on a broken coil spring, and poor handbrake. The warped discs and huge hole in the backbox didn't appear to be a concern though. As a result, she has lain dormant on the driveway save for the occasional firing up and jaunt around the cul-de-sac. My Dad enjoys the old thing so is willing to stump up some cash so that he can use it properly while I work my bahookie off.

Speaking of working, as you know I'm a full-time student. I work on the eCar project one full day a week, and I work evenings from the half 4 to 8. When I'm not doing all that I'm on the 'SS Explorer' restoring and promoting her. My only other free time is enjoyed with my Wife and my Stepson. At some point I also sleep! It is a lot of work for lots of rewards, but not a lot of pay - hence the stalled restoration on H9 WAP. However, things are about to change...

My college course and the internship for the eCar Project are coming to an end. I had considered staying on at the college as a student and moving into an HND Engineering course, but had been put off by the debt this would put me in. Having spent many, many years clearing tens of thousands of pounds of it, I don't want to go back there. Happily, another option has come up which should see me in a full-time role at the college as the Administrator for the eCar project! This would see me in a £15k a year job until Christmas at least, which added to my wages from the Council should give me the disposable cash I need to get the Jag to a perfect condition. In addition to that, my Dad has come out of retirement to take on a new job at his old place of work so he will have money spare too. The upshot of this is that the Beastie will have a lot of work done over the next few months and I fully expect her to be back on the road where she belongs in no time, with ALL the wee problems sorted.

So, watch this space for the return of the grace and pace!

Vintage Apple Results...

Here's a teaser of the finished Vintage Apple Photography work from a while back... :)

A doodle...

Not a Jag, but this is an example of some of the stuff I doodle in notebooks... Usually during meetings and stuff. :)

Got the bug back...

I finally decided to face facts a few weeks ago and confront my poor old abandoned Jag. She'd been parked up in a side street ever since her last visit to the college when two slow punctures were sorted out among some other bits & pieces (like completely replacing the front brakes!). 

I hadn't sat in her for around 4 months, let alone drive anywhere. The reasons? Well, lack of mojo brought about by rising repair costs, potentially crippling engine issues, and what I perceived to be a dearth of results from recent repairs. I just parked it - and ignored it. Now I understand why cars lie in barns for decades, under tarps in people's driveways, or buried beneath the detritus of family life in a dusty garage. It's really easy to forget you're responsible for that vehicle and what becomes of it. 

Unsurprisingly, 'H9 WAP' reacted to the abandonment by draining her battery. She was sleeping and there was no way she was moving. With the help of classmates from the college we managed to jump start her and begin the warming up process. A couple of problems became apparent  - there was a horrible noise coming from the power steering pump, and the battery was toast. The pump noise was quickly cured with a top up of fluid and we found that the brakes all worked (nothing seized thankfully), so with a bit of gentle manoeuvring the old girl eased from her place of rest. The big cat became Nyan Cat though, leaving a rainbow trail of leaking fluids in her path...

Nevertheless, I shifted her to a new parking spot closer to home so that I could keep a better eye on her. It also gave me the chance to remember why I love this car in the first place. The ride, the power, the presence  the looks... As soon as I sat in her again I was grinning. I had been silly to ignore its pull.

As with anything that isn't used regularly, 'H9 WAP' had developed a couple of problems. The power steering fluid top up didn't stay where it should and the brakes were crap - spongy and dead. They worked though, but by the time they did my foot was nearly out the floor! After a short run around town to blow off the cobwebs (literally), we parked up with a plan to come back later in the week to sort the PAS issue and get things back on the road. I wanted to get the rear brakes replaced using the spares I'd bought months ago, and I also wanted to get things moving on replacing the holy back box. 

So, in the next update, I'll explain how all that went, and where we are - a year after I started a Jaguar's Tale.