XK8 Suspension Lowering & Upgrade Part 1 Out with the Old at the front. and part examination

[@douglasjames4905]

Thank you for sharing this 'routine' XK8 treatment. I just completed mine [2001conv.] yesterday. Replacement idea: KYB strut bellows, includes an inner top-bushing. Perfect fit, very high quality. Amazon if I recall. I retained my orig springs, Bilstein dampers, seats and nylon pig-tail isolator. I suggest removing the liner step one. It allows assess the coolant recovery reservoir, piping, and service fog lamp to upgrade bulbs. IF re-using your orig., mark to index all the positional relationships Before removal. My car out of central Calif. looks pristine , not even needing pressure washed in the wheel wells. Allow 8-9 hours total both sides, and clean-up. I torque to 76 lb/ft. Test drive locally. Later put on 100 miles, test torque all fasteners.

[@philcrowell7516]

Great video again John. I've done this job twice recently. Once to replace tge strut mounts, bushes and ball joints, and again to replace the springs and the useless new shock mounts with ones refurbished by a fellow enthusiast. He replaced the yellow gunk with polyurethane, which he cast in place. When and if your new mounts fail, it's a great option that will probably outlast the rest of the car.

[@ToTheGarage]

Thanks for sharing Phil. May well be interested in some hand made ones in future👍

[@kennethbarber620]

Is there anyway to contact the gentleman that does the polyurethane replacement ??? I'm very interested

[@throwback19841]

I replaced mounts on my shocks lately... I pulled and replaced them on the car myself but I found a local shop with a big hydraulic shock compressor to do the top and bottom bushings. $150. They did it in an hour. Worth it. Good spring compressors and a good bushing push/pull kit would have cost at least that much. The real challenge is finding a mechanic to do a small job like that versus wanting to do the whole thing and sell you/warranty the parts. Your new dampers came with new bushings, which is nice, but if doing this on your OEM dampers the lower bushing is a right pain in the fundament and requires, ideally, another specialist tool although I've seen people do it with an appropriately sized socket, nut/bolt and washers. Looking forward to your rear end video! There's more mounts back there which will probably want doing as well. My mounts were collapsed and my car was sitting 15mm below standard ride height all round, so right now its slightly up at the front.

[@projectsinthebarn]

Hi John, great effort buddy and a job well done. Looking forward to seeing it all finished in the flesh 😀

[@bobhodgson]

Excellent video John you have a heart like a lion. looking forward to the next instalment.

[@waynecartwright4336]

I’m looking forward to this myself. My wife loves her XK8 and she has liked all the upgrades I’ve done to her car like the exhaust and wheels.

[@ToTheGarage]

Hope you enjoy it!

[@stevenyoung5226]

I have needed this for some time now.

[@ToTheGarage]

Watch the second part and then decide if its something you could do yourself Steven

[@stevenyoung5226]

@@ToTheGarageplanning to

[@UdoIBress]

Very good video, I did it this year too. There is also another solution to remove the shock absorbers. We Germans say: "There are many roads that lead to Rome" a proverb!

[@ToTheGarage]

And a great Proverb it is too! As a 'Lean' specialist, I like the similar 'Just because that's the way its done, It does not mean that its the way you have to do it'

[@stevenslight2607]

Thanks for this video John. Hope to see you Saturday at Gaydon. Steve 👍

[@ToTheGarage]

You bet

[@grahamwalker6395]

I had the front subframe rust cut out and new metal welded in then they replaced the engine mounts (totally shot), the shocks (cats) and mounts. Also replaced the brake hoses with braided ones and front disks (Brembo). It was not a cheap job! This was not a job I could tackle my self so had to bite the bullet and suffer the cost. You have to love these cars, anything else I would have scrapped it. Rear shocks are on the to do list.

[@ToTheGarage]

Rear shocks present different challenges to the front but are certainly doable by the competent DIYer

[@grahamwalker6395]

@@ToTheGarage I do plan to do those my self. The reason I had the front done by a garage was the need for a 4 post lift, replacing engine mounts and welding, they were done at the same time.

[@baxtor52]

Look forward to the next episode in a couple of months when you replace the crap top mounts you just fitted John.

[@t.alanblain6313]

Hi John, This has come at such an opportune time. Out driving today and got a load knock going over a bump. Just looked and both my top mounts have gone and the top nut on the shock absorber is almost touching the side of the top mount plate (hence the knock I assume). So off to Britishparts. Another superb video with, as always, wonderful descriptions.

[@dragshampc1286]

I want this man to do my entire suspension!! Where's he at?

[@waynecartwright4336]

At the end of part 2 will you be able to show a before and after or be able to give a net measurement?

[@ToTheGarage]

Yes Absolutely.👍 But not at part 2 as I will still be fitting the rears. Sorry i cant give any time line, but as soon as I am able I will share the before and after shots and the dimensions

[@pwcincy]

Hi John. Great video! I am in need of the top mount replacement. Likely will do new struts (er, I mean dampers) while I’m at it. I’m curious as to why you decided to remove the wishbone bolt instead of the ball joint. I’d prefer not to have to deal with screwing up the spacers. Thanks again for a great video!

[@ToTheGarage]

Hi. Thanks for commenting. Truth be known either would potentiallly have taken me the same amount of time as ball joints can be very stubborn if they have never previously been split, and I wanted the opportunity to inspect the wishbone bushes. (Which it turns out are NOT GOOD!) But either will do the job👍

[@Forecast25]

Curious as to how to address the camber adjustment issue with such a lowering modification?

[@ToTheGarage]

Good Question. As the Jag has unequal length wishbone suspension, designed to maintain the correct camber angle within the operational range of the suspension travel. Its not necessary to make any adjustments with relatively small height changes. This is completely different to changing the height on less sophisticated setups. The most extreme examples are VW beetles and campervans with swing axle geometry that have massive camber variation with ride height.

[@Forecast25]

@@ToTheGarage Thank you for the reply. It would be then a matter of magnitude of change. Among my fellow XK8 owners when the original mounts failed and the springs became soft, it changed enough that the inner tire wear was a problem. For a while Jaguar offered some lower control arm camber adjustment retrofit parts, however these were not enough for a thoroughly tired front suspension. I like the look at stock height for my car and have been told that it was only made this way to give a 1960s look and stance which of course appeals to me having once owned its spiritual predecessor. It is also useful when taking road trips and one wishes to explore a little. My friends with other brand GTs are envious of the ground clearance. In fact a picture which was submitted for the calendar photo contest would not have been possible without this. Looking forward to seeing your results. Best wishes!

[@billrector]

Looking forward to this video! I need to replace both front shock mounts after 3-4 years of driving. General consensus is that I should go with OEM. These are a fraction of the price. Do you have any reason to believe that these will hold up?

[@ToTheGarage]

I have no reason to believe that they won't and as I can change them in a day, and I can afford to swap them almost 5 times before I've spent as much as the OEM ones can cost, I think they are a decent bet.

[@garyvanremortel5218]

I just did this job to replace my failed Welsh black urethane upper shock mounts that failed in 14Kmi. No response from Welsh to my photos. I replaced with URO brand and will probably let Wayne Tate in Spencer NC rebuild my core/shells at some point because they don't stay centered. You'll need to hold the base in a bench vise and use spring compressors that span five coils, two ratcheting nylon straps and an impact gun.

[@rob19632]

Its coupè. Not coop

[@jaromor8808]

Is it the part that needs replacement every 10k? Described in this video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/qJSwoWd4rZtkh5Y

[@ToTheGarage]

I changed the part described the part described in that videoas part of this film. However, mine have done nearly 50,000 miles and 25 years. And were still serviceable. So yes they do wear out like all rubber components. But not everyone is experiencing 10K to failure. Remember sensational comments in videos make for sensational numbers of views. Im less interested in that as i have a proper job and this my hobby. Hope you enjoy the film👍

[@jaromor8808]

@@ToTheGarage okok, glad to hear that sir 👍