[identifying a genuine Range Rover Vogue/HSE]

Hi, I'm thinking of purchasing a 05/06 Range Rover Vogue/HSE and want to know how I can stop myself getting burnt by any cloned or stolen cars?

I assume all the VINs are stamped into the metalwork etc and in the front windscreen. Does anyonw know where all the VINs are located? Also is there any way of checking the engine number to ensure it matches the original VIN? e.g. the engine hasn't been replaced? Is it just a case of checking the original log book?

Any help would be much appreciate as I don't want to get my fingers burnt!!

[new 2011 defender misfiring]

THought that could be it.... but its happening between 100-120km. could limiter be malfunctioning? Just did a 3 hour trip and no problems. Odd, only difference I can think of is it was a fair bit cooler on this trip and not a lot of a/c used. Still confused.

Thanks for response Mark.

Given Land Rover's terrible history of customer service, K series engine problems on the Freelander 1 for example, I would take it back and demand they inspect it with a proper road trial, also demand they provide you with a courtesy car. If they refuse to do this then I'd be demanding a replacement. Over-reaction? well maybe that's just me but with a new car you shouldn't be having to do their job for them of finding the possible cause/fault!!

[My new 90]

I want one.

[buying diffs]

Thank you for the replies.

[Flushing Rad and Intercooler]

Thanks Les, yeah I know what you mean I've already got one of the exhaust manifold pipes off (used my hi-lift jack as a spreader and carfully eased it off - I was actually pretty proud that I thought of that one by myself). I can't do that with the other pipe though as I have nothing for the jack to push against, so I'm using a rubber hammer and it is verrryyyyy slowly coming.

I'll get the turbo lubed up beforehand and idle the engine for a while once it's on.

[buying diffs]

I need to buy a pair of defender diffs from my local LR breakers and I don't have a clue what I should look out for or check. Would appreciate any advice. specifically I'm concerned about buying a load of rubbish, so is there anything I can check? turning them? colour of the oil etc? thanks.

[Flushing Rad and Intercooler]

Thanks for all the advice, i flushed the intercooler a few times with kerosene and was amazed at how black it came out the first time, flushed it until it came clear. As it turns out the rebuild is taking me longer than I anticipated so any vapours should now be long gone.

Has anyone fitted a new turbo before? when I fit it I assume I should I put some new engine oil through the bearing and turn the turbine a couple of times. A mate of mine also said I should back fill the top oil hose with new enegine oil. Is this right?

[Flushing Rad and Intercooler]

Thanks Les.

[Flushing Rad and Intercooler]

Ok,

So I've just bought myself a new turbo for my 300tdi, as my old one was starting to smoke and I didn't have the time to overhaul it myself (old one will be going on fleabay soon if any Irish owners are interested for spares/repairs).

Whilst I have my bonnet up I thought it was also time to give my Landy a bit of love. A new timing belt, plugs, filters, oil change etc.

I'd like to flush out my radiator and my intercooler too, and was wondering what is the best DIY way of cleaning these out. I was thinking of flushing with kerosene, which I have readily available, and then flushing with water. I don't want to have to go out and buy any specialist products if I can help it. Does anyone have any suggestions or tips?

Your advice and opinions are, as always, greatly appreciated.

[ashamed to say I've done something stupid...]

wow, thanks, I just googled them. didn't know such a thing existed.

[ashamed to say I've done something stupid...]

Ok, so I had the turbo off my 300tdi the other day and when putting it back on I threaded one of the manifold bolt holes in the cylinder head - I was being careful I promise!! Anyhow all the other bolts went in no problem but it's annoying me to know one is not as it should be. Any possible home workshop remedies? other than the obvious buying a new cylinder head!! ;(

All suggestions gratefully received.

[Disco air suspension problem...]

thanks guys, I think I'll pop up and see what exactly has happened.

[Disco air suspension problem...]

Thanks, so I guess I should swap him over to coil springs, there's a LR breakers on the way to his house so I'll stop by and pick some up.

[Disco air suspension problem...]

I was speaking to a worried friend at the weekend. He was telling me how the other evening he heard a very loud bang from his D2 parked in the drive. He went outside to be greeted by his dog flying, scared witless, through the front door and a big puff of what he called "smoke" coming from the vehicle. The result is that the back suspension has now dropped, whilst the front suspension is still normal. I've not seen the vehicle and he's not mechanically minded. He's loathed to take it to Landrover and is currently driving around in his old Fiat Punto!! I HAVE to help him!

Before I head over with my toolbox, he lives about 60miles away, does anyone have any ideas what it might be? or where I should start looking?

Any help/suggestions gratefully received.

[300TDi Coolant Pipework]

Hi, I'm interested in this as well. Is there any considerations to the size of the tubing? I'm no plumber but the radiator hoses are a much larger diameter than standard domestic copper piping will this cause a problem with flow or pressure? In my opinion it would be a dream to be able to weld in a brass tap at the bottom of the radiator to allow easy draining!!

[Nuts and bolts]

I did it with nothing more than an overheard gantry and chain block, the engine crane (which you will need for lifting enigne and tranny as one!) and an old oil drum

I lifted the bonnet off and removed the front panel, both front wings were still connected, I think I roped the bulkhead mounts through the engine bay to save the wings and then used the engine hoist as a leveller on the spare wheel carrier (my back door was knackered and survived) then used the oil drums to prop the rear tub while I used the enigne crane to swap transmission etc.

I think I could do it quicker than I did, I spent some time setting up my X arms and making those fit along with the springs etc. A simple like for like swap can be achieved even quicker.

I think I only disconned the chassis and engine electrical harness from the bulkhead, pulled the clutch slave cylinder out of the gearbox (left it bled ready to refit) undid the gear levers and hand brake, drain rad and removed that and intercooler. and Undid the brake feeds from the bulkhead (2 lines?)

Very little work, then obviously undid the body mounts, realised I had forgotten the gearbox electrical harness and lifted the body off

I need to dig the pictures out of the process, all of it easy with a bit of scaffold, some clever thinking and not opening the doors while the body was up in the air

I changed all of it myself, had very little help from my old man, my work mates were stunned when it drove back into work on Monday morning

Thanks for the advice, definitely food for thought. If you have any pics of the process I would be v interested in seeing them.

[Nuts and bolts]

Buy a metric BZP party selection or two from Namrick, should be a good start although you may find some shorter ones (M8 / M6 x20 ish) would be useful.

Received my order from Namrick and would recommend them to anyone else who is looking for quality nuts and bolts. reasonably priced and very fast delivery.

[Nuts and bolts]

Ratcheting spanners v useful, although I've only got 13 and 17. 10mm prob also worth it although really a normal combination spanner and ratchet / sockets are fine. If you've not got a 1/4 inch ratchet and sockets I'd get one - cheap and much easier and less tiring to wield than a 1/2 inch or even a 3/8 - clearly don't lean on it but I use mine almost exclusively now for anything 13mm and less (use a spanner to loosen initially.

WRT to corrosion, get yourself some DURALAC - its a very yellowy green about 6 quid a tin and you coat bolts, joining surfaces, washers etc with it - prevents electrolytic corrosion between dissimilar metals (ali/steel!) and is widely used on aircraft. Really good stuff - google 'Elise Parts' or similar.

Thanks for the advice on the DURALAC, I'll def get some before I start.

[Nuts and bolts]

Retro speaks from experience!!! Very wise words, I went down a very similar route and only just finished... A ratcheting 13mm spanner will be very useful also.. or at least 2 x 13mm spanners.

A wire brush fitment on a drill is also usefull as you can fettle the "special" bolts you can't/don't want to replace, have a tub of grease next to you and put a little bit on the bolts/nuts before you re-asseble, good for anotehr 25 yrs....

Thanks, tools are also another major consideration for a job like this. I've been looking at ratcheting spanners as I'm sure, despite their quite high cost, the effort saved is well worth the money - especially with the amount of bolts I will be encountering!!

[Nuts and bolts]

Things like suspension bolts, steering, bulkhead mounts etc. should be replaced with high-tensile bolts. Basically, if there is an H.T. bolt on there already, replace it with another.

For things like attatching body panels together (wings to front panel, roof to side panel, roof to windscreen frame etc.) then stainless will work, but be aware that it will cause a faster galvanic reaction with steel/aluminium parts than a normal bolt would. Stainless steel bolts tend to be weaker too, although this of course depends on the grade of bolt you are comparing against.

In terms of sizes, you will need plenty of short M6 and M8 bolts. Most of the body is held together with these. Most M6s are either 16mm or 20mm long, and most M8s tend to be 20mm. A good idea is to buy a selection as suggested above, although you will likely need to add to it. Becoming familiar with your local fastener stockist is probably a good idea.

As for what else do you replace, well that's dangerous thinking...a chassis swap can easily turn into a full rebuild if too much of the "well I'll change it while it's off" stuff goes on. Personally, I would take each part and assess it based upon it's replacement cost, and the amount of work required to do so, but also the vehicle history.

For example, the clutch. If I knew the clutch had only been done recently then I wouldn't bother changing it, even though I had the engine/gearbox apart. Let's say the suspension bushes had an unknown history though, for the relatively small cost of replacing them that is definitely something I would do while the thing is apart.

Also a good idea to give everything a damn good clean and a coat of paint where applicable. Bracketry, axles etc. Quite labour intensive, but cheap to do and makes future servicing easier if parts are clean. Also looks good

Thanks for all the sound advice, yeah I'm only going to replace what is absolutely essential, or logical to do. I'm going to keep a photo log so it might help someone else on here.

[Nuts and bolts]

Buy a metric BZP party selection or two from Namrick, should be a good start although you may find some shorter ones (M8 / M6 x20 ish) would be useful.

Thanks a lot, I've just placed an order with Namrick for a couple of mixed packs of HT BZP nuts and bolts. Is it wrong to get excited about nuts and bolts?!!

[Nuts and bolts]

Hi, so I searched previous forums so that I didn't waste anyone's time but I couldn't find anything. Very quick and hopefully simple question. What nut and bolts will I need when doing a chassis swap - I really only want to replace any bolts that come into contact with the chassis e.g. body work and anything up front in the engine bay.

Does anyone know what are the common sizes I need?

Which is preferable zinc or stainless?

Also are there any "tonnage" considerations? (I actually hadn't heard of this phrase until I went into my local agricultural shop to buy some bolts!) I assume it refers to the tensile strength of the bolt?!

Any help and opinions greatfully received.

Also are there are any bits that are worth replacing whilst the chassis is being swapped - and I mean bits that aren't easy to get to normally.

Thanks.

[Another dumb ass question]

I used a rotary wire brush to clean my rear axle off- just make sure you wear a mask and eye protection as it makes a lot of dust and when a wire bristle flies off they are like flying needles!

I painted the axle with a couple of coats of red oxide, and then with black "Tractol" - great stuff, covers pretty well and resists chipping, flaking etc. Only problem is that I dont think its very easy to get hold of, you might need to check paint suppliers and/or agricultural equipment people.

Heres a random link for free:

Smith&Allan (not affliated with, worked for ever, etc)

The ribs that support the tub floor might be worth checking- they can get pretty bad.

I'd give your bulkhead a good once over to check for rust before you put it back on as well.

Good luck!

Thanks Quagmire, I went to my local agri shop and they will have some Tractol black for me by tomorrow, I already have some oxi paint. Now I just need a spare few days to do the chassis swap!!!

[Another dumb ass question]

Excess of shiney bits = Metrosexuality

lmao

[Another dumb ass question]

yes... yes they are Les