Davo

I'm not sure you would need this Mordant stuff, because a good etch primer prepares the surface, and usually with them soon after you need to topcoat it - you can't leave it just etch primed for too long. If you're planning on driving salty winter roads be careful to clean it off soon somehow, as I've had salt damage and destroy galvanising on some parts.

It's amazing how forgiving people are when they haven't been slugged with a huge bill for a silly little problem.

That should be fine. I pulled apart an LT95 which had an output flange someone had chromed and it was in very good shape. I was going to get some other parts chromed because it seemed like such a good idea.

I did have a look. Nice work!

You're right that lots of new parts at once can cause trouble, but these ignitions are notorious for not working well unless everything is right. They don't tolerate very much, though they'll keep going, but performance always suffers. Yours must have had some decent ignition parts already. Usually everything is completely worn out!

As it's of 1985 vintage, unless you know for sure what work has been done on it lately, you really have to rebuild the carbies, replace the fuel pump, and replace the spark plugs, distributor cap, leads, rotor, and points, (if that's what you've got), and check the vacuum advance. Without the fuel and ignition in top condition, the problem could be anything and usually what happens is people tear their hair out trying to guess what it is instead of doing the above and starting with a clean slate. It's a bit of work, but not that much, and will be worth it in the long run. A Range Rover from the '80s is a great car once it's sorted out, as they are from that time before piles of electronics made used cars so complicated.

It's the potential that really bothers me, where suddenly something stops working and there's a bigger bill and more trouble than anyone would expect. Cars are supposed to do a job, not financially cripple you. (Theoretically, I realise.) We have a 2003 Ford Falcon with fairly low mileage and it's just decided that it doesn't want to lock any more with the fob. And the key in the door locks it, but won't unlock it. I can't figure it out, and taking it to a workshop will cost a lot, not be worth it for such an old car, and they may not fix it anyway. Because it's an electronic problem, it could be anything, could happen at any time, and could be really complicated to fix. So from the OP's point of view, if they're that nervous about any car with a history of these surprises, and don't have a wad of cash handy for someone else to repair it, then go for whatever has a good reputation.

I don't see why not, after all people put a 3.9 in place of a 3.5 without necessarily adding a cooler. I still wonder if there's something else going on, though. It's not exactly a hot climate up that way.

We can still talk with many people and read many things over a long period of time and make up our own minds, though . . . it's called "research" and tends to work quite well if done correctly.

Thanks for mentioning them, I have done that. LRDirect are great for comparing brands. However, their freight charges have jumped for some reason, which is another story. Mind you, I don't have much choice, having been mucked about by most Australian companies I've tried!

That's true. The detail on their site puts them far ahead of pretty much anyone else I can think of . . . it's the oddball service that lets them down, sadly.

I have to agree. I haven't owned any of the above, never will, and couldn't afford it anyway, but have done quite a bit of reading on the subject. Anything modern from JLR has so many expensive parts to go wrong it's ridiculous. That's where the horror stories come from where everything was fine and then all of a sudden something stops working and then there's a huge bill - if the problem was located, which doesn't always seem to be possible.

JLR drops the Defender on supposed EU/safety/emission/harmful-to-kittens/whatever grounds, but Mercedes builds a truck with a big snub nose. Weird.

Too bad . . . don't like the result, don't do the thing.

Tal, I can agree with what they said above, (and that was very gentlemanly put, Shackleton). I just do not understand people who really seem to believe that they can behave how they like and not suffer any consequences, especially these days when research is so easy. If you don't like it, don't muck about with people in the first place, full stop, end of story, nothing more to see here.

You've got that right. And people will continue to behave wrongly if everyone else puts up with it. Which is a shame.

I'm not out to get anyone, and they were quite good to me at times several years ago, but yes, there is some erratic behaviour. Because I have a lead time with parts that will be at least weeks, if not months if something goes wrong, I'm picky about who I buy from and tend to do my homework. And yes, Brookfield is a Blanchard company, but under a different first name, so I'd assume a family member.

I have used them a lot in the past, and had a few problems which they resolved quickly. I only slowed down my buying because I ran out of money! But there was also a nagging feeling about unanswered emails and a couple of parts from big orders that were supposed to be sent later, and never were. However, there was nothing obvious like this thread or like the crazy thread linked above from 2014. Then one day I read that Dominic was in trouble for shooting a girl in the neck with an air rifle, which put me off rather a bit. http://www.yorkpress.co.uk/news/9400065.Businessman_shot_girl__17__in_the_neck/

Come to think of it, that's probably so. I think the correct term is "exclusive".

Funny that, I've been checking too and wondering. Have Rangies moved to the smallest percentage of Land Rover owners?

Thanks for that. Yes, I've heard that "sports drinks" are loaded with sugar and God-knows-what-else, so I avoid them and stick to Gastrolyte or the Hydralyte icy-poles our kids sometimes have. And mostly cordial!

Ain't those timing covers rare as?

You mean the BOM site. (Were you thinking of something else? ) I'm curious as to what additives you are referring to. Gastrolyte and similar are supposed to add to your body what it has lost through sweating, so they shouldn't upset your tummy or associated components. Anyway, for the OP's friend, just tootling around the Sydney area, they won't have to worry about that sort of thing.

I've used something over here called "Mukowt", which is just some alkaline stuff in a bottle, so you'll have some equivalent there. You must be careful when using these things as they can eat seals and aluminium radiators, apparently. I'd just back flush with a hose first before putting chemicals in. Can you get to the engine block drains easily?

Possibly it stops when you're dead. I haven't tried it, though.