GBMUD

One bump. It would be a shame to throw them away when there must be a home for them.

White 110 SW. Having sold the car a few years ago, I have just found the original service book, owners manual etc. If the current owner would like them, please get in touch. Chris

I have been to Billing every year for the last 20-something years, but this year I will not be going to either the not-Billing show or the Kelmarsh show. Shame. I knew that Billing would one day come to an end, and TBH it is probably well overdue, but I don't plan to be spend my time and money supporting either half of a potentially split show over two weekends. Chris

Thanks Steve. I saw that one but found the price to be unpalatable. I am pleased to have found a solution which I am happy with for now. If it turns out to be a dud long term I will reconsider. Chris

I thought I should provide an update to this topic. Thanks everyone for the responses and ideas. I returned to Halfrauds to ask their advice on whether I had installed the window aerial properly. The response was that I should have bared the paint back from the windscreen surround before sticking the earth foil. Also, fitting the earth foil absolutely smooth with no creases or bubbles is important. They gave me a new aerial FOC which I fitted as they suggested and lo, it was no better. Then I had a thought. I disconnected the two USB chargers that were on in the car and immediately Radio 4 started playing clearly. The RF output from the cheap USB chargers was upsetting it. After a couple of days DABing I was finding that there were still a great many drop outs and it was not really satisfactory. After several visits to Halfrauds and failed attempts to 'Click and collect' I was able to buy a magnetic DAB aerial from them - £14.99. I know what you are thinking, but I already have a galvanised steel plate stuck to my roof from a past project, so I was able to install the magnetic aerial on the back of my roof. Instant improvement, I no longer get regular dropouts of signal, though I have not used the Defender a lot since so there is more testing to be done. The magnetic aerial will be vulnerable off-road, but hopefully it will just hang off the back of the car when going under low trees etc. and will not get damaged. Time will tell. Once again, thanks for the suggestions. Chris

Thanks guys. I will have a fiddle tomorrow and see what I get... I will try a good earth connection at the aerial end first, followed by SimonR's suggestion of a 34cm length of TIG wire on the end of a bit of coax... If that works then I will look for a decent through body antenna. Arjan, DAB in my Rangerover work perfectly, minimal drop-outs in southern England, totally clear all the time, loads more stations and probably better then FM for coverage. Reb78, I have used mobile data for radio before but would prefer not to rely on it - locally I do not have reliable enough signal. The reason for buying DAB was to get Bluetooth for podcast and audiobook listening - and I decided that if I was getting a new head unit I was going to have DAB on it too! Chris

Hi, perhaps someone can help? For a number of reasons I have today fitted a Kenwood DAB radio in my Defender. My RangeRover has an OE DAB and that works splendidly almost everywhere. In the Defender though I cannot get a decent signal. I did manage to get some local stations with a very weak signal but nothing else - no BBC or other national stations. I have a stick-on windscreen aerial bought with the stereo at Halfrauds. The aerial has an earthing strip that has to be attached to a painted metal surface. I had to cut a slit in the windscreen rubber to allow it to pass through and stick to the frame - but is a Defender window frame adequate for the job? There is also a built in booster in the aerial which is powered by the head unit - this function is enabled on the head unit and it does not report an aerial fault. So, anyone got an aftermarket DAB in a Landrover and found an aerial that works? Photo attached I think Cheers Chris

I would argue that the viscous fan unit should have been warm - normal running temperature - for the test as they do become less viscous when warm and only 'lock-up' when hot and extra cooling is needed. Chris

I know people are always asking, and I have aired my opinions often enough. Watch this video for some actual measured figures. Keep in mind though, their graphs do not start until 3000rpm and I pretty much never exceed 3000rpm in my diesel Defender! Chris

TDV8 40+mpg... Chris

The EGR valve sticking can also cause problems, I am lead to believe. Chris

Interesting comparisons to the D5, isn't the Velar on the smaller D-Sport platform? Transverse engine, no low range gears etc.? Actually quite a different vehicle size/type one assumes. I have yet to see a Velar in the flesh - or a D5 outdoors and 'in context'. Chris

Yes* Probably more like 0730-0800 Chris

Here in most of the UK, and in most of Spain, snow is such a rarity that we have little or no experience of driving in it and choose not to (OK, spend so little) have the machinery to deal with it on standby 364 days a year. When snow comes we are thrown into chaos not because we are idiots (though many drivers appear to be), but because it is not normal weather for us and we do not have the experience or tools to deal with it. Chris

I enjoyed that, well made, well presented and informative. Well done! Chris