Dr Gneil Pipely

Don't have any advice other than: Don't listen to discojmz's advice. I ran a JE Engineering-remapped Td5 with an ITG filter through three MoT tests (to 100,000 miles) and had no problems whatsoever. Having the remap removed will not guarantee you will pass. My MoT tester - who does a lot of Land Rovers, this being Lincolnshire - said that my vehicle's emissions were far better than many standard Td5s he had failed and that you can't tell from the MoT emissions test whether a vehicle has been remapped. As for getting yours passed - sorry, can't offer any advice on that.

I would have no hesitation in recommending Td5 Alive for your remap. I bought a tuned Td5 Defender to export and Gary at Td5 Alive remapped the ECU back to its original tune for me - but not before remapping with his own tune, so I could compare it with the "big name" remap which was on the vehicle before. It is rare that you get the opportunity to compare back-to-back different remaps - and the difference was very noticeable. Td5 Alive's remap was much smoother on the road, but maybe not quite as powerful outright (but you would only notice this is you went everywhere flat out and even then the difference was very slight). Back at base he revealed that the origin remap used far more fuelling than his own tune, so would likely as not be much less economical. He has since remapped by TDV6 Discovery, making it a much better vehicle to drive. I used to have a 2000MY Defender which had less "lag" than the later exported vehicle. This is due to later models (including yours) having a different exhaust set-up - fitting a decat pipe will make your vehicle much more responsive. For details see http://td5alive.com.

I had a 2000 Defender 90 which had the JE Engineering handling kit - softer springs, thicker a/r bars and Koni dampers. This made a huge difference to the comfort - as the springs were softer - and to the handling which was transformed - much more at one with the road surface (the vehicle was also lowered by 25mm). Great for on-road use, but running 18" Pirelli Scorpion Zero tyres I wasn't concerned about any deleterious effect on the off-road capability. No Land Rover has left the factory with decent damping, so any half-decent aftermarket make will be an improvement. I've used Bilsteins on another vehicle and they made a big difference too - slightly firmer feel but far better control over the changing road surface.

Think you'll find that is at the 2007 DSEi show at the Excel exhibition centre. Land Rover were also exhibiting their 6-wheel, tray-backed Defender weapons carrier. Very nice...

If he wants to use a manual gearbox, none of the R380s are really suitable for seriously big outputs. Though Quaife gearkits will help. I know of a comp safari vehicle being built at the moment which runs a proven 400hp Wildcat-headed 5ltr RV8, but the transmission is Tremec manual gearbox with Ashcroft transfer box. Later ZF autoboxes are used in Aston Martins, Audis, etc and are capable of handling megapower though.

It doesn't sound as if road-performance is high on your list of priorities, but JE Engineering retrofitted a Watts linkage to P38s as part of their suspension upgrade. (Also, they moved the damper mountings outboard too, requiring wheel spacers to create room.)

This worked for me - and gave a fantastic sound for a modest outlay: 2x 2-way Panasonic speakers (best available for std size) under the dash. fit in the standard holes. 2x small Alpine tweeters fitted in the top of the dashboard. Unbolt top of dash. Cut 2 holes carefully - they will fit perfectly if you measure correctly. They are wired into the feed to the under dash units. Tweeters fit flush and give excellent definition. 1x combined Alpine subwoofer/speaker. Fitted tight behind the rear bulkhead. I had the standard LR fit Alpine headunit and CD changer (behind cubby box). I didn't fit anything else. And the sound definition and volume was superb. Cost about 4 years ago: £50, £50, £250. And about 2-3 hours to fit if not rushed. I never sat in the back - so didn't care that you got a very bass-heavy sound in there! If I was going to add more, I would fit the Genuine Part speaker encloses with good speakers (fits near where the rear lights are) and wire another set of tweeters in above the rear quarter lights to give more definition.

It does have the English version - all 627 pages of it - looky here. DEFENDER 1999 & 2002 MY WORKSHOP MANUAL SUPPLEMENT & BODY REPAIR MANUAL This Supplement supersedes Workshop Manual VDR 100250 and should be used in conjunction with the following Manuals: Workshop Manual - Defender 300 Tdi LRL 0097 Overhaul Manual - R380 gearbox LRL 0003 3rd edition Overhaul Manual - LT230T Transfer gearbox LRL 0081 3rd edition

http://www.landrover.ee/est/varia/downloads/cars.htm

Thanks to everyone for their contributions. The vehicle is going to get some workshop time this week, to see if the fault can be traced. As it happens, won't be such a bad thing if it needs parts replacing - the driver's coming home for Christmas soon, so can take anything needed back with him. And it it doesn't work whilst he's away, nobody can "borrow" it, can they?! Will let the forum know what it turns out to be.

Jungle Update: It runs fine for about a mile when started. Then if at speed starts to fail when you apply throttle but letting off throttle brings the engine back to life. When at low speed the check engine light comes on and the throttle will not work. It doesn't die just sits happily at idle. Turning off the ignition resets it and will be ok till we get to maybe half throttle then light on and no throttle again. It has never been run dry but fuel is notoriously dirty out here.

We have a 2003 Defender 90 Td5 in Africa. The driver suspects the fuel pump has failed. These are the symptoms: 1 - "Check engine" warning light on dashboard; 2 - Vehicle will only idle, dies if you apply some revs; 3 - The fuel filter is very hot to the touch (but has been replaced as a first step); 4 - Oh, and the fuel pump's been making some funny noises for a while... The driver (competent mechanic, but little direct LR experience) is currently sat reading the Workshop Manual's Fuel System section! Does anybody think that it is not the fuel pump before we send one out? Any advice gratefully received.

Not really a persuading tip, but bear in mind this quote: "Forgiveness is easier to obtain than permission". Oh, as for chassis "slice" they change from one end to t'other. Have a look at attachments (haven't attached to a post before, hope it works...) L316_CONVERSION_MANUAL.pdf defender_chassis_measurements.pdf

Have you got a link for any more details on this one?