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These two cars seem to have the effect of cranking me up and then something happens and progress stops. It’s been a long time since I have visited my own blog let alone work on either car.  Recently some comments posted by Jose jogged me into action once again. So - I’ll take a stab at getting the Blue Mk2 back up and running and creating a plan to finish the car. Wish me luck. Thanks Jose!!

Do you have any idea what an Ambla is? Well a quick “google” search brings up some of the following definitions:

• BAS - Ambla is vinyl with an expandable knit backing introduced by Jaguar in 1968. It was primarily used on seats, i.e back covers and cushion skirts, where a material with stretch was needed. Ambla was also specified by Jaguar for door panels which had embossed heat weld lines, i.e XJ/XJS. A very necessary product for seats and doors only.
• JCNA - The Jaguar Club of North America’s Mark 2 Judging Guide states “Form Sept. 1966, in order to keep cost down, the upholstery was changed from leather to an Ambla plastic. The traditional Jaguar leather was still offered as an option… ” and “240 and 340 seats were covered in Ambla (type of vinyl).”

What prompted this blog entry was the following chart - from the Jaguar Enthusiast’s Club website.

Note that “Ambla” is listed as a “Mark 2 Ambla” model and it is also well known that the 240 and 340 models came with Ambla upholstery with Leather as an option. So, do I have a:

1. Ambla Mark 2
2. 340 w/Ambla
3. or a Quickly rebadged North American Mark 2 with Ambla and a 340 Badge on the boot?

The investigation continues…

This years Winter Park Concours will be held on October 22nd.

EVENT DATES

While the “Honor Marque” is Porsche and Mercedes-Benz, there are numerous makes of cars that attend (lamborghini, jaguar, morgan, triumph, aston-martin and many others). This is not an event to be missed as it is one of the top car shows in the country with over 60,000 vistors last year.  Click on this link to get more information and see a collection of photographs of the winners from previous years.

If you have not heard of the MG Car Club of Florida’s “Fox Lake British Car Show 2006” - here is a link (which opens in a seperate window) where you can download a PDF version of the registration form.
The show is on September 23rd, 2006 at Fox Lake Park in Titusville, Florida. You do not have to have to own or have a running british car to attend. If you would like to enter you car (all british makes are welcome - not just MG) then print out the form and follow the instructions.

Note:

*** I am not involved with the show (but I will be participating in the show with one of our London Taxi’s) - so any questions need to be directed to the contact listed in the form.

Does anyone have any personal experience with David Manners Ltd when it comes to ordering and receiving parts for a Mark 2 or XJ6 Coupe?

I found this photo will going through some pictures from last year’s Winter Park Concours. The Mark2 in the picture is from a gentleman in Sarasota who bought it from another car owner who had invested almost $125K into the car!! It’s a nice car - but 125k?? BTW, the cool car next to the Mark 2 is our 2003 London Taxi which we displayed in the Concours.

Enjoy.

Nothing like a few hours trying to get a tail light installed on the car to reinforce one’s opinion of British car manufacturing. The problem is getting the tail light body seal, the tail lamp and the bolts to match up. See what I mean:

You can see from the bottom picture that the rubber grommet in the middle of the seal doesn’t exactly fit. I’m finding that the light fits the car perfectly - but when the rubber seal is placed behind it - it doesn’t fit exactly and causes the light not to sit flush on the entire seal. arghh!! Any ideas anyone? BTW, these are new replacement seals and I did find the originals that are no longer useable - and the same problem exists. So I am wondering if during the bodywork restoration is that the holes created in the rear wing are slightly off??

Another web site with an owner of a Mark 2 in New Zealand and his story.

Here’s another brave Jaguar Mark 2 owner who embarked on a restoration.  This owner and car are in Singapore.  The website link takes you his page where he details his fun with his car.   Take a trip to Singapore via the web and enjoy!

While looking at the “Practical Classics” website at the Jaguar 340, I noticed that the bumpers are different than the ones that I have with my car.  This link will show you the picture from the Practical Classics site.  I appear to have, however, original Mark 2 bumpers which are thicker.

I found mention on the “jag-lovers sedan forum” that some Mark 2 cars that were shipped to the US were rebadged in the US by adding the “340″ onto that car.  I need to do some more research on what we really have here.  Of course, I may just have a set of Mark 2 bumpers and not the one’s that were originally on the car.