beltandbraces

DON'T BE TEMPTED TO REGISTER YOUR 12 SEATER AS A MINIBUS TO AVOID THE CONGESTION BECAUSE THIS IS WAY WORSE I have just stumbled on this thread as a result of a sleepless night (too much spicy food) and now don't think I will ever sleep. I had to get rid of a fantastic VW van I had driven for ten years, sailed through its MOT every year and really low emissions but got banjaxed by TFL and overnight the van went from being worth £2000 to nothing. I couldn't understand why my 1.8 Diesel van was more polluting than a 1.8L Diesel car. It seems like madness that Diesel cars are exempt, I feel like buying an old diesel montego just so I can drive up and down past the mayor's office I live just a mile from the zone and could not avoid driving past the cameras so I ended up virtually giving the van away to a mate in North Wales as it was worthless in London or he home counties. That was when I bought my landie, thirty years of not being able to justify buying the car of my dreams and suddenly, two years after finally getting my Land Rover, I am back where I started. There must be something that can be done, Taxis can be up to twenty years old and are exempt and I have sat behind plenty that belch smoke, £100 a day every day, boy I am upset about this. Perhaps the Lorry boys can join this with a fuel protest day of action? I have read the other posts and looked at the TFL LEZ flowcharts, my 1990 2.5TD CSW is listed as estate on the V5 so at the moment shows as exempt but I suddenly got paranoid when I put my VRM in the checker in case it came out not exempt and immediately worthless. I thought that by keeping our cars on the road we would be doing a good thing and not using resources to manufacture more cars, why have the MOT emissions standard anyway? Realise I have started ranting, not enough sleep and too much anger at London's Mayor, I suppose they have got to pay for the Olympics somehow. Anyway, long and short, if you have Estate on the V5 you are exempt (for now) because technically it becomes a car, best advice is to update with DVLA if your V5 says Light Utility and get it altered to Estate. You can also take photos of the seating in the back (to show 5-8 seats) and appeal to TFL to have your status changed but that might be a lengthy process and TFL probably won't give a grace period whilst its being decided. Basically, you have to have windows and seats so it becomes a car and not a commercial goods vehicle. And as for the mainly off road bit, that definitely is aimed at machinery travelling now and again and not nifty nineties with winches

Nige, thank you for your common sense....it must be a right of passage when owning a land rover to feel a bit foolish from time to time. I had adjusted the brakes but the wrong way and NOT CHECKED them, I was racing along and trying to get the job done quick time. Snails now adjusted THE CORRECT WAY and the pedal feels like it did before I got all "overalls and mug of tea". That said, the pedal still feels a bit mushy so I suspect a weep from the cylinders and will check them this weekend. Still, I can stamp on the brakes and no warning light and the 110 stops like it should. Best bit of advice I can give is be systematic and use hose clamps to isolate the fault. Now, any advice on six year old daughters who insist I should paint the 110 pink?

Yep, rear drums and shoes and front discs and pads. I will have the drums off and check the cylinders at the weekend to see if I am losing fluid and I will check the snail adjusters again but I am scratching my head with this. It is a big change to the brake feel if all I did was change the shoes t the back and then just stamp on the brakes. I saw another thread which suggested that the rear cylinders might have to travel too far if poorly adjusted, do you think this might be the case? When I put the drums back on, I tightened the snails till the drum stopped then backed them off slightly, so I thought this was okay.....

Thanks chaps, will look at the damper as it looks original and not all that straight!!! and found the pressure relief valve which is the nut on the outboard side at the base of the pump.

1990 110 CSW 2.5TD (yes I know) so on the back of changing the rear pads, I bled the system and went round the block....the brakes had been spongy before and a blocked rear axle breather had seen a leak into the rear offside drum seeing to the last set of pads so I was expecting an improvement but as I stepped on the brakes, the pedal went 3/4 down and the brake light came on on the dash, the landy stopped well enough but I needed more force than with one oily rear drum! I am guessing the PDWA switch activated and showed an imbalance, this is the first time this has shown in the two years or so I have had the truck I tapped the pedal, light went out and I rolled off again, I stopped more gently and pressed the pedal, it still went 3/4 down but no light and the landy stopped. I did this again and pumped the pedal twice as I slowed, more pressure in the pedal and firmer feeling but as soon as I tried to stop again, no pressure and back to pedal 3/4 down. I have bled the system a second time, no obvious leaking signs in the drums or front pads, what am I doing wrong? If I brake gently/normally the brakes are acceptable but with more travel than I would like and if I brake then pump the pedal again during braking, I get a firmer brake and it feels like it should. The oil in the master cylinder reservoir is dark and black looking, despite two litres of fresh fluid going through, I have exhausted the vacuum with the ignition off and the pedal depresses when the ignition turns on so I assume the vacuum is good but with the ignition off, when I press smartly on the brakes, I hear a wheeze (2-3 seconds)as if air is being expelled. with the GUNSON pressure bleed kit attached and the engine running, I had more pressure on the pedal and no light if I stamped on the brake, remove the kit and put the regular cap on and little pedal pressure and warning lights, could this be master cylinder???? Any advice is gratefully received, I have scratched my head on this one, I have ordered a new master cylinder and seal kit but hope that it is simply something foolish I haven't done. All the wheels seem sound on their bearings and I haven't touched the front discs, only the rear shoes, and I haven't changed anything other than bleeding the brakes and then stamping on the pedal!

Thanks Peter, I should have said, my moderate "balance" still belongs to the bank!!! now, what is the pressure relief valve and how do I replace it? the maintenance manuals beckon. anyone done this job before? Paul.

Hi there, really looking for some help, I am fairly new to Land Rovers (still have a moderate balance at the bank) and am a fairly competent mechanic but baulk at welding.. I need some help with my power steering. I have a 1990 110 CSW 2.5TD which has its issues but generally runs well. I have noticed that if I am driving around a large roundabout and then exit left, the steering becomes massively heavy and then seems to release and take up normally. This is erratic but seems only to be after turning onto or almost to right lock and then back left again.This ONLY happens in one direction, turning back left from full or almost full right lock. Any ideas? I don't seem to have any unsettling fluid leaks, one of the down pipes from the reservoir is damp but no drips and the box doesn't have any leaks that are obvious. I have bled the system (no apparent bubbles appeared) and while stationary and with the engine running, I have gone lock to lock several times. When I do this, the steering turns normally full right and if I then turn back left, the steering is very heavy although if I back off the pressure slightly and then begin turning left again, it all operates smoothly!!! There is a hissing noise from the steering when this pressure is felt which stops when the steering is operating normally. Any ideas would be gratefully received as I don't want to buy a replacement box if it is another part of the steering, the steering seems normal and without hiccup when being used gently, i.e normal drifting around corners etc and there is no visible leak from the pump. I have lubed the cv joints and they don't seem to be sticking.

Thanks, I am thinking that if the alternator is under performing through age, I might as well replace with a 45 amp as I am not fitting anything else to draw power. i have a line on a replacement part and may be able to have it fitted...

Hi there, I need some help, as a newish Land rover owner, I am coming to terms with all the things that will keep me out of the house and under the bonnet. I think I need to replace the alternator on my 2.5td 110 county as the output drops as soon as I put main beam on and I get the glow plug light glowing gently which I guess is telling me I am drawing from the battery and not from the alternator. I have checked the belt, it had been loose but is now correct. Also, I have noticed that if I am driving at night and the charge is in the red, my temp needle creeps up a little, into the black band beyond the white. If I stop and apply the handbrake, no foot brake and go into neutral and knock the main beams off, the charge rises and the temp needle falls. I have done this several times and it is the same each time. Is there an electrical reason why the temp guage is being affected ( I don't think it is the water pump since the belts are working at the right tension)? It is a non a/c but I want to unprate the output from the normal 45 amp to 85 or 90. Can anyone assist in advising which alternator I need to buy. I have had a look at the wiring and on the factory fitted unit, it is a multi plug in to the alternator...not posts and blades. Any help to get the right unit is most welcome.