1973 Jaguar E-Type Roadster Series 3

Front frame sanding.

Lydia has been sanding down the primer on the front frame for the 1973 Jaguar E-Type Series 3. This was simply done with 500-grade soft

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E-Type Shape Up

Matt and Chris have been working on applying filler to our white Jaguar E-Type so that they can smooth and shape the body, ensuring there’s

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Jaguar E-Type work continues

From our last update on the beautiful 1973 Jaguar E Type Roadster, we here at Bridge Classic Cars had entirely refurbished and upgrade the front subframe assembly ready for the next phase of this beautiful and special classics journey.

Scott, our in-house technician is working his way through the assembly of our 1973 Jaguar E-Type roadster. Beginning with the brakes, The handbrake assembly has now been fitted which managed to worked into its original factory placement. To take advantage of the space, we have also replaced all of the brake hardlines throughout the car. From its new double-circuit master cylinder and vacuum pump to its rear rebuilt callipers finished in factory colour against its new modern rotors. So when you do decide to go for that middle pedal in the cabin of Fern Grey, it will be right there for you thanks to a brand new brake pedal to bring together all of Scott’s hard work.

The steering column is in position now to take advantage of the previously refurbished front-end with new bushes and bearings throughout so once this glorious example of well sorted E Type is finally on the road, its lucky owner can take full advantage of the confidence instilled in the parts fitted by our talented technicians. Along with the steering column and brakes, the suspension is now being run by a modern updated version of its original set-up thanks to a beautiful set of GAZ adjustable dampers in the front and adjustable double coil-overs in the rear for a modern take to its handling with its timeless exterior.

Progress on the rebuild here at Bridge Classic Cars is going really well so far and the project is looking absolutely incredible.

Fitting up the Fern Grey Jaguar

Scott has been continuing his work on the 1973 Jaguar E-Type Series 3. This time around he’s been fitting up the front frame onto the body shell, rebuilding the front suspension and brakes and fitting them, with all new bushings and ball joints, fitting the front hubs with new wheel bearings, fitting the steering rack, fitting front shocks, fitting easy-bleed (to make bleeding the rear brakes easier), fitted left and right front to rear wiring loom/harnesses, fitted the front torsion bars, fitted the fuel lines under the car, new rear axle mounting/hub stops and fitted the rear axle.

Fern Grey E-Type goes into the workshop!

Matt has finished sanding and polishing the lacquer on the 1973 Jaguar E-Type Roadster Series 3 body shell, so it’s now been transported over to the workshop, where work can begin on putting everything back together in it.

Polish time for the green Jaguar

Matt has been sanding and polishing the lacquer of the 1973 Jaguar E-Type Roadster Series 3 body shell after it got painted last week. This process will give the car its final finish.

More transformations on the E-Type!

Matt’s been continuing his transformation work on the 1973 Jaguar E-Type Series 3. The outside of the body has now been painted Fern Grey to match the inside! There are photos and a small write-up of the inside and the newly painted front frame in yesterday’s blog post, which you can access by clicking here.

There are other parts that are now in the line-up to be painted, so watch this space!

Lydia has also continued sanding down the primer on parts for the E-Type. This time, the door hinges. They were gone over with 500-grade soft pads, grey scotch after and cleaned off with panel wipe.

Prep work continues on the E-Type Roadster.

Lydia has continued sanding down the primer on various parts for the 1973 Jaguar E-Type Roadster Series 3. This time it was the gearbox cover, boot hinges and door rubber channels. The gearbox cover had 320 soft grade on the front/face, 180 soft grade underneath and grey scotch pad all over afterwards. The boot hinges had 500 soft grade and then grey scotch pad. The door rubber channels also had 500 soft grade and grey scotch. They were then all cleaned off with panel wipe to get rid of sanding and paint dust.

Jaguar E-Type – A touch of green

We’ve added a splash of colour to our Beverly Hills 1973 Jaguar E-Type roadster. Having arrived over from the US in an Old English White with maroon stripes, the new colour can now be seen for the first time on the inside of the body shell.

The colour chosen is Fern Grey. According to the XKE data sheets Fern Grey was used on E-Types between 1973 and 1974.

Matt will be painting the exterior later today before leaving the colour to cure for the next couple of days. More pictures to follow soon…

Frame finished for the E-Type Roadster.

Lydia has finished sanding down the primer on the front frame for the 1973 Jaguar E-Type Roadster Series 3. You can read about the process here. The sanding dust has been cleaned off with panel wipe, ready for the frame to be painted now.

Hood painting for the E-Type.

Just a quick update here to show photos of the 1973 Jaguar E-type Roadster Series 3’s hood frame that’s recently been painted by Chris in the paint shop.

Front frame sanding.

Lydia has been sanding down the primer on the front frame for the 1973 Jaguar E-Type Series 3. This was simply done with 500-grade soft sanding pads all over. This is all prep for the final coat of paint!

More priming for the E-Type!

The 1973 Jaguar E-Type Roadster Series 3 has had another layer of primer sprayed on. This comes after sanding and repair work was done to the car last week. The body of the car and the doors were primed on this occasion.

Prep work on the E-Type continues!

Chris and Matt have been doing more paint prep work on the 1973 Series 3 Jaguar E-Type.

They put the body of the car in the paint booth and masked it up ready for polyester primer. Once primed, it was covered in guide coat and blocked and finished in 180 sanding paper. The underside of the car body was prepped in 180 and any damage that was found was repaired and primed. All metal joints around the car were sealed, like where the metal had been welded together.

Prime time for the Jaguar E-Type!

Chris and Matt have given the series 3 1973 Jaguar E-Type a coat of primer this week! We’re looking forward to seeing it in all it’s colourful glory!

Shaping up the Jaguar E-Type

Chris and Matt are continuing the work on shaping up the body of the Jaguar E-Type roadster in the paint shop.

Once the shell was back from the sand blasting, it was re-assembled, making sure all the panels lined up. From that, Chris and Matt were able to assess what condition the shell was in. It was then given a coat of epoxy primer to protect the metal and a thin layer of body filler to perfect the shape of the car and allow them to give each panel an equal gap around all the edges.

Shaping the future of the E-Type

Chris and Matt are starting to shape up the E-Type body shell. The car is now in Epoxy primer and once prepared will be ready for the paint application process.

Exciting times ahead for our 1973 Jaguar E-Type.

Small change for Jag E-Type!

James has been busy repairing one of the protective covers for the brake and fuel lines, which sits underneath the back of the Jaguar E-Type V12. This one had gone misshapen and had some corrosion, from moisture being let in along a damaged edge, which is why it needed work doing to it. The other one is in much better condition.

James fabricated and spot welded the corroded one to get it back into its former glory!

E-Type Shape Up

Matt and Chris have been working on applying filler to our white Jaguar E-Type so that they can smooth and shape the body, ensuring there’s not rippling and the surface is even in preparation for paint.

Jaguar E-Type In Epoxy

Our Jaguar E-type Roadster that’s in for a full restoration is currently sat in the paint shop in epoxy primer. Matt and Chris will then need to shape up the body by applying filler to make sure the body is smooth and perfect without any dents.

White E-Type In For Paint Prep

Our 1973 White E-Type Roadster is in the paint booth and being prepared for paint. Matt has been getting it read for epoxy primer by removing excess sealer and cleaning the welds. This E-Type, which used to be white, will soon be a new shade…

E-Type Into The Paint Booth

The body of our 1973 Jaguar Series 3 Roadster has made its way to our paint shop to start on the colour prep which includes coating it in epoxy primer. You can see the before and after video below.

Brian has also been fitting the second squab cover to the frame. He’s pulled the cover over the frame and stapled the front section to the bottom of the frame. Brian then stapled the rear flap to the bottom of the frame, fitted the brackets to the base of the seat, cut holes in the sides for the brackets to fit into and then bolting the squab to the base of the seat.

He then moved onto fitting the headrest stalk to the new headrest foam, fit the cover to the foam and stapled the cover to the headrest stalk. Brian then glued the vinyl to the headrest plates and screwed the headrest plates to the headrests.

Jaguar E-Type Roadster Making Progress

Brian has been working on adding headrest brackets onto the seats by adding the chrome trim. He’s stapled the bottom of the frame, cut holes for the brakes and fitted them.

The fabrication bay have also completed stripping the body to bare metal so that its now ready for paint prep.

Chris has begun coating panels and parts in to epoxy primer in preparation for colour.

Jaguar E-Type’s New Interior And Exterior

Our 1973 White Jaguar E-Type Series 3 Roadster is undergoing a double-whammy with both interior and exterior being worked on simultaneously. Brian has been assembling the seat bases by fitting the rubber diaphragms to the seat frames, marking out the foam and gluing it to the base, gluing the centre of the seat covers to the centre section foam pieces and then applying the cover. Brian then had to fit the seat belt switch and seat runners before finishing the bases.

Matt has been working on the bonnet so that its ready to have colour. The bonnet has been stripped down and covered in Epoxy and primer. Certain areas have been painted in the body colour ready for when the bonnet is bolted back together.

White Etype Rear Axel Building And Lead Hole Detection

Scott has been rebuilding the rear axel for our 1973 White E-type Roadster. Everything has been replaced, refurbished and rebuilt to create a perfectly functioning rear axel.

James has also been doing some lead work on the E-Type as he works on fixing holes left by removing American modifications.

Chris has also rubbed down and primed the bonnet as well as the wheel arch on the bonnet which has been stripped of underseal and cleaned ready for epoxy primer. He’s then applied epoxy primer to bits for the bonnet.

Jaguar E-Type’s Leading And Drying

Our 1973 Jaguar E-type Series 3 Roadster is currently in the fabrication bay where James and Pricey are working on leading the body. This classic is in fantastic shape with very little bodywork needing to be done. Pricey tells us “I’ve never seen one this good and I don’t think I ever will. It’s amazing.”

Thanks to the dry conditions of California, this E-Type has survived the test of time without collecting too much rust, something our engineers are certainly thankful for!

Some of the external and internal parts have gone to paint to where they’ve received a layer of primer so that they’re ready for colour.

White Jaguar E-Type Leading And Trim

The Jaguar E-Type Roadster Series 3 is back in the fabrication bay for some leading. The selection of photos below show inconsistencies in the front over-riders that need addressing to obtain symmetry and leading the spot-welded joints on the shell to ensure there is no cracking or sinking of fillers and paint later on.

We’ve also received the trim pack for our E-Type which is in a sophisticated muted green:

Jaguar Etype Bonnet Shaping

James has been shrinking the bonnet skin of our 1973 Jaguar E-type Series 3 Roadster to make profile match on both sides. Once he finished converting the left hand front bumper from USA to UK spec he fitted it with rubber and re-shaping it to give an even gap on the body. This is so that the runner is not pinched or deformed once assembled.

White Jaguar E-Type Inner Parts Painted

More inner components have been painted for the 1973 White jaguar E-Type Series 3 Roadster. Parts have been had air box primer applied and then painted silver. Other parts have been painted black.

White E-Type Begins Its Paint Journey

Before we get the body and panels of our 1973 Jaguar E-Type Series 3 Roadster in for paint, we need to start painting the internal parts in black epoxy. The majority of these parts will be totally or partially hidden either under the car or within it, however, it is important to have them all looking uniform and neat.

Jaguar E-Type Handbrake Stripped

Scott has stripped the handbrake callipers and sandblasted the parts so they could be painted. Scott then started to put the rear axle together.

Jaguar E-Type Cleaned, Sand Blasted And Prepped

Our 1973 Jaguar E-Type recently came back from Abbey Protective Coating’s for sandblasting. Now that any excess rust has come off, we can start to work with all the stable metal that’s left. This E-Type is a particularly strong example as there was very little corrosion.

Tom has been sorting out parts which were then powder coated and sent back from Abbey sandblasters.

Scott stripped the brake callipers before they were sent away to be refurbished, as well as stripping the heater box down and checking it over. He made sure that the matrix was in good condition, then he got a load of the parts sand blasted so they are ready to be painted.

Matt has prepared the panels by striping them back to bare metal and given a protective them a rust proof coating.

Some elements have been painted in DTM black. These components are internal and are kept black to look uniform.

Brian has also started to take apart the seats and hood to be re-covered.

Scott has put the heater box back together after the parts being painted. He’s cleaned and polished the parts and replaced the foam seals and gaskets where necessary, so it’s ready to fit straight to the car when that time comes.