Disco-Ron

Bernie, NO, you do not have a fault............... the centre diff allows the front wheels to turn, even when the handbrake is on, this is exactly why land rover supply a chock with each vehicle for use when jacking, imagine changing a rear wheel, the vehicle is on a hill lets say, you raise the rear to change ne wheel, the other wheel can now turn due to one of the real wheels being off the ground, the front wheels can turn cos the handbrake doesn;t work on them, and hey presto, your land rover falls off the jack.... so, when jacking, use the chock...!!

My money is on either a full of mud steering damper, or a bent damper.......... seen it numerous times whilst offroad........ unbolt the damper and try again!!

I have britpart yellows on my disco, and they are certainly NOT hard........... if anything, they're soft.......... which is what i'm now looking for for my 90...! however, i want standard ride height....

I wasn't even aware the axles had numbers on them...LOL!!

In reality though, how many people can actually tell the difference between a defender axle, and a discovery one, they're the same as far as i know, apart from some differing shafts, and the 3900 disco having a rubber joint on the rear.........

It turns out that that bumper was home made by Dave, (landrover598)..... should have guessed as much!! I may have a plan to achieve what i'm after..... watch this space!

I know............ i want to mount the winch above the chassis rails, or effectively on top of the bumper....... i'm thinking i'll have to make something up....... the bumper needs to be rtv alrc legal..... so standard shape...... or width anyway, and me wanting the winch set back is just my wanting what i want...LOL!

I've seen the bikini mount..... but ideally i'd like the winch further back than that............. tis just me being awkward...!

I am looking for a winch mount for my 90, ideally i don;t want any part of the mount, only the fairlead to be in front of the front face of the existing bumper..... i am quite happy to cut the grill and surround, i want the winch to sit as far back asd possible without hitting the rad, obviously....... however i can't find a ready made mount like that... Any ideas................ alternatively it looks like i'll have to make something up................!

The other way round it is if possible to use the identity of the vehicle the chassis has come form..... I have a 300tdi chassis with ID (nice number) £50 and its yours... all you have to do is come and get it...LOL!!

If you jack the truck up so the springs are at their full free hieght, then this link 'might' help... http://members.shaw.ca/jbarge/springinfo.html

Thanks... i will ask my friend again...

HI, was talking to a mate on sunday, and he reckons there is a frim who offer a kit of the biots you might need when swapping a defender onto a new chassis..... does anyone know if there is a firm doing such a thing.... sounds like a damn fine idea..!!! I'm not ahuge buyer of magazines.... hence i've not seen any ads for these things... Cheers.

Thanks for the link Jason...... all food for thought!!!...

Hi All, I have just collected my 'new to me' defender 300tdi, and driven it 280 miles home.. I have a few simple questions......... Are the gauges bulbs REALLY that dim.... is there something that can be done... Is dampness inside the gauges normal....?? The heater controls are stuck solid, is it likely to be the levers, or the cables...??? The wipers have a mind of their own, they don't park, and even when on intermitant sometimes they do three wipes in a row...... is this likely to be the column switch, or the park switch on the motor itself....??? I'm sure there are a million and one other things i cold ask, but in general i'm very happy with ,my 12yr old 49k one owner truck... Had disco's for 4 yrs, so i know what land rovers are like, as with all british cars they have their little ways don;t they...LOL!!!

I never said it 'was' the spider...... i just said it'd be worth looking at as they do seem to fail...! just an option!!!

http://forums.lr4x4.com/index.php?showtopic=86

Do a search for 'alarm spider'..... late tdi's cutting out is most likely caused by the alarm cutting fuel...!!!

You'll need to remove the housing that the difflock lever sits in, and bently ease the lever.... i ended up with mine in the vice hitting gently with aahammer till it moved... i stripp=ed it totally apart and greased everything.... mine had never been in difflock its whole life!

Thanks jake, thats great............ it also means i'll have nice chunky recovery loops for my winch hook to clip into...

I've just found David Bowyers bikini kit... which is pretty much what i'm after...... i like the fact that it bolts under the bumper aswell....... However, i'm not sure it'll fit with the D44 HD bumper,....LOL!

Thanks, but i want my winch to sit on top of the top rail or the bumper...... just me being picky thats all... Had i waited 10 mins i would have found a suitable bumper, D44 do quite a nice looking one with recovery points!

HI, i am relatively new to the world of Defenders, i have had a disco for 4 yrs though....... I've just bought my first 90, and the first thing i need is a heavy duty front bumper, it needs ideally to be the original profile, not tapered or anything.... i will most likely mount my winch on top of it in its own tray, i don;t like the winch to be inset in the bumper as it then sits lower, and maybe in the mud/water...... So in short, where can i get a nice strong standard looking front bumper....?? Cheers.

Agreed.......... however, i went and viewed an 84 v8, with just 43k on the clock, and the bulkhead was shot, the seat box needed lots of work.... and the rear floor had corroded through where the supports had rusted causing the aluminium to go aswell.... Some are clearly better than others.......... but the prices at the mopment are getting crazy..... Cheers.

Thanks Jason, however i think i have decided i need something newer, simply for the solidness of the base vehicle................. trouble is, the prices are so firm at the moment i'll end up skint if i get what i'd like.......... Thanks for the advice guys.............. much appreciated...... One more quickie.............. would a range rover v8, and manula gearbox fit......?? and is the gear lever in the right place, or is that the same issue with the disco box........... its an early 70's range rover engine and box i have in my sights...!