MrKev

Ok. 'Rolling code' works (to put it simply) by each end jumping to the next value in a secret list, the Rx is then expecting what the Tx is ready to send. By allowing the next, say, 32 valid entries in the Rx list, it is able to cope with the button being pressed when out of range etc. When you loose sync, pressing the button 4 times allows the Rx to 'work out' where it's supposed to be and re-sync. That's a simplified explanation - I'll happily write a whole lecture if required Three things could be happening. The Discovery seems to be well known for poor range on it's keyfobs. I recently had a problem with mine, where it started working very intermittently. The spectrum analyser showed the faulty keyfob to be still stansmitting at a similar level to a known good one, though I noted that the Discovery keyfob only transmitted breifly upon pressing the button, whereas many others makes transmitted continuously. Not having any other discovery keyfobs to compare to, I don't know what they're supposed to do, but I know which I'd rather it did. 1) The keyfob could be faulty, keyfobs get a lot of abuse being thrown around with keys. Inside the keyfob is a crystal which doesn't like too much mechanical shock. This could easily be compromised, causing the behaviour to become intermittent, or the operation to be off frequency such that the receiver is struggling to 'catch' the signal. Keyfob receivers are notoriously poor receivers anyway, at least on the earlier models. 2) The receiver could be having similar problems, or the antenna connections suffering, for example. Believe it or not, at radio frequencies, joining a bit of wire to an earth point does not necessarily short signals out, in certain circumstances it can actually help - many antennas are made of a loop of wire of a specific length going from the 'hot' pin of the receiver to earth. Certainly it is possible to improve the receiver's antenna - ultimately by having a dedicated antenna outside the vehicle, but of course, like all things, what landrover have done is a compromise against a number of other factors. What teabag says is right - the antenna wire is cut to a specific length to work with the receiver, though other specific lengths and configurations can be made to work too, but the detail of this requires more intimate knowledge of the receiver, or trial and error to get it right. What you have done seems to have helped, but it may not work so well in all directions around the vehicle, for example. This is probably not a problem, as you normally get in the drivers door, right? 3) You may be suffering from a new source of interference where you normally park. You would be able to tell if this is the case, as it would work fine in some locations, e.g. at home, but poorly elsewhere, e.g. at work. I went for the simple option first and got a new fob from www.remotekey.co.uk. Inexpensive, good service and effective. I was very pleased. Option 1 is by far the most likely, I think, but it looks like you've had some success with your method, and full credit to you for achieving a result. This may be start of a problem though, I do wander how long it will last though, so bear this thread in mind! Kevin

My recollection is that it is more than 3 pins - possibly 5 even. You should change the relay when fitting the tow pack to activate the trailer warning lamp using an extra pin on the relay base. Maybe this has not been done. Kevin

The first pdf details the plastic pieces that fill the approx 1" gap in the door metalwork. they have a kind of squared off S-shaped profile looking from the ends. The second pdf details the actual channel (about 1/2" wide on the outside, with a glass thickness channel in foamy stuff) for the window to slide up and down in. These are U-shaped section (or C-section if you prefer) when viewed from the end. Kev

This is correct. I can't quote part numbers right now, but it didn't take me long to google them when I sorted mine out. 1 flash when first indicating, if no trailer connected, just to let you know it works. Every flash when connected. There's a different relay depending on how many lights you've got. The 200tdi only has one rear indicator, the 300tdi has two (per side) The relays are marked with how many lamps and at what rating they support. Kev

Looks worryingly like a connector often used for mains on older equipment, probably the one James pointed to. If it were mine, I'd be changing it to something not used for mains, out of principle, and also with something easily obtainable. How much current does the fridge pull? Kev

Just to clarify: The 'shop' said they'd contacted Britpart and that Britpart would collect the part the next time the Britpart Van round. Britpart would then inspect, and so on. If deemed faulty manufacture, they would then ship a new 'one piece' bumper back. The 'shop' wasn't even technically the same shop I bought it from, so it was very kind of them to ask for me. I took the decision that the replacement part would most likely be made to the same drawing as the the part I had, and as such I was better off having it welded up properly, as oppose to having something which may well be welded badly. I figured I could trust the welding skills Nigel offered to demonstrate, and that I would end up with a decent part at the end of it. I wouldn't be able to tell if the replacement was a genuine single piece of metal versus welded and ground flat, or even if welds were visible, detect the quality of the welds after the powder coating layer had been anyway. I note that the Britpart descriptions for most of their bumpers are 'one piece'. When new, the bumper was shiny, and close enough to being the right size that I was happy with it. It was more durable than the stock discovery bumper, but clearly less durable than tree bark. To be absolutely clear on this point too: I wouldn't recommend buying this part ( http://www.britpart....cessoryRef=2662 ) to anyone. Kev

If it's up on the Hi-Lift jack when it does break, make sure there's something nice and soft for your truck to land on. Kev

Great write up there Mike, and a worthwhile reference for the tech archive. Kev

'tis a silly bunch of rules, IMHO. Problem I have is that my caravan is too heavy for the mrs to tow on the landrover legally, but legal on the back of the normal car (at the time, a 1.9 Tdi Audi), just rubbish. The law is forcing inexperienced towers (by definition, as they don't have a towing licence, therefore can't tow so many combinations) to tow close to the 100% vehicle to trailer ratio, that it's possibly more dangerous than allowing what went before. Kev

How about a freelander? Kerb weight is just over 1400kg, and GVW 1960 / 2050kg according to this site... http://www.myfreelan...comparisong.htm shows a list of 4x4 weights and towing capacities. Kev Edit: I think the XC70 from Volvo and probably similar cars fit in the category too. Let me guess though, you also want to be able to insure 18-25 year olds on it right?

I was waiting for the bit where you have to stand on one leg, then turn round three times, whilst spelling out 'landrover' backwards. Assuming you then take it out off diff lock before driving, I can't see it having any effect whatsoever.

First thing I'd check, with the vehicle on level ground and the handbrake off, see if there is any play on the propshaft Universal joints. Grab hold and give a good shake side to side and up and down, at each end of the propshaft. Kev

I've been trying to get hold of Bernie, but he's not answering his phone, and hasn't responded to my answerphone message Do co-drivers also need to be a club member? When at Longmoor, my co driver was asked to present his club membership card, fortunately Mark had his AWDC card with him, but this time round my misses may be with me instead, and she don't have one. Kev

I did get some communique back from Britpart. They said they would take it back for inspection, and if they felt that the damage was caused by a manufacturing defect, they would replace it. They also said the replacement would be 'in one piece' (not quite sure what they mean by this - I assume mine wasn't made out of casual scrap, but to drawing, just badly, but you never know, there may have been a design change), I certainly wouldn't expect it to turn up in kit form! As bushwhacker remarked, it looks like a good starting point, and so I finally opted to take Nigel up on his welding offer, having both substantially more skill and also more welder than I do, he very kindly filled his workshop with a combinayion of noxious fumes, flames and acrid smoke for me and stuck the two parts back together in a way I'm sure will never come apart again. He also kindly attacked the other weld in the same place on the opposite side, and made some techical welding observations at just how badly the job had originally been done. I'm sure he can explain it better, but it goes along the lines of low grade 0.6mm wire and contamination. What i noticed was that there was a distinct change in noise between welding bare metal together and welding over their filler material. Huge thanks to Nigel for his help, I now think I have a much better bumper that I would have got as a replacement, which would probably have had similar 'pretty looking, but no doubt 'pretty useless' welds. Lick of paint in the morning I think, and it'll better than new. Kev

Just because cordless drill batteries look small, doesn't mean they're harmless. 'Brutal' tequniques have been successful at rescuing Ni-Cd type cells in the past farily effectively, but not without risk. However, a modern cordless power tool is using Lithium based technology, and a battery pack half the size of your fist can still produce a fireball when exploding the size of a small car. Search the interwebs for 'lithium battery explosion' and see what videos you can find. Third degree burns? Not me. Orange 90: Have a look for a re-conditioning charger, as mentioned above. You've spent in the region of £400 on batteries, so why not spend another £30-£40 on something to look after them, and develop a suitable maintenance schedule to look after them. Batteries will die if left unloved, and shoving a massive amount of current into them to try and wake them up can have a detrimental effect on their performance, possibly less so with one of those spiral batteries, compared to a conventional lead acid. Kev

Two small bolts for rear recovery? Are you referring to the two M12 in double shear, which go through the rear cross member, which carry the bracket which the NATO hitch bolts to? Not what I'd call small, more what I'd call fine for landrover recovery. Or are you referring to the two M10 bolts which locate the bumper with the original bumper mounting points - there are no recovery points on the bumper I've shown, so these bolts only serve to locate the bumper and keep it horizontal, and to stop the bumper snapping in the middle if you catch a tree when driving past it. Kev

Yes, bevelled from both sides,. I wonder if they buy the weld fillet in separately and lay it in the bevelled groove, and its the powder coating that holds it all together!

I agree totally, I did buy the cheapest one out there. But equally, if you go to a professional welder, and ask him to stick to pieces of metal together for you, does he say "Well, I'll do it for £100 for you, or for £50 I could do it really badly. Which would you like?" I've learned to to use blue box stuff for nearly anything, but I did think on this occasion it was worth a punt, after all, it's just a long bit of bent metal isn't it? Dimensions not too critical, it does seal anything, what could go wrong? I didn't expect that. Kev

Geesh, my typing is awful on this thread. Maybe it's the iPad, maybe the glass of Chateauneuf du Pape I've been given ( one of the glasses) . I'll certainly re-enforce the two bumper holes, but where was it that Discoparts were suggesting adding the 6mm material? I have a good supply of 6mm steel, so adding metal here and there is always possible. Nige: tempting offer. I'll see what the 4x4 shop from where it came can do, though I suspect there may be a technicality that gets in the way... If I end up keeping it I may take you up on that offer though, it does look like an easy repair, there's very little that is bent, it had literally popped off, and the weld really does look like soldering. The quality of the powder coating is really good though, and the rectangular holes for the lights were almost the right size when I got it. Kev

No prob. You'll notice a spelling error in every other post on this thread - But I'm blaming the iPad for that, so I wasn't surprised if there was one, though I do try to make spelling and grammar done proper on public fora. A lot of people are rude about Scorpion / Scrapiron, but the stuff of there's I've seen does seem to be put together ok - better than this anyway. Just as worryingly, I was actually using the provided hi-lift jacking points only yesterday too! My NATO hitch is bolted through to the rear cross member with a wraparound bracket - I certainly wouldn't attempt recovery through those two holes in the end of the chassis that normally hold the bumper. I think I'll beef them up before putting a new bumper on - good opportunity for me to play with my new welder, I'll tack a few plated in place. Kev

Yours may well not have been, the same basic patters is available from lots of people, I think. Yours has recovery points too - scary! Kev

Eh? Punctuation looks alright to me - the use of the apostrophe is correct is ('today' is possesive of the fail in that constuct) and the ellipsis is there to show a continuation has been omitted. Kev

As we all tend to agree avoid Britpart, but I thought I would take a gamble on a Britpart HD rear bumper. After all, it's quite hard to get a piece of metal like that wrong, right? Wrong. Take a look at this. I snagged the end of my bumper on a tree going up a hill. Untitled by MrKev, on Flickr Here's a close up of that weld: Untitled by MrKev, on Flickr It's fractured along a weld where the centre section has been installed. Why a join was even needed there, I don't really know. You can see how the steel was beveled before the two pieces were soldered welded together. Let's see how good there new 2 year manufacturing and materials warranty is! Kev

Up rather than down? there's two 4' high steps in the middle! Kev

...and Mark is Mark by the way.