deankxf

managed to get it fixed for anyone who is having similar issues it was the distributor that was the issue. had it rebuilt by performance ignition services in Vic.Sent it away and it came back looking like new inside and out.
 
put it back in and has been running fine ever since.
 
Thanks to all those who posted sugestions

spewing i sold that car, only needed a replacement engine in the end.. had to move, and no mates were keen to take it on even for parts amazingly. 
 

That interior looks nice, with the EB Ghia seats

the odo gears often died in the original clusters,(also wasn't hard to swap in another or even reset the kms) you can not really trust them entirely, the best gauge for Kms is often how worn the carpet/mat, steering wheel and seat and arm rests/console lid etc. (assuming they haven't been changed also) 

My XF ute had 300,000kms on it, but the interior and cluster wasn't reflecting that, because none of it was original. 

the odo gears often died in the original clusters,(also wasn't hard to swap in another or even reset the kms) you can not really trust them entirely, the best gauge for Kms is often how worn the carpet/mat, steering wheel and seat and arm rests/console lid etc. (assuming they haven't been changed also) 

My XF ute had 300,000kms on it, but the interior and cluster wasn't reflecting that, because none of it was original. 

I use Penrite HPR 30  20W-60, it controls oil consumption well. I add around a 100mls of Lucas Heavy Duty oil stabiliser
if it's summer time, and if I do a change in winter, I will wait till the weather warms up a bit before adding it...
I have an "S"pack dash, but the one thing I wanted it for was the rev counter, and that was the only thing that
didn't work!
Apparently dry solder joints are common issues for these types of problems... So i put the original back in, and
haven't got around to fixing it...

Got a sender off ebay that seems to work but my oil pressure situation doesnt look too good so Ill be hooking back up the mechanical gauge to get a better look. I cant figure how the factory light would have been wired with the sender so it must have just omitted it for the ghia aswell.

Well shit, got the dash in and when its hot it starts flashing and to top it all off I had to pull the oil pressure light as due to the new sender it wont go out and messes with the readings. Anyone with one of these clusters or a car that came with one know if they came with an oil pressure light? Maybe it was omitted due to the gauge

Hard to see on camera but the bottom line is noticibly dimmer on one side and has deterioation around the cathode wires so I have some hope

It happens on the ghia cluster also, oil pressure reads max and volts start flashing. Im guessing it has something to do with the stray earth caused by the sensor switching off. Im also exited (and slightly nervous) for the vfds aswell. The process involves pumping an increased voltage into the cathode wires to burn off any impuritys or oxidation, this runs the risk of killing the vfd if you put too much in so you have to be very carefull and a bit lucky but it can help brighten them significantly and fix dark spots. Ive got the tacho apart and it doesnt look like anythings wrong so im just gonna clean the connectors and send it but Ill drop a before photo for the vfds after work

Found and fixed! My headlights were cutting out and taking the tail lights with them. Turns out not only was my earth bad but the terminals on the circut breaker near the two relays were rusted to high hell, after cleaning them up all was good. Also fixed the volt meter issue with the spac cluster, turns out without the proper sender for the oil pressure once the engine starts and the pressure switch disconnects the lack of earth screws with the voltmeter. By connecting it to earth it reads properly when running. Ive got the sender ordered and Ive got the spac cluster apart to fix the tacho and hopefully rejuvinate the vfds to fix the dark spot in my fuel gauge (Ill upload photos when I do it) so more is coming in the future

Well abit has happened, with starting a new job I havent had the time but have had the money so I took it off the road for a few months and gave it a birthday. Gave up on getting the seat replaced and just got it repaired and reupholstered, while I had it out I added new sound deadening and vinyl floor and took the opportunity to get a full 2.5" exhaust fabbed up by a mate extractors, glasspacks and all. Got the air con working aswell with the original compressor! Just had a peirced condenser. After all that the water pump, welch plugs and heater core sprung leaks so it was another week untill I got it all sealed up but its water tight and alot colder inside this winter. New headlights with plans to swap in the original lenses once I have a free weekend. Got some electrical work this arvo so Ill make this a two parter

fixed the sticky handle today. 
was actually tight on the pivot spindle (under that screw, torx T20)
 
decided to try remove the handle, it's risky, the bolts came out though with ease (they have a locking compound on them)
access through the door by removing a grommet

 

 
once i got the handle out, the area i thought it was catching on, already had clearance


 
T20 torx for this self tapper (could probably cut a slot in it and use a flat head screw driver)

 
washed the handle up, taking photos of how the spring went together

 

 

 
 
sanded the spindle with 320 grit 

 
sanded the inner hole .. got sick of that fast after testing it several times with no change

 
taped the sandpaper to a bit and used it like a flap sander in the hole for a while until it was a loose fit. 


 
crap video of it not sticking anymore.
i wiped some engine oil on it, because i couldn't find my grease tub.. (should probably have put silicone spray on it?)  it appeared to have NOTHING on it from factory though?
 
works perfectly after refitting it. 
also took the opportunity to wash out the dirt from the inside of the door and clear the drains (found some rust also, but door trim covers it fine, non issue) 
 
 

Yes Imlachs were a great resource, very sad they are gone. On my last visit a week ago Jollys Dandenong had cars stripped very early on as well. I did get a nice power steering pump that looked quite new so happy with that. I want to try Harvey's at Langwarrin next. https://www.harveywreckers.com.au/

SELF SERVE WRECKERS
I thought i'd post up something mildly concerning . parts are getting hard to find cheap. 
 
wrecking yards and parts getting hard to find. 
I spotted this car on pick a part's facebook page last weekend(less than a week ago) figured i'd go sus it out yesterday (been sick with some spicy cough/flu/cold thing for 2 weeks and finally came good) 
this car is almost stripped bare in only a few days. nothing useful for Me in there. 

Victoria lost a GREAT wrecking yard last year (imlach's in Clayton) they were a self serve wrecker with good stock and prices.. 
Jolly's Geelong when i went there last year had what i assume were RESELLERS walking around with garden trolleys filled with parts and tools, likely taking advantage of the same price regardless of brand (like a BMW headlight same price as a Kia one for eg.. potential upside to resell?) 
anything i wanted was basically stripped bare.. 
same seems to be happening at other yards now, well even more than ever. 
(the old saying, "they aren't making them anymore" comes to mind..)
so consider stocking up on parts that might be hard to find as they wear out (things like steering wheels, seat trim, console lids, tail lights and headlights etc.. )



 

 

SELF SERVE WRECKERS
I thought i'd post up something mildly concerning . parts are getting hard to find cheap. 
 
wrecking yards and parts getting hard to find. 
I spotted this car on pick a part's facebook page last weekend(less than a week ago) figured i'd go sus it out yesterday (been sick with some spicy cough/flu/cold thing for 2 weeks and finally came good) 
this car is almost stripped bare in only a few days. nothing useful for Me in there. 

Victoria lost a GREAT wrecking yard last year (imlach's in Clayton) they were a self serve wrecker with good stock and prices.. 
Jolly's Geelong when i went there last year had what i assume were RESELLERS walking around with garden trolleys filled with parts and tools, likely taking advantage of the same price regardless of brand (like a BMW headlight same price as a Kia one for eg.. potential upside to resell?) 
anything i wanted was basically stripped bare.. 
same seems to be happening at other yards now, well even more than ever. 
(the old saying, "they aren't making them anymore" comes to mind..)
so consider stocking up on parts that might be hard to find as they wear out (things like steering wheels, seat trim, console lids, tail lights and headlights etc.. )



 

 

SELF SERVE WRECKERS
I thought i'd post up something mildly concerning . parts are getting hard to find cheap. 
 
wrecking yards and parts getting hard to find. 
I spotted this car on pick a part's facebook page last weekend(less than a week ago) figured i'd go sus it out yesterday (been sick with some spicy cough/flu/cold thing for 2 weeks and finally came good) 
this car is almost stripped bare in only a few days. nothing useful for Me in there. 

Victoria lost a GREAT wrecking yard last year (imlach's in Clayton) they were a self serve wrecker with good stock and prices.. 
Jolly's Geelong when i went there last year had what i assume were RESELLERS walking around with garden trolleys filled with parts and tools, likely taking advantage of the same price regardless of brand (like a BMW headlight same price as a Kia one for eg.. potential upside to resell?) 
anything i wanted was basically stripped bare.. 
same seems to be happening at other yards now, well even more than ever. 
(the old saying, "they aren't making them anymore" comes to mind..)
so consider stocking up on parts that might be hard to find as they wear out (things like steering wheels, seat trim, console lids, tail lights and headlights etc.. )



 

 

SELF SERVE WRECKERS
I thought i'd post up something mildly concerning . parts are getting hard to find cheap. 
 
wrecking yards and parts getting hard to find. 
I spotted this car on pick a part's facebook page last weekend(less than a week ago) figured i'd go sus it out yesterday (been sick with some spicy cough/flu/cold thing for 2 weeks and finally came good) 
this car is almost stripped bare in only a few days. nothing useful for Me in there. 

Victoria lost a GREAT wrecking yard last year (imlach's in Clayton) they were a self serve wrecker with good stock and prices.. 
Jolly's Geelong when i went there last year had what i assume were RESELLERS walking around with garden trolleys filled with parts and tools, likely taking advantage of the same price regardless of brand (like a BMW headlight same price as a Kia one for eg.. potential upside to resell?) 
anything i wanted was basically stripped bare.. 
same seems to be happening at other yards now, well even more than ever. 
(the old saying, "they aren't making them anymore" comes to mind..)
so consider stocking up on parts that might be hard to find as they wear out (things like steering wheels, seat trim, console lids, tail lights and headlights etc.. )



 

 

I inherited an EB XR6 with 85k on it.  Original and untouched.
 
Tickford put nolathane on the sway bar links, and rubber everywhere else.  The D bushes were rubber.

the only place i use nolathane etc is on sway bar link bushes and D bushes.. gives a noticable improvement. anything else i'd choose rubber (Rubber lasts decades in many cases also)

I would never use nolathane again in any vehicle I own, you choose yourself but, I put nolapains in my xf s pack top control arms on th rear many years ago and it belted the shite out of the ride over rough roads or potholes. The guys that conned me on them said it would handle better and ride better. Bullshite I say. Am just replacing my 66XR leefsprings with luvells and have found the rear is full of nolapain bushes so will remove the bigest and see if I can put up with it otherwise the rest will be going too!

fixed the sticky handle today. 
was actually tight on the pivot spindle (under that screw, torx T20)
 
decided to try remove the handle, it's risky, the bolts came out though with ease (they have a locking compound on them)
access through the door by removing a grommet

 

 
once i got the handle out, the area i thought it was catching on, already had clearance


 
T20 torx for this self tapper (could probably cut a slot in it and use a flat head screw driver)

 
washed the handle up, taking photos of how the spring went together

 

 

 
 
sanded the spindle with 320 grit 

 
sanded the inner hole .. got sick of that fast after testing it several times with no change

 
taped the sandpaper to a bit and used it like a flap sander in the hole for a while until it was a loose fit. 


 
crap video of it not sticking anymore.
i wiped some engine oil on it, because i couldn't find my grease tub.. (should probably have put silicone spray on it?)  it appeared to have NOTHING on it from factory though?
 
works perfectly after refitting it. 
also took the opportunity to wash out the dirt from the inside of the door and clear the drains (found some rust also, but door trim covers it fine, non issue) 
 
 

STICKY DOOR HANDLE ISSUE (outside rear right in this case) could cause your door not to open or close (see above post for possibly more notes on the issue)
NOT AN ACTUATOR ISSUE, but Could have been a locked up actuator due to the door handle sticking (not sure)
 
 
knee pad, look after your knees, you'll miss them when they are gone.

 
I THINK it's a T30 torx.. 
these screws can be super tight (rusted) i had to drill the heads off some spare doors here to remove the mechs (haven't tried fixing them, but the mech may have parts so i kept them)

 
front left and rear right mechs.. I am working on the rear door, but thought i might need to use parts from the actuator.. (the front one had the stuffed mounting bolts, so it was the sacrificed one if needed.. not needed in this case)

 
not much to see here, but this is the drivers rear one before I cut the zip ties and before the handle lever rod fell out. (take photos, so you know how to put it back together)


 
there was nothing wrong, but i forgot to heed the warning in the video a few posts back about the spring flying off when you remove those geared parts and motor..
(took me 2 minutes to reassemble after looking at this picture of how it was meant to be.)


 
THE OFFENDING DOOR HANDLE (from the inside, rod lever disconnected, and you can see the lever arm stuck down, it should spring back to the top, the rod shouldn't have tension on it when installed)

 
even closer pic 

 
arrow pointing to the tight area, I'm going to sand this down and grease it.  as long as the lever arm isn't going to be affected by sanding some clearance, i'll give it at least 1mm of clearance if it's easy to do.. (going to try not remove the handle to work on it, as the mounting bolts can also be a problem to undo on these cars)

that center pivot screw i don't want to mess with, i can't see how it would be too tight? (however, if it was too tight, i'd mess with it )




and a crap video of My observation for your viewing pleasure. 
 

mine initially wouldn't open.. from either door. now you mention it, i did check the child lock, and it seemed sus also.. but i think it was possibly unrelated to the issue. (found it today, partly fixed)
I think the CAUSE is possibly from pressing the lock button (has to be with the remote or central locking) while the door handle is trying to open .THIS ISSUE is due to the outer door handle rod puller sticking in the open position.. (I'm uploading pics for a detailed post now)
 

if it doesn't lock, check back soon on My next post. It could be the outer handle sticking. .
this is the drivers side rear, but it would easily be possible on the rear doors (front door handles are a different actuation )

 

STICKY DOOR HANDLE ISSUE (outside rear right in this case) could cause your door not to open or close (see above post for possibly more notes on the issue)
NOT AN ACTUATOR ISSUE, but Could have been a locked up actuator due to the door handle sticking (not sure)
 
 
knee pad, look after your knees, you'll miss them when they are gone.

 
I THINK it's a T30 torx.. 
these screws can be super tight (rusted) i had to drill the heads off some spare doors here to remove the mechs (haven't tried fixing them, but the mech may have parts so i kept them)

 
front left and rear right mechs.. I am working on the rear door, but thought i might need to use parts from the actuator.. (the front one had the stuffed mounting bolts, so it was the sacrificed one if needed.. not needed in this case)

 
not much to see here, but this is the drivers rear one before I cut the zip ties and before the handle lever rod fell out. (take photos, so you know how to put it back together)


 
there was nothing wrong, but i forgot to heed the warning in the video a few posts back about the spring flying off when you remove those geared parts and motor..
(took me 2 minutes to reassemble after looking at this picture of how it was meant to be.)


 
THE OFFENDING DOOR HANDLE (from the inside, rod lever disconnected, and you can see the lever arm stuck down, it should spring back to the top, the rod shouldn't have tension on it when installed)

 
even closer pic 

 
arrow pointing to the tight area, I'm going to sand this down and grease it.  as long as the lever arm isn't going to be affected by sanding some clearance, i'll give it at least 1mm of clearance if it's easy to do.. (going to try not remove the handle to work on it, as the mounting bolts can also be a problem to undo on these cars)

that center pivot screw i don't want to mess with, i can't see how it would be too tight? (however, if it was too tight, i'd mess with it )




and a crap video of My observation for your viewing pleasure.