Rear drive and suspension

The beauty of the Jaguar IRS (that's independent rear suspension, not inland revenue service) is that it's a self supporting unit. The very same is its Achilles heel. Mine is the old XJ6 type meaning inboard brakes (lower unsprung weight) but they are tricky to work on even when the unit isn't attached to the car!

So before I started too far down the line I wanted to see what the access was like and also how I would get this 50kg item up and under the bracket it fits under.

My engine trolley is going to come into its own here. I filled up the diff with 1.5litres of smelly diff lubricant. I've read too many stories where people building have left that job till later and then forgotten... it's much harder when the body is on! Once oil is in I rotated the unit fully through all axes to coat every surface (to prevent rusting internal surfaces whilst sat unused whilst car is finished) and then thought about the attachment.

Mine is  a 3.058 final drive ratio making it a little high on starting line ratio however as I'm running the auto 6 speed I'm not too worried about it as the final revs / speed combination are perfect for cruising. Having done the maths on a 2.88 for comparison (the lowest possible in a Jag of this era) there's not much in it (0.178 difference between the two ratios) so this is mainly a first gear thing which is specific to the the transmission.

So to how to lift and attach the bolts?

Brainwave. Don't lift it up (having balanced it precariously on trolley jack to have it roll off once and dent the garage floor even whilst I was holding it on the trolley jack I wasn't planning on trying that option) - lower the chassis down to it!

On blocks on the trolley I can wheel under the mounting position and then lowered the tail end of chassis to meet the diff, pop in the 4 bolts and then raise entire lot back up onto axle stands. Easy!

Very happy with that.