Davo

As always Bowie, a thousand thank-yous for your quick response. I still can't figure out how to get to those bolts but you did solve the problem. It's a car I'm wrecking so it's only a rolling chassis and the transmission is ready to be pulled out, and I'd forgotten that I could leave the converter attached and (hopefully) catch the torrent of ATF it will let loose. So I'll just do that instead. Which is why I have an LT95 in my Range Rover.

It seems to look like this one inside: https://forums.lr4x4.com/topic/95486-discovery-39-v8-torque-converter/

Do you have to go through one of the four big holes in the drive plate, or through that little hole in the bottom of the bellhousing? Neither of which have enough room to swing a spanner . . . The last automatic I took apart had the driveplate-to-converter bolts connecting the two directly together, with the bolts around the outside and easy to get to. This thing has a spacer and another plate and various bolts. I have to admit I'm stumped with this one.

Sorry, my mistake, thinking about brackets and not struts.

See my reply above referring to an EAS Rangie with a Boge mount on the chassis. But that factory always was pretty odd.

Whatever you do, don't tell them!

And they were talking about writing it off? I am smiling and shaking my head, and certainly not at you . . . well done, saving your car.

True, but then you don't have to shovel snow for an hour to get to your shed!

Ah, the memories . . . I kept myself alive for several Canadian winters working on Landies in a horrible draughty shed heated only with a big wood stove. This was often at -10c or so and your milder weather makes me a little jealous because it would be easy to keep warm there! Cornish Rattler, try and get some shiny metal to line the little plasterboard box you've built, as the amount of heat you can reflect in this way makes quite a difference. I noticed someone mentioned that insulated chimney pipe you're supposed to use for houses, but you shouldn't need it. It's only for sub-zero temperatures when the hot exhaust condenses creosote onto the inside of an uninsulated pipe, and then dribbles down everywhere. Creosote is flammable, so that's how you get a chimney fire. Luckily I was able to upgrade mine after I had this stuff leaking everywhere but before it caught fire. It also depends on what you're burning, but in any case cleaning the chimney before winter every year is a very good idea. (Wear a mask though.) And as also mentioned here, don't use anything remotely flammable while the fire is burning as it's just too risky. I must say I do miss being inside a toasty shed, working away while the weather howls outside. Though here I have coconut palms to look at, so I suppose that's the direct opposite!

I assume you're referring to the Boge load-leveller, which is almost unknown second-hand, and though they do turn up occasionally would need a rebuilt by now. There was a place here in Australia which rebuilt them. However, I'm not even sure your model of Range Rover would have the mount on the chassis. (Though I do have an old '92 which does, even though it came with EAS!) Replacing rear springs and shocks is often a long and annoying experiment for many Range Rover owners but it is possible to upgrade what you've got without it making the ride too harsh. There are progressive rate springs and adjustable shocks. I've got some used Koni shocks on mine, for instance, and am onto the third pair of springs on the back as well. I did have helper air bags and that might work for you, too. All this experimenting takes time and money but is worth it to keep that wonderful ride these things are known for.

I've been using a weed sprayer for this job for years now. I added a low-pressure gauge, (just screwed into a hole in a thicker part of the plastic of the bottle), and put a hose fitting into a spare master cylinder cap, with a shut-off somewhere in the hose. For drum brakes, I found it's best to get the whole car onto stands, take off the wheels and drums, and put whatever works, (wire, clamps, etc.) onto the cylinders to keep the pistons compressed. Once the system is pressurised with the garden sprayer, it's easy and quick to go around to each wheel and bleed. But I will admit to not having done it for some time now!

Ah, thanks very much. So the switching is wireless and that's what makes it simpler than traditional wiring?

I have to say that it sounds as if after so much going wrong you've landed right-side up and smiling! And yes, Landies have that "something" about driving them.

Look, you're all going to laugh, (please feel free to), but what do these things actually do?

The swivels are the usual suspects for this sort of thing. It can only take one itty-bitty little shim too much to make them too loose - of course I learned that the typical way.

If you ever have enough room, you're not trying hard enough!

A pile?

Yes, I'd agree. The old Rover company was embarrassed by the original Land-Rover doing so well, (reference: Land Rover history articles and books), and now the Captain Bling brigade seem to feel the same way about a workhorse. However, a good many economies are running on easy credit since the GFC and selling only high-end stuff just isn't a smart long-term strategy. (For anyone!)

So, how long will it be until the new shelves are stuffed to the gills and you realise you need more storage?

That is precisely what is so confusing. An improved and supported vehicle would have sold well because, after all, other vehicles have proven the market is there, and JLR had the platform to improve. Either JLR doesn't want to have a workhorse or they're too dim to work out how to make one, unlike so many other manufacturers. I can't really see how there is a third scenario.

Oh, there's still a huge market for workhorses, which is what makes the company's decision so baffling to me.

Come on, young man, self-promotion is what our brave new world is all about, isn't it? But anyway, I only put up a link to your latest episode in this thread in case people haven't found it before or whatever the case may be. My Rangie was an automatic and I changed it to an LT95. This was because the manual is much simpler as the auto needs a kickdown linkage, oil cooler with associated lines, a complicated hi-lo and difflock linkage, an inhibitor switch, and a fair bit of real estate between the front seats for the shifter. Also, I had the TF727 and there was no lock-up for cruising. So for ease of long-term ownership and less to have to troubleshoot, I prefer the manual. And I like the way I'm using the same drivetrain as the original Range Rover, here in the 21st century. However, now I've got a ZF box and Borg Warner transfer sitting here and maybe . . . one day . . . if I could be bothered . . . So, aren't you going to drive the two-door from Ireland to Greece???

Episode 9 Considering your circumstances, Mr. Shackleton, that Range Rover fabrication and welding is really something else!

I can just see Toyota management pooping their pants in fear over this development . . .

If you're moving from a Series to a Range Rover, (which I have done, and which is a traditional step in Land Rover ownership), then you really, definitely, do not want one from after about the mid-80s. Those had more and more electricals and electronics and are absolute poop to deal with. Unfortunately these earlier models are now quite expensive, so you really have to look to find a good one without a silly price. They can also rust in about three dozen different places, (at least!), so doing your research first will really pay off. I use my '83 as an everyday family car in an outback town and it's been great.