Don Del

Quick correction. I have just checked the tin and the temperature range given is -40 to +204 degrees Centigrade.

As I have a spare sensor and some old connectors I decided to try a little experiment this afternoon. First off I checked the resistance of the sensor which came out at 403 ohms. I then put the connectors in place and checked the resistance again which was the same as previously measured give or take an additional ohm. The connectors were removed and the opening for the pins in the sensor filled, to create a worst case scenario, with dielectric grease and the connectors refitted. No change was measured when the resistance was checked. To make sure this wasn´t a one off all of the grease was removed and everything cleaned with electrical connector cleaner and the test repeated and the same results were obtained.

The one I was looking at is supplied by Bosch in the States.

What is the part number for the connector? I have Googled it and I came with a Bosch connector with part number 1287013003 on Amazon.com.

I have attached a photo of the dielectric grease I have purchased. According to the spec sheet it is stable up to 400 degrees C which should be more than adequate!

I have had a Megajolt system fitted to my 3.5 V8 110 Station Wagon for over ten years without any major issues other than a failed VR sensor which Nigel helped me sort out. Periodically I get the nagging feeling that I should do something about waterproofing the VR sensor installation given where it is mounted. I have scoured various threads and haven´t really come across anything giving a comprehensive answer. My take so far is that a dielectric grease would be OK inside the boot and on the wires entering the plug. When it comes to the female side of the plug and the pins on the sensor things seem to be a bit more up in the air. Dielectric grease here seems to be a bit of a no-no though I have across numerous posts elsewhere which state that the metal to metal contact that occurs between the pin and connector effectively forces the grease out of the way and electrical connectivity is not affected. Having said that I have come across an equivalent number of posts saying not to even consider doing it. I have also come across posts on this site suggesting Vaseline or WD40. Though I would have thought WD40 would be something to try after the event of water ingress given its propensity to dry out over time. At the moment I am considering putting dielectric grease at the back of the plug under the boot and in the "valley" between the connector housing and the shroud around it. I would really appreciate any suggestions or comments (polite ones only of course). regards, Del

I have attached a photo of the lines to the fuel pump on my truck. The installation has been like this for the thirteen years I have had it and has never given any problems which supports the comments I have received. If you assume that the fuel pump delivery pressure is somewhere between 5 and 7 psi the force that the clips holding the fuel line in place have to resist is between 0.39 and 0.55 pounds which does not seem excessive. I recently obtained a new fuel pump which I intend fitting before the installed 24 year old unit decides to call it quits which, knowing my luck, if I don´t change it will occur far from home with a full tank of petrol and the new pump still safely at home. I have got a 9 gallon side tank with a Facet solid state pump to transfer fuel to the main tank and I always carry a length of fuel, spare clips and hose connectors so putting together a jury rig would be doable. But who needs the aggro! When I fit the new pump I would like to try and bring things back to as close to the original installation as possible hence my query about the quick connectors. In addition to the quick connectors for the pump I need another two for the inline fuel filter. I have ordered some Dorman connectors in steel from Amazon in the US at US$9.80 a piece which I should receive next week. When I get the new pump installed I will update this thread. Cheers, Del

They probably had barbs or a bulbous section on the pump pipes. The pipes on my pump are straight. Del

5/16" converts to 7.94mm. I have checked the connectors on a new fuel pump that I am going to install and they are both 7.84mm in diameter so I am fairly sure that the 5/16" connectors will be OK. This is the one that I am considering:- https://www.amazon.com/Quick-Connector-Female-Straight-Tubing/dp/B07KQHNQ8M/ref=sr_1_5?crid=1HQ0RF2G08ESE&keywords=5%2F16%2Bquick%2Bconnector&qid=1690578980&sprefix=5%2F16%2Bquick%2Bconnector%2Caps%2C250&sr=8-5&th=1

Built to special order for the US Drug Enforcement Agency when they had a presence in Bolivia. Evo Morales, the President at the time, booted them out around 2008 and the fleet of ten or twelve (I think that was the number but don´t quote me) were sold on to the general public. I picked mine up at the end of 2009. Essentially the truck is a Td5 with a V8 lump. Del

My truck is a 1999 3.5 V8 110 Station Wagon with SU carbs. I had the petrol tank out the other day and discovered that at some time in the dim distant past someone had totally bodged the fuel delivery and return line fittings to the fuel pump neither of which had quick connectors with the lines being held in place by jubilee clips. I am in the process of sourcing replacement quick connectors on Amazon.com in the States which for me is a reliable and straightforward way of sourcing non LR specific bits and pieces to be shipped to Bolivia. When I do a search for 8mm quick connectors I am being offered 5/16" connectors. I know that 5/16" is as near as dammit 8mm but I am hesitant to hit the checkout button. Can anyone help me to overcome my indecision? Cheers, Del

Sure did! But my wife wouldn´t speak to me for hours afterwards.

Agreed. A few more off topic photos for you. Many thanks for your help. Del

That is what had me foxed. The pedal was always firm until it wasn´t when the fluid ran out! Which fortunately only happened once just outside where I live. What I cannot understand is where the fluid disappeared to. We are not talking gallons I appreciate, but over time well over a quarter of a litre of hydraulic fluid has gone walkabout and there is not a trace of it anywhere. del

Thank you! Off topic I have attached a couple of photos as requested. Del

I installed a heat shield today, see photos below, and so far so good! A one hour drive of around 12 miles with a 500 metre increase in altitude didn´t result in any reduction of the fluid level in the master cylinder in stark comparison to what occurred last weekend. I am fairly confident that the cause of the problem has been identified and if it recurs on a longer run I am sure that improvements to the heat shield will fully resolve matters. Cheers, Del

Sunday update! I left the "motorway stick" in overnight on Friday and removed it on Saturday afternoon after about twenty hours. No noticeable reduction observed in the fluid level in the master cylinder. Took the truck out for a run this afternoon to a supermarket we occasionally use, a journey of about 10 miles and a drop in altitude of around 500 metres. It was an in town trip with fairly frequent gear changes. The fluid level was checked on arrival at the supermarket and no noticeable drop found. After a happy (relieved?) 45 minutes shopping it was back home. Checking the fluid level again on arrival it was found to have dropped by almost a quarter of an inch. The obvious difference between be the two halves of the trip being that on the way back everything was fully warmed up and the engine had to work harder on the climb with a consequent increase in temperature of the exhaust down pipes. I am going to give your suggestion about installing a heat shield a go this week to see if it makes any difference. Watch this space! Many thanks, Del

Exactly what I have just done this afternoon. A modified version of the old lorry drivers "motorway stick. I´ll attach a few photos below to illustrate. I checked it for an hour and absolutely nothing, zip, nada! All the joints bone dry. When I removed the stick the level in the master cylinder did not go down indicating no loss. I have replaced the stick and will leave it overnight to see if anything happens. The other day when the slave cylinder was removed for checking I noticed that the position of the piston was about a third of the way down the bore which is exactly the same as the position of the piston in the slave cylinder that it replaced almost 1,500 km previously. This would mitigate against there being a problem with the clutch or the operating linkage as the piston should have moved further forward if the additional fluid was being retained in the system and would not have moved back against the spring behind it. I am wondering now whether or not there might have been a leak on the joint where the short section of pipe from the slave cylinder connects to the flexible hose and when the slave was refitted this joint was fully tightened. Depending on what I find tomorrow I intend taking the truck out for a run on the weekend to see what happens. Cheers, Del

Thank you for the input. To try and give everybody a better understanding of my situation the following timeline might help. 4/4/11 86,146 km - Allparts clutch master cylinder fitted. I was about to do a long trip and as the vehicle was new to me I had decided to change out a few components that might give problems. 24/7/19 146,876 km - Upgraded to TRW master cylinder. No existing problems. 28/6/22 151,678 km - Installed AP slave cylinder and new flexible hose. On inspection there was nothing wrong with the items changed. The requirement for continual topping up had started. 17/10/22 152,065 km - Replaced master cylinder with a Bearmach unit. On inspection the TRW unit showed no sign of any leakage. Requirement for topping up continued at about the same level. 27/1/23 152,610 km - Refitted TRW master cylinder and rectified a leak at the upper union of the flexible. By this time the interval between topping up of the master cylinder had reduced, taking about 220 km to completely empty. 10/5/23 153,165 - Removed slave cylinder to check for a leak with nothing detected. All pipes, unions and flexible hose clean and dry. To summarise, I am at a complete loss. All of the work has been done with the assistance of a competent mechanic who is equally at a loss. If the hydraulic fluid is not exiting the system the piston of the slave cylinder should be pushing the clutch release lever against its mounting. Looking at the above I have another flexible hose available and I will try changing that on the off chance. As I have said, when the work was done yesterday there was no visible evidence of any leak but as you point out it is better to be sure before taking the drastic measure of taking the gearbox out. Cheers, Del

That is a good idea. I have been thinking about getting one for some time. The only issue is that it will cost another $50-$60 to get it here with courier charges and import duties and a couple of weeks in transit. As it stands I have resigned myself to ripping out the gearbox to find out what is going on because something is definitely not right and it is the only way of rectifying any problem. Cheers, Del

No signs of leakage anywhere. All of the fluid that has been added can only be resulting in the piston in the slave cylinder being pushed further along it. There is no sign of any air in the system and it has been bled on a number of occasions. As I mentioned previously the operation of the clutch is perfectly normal. All I can think of now is that there is a problem with the thrust race lever assembly that is requiring the slave cylinder piston to travel further forward. Del

The operation of the clutch is perfectly normal at all times with nothing to suggest any problems at all. The point at which the clutch engages/disengages hasn´t altered and there is no sign of any slip. Del

I run a 1999 Defender 110 V8 Station Wagon which is a factory build. About 4,000 miles ago the level of the fluid in the clutch master cylinder started to start falling at a noticeable rate. Thinking that the fault was probably in the hydraulic system I subsequently changed out both the master cylinder and the slave cylinder with TRW and AP units respectively. I also replaced the section of flexible hose. On inspection of the old parts no evidence of any leakage was found. Recently the problem has become worse with the level of the master cylinder completely falling after about 200 miles. Today I checked out the system again without finding anything wrong. This leads me to the conclusion that there must be a problem with the clutch itself. Before I take the next step any observations or suggestions would be welcome. Also any suggestions regarding brands of replacement clutch parts would be appreciated. Cheers, Del

Thank you for the info and the links. Del

Many thanks!