2010-11-05 06:37:24 | M. S. Abbasi writes:

This car has been in the family since new. It is 100% original condition including the paint. The car has been off road since 1986. Total original actual recored milage is 14954. I am now in the process of getting it back on the road. Care will be given to retaining as much of its originality as possible.

2011-12-03 10:09:25 | M. S. Abbasi writes:

I have retired and now I have the time at my disposal to begin restoration work. As already mentioned, the restoration will be done with attention to retain as much of the car's original condition as possible.

So far the following have been completed:

- Tool tray, Fuel tank, fuel tank reserve pet-cock, front windscreen seals.

The following are in progress:

- Respray of the luggage compartment and restoration of the rear seat.

2011-12-27 11:46:53 | M. S. Abbasi writes:

While restoring the rear seat it would have been easier to have the complete seat re-upholstered with new leather, but instead, to retain the originality of the car, The original rear seat leather was treated with special leather cleaners followed by moisturizers. Most f the thread used for the stitching had disintegrated and I had to re-stitch the seams. The whole process took about a week and a half.

This car is fitted with a rear window blind. Blind material had to be replaced as the original one was moth eaten and no longer usable.

Picture of the completed seat is provided before fitting in the car

2012-01-14 21:54:43 | M. S. Abbasi writes:

The trunk or boot interior panels have been spray painted and refitted including the floor. I have done the spray work myself and the final result is quite satisfactory. The original paint on the tool lid was satisfactory and thus remains untouched. In the rear of the car, the diff. seals and the rear shock absorbers need attention and will be dealt with once the engine has been started up.

On the engine, the next item being worked upon is the cooling system. The thermostat housing and the original thermostat are beyond hope. The housing is corroded/cracked and the thermostat bellows is punctured/cracked. Original housings are available but the thermostat is no longer available. It is therefore pointless to fit the (new) original housing. Thus I am working on re-casting a modified housing to incorporate a modern thermostat that will retain the functionality of the bypass system. Hopefully the housing should externally look the same as the original item but internally be fitted with a modern thermostat.

2012-01-20 22:00:21 | M. S. Abbasi writes:

Another item requiring attention was the broken temperature/oil dual gauge. In my case the capillary tube of the temperature gauge had broken away from the bulb. Being in Pakistan, I have no access to instrument restoration services. To solve the problem, I was able to acquire a Mk 7-8 gauge that looks "similar" to the Mk 4 gauge but is not "identical". The main difference lies in the gauge housing. The housings are totally different: (a) different mounting (b) no provision for gauge illumination of the Mk 7-8 item (c) oil pressure reads up to 60psi on the Mk 7-8 item vs. 100psi on the Mk 4 one.

My solution was to take the Mk 4 gauge housing, Mk 4 oil pressure gauge, Mk 7-8 temp gauge. The final item looks totally original with the exception of the capillary tube which is an improvement over the original one (Mk 7-8 has additional spiral to strengthen the capillary). Minor modification to the four capillary securing clips on the radiator stay will have to be done at the time of final fitting

2012-02-24 13:59:07 | M. S. Abbasi writes:

Work is progressing on the cooling system. The inlet manifold is out only to confirm my suspicion of hiding vast quantities of dried aluminium sludge (see pics of right side of engine)

2012-04-05 22:13:53 | Anonymous writes:

It has been over a month since my last post. During this period, I have done a few jobs mainly on the right side of the engine:

1- Used compressed air to blow out the cooling system (large amounts of rust chips and aluminium scale came out - chemical flush still remains).
2 - Over hauled the starter motor.
3 - Refitted the carburettor (fuel line still remains and so do the linkages)
4 - Re-sprayed right side of the engine block, fire wall and exhaust manifold - hi-temp paint.
5 - Refitted the water pump.

With regards to the carburettor, some help is required in order to figure out how the hand throttle cable is connected to the carburettor. This was disconnected 40-50 years ago and has never worked since. Any pictures will be welcome.

2012-05-09 23:23:56 | M. S. Abbasi writes:

Many thanks to Graham for helping me with solving the hand throttle cable connection puzzle.

Since my last post the following jobs have been completed:

1- Engine and engine compartment painted
2- Dynamo overhauled and refitted.
3- Oil sump (pan) removed cleaned and refitted.

See latest pictures of the engine area.

Jobs still remaining around the engine are:

1- Thermostat housing
2- Chemically flushing the cooling system.
3- Provide rubber grommets at the cable entry/exit pints

Once the engine area is completed, attention will be focused on the drive train and chassis followed by body and interior work.

2012-05-10 05:32:19 | M. S. Abbasi writes:

Today was a monumental day. Fuel was added and so was engine oil, a temporary battery connected, carburettor primed, ignition switched on and starter button pressed. Engine fired on the second attempt after lying silent for 28 years. WOW!!

2012-06-29 23:04:33 | M. S. Abbasi writes:

I was able to manufacture a thermostat housing of my design. The main feature of the housing is that once the water is at operating temperature, the bypass circuit is positively closed off and 100% of the water flow is directed through the radiator. I am happy to report that despite 44 degrees ambient temperatures, the car does not over heat. The water temperature stays at about 80-85 degrees

80% of the mechanical work is completed. Remaining work is chassis related jobs such as leaf spring/shock absorber bushes etc. The car is on the road and.. A word of caution to other 1-1/2 litre Mark IV owners; do not use multi grade oil 10W-30. It is too thin and thus the oil pressure falls too low at idle once the oil is hot.

Once 100% of the mechanical/electrical issues have been addressed, attention will be focused on cosmetics

2012-07-02 07:31:56 | M. S. Abbasi writes:

This morning engine oil was changed from 10W-30 to 20W-50. The result was 30psi at idle and 50 to 65 on the go with a peak of 80 at gear shifts. The reported pressures were at engine temperature of 85 degrees C.

With the previous 10W-30, oil pressure fell to 10psi at idle which is alarmingly low.

With the car completed, I took it out on its first public outing. The event was the Pakwheels Grand Auto Festival 2013. I have uploaded a few pictures from the event showing the old girl.

2014-04-28 22:53:18 | M. S. Abbasi writes:

Just a few updates. Recently the car attended the Classic Car Owner's Guild meet in Islamabad on 1st March 2014. This club is based in Lahore. This event was a run of the cars from Lahore-Islamabad-Khajot (up in the hills and back). The above is taken in the Fatima Jinnah Park. The other car from the same time period was a 1948 Humber Pullman limousine (originally owned by my grandfather)

2014-04-28 23:02:07 | M. S. Abbasi writes:

Recently I overhauled the rear suspension. The job included replacing the 3 per side silent block bushes, cleaning and lubricating the leaf springs and adding leather gaiters. Gaiters were made by me thus please excuse the not-so-professional fit. Main objective of the gaiters is to keep the grime out of the grease applied to the springs.

2014-11-25 01:01:52 | M. S. Abbasi writes:

The car attended a vintage show hosted by the Serena Hotel in Islamabad on 18th Nov 2014. The only other Jaguar was a MK VII. The rest were German and American.