Experience in a Book
Interior Maintenance

CHANGES FOR 1988: The interior was significantly changed for the 1988 model year. Changes included:

Chincy plastic door sills replaced with beautiful chrome-plated steel sills with "Jaguar" written in them.

Painted metal "ski slope" (panel surrounding the shifter) replaced with wood burl version. The cruise control switch was relocated from the shifter pedestal down to the ski slope itself.

New seats with heaters and electrically-adjustable lumbar support. Switches are on the sides of the console.

New steering wheel.

LEGROOM: If you are tall, you may be pleased to know that the front seats in the pre-'88 XJ-S's have two sets of mounting holes. The cars came from the factory with the seats mounted on the forward holes. Simply unbolt the seat rails from the floor, turn the seat over and unbolt the rails from the seat. Remount the rails to the seat using the alternate set of holes, and the seat will adjust farther rearward.

Note that the '88-on seats don't have the second set of holes and are bulkier to boot, making it much more difficult for the larger driver to fit. When Jaguar incorporated electric motors in the seat adjustments in the early 90's, they got bulkier still.

Tall people should also avoid the H&E convertible. Relocating the seat mounts rearward will do no good, because the housing for the convertible mechanism limits rearward motion of the front seats.

SEAT RAIL SPACING: John Nuttall notes that the seat rail spacing on pre-'88 cars was 17‡" while on later cars it was 16‡". Obviously, the seats will not be interchangeable.

SEAT MOUNTING BOLTS: On the early cars such as the author's '83, the four bolts that hold the front seat rails to the floor tend to be aggravating. The front two bolts go into rectangular block nuts that do not hold themselves in place, although it usually isn't too difficult to hold them in place with a large screwdriver long enough to get the threads started. The rear bolt near the door threads into a trapped nut that can move around for alignment. The rear bolt adjacent to the console is threaded directly into a boss welded to the floor; since this is the only corner that cannot be moved for alignment, this is the one that locates the seat. When putting the seat in, it is a good idea to get all four bolts started before tightening any, and then tighten the rear one near the console first.

Mike Wilson reports that both rear nuts are firmly attached on the 1990 model, neither one can move around for alignment. Still, it would probably be better to have all four bolts started before tightening any, and tighten the rear two first.

To make the job a little easier, you can replace the two rectangular block nuts at the front with clip nuts that will hold themselves in place. The clip nuts are described as an "extruded U nut, 5/16 Regular" or "Long". The "regular" means that the clip part is 5/8" deep, while the "long" has a clip about 7/8" deep. Suitable U-nuts were bought at Lowe's and made by Curtis Industries, Inc., Eastlake, OH 44095. The Curtis part number is 838758 for the regular and 838759 for the long. Similar U-nuts are also sold by auto body parts shops, with the regular having a part number 4016.

The best course of action seems to be to have a selection of regular and long U-nuts on hand to do this job. On the author's car, the regular fit the locations near the doors while the locations near the console required the long. You don't wanna use the long on the locations near the doors if you don't have to, since they would protrude more than necessary and possibly hurt someone's ankle or run pantyhose.

Of course, strength here is of some importance; you don't want that seat coming loose in an accident. However, even though the U-nuts are extruded from sheet metal, they are probably stronger than the original rectangular block nuts -- which are made of something related to silly putty. Since the U-nut is a clip, it is made of spring steel and therefore quite strong. And the extruded threads are perhaps twice as long as the threads on the rectangular block.

Since U-nuts seem to only come in coarse thread and the original mounting bolts are fine thread, you will have to replace the front two bolts as well to get the U-nuts to work. The shape of the head of the bolt is crucial, since the wrong shape may obstruct the adjustment of the seat. The bolt to use with it is a "socket head cap screw, 5/16-18 x 1". Curtis part number 835558, but this is a fairly common critter and can be found most anywhere. This is driven by a 1/4" Allen wrench. The original lock washer may be used with this bolt.

On the earlier cars, these bolts were Phillips head, and an unusually large Phillips head at that. This makes them quite difficult to get really tight, especially the rear ones since it may be difficult to get the screwdriver to engage the bolt head straight on. Later cars use Torx T-40 bolts instead, a big improvement. The Allen drive cap screws also work quite well; if you have the Phillips, you might consider picking up some 3/4" long fine 5/16" fine thread cap screws for the rear locations, making all four removable with an Allen wrench.

SEAT DIAPHRAGM: If you take the seat out and turn it over, you will find that the bottom cushion is supported by a rubber diaphragm stretched across the frame and hooked on with hog rings. This diaphragm is classic British non-metal stuff and is rotten and torn, and that's why you seem to sink farther into the seats than you did when you were younger. Ron White says, "They are available for the Jag from BAS Ltd." Note that this is valuable information; apparently many Jaguar suppliers (including the dealers) will not sell you the diaphragm, they want you to buy the entire seat cushion assembly.

Still, installation is no picnic. The foam of the cushion is glued to the diaphragm, so replacing the diaphragm will entail carefully cutting the foam away and gluing it to the new diaphragm. You'll need good glue, like 3M Super Trim Adhesive #08090.

Note also the above comment about the seat rail spacing change. It is unknown whether a different diaphragm is called for between the two types of seat, but some owners have commented that the diaphragm was really tough to install, requiring serious pulling -- but maybe it's supposed to. Also, there are reports that the replacement diaphragm required a somewhat different mounting hole pattern in the frame, so a few new holes had to be drilled.

This author took a different route and left the old tired diaphragm in place and reinforced it with a piece of plastic sheet above it (between it and the foam) and a webbing woven of curtain rod cord underneath it. The webbing is remarkably easy to do, just loop back and forth between the same hog rings that hold the diaphragm itself, stretch it tight, and tie it; it might be advisable to do this while the diaphragm is still in good shape, thereby postponing the cushion regluing considerably.

COMFORT: Some of us prefer the bottom portion of the front seat to be inclined somewhat; this helps hold the occupant in position with less effort on his part, as opposed to having to brace one's feet against the floorboard to keep from constantly sliding forward. This is especially a problem if you like the seat back reclined somewhat.

The seats in the '83 XJ-S have no angle adjustment on the bottom. However, a small amount of incline can be permanently added by inserting a few 5/16" washers under the front end of the seat rails, around the front mounting bolts. It wouldn't be a good idea to add more than 1/4" or so since you may start distorting the rails, but 1/4" can make a dramatic difference. If you need more, you can also insert washers between the upper rails and the seat itself. Beyond that, you need to make some tapered washers to be able to bolt the rails to the floor without distorting them.

LEATHER: Robert Olman of New York sends this tip. If your leather interior has areas where the dye has worn through and the color of bare leather is showing, it can be re-dyed. The original leather, by Connolly Leathers, is painted with dye rather than vat dyed like other cars -- if you look at the back side of the leather, you see the undyed color. Connolly uses a lacquer-based dye; you'll need 2-3 pints for the entire interior. Before using, you must determine which pieces are leather and which are vinyl, as the lacquer-based dye will destroy vinyl (Some XJ-S's are all leather, others have vinyl in areas that don't contact humans such as the sides of the seats). Or, you can use a non-original non-lacquer-based dye.

You might want to remove seats, console, etc. from the car to make the job easier. Clean the leather with lacquer thinner, sand it lightly with fine sandpaper to remove the shine, then clean again with lacquer thinner. Then apply the dye evenly, perhaps in two coats.

If it is humid, it will take a long time to dry. Heavy coats will also require a long time. Heavy coats in damp weather may require a week to dry.

If you would rather spray the dye, you will have to remove all items from the car, thin the dye with 5-7 parts thinner to 1 part dye, and apply many thin coats. It will require more dye due to waste. Many marine supply shops sell disposable aerosol sprayers (about $6) with replaceable aerosols (about $3). You'll need about three aerosols.

A complete restoration kit is available directly from Connolly, with instructions.

Note that Jaguar has used at least three different colors called "biscuit". To get the correct one, you must specify model and year.

There is another product called CT600 (see Gerard Coachworks) that has been used by Jaguar owners with success. According to Gregory Andrachuk, it involves a prep cleaner followed by a dye which is applied in two coats with a foam brush.

INTERIOR WOOD: There are two different types of wood commonly used in the XJ-S interior, elm burl and walnut burl. The elm burl is a light honey color, while the walnut is dark. Neither type holds up well in direct sunlight, so it is recommended that all XJ-S owners purchase sunshades to put in the windows when parking ina sunny parking lot -- especially if you have a later car with the wood ski slope, which is positioned to get more direct sunlight than any wood trim in the earlier cars.

INTERIOR WOOD TRIM REFINISHING: Rick Lindsay provides this suggested procedure for refinishing the wood trim:

Sand the veneered wood very carefully with 200 or 400 grit paper removing only enough wood to freshen the surface. Even with 200 grit sandpaper it is easy to cut through the thin veneers used in britcars - especially on edges. I've found it better to leave a bit of the ëold finish' than to sand thru the veneer and have to stain the substrate. Pay particular attention to edges that should be left crisp - not rounded. It adds a professional look. Always sand linearly, not in circles.

Clean and tack cloth the fresh wood. I use the vacuum cleaner to suck the sanding dust up out of the cracks and pores in the wood. It's remarkable how much comes out!

Dilute into a clean glass jelly jar about a half jar of MinWax brand exterior Spar high gloss urethane. To that, add an equal amount of new clean mineral spirits. Mix well (stirred, not shaken).

With a small fine brush, paint the wood surface. The fresh wood will soak up the thin urethane mixture like a sponge. This is, of course, the idea.

Allow to dry 24 hours.

Sand lightly (basically to remove high spots) with 400 grit paper.

Vacuum clean.

Repeat about 5 times to build up a thick coat. By this time the pores in the wood should be completely full; if not, you're not done with the diluted coats.

Sand the last time with 400 grit paper to a matte finish.

Here's where things have to be really clean. In a clean environment away from all dust, spray the wood with MinWax brand exterior Spar high gloss urethane straight from the spray can. A thin, smooth coat is fine.

Allow to dry 24 hours.

Carefully wet sand with 1200 grit paper. The kind used to ëblock' or ëcolor sand' a new paint job is best. After all, that is what you are doing.

I only use two coats of spray because finish is all that you are adding.

Block again carefully, polish as if it were a new paint job. Buff if you have the courage. I do it by hand as a buffer in my hands is a license to screw up royally.

Finish the job with a coat of Carnauba.

Admire and drink beer.

Alastair Lauener provides an alternative method of stripping the wood: "I used a chemical called Nitromors, a paint stripper, water soluble, to strip off all the old varnish, and washed under cold water. I tested on an old spare dash first. Careful not to let the wood get too wet. Allow to dry out for a few days. Be careful not to scratch it."

1988-ON SKI SLOPE: Removal of the earlier metal ski slope was obvious, three screws. With the wooden ski slope, however, the screws are hidden. Matt Dillon reports: "In order to remove it, you need to take out the lighter and cruise switch. This gives you access to the bolt on each side that hold the ski slope in place."

The wooden ski slope is notorious for cracking and peeling, perhaps because it gets more direct sunlight than the other wood in the interior. Dillon suggests a repair: "The ski slope is a piece of metal that has the wood veneer glued to it. I took a belt sander to it to remove the old veneer. I ordered the veneer from Constantines and re-applied it as per their instructions. The veneer was a little lighter than the rest of the wood, so I used a little stain to darken it up a little. I then found an epoxy based clear coat to put a thick shiny finish on it. Much easier than applying coat after coat of varnish or polyurethane. This is a pour on finish and has held up very well so far. I did this about a year ago, so obviously I haven't been able to duplicate 8 years of having the sun cook it, but am hoping that it will last.

"I did go to the dealer to price a new one. They told me somewhere around $250 and couldn't guarantee that it would come even close to matching the rest of the wood. The wood veneer from Constantines cost me about $25 with the can of veneer glue to go with it. The epoxy coating was about $10 more. Aside from being a whole lot cheaper, it allowed me to get the color very close."

"I called them and just asked them for a piece of their "premium" burl walnut veneer and gave them the measurements. I specified a piece much larger than what I actually needed just in case the edges were a little rough. They sent me 3 pieces. In order to make it fit, I used 2 of the pieces with the seam running straight down the middle. It wasn't obvious to me, but the original Jag piece also had a seam in the middle. The pieces are matched, so it looks really nice. The left side is a mirror image of the right side. There were a couple of knots in the veneer, but I liked that. They're very helpful, and I'm sure that if you send them a piece, they'll try to match it."

INSTRUMENT CLUSTER DETAILING: John Napoli says it only takes about an hour to clean up the instrument cluster and make it look nice. First, remove the cluster from the car, which requires prying off a plastic cover on each end of the row of warning lights to access mounting screws. The steering wheel does not need to be removed, and merely disconnecting the cables and wiring harnesses from the back of the cluster allows you to remove it from the car. Disassemble the pod, and clean all the dust out of the warning light boxes and the like. "If you also want to improve lighting, remove the four green lenses. The instruments will be that more brightly lit at night. You can probably also fit brighter bulbs, if you so desire. Tighten the mounting screws for the gauges (they will be a little loose and the better connection does affect the gauge reading!). Clean the el cheapo printed circuit tracings where the two electrical plugs attach."

Another method for making lights brighter would be to improve reflectivity. Around the bulb, paint the black plastic white -- Liquid Paper works good! -- or apply small pieces of aluminum tape.

INSTRUMENT CLUSTER SNAP-ON COVERS: At each end of the row of warning lights is a snap-on cover that hides the screws that hold the warning light lens assembly as well as the screws holding the entire instrument cluster in place. On this author's '83, these covers had distorted with age and lost their snappage, so they loosely rattled around in the openings. Shipping crates are often banded shut with 1/2" wide straps made of really hard steel, almost like spring steel; I cut a piece of that strapping about 2" long, bent it up 90† at each end, trimmed it a little to fit and inserted it between the retention prongs on the snap-on cover. The metal thus provided a backing spring pressing the plastic prongs back out to their original positions, restoring the snappage. Since I cut the ends just short enough that they didn't quite reach the end of the plastic prongs, the sharp edge of the steel dug into the plastic a little so the tension held the metal piece itself in place -- although it wouldn't be hard to add some double-sided foam tape between the center section of the steel and the back surface of the cover to make sure it doesn't go anywhere. My covers now hold themselves firmly and properly to the dash.

CONSOLE PANEL: For those of us who own an '83 XJ-S, removing the panel from the top of the console is easy and obvious -- there are three clearly visible screws. However, John S. Whitford has an '89 with one of those newfangled wood veneer panels, and apparently somebody decided that visible screws would be passé. "The cruise control switch and the cigar lighter can be pried out and that exposes a sheet metal bolt into the console wall locking down the lid on each side. Getting those out allowed me to raise the lid and slide it back some and there are two pegs on the front edge of the cover that fit under the radio-A/C cover."

ADHESIVES: If you're doing interior work, you need to know about adhesives. The following is from Timothy J. Hesse; "I am the product marketeer for the ITSD Industrial Aerosol Adhesives and I formerly was the product marketeer for Auto Trades Aerosol Adhesives."

"74 Foam Fast Adhesive is an excellent foam bonding adhesive which performs well up to about 120 degrees F. Above that temp, the adhesive will soften, and with sufficient stress, you can pull the foam apart. It is possible to experience up to 150+ degrees in a closed car, and the seat part does see a fair amount of stress when a person is sitting on it.

"Another 3M product which is a good foam bonder and has 160 degree temp resistance is General Trim Adhesive, pn 08080, which is sold by the Automotive Trades Division. This would be a better product to try for seat bottoms.

"76 is a good product---but does not have very good plasticizer resistance. Vinyl material is typically loaded with plasticizing oils, and in time these plasticizers migrate from the vinyl to the adhesive, and they soften the adhesive to the point the adhesive becomes very soft and gummy and "lets go". 76 has 160 degree F temp resistance and would work on foam bonding, but vinyl bonding would not be a long term success.

"A better product for bonding vinyl is Super Trim Adhesive, pn 08090, also sold by Automotive Trades Division. Super Trim is a neoprene-based contact adhesive in an aerosol can. It has 200 degree F temp resistance, and is plasticizer resistant. In fact, Super Trim is very good for reattaching vinyl tops, vinyl trim, etc. in auto restoration projects."

HEADLINER: Apparently, if you don't want to have headliner trouble with an XJ-S, you'd better get a convertible! They all seem to fall down sooner or later, and the roof light is poorly placed to help keep the headliner off your head when it does.

The material used in a headliner is a fabric bonded to a thin layer of foam. The failure mode of headliners (not just Jaguar) is that the foam rots and falls apart. While it appears tempting to just find some way to glue it back up (and there are people who are willing to sell you products to "inject" glue in there with), the fix will not last; once the foam is shot, gluing it back together only makes it fall apart again above or below the glue layer.

The only real solution is a new headliner. Fortunately, this problem affects cars other than Jags, and a competent craftsman can usually be found locally to do this job well for a reasonable cost.

You will be given the choice of insisting on genuine Jaguar headliner fabric or just installing a generic material. You should have learned about British non-metallic materials by now; if not, let me point out that you are replacing a genuine Jaguar headliner! True, it appears that American headliners fall too, but it isn't any sooner than Jaguar ones. The only reason to get the original material is to match the color perfectly, but most of us aren't that picky about headliner colors.

While this is a good example of work best left to professionals, there are those who want to try doing it themselves. Frank Perrick says, "The trick is to buy only 3M spray adhesive and read the can. There is only one 3M adhesive recommended for this job. The wrong can will say ënot for head liners', and the first hot day you will be wearing your headliner. Headliner kits including fabric and clips are available at local auto parts stores." The correct stuff is Super Trim Adhesive #08090.

By the way, the headliner fabric in the XJ-S is bonded to a piece of stiff cardboard or fiberglass. It is somewhat of a challenge to get this thing out of the car; the Jaguar manual specifies removing the windshield! Apparently, that isn't really necessary; Rob Ward reports: "You need to get someone to support the other side while you turn it through 90 degrees. Moved the seats back and lowered the headrests, moved steering wheel fully in. Mine came out through passenger door no problems. (RHD)" Regardless of the methods attempted, everyone who's tried it agrees you will need at least two people.

FACIA: On the dashboard, just below the speedometer and tachometer on either side of the steering column, there is a panel covered with a fuzzy black fabric intended to be nonreflective to prevent glare on the gauges. This fabric tends to come apart after a few years' exposure to sunlight. To replace it, visit any shop that installs automobile headliners. These two pieces would qualify as scrap to them, you might even get it for free. Take the panels out, remove the old fabric and install the new with contact cement.

GLOVEBOX: The lining on the inside of the glovebox is -- you guessed it -- headliner material.

MOTORMOUSE SEAT BELTS: According to John Alexander, since the motormouse seat belts are supposed to be a substitute for air bags, they are "warranted for life in US -- had mouse motor repaired and car washed gratis by my dealer."

John S. Whitford relates his experience: "The passive restraint shoulder belt (that I hate), got stuck in the engaged position. I just unsnapped the belt and forgot about it. But it kept trying to return to the disengaged position and that eventually ran down the battery. When I connected the recharged battery back up, I heard it straining, and a little fiddling got it unstuck."

REAR SEAT SHOULDER HARNESSES: The 1983 XJ-S doesn't have rear seat shoulder harnesses, it has lap belts only. However, it has the mounts for shoulder harnesses, hidden behind the rear quarter upper trim pad. Since studies have indicated that wearing a lap belt only in a rear seat is more dangerous than using no restraint at all, those who actually have occupants in the back seat might want to consider adding shoulder straps.

On to the Air Conditioner/Heater