Dave W

I don't think that would be thin enough, the problem is it has to lubricate the king pin bearings as well as the CV. One shot thins out a lot when it's warm so it lubricates the upper and lower bearings properly. The upper bearing, in particular, is "splash" lubricated so if the grease is too heavy it will run dry. The CV and bearings were designed to be lubricated with EP90 in the first place so if you can't get hold of one shot just use EP90 and fill it to the level plug.

One shot was a replacement for EP90 to try and reduce the leaks around the swivel seal. I run EP90 in mine and replace the seals when it leaks. Before one shot came along EP90 was the standard lubrication and a common remedy for leaking swivel seals was to make up your own mix of EP90 and grease. If the seals are in good condition you can just use EP90, that's why there is a level plug in the swivel housing.

EP90 ?

Only because all the works teams are running diesels this year. Anyway Robbie Gordon is going to win... you heard it here first ! He'd be leading now if they didn't keep shortening the dune sections.

You know as well as I do that was down to us running the course first and having less grip than anyone else as a result, the times got faster throughout the day... that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it ! Real auto drivers use it for the brake pedal as do manual drivers who know better than to ride the clutch

OK, regardless of discipline autos are better/easier to complete with. The flexibility of being able to crawl along one second and then seemlessly change speed/gear without any hesitation is a bonus in trials and challenges. The ability to change up or down gears while going up steep climbs is a bonus in all disciplines. When winching it's much easier to match the wheel speed on the occasions you need to do it. For speed events, seamless shifting means you are faster off the line and faster out of the corners. Autos are much gentler on the rest of the transmission resulting in fewer diff/shaft/cv breakages. For road driving between comps autos make for a quieter more relaxing journey, especially in stop/start traffic. The only real downside to an auto is that you can't tow/bump start an auto if the battery dies... hence I always carry decent jump leads. Comparative lack of engine braking going downhill isn't really a downside, just a matter of learning the right techniques depending on the box you are using. I've never known anyone compete in an auto and then want to go back to a manual afterwards. I've not used a manual in competition for 15 years since I converted my SIII hybrid from manual to auto and got my first overall win first time out. Nowadays I find driving manuals a real chore off road, so much so that when we get a new member who needs instruction, if he has a manual vehicle I'll find someone else to do it.

Almost, you got 2 out of 3 correct(ish) at least and proper engines don't use EDIS Big V8, Megasquirt, AUTO

Any thoughts on what type of competition ? Transmission is easy at least, auto - regardless of the type of competition.

Thanks Stu, it was part of a discussion about a proposed MSA rule for 2010. I asked how a scrutineer could tell if a spacer was TUV approved and was told there would be an approval mark stamped on it... was wondering what the mark would look like "in the flesh". The current limit for spacers in MSA competition is 25mm but there is a proposal to allow wider spacers providing they are TUV approved. If yours are genuinely TUV approved and don't have a mark it makes the new proposed rule impossible to apply.

Ideally you'll need 2 additional batteries for the 24v system and a second alternator - if you don't have aircon you can usually fit an alternator in place of the aircon compressor. That way you can leave the existing 12v vehicle electrics alone and have a completely independent system for the winch. You CAN use a two battery system rather than three, in which case you replace the existing alternator with a 24 volt one and take the power for the vehicle from the middle of the two batteries although this can cause problems long term as the two batteries are always under different load and require a different charging voltage/current. If the winch is just for leisure/occasional use then it's probably easier and cheaper to change the winch to 12v, on most winches this is simply a case of changing the motor and possibly reconfiguring or replacing the solenoids.

Not sure if it's any help over what's already been posted about CDS but rather than hydraulic pipe, steam pipe is a good source of high pressure thick walled steel tube - my front bumper is made from 4 inch steam pipe and has a 5mm wall thickness.

This is something I'm considering at the moment too, I remember a mate of mine having one done years ago and he had problems with it buckling. It's a long time ago so memory may be a bit skewed but he was talking about getting another bulkhead and trying again but this time he was going to add some bracing bars to it. Anyone had a Defender bulkhead galvanised and had problems like this or was it just down to the galvanising company he was using ?

I think it's a networking/routing issue, I've used traceroute while it's down and it always fails or is delayed at the same IPSDirect.net router. If it'll help I can paste an output here next time it does it.

Any chance you can post a photo of the TUV mark/number on them ?

If you want an HT lead that has insulation capable of doing it's job then the answer is yes, they are worth it. If you want an HT lead that won't start arcing and cross firing whenever you go within 6 feet of muddy water then the answer is yes, they are worth it. The Magnecore leads on SWMBOs 3.9 are now 7 years old and have never missed a beat (running petrol and LPG). I've never known a set of OEM or other HT leads last more than a couple of years before they need replacing due to insulation breakdown.

I'm pretty sure the TD5 I'm looking at has been remapped already. It's an auto so fuel consumption will always be different to a manual anyway, A 90 always uses more fuel than a Disco/Rangie too. Having said that it was used to build and test the Compushift/ZF system and isn't fitted with the best torque converter for the job, it's been suggested that the V8 torque converter used on the "production" conversions adds around 3mpg to it because it makes better use of the engine's torque. It comes complete with a V8 torque converter that needs fitting. My 3.9 auto setup used to get 20MPG in my old RRC, when I put the same engine and box into my Defender (same wheels/xfer box/axles) the MPG dropped from 20MPG to 16MPG on the same trip. It's amazing how much less of a brick a disco/rangie is than a Defender, especially over 50MPH. Pros of the TD5 so far: Bigger load space without the LPG tank. (Pam needs to carry a 1metre x 1metre planning frame in the back, among other things) Easier to fill up at reasonable prices (LPG stations on her normal route are about 10p per liter more expensive than the cheap ones and often are out of order so she has to run on petrol from time to time) Lots of electric toys although ABS can be a mixed blessing. Cons of the TD5 so far: Not as easy/comfortable to drive as the 3.9, the TD5 feels more agricultural to drive. Pam says her 3.9 90 drives and handles like a car, the TD5 drives and handles more like a Land Rover. I assume this is a combination of springs, wheels/tyres and possibly the seats. It's been rebuilt on a plain chassis rather than galvanised - I'm concerned that 6 years down the line we'll be back to the same position we're in now. First job if I buy it is a full waxoyl at the very least. The paintwork looks really good now but 6 years ago so did the 3.9 (so much so that nobody believed it was original). Now you can't use a hosepipe on it without lumps of paint coming off. I'll have to find a buyer for the 3.9 90 and would need to do some work on it, possibly including an engine and gearbox change.

How much do they charge for a kit like that ? My team mate is looking for a truck cab cage.

I'm sure you can get better fuel consumption out of it but this was a straight comparison between two vehicles on exactly the same run, part of which is stop/start traffic into a city centre. We could probably get a few more MPG out of the TD5 with some tweaks to the gearshift pattern though.

The regulator varies the pressure according to manifold pressure so has a small vacuum pipe going to it, the wire operates the overrun shut off relay so can be ignored. Not sure if it's best to run with or without the pressure regulator vacuum pipe, probably as well to keep it as is and just ignore the wire.

Airflow meter, 9th injector, overrun relay setup can all go. You will need the extra air valve. Fuel only or fuel and ignition ?

Trying to decide what to do with Pam's 90 at the moment. We bought the 1998 90 6 years ago and I rebuilt it with a 3.9 EFi and ZF auto as it was, essentially, just a shell when we bought it. I fitted a good quality LPG kit at the same time. It's just got through it's MOT after I welded a patch on the rear cross member but, looking at the chassis, it's going to need more chassis work and probably a new rear cross member before next year's MOT. The bodywork is pretty awful, even by Land Rover standards, with paint bubbles on the doors, wings, rear door and the paint coming off the body cappings revealing rust underneath. It's paintwork has deteriorated far quicker in the last 6 years than any Land Rover I've ever owned. The engine and gearbox are both on their last legs but I have a spare 3.9 and 6 month old recon ZF sat in a mates garage (came out of my Defender when I fitted the LS1/6). We'd already planned on a rebuild this year which would include a galvanised chassis, replacement body panels etc... and then I was offered a chance to buy an unusual TD5 90... The TD5 90 is on a 1990 plate and was professionally rebuilt 2 years ago with a new chassis (not galvanised) a selection of body panels, a decent spray job and the engine and gearbox were replaced with a rebuilt TD5 and an electronic ZF auto. As a bonus it also has aircon, central locking, electric windows, ABS and traction control. In fuel consumption/cost terms, Pam borrowed the TD5 for a day and a bit and they're pretty much neck and neck in running costs unless she diverts off her route to fill up at a supermarket LPG, in which case the 3.9 is cheaper, the pay off for that is a the loss of carrying space though as the tank is in the back. The TD5 90 returned 22.5 MPG and the LPG 90 returns 12 MPG on the same trip. So... Do we buy the TD5 90 and sell the 3.9 90 on or do we put the money into rebuilding the V8 90 on a galvi chassis and replacing nearly all the bodywork ? Thoughts ???

I'm not sure what/if there is any benefit to using vacuum over pressure, I use a pressure bleeder (Gunsons in my case) and have never had a problem bleeding the brakes with it. The reason I mention this is I think it would be easier to make a pressure bleeder than it is to make a vacuum bleeder. A spare wheel aired down to 20psi makes a reliable and stable "power source" for the system and you can use it either with or without a fluid reservoir. Beyond that, all you need is a few bits of pipe and a spare reservoir cap. Having a fluid reservoir is more complicated but saves a bit of time as you don't have to worry about the amount of fluid you're using, it also makes it a doddle to do a complete fluid change. If you modify a cap off a bottle of brake fluid you can use the bottle as a reservoir although you'd want to do some checks with air only first to make sure it's sealed and won't explode on you !

If you get a unit that works off memory devices rather than CD you can mount it at any angle, doesn't suffer from jumping or skipping and the media is physically smaller but you can store more music on it than you can on a CD. I bought a cheap unit (as I fully expect it to end up underwater at some point) for my comp motor, it takes either a USB stick or an SD card, I've never used the CD on it. Hopefully someone will produce one like mine that doesn't have the CD option so they can make it a lot shorter so it'll be easier to fit in.

lol, nice thinking, I guess they also double as "waffle boards" ?

I'm using QT mounts on mine, haven't noticed any additional vibration/noise over the standard mounts, maybe my engine runs smoother or something. Having seen Steve's mounts though, maybe the next time someone asks me about LS1/Defender mounts, that looks to be a much simpler way of making a mount for the engine side and then building custom chassis "ears".to suit. Looks like it'll make the whole process a lot simpler as you can easily adjust the height and distance from the chassis based on where you drill the hole. Are you going to put a plate between the two ears once they are welded to the chassis ?