TheBeastie

Muchos thankos for the offer but have gone instead for a new Bearmach one I sourced in LR stealer in Edinburgh. It was well over the cost of Internet but I reckoned once delivery added the difference would be less and more importantly it was available now. Followed LandymanLuke's suggestion and was grateful. Job was easier than I thought other than having to go and buy a 24mm open spanner and also The Beastie taking a bite out of my arm when the oil nut finally slackened! Thanks for all the help and advice - as always it is most appreciated. Now just off to get the engine running to check for leaks and then job is done!

Thanks for the additional info. I think I will go with the radiator only, BTP1823S. Apart from getting new hoses, which I suspect are due replacement anyway, are there any other parts I am likely to need that you can think of? I ask since I do not really want to get stuck with no radiator as I have to tow one of four big towers down to Castle Douglas for VHF Field Day next weekend (I think we are going as GM2T for this event) and reckon it would be a good idea to get the new radiator in place as people are depending upon me for this.

Thanks Ralph Does this mean I have to go for NTC4893 which seems to be around £300 and the other 200Tdi options at about £100 are out for me? The VIN is HA703663 Would be almost enough to make me weep. or at least explore whether Radweld might do the trick for a while anyway!

Well The Beastie (200Tdi) seems to have now sprung a second leak from the radiator. One is towards the bottom on the near side and the newer one, which seems more impressive, is again towards the bottom on the off side. I kept it topped up every time we stopped but on hills and at 7omph it kept getting a bit hotter - at one point the electric fan kicked in but with the fan and the heater both running (window wide open!) it cooled back to "normal" fairly quickly. Not sure if this due to proportion of antifreeze now low or system unable to properly pressurise - to be honest surprised how little water I needed to top up each time. The oil intercooler looks to be in better nick. Can I replace just the water part, and if so are there any hints and tips about what parts to get and how to do it? I am thinking probably better to go for new if possible. I think also time to replace hoses and wondered if there were any particular recommendations. Any thoughts or pointers would be good. Thanks Malcy

Hmm. Thanks guys. It now seems relatively straightforward. I suppose most things are obvious when pointed out! I think I have got it now and yes I did replace the split pin which had corroded away to not a lot. Also put WD40 over the yoke and clevis pin area since it seemed a bit rusted up. I presume the only real test is to go to a hill and see if the three click pull up on the brake lever holds it. What happens if I have over adjusted the brake shoes - heat, smoke, noise??? Think the next treat for The Beastie will be an X brake but the trouble is that radio turns out to be an even more expensive hobby that Land Rovers if that is possible

I have tried referring to Haynes and also Google and forum search but cannot seem to find clear, idiot proof (me!) instructions on how to adjust. The other week I had to stop on a hill and the handbrake fully on at four clicks was just not quite holding The Beastie, perhaps 98% but enough to give both me and the driver behind some food for thought It was done by the garage for MOT about three months ago but clearly now needs a little adjustment. I cannot seem to see how to do it! Hoping it can be done from inside the cab since it is lashing down. It is a 1991 200Tdi 90 and still has original transmission brake. Any pointers would be really helpful since I cannot work out if I need to remove rear prop shaft and adjust the shoes or if it is just the cable that needs tightenin a notch or two. Thanks for any input Malcy

Ha, they were definately wet and horrible!!! I had best check that there is power getting to the new ones!! Best wishes Malcy

Thanks western Guess I just swap back in one of the originals and then speak to the garage.

Really productive morning with diesel spill rail replaced - fed up with smell of diesel in cab and the engine breather filter cleaed. Whilst waiting for the parrafin to dry out I thought I would change the glowplugs too. The all came out OK but were covered with thick black oil. I do not know what this means so perhaps someone might be able to explain. I also had a new glowplug relay so I reckoned it would do no harm to replace that whilst I was at it. More important, however, is that the new glowplugs went in fine and made electrical connections OK. Three seem bombproof (hope not tempting fate) but the fourth (on cylinder 2 from the front) seems to have the electrical part slightly separated from the body in that the wire wobbles under finger pressure despite the main 10mm bolt being secure. Is this an issue? I would rather know before I start it up just in case I have inadvertantly created an exploding situation! Any suggestions most helpful - still waiting for the filter to dry off fully. Thanks Malcy

OK Managed a drive last night and the noise, whilst still there, was less pronounced. Perhaps getting the grease in (it was only 4 or 5 months since I last did it) made a difference. Will try the various other diagnostics later if it clears up better. Want to get to the bottom of it since do not like the idea of something failing at 60mph which I sense would be messy!!! Thanks for suggestions and will hopefully be back with some further info later Malcy

OK, sounds like props need to come off. Delighted to have the wheel rotation aberation confirmed as normal - I have never really looked at that before? Only question is I thought Defenders were permanent 4wd or am I again mistaken?

OK, an update and not sure what it means. Lovely day here so took afternoon off since clambering about under The Beastie much easier when dry Front prop shaft has no seeming wobble; nuts look tight and the UJs greased up OK. Rear propshaft again has no seeming wobble other than at the handbrake drum which I think is normal. The UJs greased up OK but my puzzle is that when I rotated a rear wheel it did not turn the prop shaft as it usually does. Also if I run the rear O/S wheel forward then the rear N/S seems to go backwards and vice versa. I have checked and the transfer box is in normal High position. To me this looks like transfer box or a diff problem but never had to try and puzzle transmission woes out before. I am sure that before when greasing the rear UJs I just wound a wheel until the prop shart was in the right position. Any thoughts?? Thanks Malcy

Thanks guys. I presume when I get under and shuggle it I will feel it a bit loose? The tip about replacing whole shaft (with new UJs at each end I assume) sounds a reasonable one. Million dollar question which I know is almost impossible to ask but how urgent is the repair - i.e. should I treat it like toxic and not drive the truck till sorted; or do I just keep driving till I get new shaft and UJs and then fix asap?? Any advice, without strings of course, would be valuable since would prefer it not to shear on me whilst in motion!

The Beastie got an MOT a fortnight ago and one thing needed was a new steering box due to excessive leaks. Not sure if it is connected to this issue but just in case .. Anyway everything sounds hunky dory when motoring but when I slow down to a stop, with gear either in neutral or clutch in, there is a nasty whirring or clunking noise coming from the sort of gearbox/drive train area under the cab. It does not seem to be there when under power, and the other day I rolled a bit down a hill without the engine on and it made it still. I have not had a chance to go under but if it isn't something obvious (and I have a suspicion it isn't otherwise I would hear it when engine powering) what sort of thing should I be looking for? It is a puzzle but I don't know how serious it is. I do need to fix it since we are away for a decent trip over the next three or four weeks and do not fancy breaking down and ruining plans Any thoughtss or pointers would be really appreciated. Thanks Malcy

Hmm. Clearly not my day! The original relay unit is 4 pin, part number PRC8876. Putting the three pin electronic unit from ultraled does not work (it fits but does nothing). So I need to try and find a replacement 4 pin relay that will cope with LED indicators, and hopefully trailer too. My big worry is whether fast flashing indicators is an MOT fail since The Beastie is going in on Tuesday for its MOT and I had hoped this electronic relay would have resolved the issue. I am determined not to go back to normal since the LED is much more visible and my attempts at fitting ballast resistors have failed so feeling a bit up a creek without an immediately obvious paddle. Initial searching for an LED replacement for the part have not given much hope but may need to dig deeper. It is less of an immediate issue if not an MOT fail point. Any pointers would be really appreciated - Ralph your link just took me to search pages. The only Hella I could see was 24v but on page 3 there is a part PRC8876 that says it is an electronic relay - does this mean it will cope with LED or is it simply that a relay is, by definition, electronic? Puzzled and perplexed!

Thanks western I now need to check if three pin originally (fingers crossed) but first need to do run to the dump in the Peugeot - they don't let Defenders in! - since have been running new Cat6 network cables through attic and have about two car fulls of rubbish to clear out from stuff that obviously had a point in keeping in the dim and distant past! If it isn't three pin but four, any ideas what I do next? Best wishes Malcy

I am trying to replace my indicator relay with an electronic from ultraleds to stope my flashers doing overtime. I am not sure which is the right relay and Haynes does not help. I could try just removing but reckoned this may be problematic. Can someone please suggest? Also the new relay is three pin - will this work in my 90? Thanks Malcy

I am looking to replace all my bulbs with LED so have (for the first time) looked at my side repeaters. One side has two flathead screws and on removal seems to have a 501 bulbs as in dasboard gauges - but I do not have one to hand to check in case it is smaller. The other side has no screws so not sure if it is a pull off or I have to get to it from behind. Has this been an upgrade at some point (not sure which might be newer)? The screw one that I took off had some rather nice moss growing in it so should I perhaps simply replace both (and get suitable LED 'bulbs' to go with them) and be done with it? I am having great difficulty converting my needs into actual LEDs at ultrleds. I wonder if there might be a useful conversion resouce somewhere? I have got the clock as a BA7 which I have found, but less sure of the number plate (BA9 from what I can see) Malcy Edited to 501 from 511 (stupid!)

With my plan to rewire the back half of The Beastie to overcome the endless dodgy earths etc would I be best trying to also remove the original loom to the back or is this likely to be a "Mission Impossible"? Also should I re-wire the trailer socket from the front, or could I hook into connections from the back? It strikes that I am as well doing this whilst I am at it. Thanks for any suggestions Malcy

Thanks for quick reply. Had not thought of trailer cable which sounds quite handy, but had also been thinking of running separate earths back to the battery since most of the problems I have had come back to a duff earth somewhere. I bought a big reel of black cable with that specific intention. Hoping it is not too massive a job and suspect biggest problem will be working out the lengths and routes. Stage one will be to take it all back to the fuseboard; stage two (if ever) will be to go from the fuseboard to the relevant switches etc). Stage two might not happen unless it turns out that that is where the problem lies!! Best wishes Malcy

I am working off a rather too faded wiring diagram and wonder if someone can confirm these colours. The plan is to rewire the supplementary lighting since I am getting fed iup with its unreliability, particularly having invested in upgrading most of the lights to LED. I did the headlights and was very pleased with the results. Anyway what I have gleaned from the diagram is Rear fog light Red / Yellow Reversing light Green / Brown LH rear indicator Green / Red LH rear side light Red / Black LH rear stop light Green / Purple RH rear indicator Green / White RH rear side light Red / Orange RH rear stop light Green / Purple Rear number plate Red / Black LH side repeater Green / Red RH side repeater Green / White LH front indicator Green / Red LH front side light Red / Black RH front indicator Green / White RH front side light Red / Orange Earth Black Does this make sense or are my eyes tricking me (the difference between a P and an R is quite tricky!) Any tips too would be useful. I was planning to make up my own sort of harness using 16.5 amp cable (to get the colour ranges) and spiral wrap, then run it along the chassis using I think they are called S clips to hold in place - probably with the off big cable tie for good measure. Thanks and best wishes Malcy

I managed to get the oil pressure sensor in using the banjo and extender as per western's very helpful drawing. Hope tight enough but will need to check after a run when pressure is up a bit. Swine getting at it mind you! I am nervous about the oil temperature sensor though. The only bolt I could see anywhere near the bolt on the drawing was a muckle great thing about a 22mm socket facing forward between two bits that hold the fuel pump to the engine block. My concern is that the sensor is only an M10 whereas if a normal 22mm hex head then the hole is likely to be much bigger than 10mm. I could not see anything else in the area despite peering at it from all angles with a decent torch. I can go out and get pictures if it would help. Is this the right place or do I need to look further, or have I got an "odd" one?? Thanks Malcy

Hmm. Where to now??? I got the resistors from CPC (3.3R, wirewound, 10W) which came as a sort of ceramic type square cross section about 7.5cm long. I tapped into the live and earth connections at the back and crimped in an extra lead to each line and put the resistor across that. When I put indicators on now the front one flashes fast and the rear one does not flash at all If I remove the resistor from the circuit they both flash fast as before (so I know the read LED unit is getting power). It would appear to all be going through the resistor with insufficient current going to the LED unit (which doesn't really make sense). I have checked that I did not destroy the resistor when soldering and it is still showing 3.3R and I have also checked that the earth side of the resistor is at 0R to earth to make sure good connection and it is. Anyone got any ideas what is going on? Meanwhile I will remove the resistor from the circuit and just fast flash (safer than no rear indicator). If noone has any ideas I will contact Perei on Monday. Thanks for any input Malcy

Thanks western - yes got my pass certificate on Tuesday which was quite a relief. Lot of hard work went into that and me not being a physics type person (which may have become apparent!) found it harder still. Never mind it is done and I am delighted. Now need to save up for an Alpha to get my full 400w I have shown the banjo and sensor to a friend who is a metalworker and he reckons it is a taper thread. To put on PTFE tape, hand tighten and then pich it up a further turn and a half. Hopefully this makes sense otherwise I will have two parts broke!! Also got Halfords copper washers - not a bad selection really and quite a good price. So I think I am ready to go when I am free on Sunday unless it is lashing it down. That is unless someone screams don't do it, it isn't a taper thread!!! Best wishes Malcy

OK. I see now regarding the VDO oil temperature sender so that not so much of an issue now, or at least not till I try to fit it! That should sort pressure warning light and also the oil temperature gauge. However I still have the issue of the VDO pressure sender - which equates to the LR part PRC4043 on your drawing - appearing to have a different thread. Not sure how to proceed now!