Introduction to Nick

[Sheldon Hinds <shinds@tstt.net.tt>]

I see the need for speed.
I have a passion for fast acceleration.
When I drive on roads with serious curves,
This seems to steady my unsettled nerves.
How can I solve this chronic problem?
I sought answers from many people, mostly women.
Found a doctor, guess what she prescribed?
Shucks! Gotta' leave now...
	...my medicine...
	...my Jaguar XJ220 just arrived!

Hi Nick,

My name is Sheldon, I'm from Trinidad, I hope I added just a little humour to your life with the short poem above.
First of all let me say keep up the excellent work on the website. I find JagWeb very informative with respect to the history of the Jaguar company and what I'm even more impressed with is the information on all or most of the different Jaguar cars that were ever produced. No other site that I've visited for any other car manufacturer did that - perhaps that's because Jaguar has produced fewer models of cars compared to most other car manufacturers? Still, keep up the good work!

For you to get a fair idea of the person you are communicating with, I'd share a bit of information about myself. I'm 26 years old and married. I have one son that's 3 years old. I'm a Computer Clerk at a company that produces flour, rice and soybean oil. I'm in charge of maintaining a semi-computerized maintenance system. I love cars, particularly fast cars, but I'm also practical, so although I'd drool over a Lamborghini Diablo, a Jaguar XJ220 or a Ferrari F50, I'd settle for a Mitsubishi Lancer GSR or something of the sort because it costs much less, is more fuel efficient, is less noisy, has more trunk space, my wife can drive it, my son can sit in the back and.... 
I'm not a mechanic! Although I do understand the principles of how automobiles work and I dabble a bit with basic things in my own car. I think I can pick sense from nonsense if someone is speaking with me concerning the operation of cars. I am also a green guy and I welcome news about cars becoming more environment friendly. But don't tell me to swap my car for an electric one just yet.
I also attach some sentimental value to cars and although the trend in the automobile industry seems to be heading at creating disposable cars (use once then discard), I tend to go for older cars that are more durable and have more exciting designs.

But anyway let's get down to the meat of the matter as to why I wrote to you.

Before I browsed the JagWeb site, I can't say that I was much of a Jaguar fan. My impression of Jaguar cars was one similar to this:
A Jaguar is a car that's very good but I probably may never own one because they're expensive and I may not readily get parts for one - If I owned one.
Now that I've visited JagWeb I still find that they're expensive, but they have a soul. Also, my prospects of owning a Jaguar may have increased. Why? About a year ago I was driving in an area not too far from where I live and I saw a old Jaguar car parked on a hill. The car didn't attract my attention because it was old and weather beaten and because of my impression of Jaguars (mentioned above).
A couple of months back, after checking JagWeb, I decided to see what model Jaguar that particular car was. It turned out to be a 420G.
Suddenly I said to myself, I wonder if the owner is selling it? If it is cheap, I may be able to restore it, but before that, I better check with Nick to see if this is a practical idea. And that's where I am today.

It turned out that the owner really intends to sell the car but here are the findings:

The car was parked outside and weather beaten for about 10 years (that's where I saw it - it's parked at a mechanic's place, the guy is a general mechanic, not a Jaguar mechanic). The car was originally brought there by the owner to overhaul the engine.

There is no engine and transmission in the car. It seems that the engine was sent to a machine shop to re-bore the cylinders but when completed, the owner was unable to pay for the job, thus the engine was left at the machine shop (that was about 10 years ago). The owner it appears, subsequently left the car at the mechanic's place and asked him to see if he could get a sale for the car.

The car seems to still be solid. On inspection of the car, I observed that it is in good condition considering the harsh treatment it has undergone. The roof of the car has flaked paint and as a result there is some surface rust where that happened. The flooring of the car is rusted with holes at various places. The car seems to have never been in a serious accident. Both front doors can open and close quite easily and are about 98% rust free. The door upholstery of the front doors is missing. The rear doors were not opening and are in about the same condition as the front doors (it seems as though they were locked, but I didn't know how to open them). The seats are in good condition (still soft and quite comfortable actually - though dirty). The dashboard wood is faded and at some parts have actually fallen off. The centre console where the power window controls reside is present but not secured properly, and the control switches seem as though they may work. The instrument panel seems to be good and may actually work. The hood/bonnet hinges are not functional. The trunk has very little rust. A few chrome strips are either broken or missing from the doors and hood etc.

The car still has its suspension. I am not sure of its condition however.

The asking price is TT$10,000.00 which converts to approximately US$1600.00. I find this price is quite expensive, but then I don't have an idea of the value of a car like this. I also suspect that the mechanic is trying to get some money for the time that the car was parked there and probably for what money he may have imagined to have lost because the owner could not pay to complete the job.

I hope the above information would be enough to help you to help me decide if this is a good buy and if it is worth going through all the trouble of a restoration. Things that concern me about the car are:
What size engine should I install to make the car "perform like a sports car"?
How difficult is it to get body and suspension parts for the car?
How difficult is it to get small items for the car e.g. chrome strips, etc.?
What is a good estimate of the cost to restore a car like this? Note: If the cost of obtaining and engine like the original one is high, I would be satisfied with a substitute one.
What is a good price to pay for the car?
What should I pay special attention to when restoring the car if I choose to?
Would you suggest that I restore the car?


Thanks in advance for your help Nick. My e-mail address is shinds@tstt.net.tt



Yours Sincerely,
Sheldon Hinds

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