monkie

Thanks chaps. Is it the solenoid I'm tapping to see if I can free it? So do they just stick open resulting in the no attempt to start I'm experiencing?

Defender 200tdi. Was working absolutely fine last weekend. Been sat for a few days in the week, turn the key and it's absolutely dead, no clicking, no attempt to turn the engine over. I can hear the starter relay clicking behind the fuses. I get 12v at the white/red tracer lead to the starter motor solenoid. I have put a jump lead from the negative battery terminal straight to the engine block. I have also charged the battery just to rule it out. Still nothing. I'm thinking the starter motor has failed somewhere. Do they just fail like this with no warning? I've started to take the manifolds off so I can get at the starter motor in the morning. Anyone have any ideas?

I'm loosing track of which engine we are discussing. 200Tdi yes, 300Tdi as Western says.

If I remember correctly when rebuilding my 200tdi, you can remove the oil pump with the sump off as there is a gap for it in the ladder frame. Remove the two securing bolts holding the oil pump to the underside of the block and the whole pump can then be removed. It would be possible from under the vehicle but having it on a ramp would make it much easier if possible.

If you view his commercial profile and stuff he is selling, they are listed as West Bromwich as the location. If you then do a bit of Facebook stalking and search for his name within Facebook and find his actual personal profile it states he is based in Manchester. I wouldn't trust this guy with a jar of penny sweets. I imagine the photos are just stock images.

Have you seen the other ones he is also breaking? Seems a bit odd to me.

I've used many different makes of filters over the years and the only one I've had problems with was a Crossland fuel filter on my 19J engine. I've used Fram filters on several of my vehicles without issue

If I need a power tool that I don't have for a specific project, I will buy a cheap one with the view as long as it let's me finish the project then I'll be happy. I have Wickes own brand a multi tool saw about 5 years ago and it did the job well and is still going strong. Although for tools I use regularly, it is nice to use a quality tool if you can afford them. I love my Stihl chainsaw, it's actually a pleasure to use compared to the cheap chainsaw I initially had.

@Maverikhave you got any further with your investigation into the noise?

I tried the ones that came in a blue box and then threw them away after they wouldn't take the torque. Go to a local fixings supplier and they will sort you out. I'm very lucky in Yeovil to have Wentins fasteners. Don't know how far from Yeovil you are or if you pass by, but if so check them out. Fantastic shop with extremely helpful staff.

The 19J is an indirect injection diesel engine. The 200Tdi is a direct injection diesel engine. As such the pistons on a 200tdi sre different to those of early indirect injection diesel engines and have the combustion chamber recessed into them and the injectors sit in a different position. The 200tdi also has a ladder frame on the bottom of the block to strengthen it. I think you'd be better off sourcing a whole engine (19j, 200tdi or 300tdi) and rebuilding it.

I don't think Makita are what they once were. I always used to get Makita when possible, but don't bother any more. I'll give Hitachi a go.

Network rail use the prefix 97 on a lot of their stuff like locomotives they use, this has a 97 number on it. There is this link but little information... https://commons.m.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Network_Rail_Land_Rover_entering_Bridge_of_Orchy_Station_-_geograph.org.uk_-_24990.jpg

Looks great. A lumpy and smokey 19J on start up is reasonably normal. They have an iron block and iron head so take a bit of heat to warm them up then they settle down to be quite smooth for a diesel. They usually need a good bit of pre-heat on the glow plugs even in summer to start up. They like to have regular (twice yearly) oil and filter changes. Wouldn't hurt to check the valve clearances and check the glow plugs. I always use Beru glow plugs, avoid cheap ones.

I always think this with cars post 2000. When I was a kid in the 1980s a car that was 5 to 10 years old looked like a right rust heap with a coat hanger for the radio aerial. My wife's car is a 2012 vintage. When washed it looks new and it still performs like a new car with no rattles or nasty noises and no smoke.

My thoughts were that you could rebuild a second block whilst your current engine is insitu so you aren't rushed, but I guess you aren't planning any trips whilst this question mark is hanging over your current engine

What about getting a second hand 200tdi block, rebuilding it and then take you tdi out and swap the bits across. Then you'll know everything is good.

Seems like a step forward though to narrowing down the source of the noise, but I don't understand how this could damage the belt. Could it be that the noise is another issue and perhaps a bit of a red herring? I hope not though.

The thing is though in this specific case, we don't yet know what the problem is. There are thousands of 200Tdi's still happily running on timing belts. Replacing the belt and sprokets with gears would be throwing in the towel and side stepping the issue. I'm hoping that Maverik is able to get to the bottom of whatever the issue is so we can all learn.

There is a chap on YouTube with a channel called engineering explained. His videos are detailed and he quotes his sources back to scientific literature so you can look it up. He did an episode covering this topic. Basically EVs are alot better than ICE in terms of emissions over the lifetime, but as to how much, well it depends upon how your electricity you use to charge the car is generated. He compared a US state where they predominantly burn coal to another state with lots of renewables. It was an interesting video to watch.

I think Western made a good point about the correct belt tension. How confident are you that the torque wrench you are using to set the tension is correct? Also I understand you shouldn't really use a click type torque wrench to set the tension on a timing belt tensioner. Can you borrow a dial type one just to check? Got to be worth a go?

This is an interesting conversation, particularly so as a company car driver and the only option now for a company car where I work is a full EV, not even a PHEV (you can opt out of the scheme if you want and get your own car of your choice). I am going to take up the offer of a couple of week long loans to see how I get on driving 300 miles daily before I make a decision. It will be interesting. H2 is not an energy source and should not be viewed as. It is just a carrier of energy. It has potential use though as a store for excess energy produced from renewables when they generate beyond demand, but I very much doubt that H2 will be a mainstream "fuel" for personal transportation. Another point to consider with ICE is that petrol and diesel have already contributed to quite a lot of emissions before you even burn them (extraction, refining, distribution). This is not often considered in comparisons from an emissions point of view, so the figures don't give the full picture.

Would a failed lift pump cause the engine to cut out under no load though? I've not got the mechanical lift pump fitted on my 200Tdi (I have an electric pump), I have been happily driving round near where I live on one occasion only to discover I hadn't had the electric pump working properly. My engine didn't cut out, it just a bit sluggish.

Given it starts fine, I think the intercooler hoses are a very likely culprit as suggested above. I would imagine fuel starvation to result in difficult starting.

Welcome to the forum, I have a few questions to see if there are any further clues: (1)Does it start okay from cold? (1)Then when it cuts out, will it happily start again or is it reluctant? (3)Does the smoke smell oily?