Jaguar Repair: 1983 xjs HE, oil pressure gauge, haynes manual

Question
I recently purchased a used jag for cheap. The owner told me that it was steaming from the hood when they stopped driving it, and also that it made a knocking noise. That was 10 years ago. I would like to get it running again, but want to make sure I cover all the basics before trying to start it again. Could you recommend the proper repair manual, and things I should be cautious of upon restarting this engine? Hopefully, this car could be awesome again! Thanks a million!

Answer
Hi Brian,
I would get a Bentley or a Haynes manual and start by removing all the spark plugs and put a little WD-40 in each plug hole and put all the plugs on their wires and lay all on a metal part of the engine and check the oil level and spin the starter to see if the engine spins ok and watch the oil pressure gauge. You should see about 35 PSI on the gauge. If that is ok you should do a combustion chamber leak down test or find a shop that can do it. Also pressure test the cooling system especially since you said it was steaming under the hood.
When spinning the engine over note that you have spark at the plugs.
Howard