Rustyrangie

Nice job, Orange I did the same to my '90 Vogue Having stacks of time and little money (early retired and a cheapskate!) I made up all the floor support panels from 20 gauge sheet with a clark bender. The floor is a Disco one which is about 4 inches too short. I fitted an extra floor support bar above the fuel tank and used 20 gauge sheet to fill the gap to the rear crossmember. The disco floor has all the holes (Seat belts & fuel pump access) in the right place if you do it this way. Bob

Don't apologise for not knowing something. better that than being all macho and pretending you do and getting it wrong. I used to have to write "idiot guides" on technical systems for non-technical people so they didn't hurt themselves or the systems, so I can understand where you're coming from. Ohms is the unit of electrical resistance. On your multimeter it may be the Omega symbol, a bit like an upside down U. or simply "R", Switch your meter to this and touch the leads together, it should read 0 (zero) or thereabouts. With the leads not touching it should read full scale or maximum. A resistor is a device which has resistance. If you're not familiar with the term it might help to think of a resistor as being like an electrical "water tap". With the tap almost shut off, little water flows = high resistance, With the tap fully open, lots of water flows = low resistance. the coolant sensor resistance varies according to temperature as previously mentioned. The TPS (throttle position sensor) resistance varies according to the position of the centre shaft, which is attached to the throttle itself. It's acts just like the volume control knob on an old radio or telly. All the various sensors in the efi system are very basically resistors which vary according to an external situation. (Temperature, airflow, throttle position, engine revs, road speed etc. etc.) Each one thus provides a voltage at it's connection within the ECU which the ECU uses to determine the correct amount of fuel to squirt into the manifold. The ECU is basically a clever box with a lot of inputs from the various sensors dotted around the engine etc. Using voltages caused by all these it does its little "sums" and then tells the injectors to open. The sum works out how long the injectors should be open to allow the correct amount of fuel out for the conditions existing at that specific moment in time. Hope this doesn't look too patronising, if it does I apologise. Good luck, Bob

Some tips if you're going to remove and strip the dizzy. Set the engine to TDC on Cyl 1 firing stroke. Photograph the dizzy from above. Remove Dizzy cap and photograph again. The you'll know how things , rotor arm position etc, should look when you come to replace it. I learned this from bitter experience when I removed mine and totally messed up the timing. Also when you're stripping the dizzy take photographs at each stage I found it helped to make a good clear space on the bench, table or whatever and cover it with an old white sheet/tablecloth/pillowcase etc. This has 2 benefits. 1, it's clean and you can see anything you drop and 2 it won't bounce too far when you drop it. Again bitter experience spending ages looking for one of the small screws which bounced under the bench. Good luck, Bob

Hi, I did mine a while ago and I seem to recall having to jack up the rear inner wings to get them to fit. Not much, maybe 3 - 4 mm. Did you take any measurements before you removed the old one? I had a real struggle removing mine and I doubt I'd have noticed any movement in the rear wings at the time. Bob

You need to know the water table for your site. It'll soon show up when you dig it. If the water table is above the floor of your pit it'll always try to fill with water. A mate had this problem. Tanked the pit with visqueen as stated previously, then 9" blocks etc. Clever part was a sloping floor with an old plastic water tank buried at the deep end with a grating on top. He then fitted a submersible pump in the tank to empty out any water. He piped this straight to the drain...not recommended as it probably had all sorts of pollution in it. He also made a 6" deep channel at the wall tops with 6' fluorescent tubes behind perspex covers so he didn't need to use lead lamps. All electrics were via an isolating transformer and rcds, he was a sparky so knew what he was doing. Electrics and damp pits don't mix!

I got a compressor during the last load of special offers, super bit of kit for 60 quid. At that price you can't go wrong.

And of course don't forget about security. Fit good quality locks etc and DON'T FORGET TO USE THEM! Three weeks ago I had "night visitors" in my garage and lost around £500 worth of power tools etc. Luckily the insurance paid out for the major items but the trouble is I can't remember exactly what was in there until I'll need to use it. Also, if you've a "better half" don't give them a key or your garage will magically end up full of garden/house stuff while you're not looking! Mine currently houses a redundant fridge..not all bad though as I've a handy source of chilled beer and it also serves as a worktop for spraying those fiddly little brackets & things that I've just made/repaired. Interesting coloured fridge though! Bob

Hi, I assume you mean the lower tailgate, I had the same problem. I'd taken my rusty Crossmember off so was able to put it in the vice to have a real go at the hinges. As you say, they were extremely tight in both directions but a bit of preseverance and a lot of WD40 and a big hammer eventually got them out. On mine the pins were fitted from the crossmember "middle" so needed to be knocked out from the "ends" as it were. Makes sense if you think about how the hinge pins would be fitted originally. They'd need to get at it easily to fit the pins and there's more room in the middle that at the ends. Good luck, Bob :-)

Hi, I did mine recently. Removed the old one by cutting it it between the hinge and the side pillar and taking it out in 2 bits. If you've got the rear wings off & tank and floor out it's quite an easy job to do. I made up a tool from square box section and threaded rod to accurately measure width, height and diagonals of the tailgate opening as it's a bit awkward with a tape. Found I didn't really need it as nothing had moved when the crossmember came off and it stayed rigid and square while fitting the new crosmember. One thing I did find was that the replacement cross member wasn't seam welded all along its length and the ends were open. Also it didn't have the locating holes for the hinge helper spring. I welded up the gaps and made up end plates and welded them on. Then finally, a good squirt of waxoil through the number plate wiring hole just in case. :-) Bob

I agree wholeheartedly. I reckon you need at least a metre all round a vehicle, not including any work benches etc. Also think about height, a LR on a decent set of axle stands could be almost 8 feet high. If you're thinking of an up-and-over door remember that these take up quite a bit of space when they're being opened/closed. I have a common or garden so-called double garage which I find a bit "tight" with just one Rangie in it. Less than a metre space at the back and it's hard up against the door at the front. I have to close the bonnet before I can open/close the up and over door. At my last house I built a large double garage alongside the existing single one. Used the front half of the single as a workshop and the rear half as a utility room with hot & cold water, sink etc. I also used larger than standard section roof trusses so I could space then at 600mm to allow a decent trapdoor size then floored the roof space for additional storage. A 400mm shelf all round the wall about 400mm below the ceiling allows the use of loads of plastic storage boxes for all those stripped off parts. keeps them off the floor too! Another point. if you're starting from scratch you simply can't have too many electric sockets and lights. I used double sockets, mounted in pairs spaced at 1.2 metres all around the walls and even then I sometimes had to use a multi extension cable! Bob

Further to the above I've just seen all the fittings and tube you'll need in a caravan accessories shop, seemed pretty cheap too. Bob

Hi, I asked a similar question a while ago. http://forums.lr4x4.com/index.php?showtopi...l=axle+breather Bob

I had the same problem recently. No petrol tank to worry about as it was out while I did the rear floor. I used a 1.6mm cutting disc and cut in from the rubber side to minimise sparking. Using a good headshield you can use the grinder "upside down" so the sparks fly away from the tank area anyway. As I assume you're going to, I used stainless bolts and nuts to hold the replacements. Good luck, Bob

Hi, sent you a PM with photos etc. Cheers, Bob

Hi again, I've found 2 Hella " relays" in my box of bits. Markings are Hella, 12V, 5WD005052-00, Streuscheiben - Reinigungs - Steuergerat Babelfish translates this to "Tinted windshields - cleaning - taxturn out" So it doesn't look as this has anything to do with cruise control. My parts CD only shows a standard relay in the cruise control circuitry. Are you sure you didn't blow a fuse when your relay burnt out? My RRC seems to use one fuse to protect a number of different circuits, is anything else not working? If you like I can send you one of these to try anyway for the cost of P&P Cheers, Bob

Just read your post again and see thet you lost yours at the Hella dealer so you probably won't have the part Nos etc.. I'll have a look anyway. Bob

Hi, I got a big boxful of RRC relays off ebay recently. Some appear as you describe ...Hella, 2" X1" x1", etc. If you give me all the stuff written on yours, I'll have a look and see if I've got one. Can't promise that there'll be one but it must be worth a try. Cheers, Bob

Hi, I've had good service from www.workshopshop.com Bob

Hi Dean, I'm just about at the end of a "Weldathon" on my Rangie. I think you'll find an RR easier to work on than most cars, I know I have. The metal is thicker than most, at 18gauge, and less likely to blow through when you're welding. Also most of the panels are simple flat plate with only the odd single plane bend. Dead easy to copy if you've the inclination and the time. However, expect to find LOTS of rust damage. One good point though, you'll be an ace welder when you've finished! Good luck. Bob

I sort of looked into this recently. I have an old B&Q mitre saw with a 8 1/2 " blade so I thought, Right! a slightly worn 9" cutting disc should fit. The centres are, as you say different diameters so I made up an adapter washer on the lathe. Disc fitted ok but the whole thing seemed very dangerous when I switched it on. I think the disc, being much heavier than the sawblade, set up a vibration which nearly shook the thing off the bench. Maybe my cutting disc was suspect and out of balance but it made me abandon the whole idea, for a while anyway. This was using a 2.5 mm wide cutting disc. If 1.6 mm ones are available in 9" or so dia it might be a lot better, and safer. The mitre saw is of light alloy construction and just didn't have the weight for the job. I would think, too, that the effects of grinding dust on a DIY saw motor would be catastrophic. Mine gets clogged up with sawdust quite easily so grinding dust would be bound to get in. Electric motors and small metal particles don't mix. Bob

Hi all. I got one of the "Aldi specials" compressors last month. It's a great bit of kit but a bit noisy and the receiver is a bit too small. So..... Could I use a redundant caravan gas cylinder as an extra air receiver? The one I have come by has been empty for a couple of years with the tap open. I envisage sticking it out of the way in the garage roof space connected to the compressor with suitable pipework. Anyone done this? Obviously I'll need to get any trace of the gas out, any special techniques for doing this? My thoughts about the noise are to extend the air inlet, which is where most of the noise appears to come from, through the garage wall and fit the filter there inside an open box with a "roof" to keep the rain off. Any help or alternative ideas greatly appreciated. Thanks, Bob

Hi, Don't if this is any help. I got a pack of "Iron on" Tee shirt transfers when I bought my secondhand PC & printer, now long gone, ages ago. They're made by Hewlett Packard so should be good quality. I've never used them, I could send you a sheet to try if you like Maybe they could be used with your PC to print out lables, logos, icons etc and then heat transferred to your dash. Just a thought, Bob

Thanks Simon, I'd have done the same if I'd known they were there. It's on my "to do" list now. Cheers, Bob