specialbikejames

I used to hire containers off a firm who did local deliveries using a Disco 2 and a three axle trailer. Legal as far as I could fathom.

When I imported a car in France I needed the Registration Cert in my name with my matching UK address on, proof of purchase (with matching name and address) and a Certificate of Conformity from the Manufacturer. That might be the tricky bit with something like a Tomcat?

Thanks for all the useful info guys, I was having a good root around in my wiring today. However, it was my own stupidity at fault. I thought I’d just throw another battery in the fob just to double check I hadn’t fitted a duff battery when I replaced it in rush in the midst of moving house. When I took the old one out I found this little bugger on the -ve side: What an idiot! Good for toddlers, bad for stressed out dads. So all sorted and I found some really useful old threads on here which will help with re-wiring new interior lights into the existing loom, so it’s all good. Thanks for the help.

I was thinking black electrical tape myself. I’ve tested all the various door switches but I will double check the bonnet switch to make sure it’s not moved. No OBD on a 300tdi is there unless I’m going mad. last thing I though is interior courtesy light? That’s linked to the door switches and fob as they activate the light. I took mine out when I changed the headlining, so I’ve got another coming and I’ll try that. After that it’s tape or a sharpie.

Driving myself mad with the previously bypassed immobiliser on my 300tdi 90. Trucks runs fine and the hazards aren’t flashing, but the immobiliser light on the dash is on continuously and the fob no longer arms the alarm which it did before. I’m sure this fault happened after the battery went properly flat while the old girl was parked up for a month or so while I moved house. I’ve also changed the doors, bonnet and La Selle headlining at around the same time- I checked the switches they activate and they seem ok. Reconnected the interior alarm sensor but no change- any other switches I’ve missed? it could be the spider or other random wiring issue but seems too co-incidental with the battery dying. I’ve done the fob battery- no change. Anyone have any other ideas? Thank you!

Smash a suitably sized (ie, very tight fitting) socket on over the nut and undo. Had to do this ages ago and it worked, I used some random old imperial socket but I can't remember the size. I assume you put a couple of the other wheel nuts back on to take the weight of the wheel off the stuck one?

All I had to do on mine was rotate the gear stick slightly on the splines. Pull the rubber gator up and you'll see the nut which secures the gearstick to the selector.

I think as an observation on all modern cars they are fine when bought in the way most are- that's to say via PCP or lease. Sold that way they are either new or used approved through a main dealer and under warranty- therefore the customer's exposure to some of these crippling costs are minimal. JLR servicing is expensive- my C63 is cheaper to service than the Disco 4. I suppose I got my monies worth on the D4- the beaut who filled it with oil topped it up all the way to the filler cap and never thought that it might be too much.

My company Disco 4 has done 36,800 miles in 18 months and not had a single issue- pretty impressed with it on and off road. Refinement wise it's nearly on a par with the boss's Autobiography RR. Bad bits- economy with lead feet is 25mpg (no better than the puma 110 it replaced) and servicing is a rip off. As good as it is, I wouldn't own one privately. Potential problems are just too scary to contemplate!

I had this once about 10 years ago, bent my track rod off at a pay and play and decided to limp home. I guess the force on the wheel which was toed out eventually caused the (unchecked) nuts to work loose, they actually ovalised the bolt holes in the old steel rim so much the wheel just ripped off leaving some of the nuts still loosely on the studs. Just as my wheel overtook me on a gentle bend a Police car came around the corner to see me heading for the verge, and my wheel heading for freedom. Luckily escaped with a bollocking (deserved) and a lesson learned.

I though LR Services were in Bedminster, they used to be off Hartcliffe Way? Had a few different landies MOT'd by them (they are not actually testers themselves) and OK, not great standard of work through for the few things I've had them do. If the truck is well screwed together and probably going to pass then I'd have no worries giving it to them. I started using Mototech who are in Bedminster instead, not LR specialists but do a lot of commercial work and know 4x4's. Thought they were pretty helpful when trying to balance the twin SU's on my old V8 when they didn't have to be. As a caveat I moved over to Chepstow a couple of years ago so not used any of them for a while.

If you can scavenge some then 40/40 geogrid laid over terram at the base of the excavation is a great way to start. Remember that geogrid and terram both need a minimum 300mm overlap between strips to work effectively. I would put a slight fall on the top of the stone to promote drainage, even the best machine operators will struggle to level stone to a perfectly even grade so ponding to some extent in inevitable if you try and level it perfectly flat. I would put a 1:40 cross fall across the top of the stone into a simple French drain on the low side. Even with a modest fall water should run off the stone, if you have a natural slope to work with then forming the cross fall should be easy enough and not make any extra work. Getting the water away is the key to a long lasting yard. We usually work on saturated aggregated only having 50% of it's potentially bearing capacity, so it makes a big difference. Or you could just do it farmer style and level in some rough hardcore with a loading shovel bucket and be done with it.

Steve Hill good but expensive, save him for the bigger jobs you can't handle yourself. Land Rover Services in Bedminster are a bit rough and ready but ok for welding etc. Pete at Christian Autos is simply superb.

Water in fuel from the wading? If it started immediately after you ploughed through a deep bombhole that's what I'd check. Use the drain point to empty your fuel tank and check that before stripping the engine down.

I use a 'high output' ARB compressor- obviously runs the locker fine and ok for pumping up tyres. It would struggle if you air up and down a lot though. Don't really air down that much but the ARB got so hot pumping up 235 tyres the last time it melted the winch air free spool line!

Chris, as per our chat at Seven Sisters (which you hopefully made it back from) I might also now be staying in that exact hotel over that very weekend. I'll also be in my 90- what a coincidence!

Well the Td5 set up With the Dixon jaw looks good. Didn't really think about the rear mounted tank on the Td5 in my post above so I guess you'll have to wave the inner spreader plate unless you want to drop the tank.

They are both ok, as are NATO hitches and standard tow hitches. It's the spreader plates which you need to keep the thing workable, the standard cross member is paper thin.

For reasons I can't quite define I've ended up on 7.50 XZL's. I enjoy road noise, slightly terrifying handling on wet A roads and hanging up my diffs on tree stumps when off road. Joy. Time to get rid of the lift and re-fit the ARB's next...

A rag top tour of the South of France sounds good, a rag top tour of Morocco sounds miserable. I went with a friend in a Td5 110 and even the rubbish Defender sealing and rubbish Defender Air-con was better then nothing. He might have been able to write in the dust on his dash, I could write in the dust on my face after an hour on Lak Iriki in my 90. J

Hard top. Soft top will be insecure, impractical if it rains in the Atlas and you'll get covered in dust in the south. For the desert sections/southern bit you're much better off in a well sealed truck with air con. I know that's not very hardcore, but it's true. Ventilation equals dust in all your gear (ask me how I know). Although a lot of car parks in Morocco have security guards or guardians it would still be pretty brave to leave a soft top unattended.

I'd stay away to be honest. SHB service the construction industry and you only see SHB Defenders on sites which are perceived as being too much for the average jap pick-up to handle (rightly or wrongly). They also do longer term lease stuff which is probably even worse than short term hires. Combined with the fact that everyone rags hire cars (especially on construction sites) Its not a good start. We had a couple of SHB 110's on hire and I spent many a happy day bouncing them off the rev limiter and generally not caring too much about it. Any working vehicle tends to get seen as just a tool, there are good ex-work Defenders out there but I think they are out numbered by the dross. I have a 110 USW XS as a company car and I treat it very differently to my own Defender! There has to be something out there less risky- especially if it's your first Defender. On the other hand you might get a peach.

I find toe-in makes the front very light on cambers and when turning- very noticable when throwing her into a roundabout, the front would feel like it was tucking under. Anyway, worth checking the tracking with a bit of string for the time it takes.

Swivel pre-load if I had to guess. Also worth checking you dont have any toe-in set- this can make Defenders quite fidgety.

Unless you intend to participate in lots of 'maximum extreme offroading' then a Tirfor is the better solution every time. They are alot lighter (as you don't need a bumper), more reliable (take spare shear pins) and allow lots more recovery options then a front mounted winch. Of course they are much more labour intensive to operate and set-up, but for occasional use they're great. Having said that, I have an electric winch with remote freespool which is a good bit of kit and nice to own, but if I was honest with myself the cost of it is not really justified.