Escape

@discomikey please elaborate what is so diabolic about the P38's air suspension? For the last 12 years I've always had one, and the ones I cared about where very reliable. Enough to take one to Ladoga Trophy and back. And I'm dying to do that again. If I didn't want EAS, I'd have a Classic, because to me that's better looking. Even spares cars that have been sitting for years very rarely have issues with the EAS. As for commercial users, if you take a look at any of the popular pickups, they're far from utilitarian, but loaded with all possible gadgets and fluffy car-based interiors, because apparently that's what sells! So a working variant of the people carrier Disco, with a legendary badge on it, should sell very well. Like the D5 and similar, it will easily match any of the competition off road. Filip

Did you try to relock and unlock it with the key? That should work. Usually the problem with rogue signals is increased battery drain due to the BECM waking up all the time. You can disconnect the arial receiver or install a later type receiver that's less affected by other signals. But if the battery didn't drain and it's just the immobiliser not disengaging, you could simply have that turned off in the BECM. Filip

Judging by the title and the description I'd say VAG marketing was definitely involved. Could still be a good book, the scenery is stunning! Filip

If you're not bothered by the looks, staples work great and are a very easy way of reattaching the lining to the polyester inner roof. You could set out a proper pattern to get a chesterfield look if you really want. Filip

A little info on my hydraulic setup. I started with a 30cc pump on my Defender, with a V-belt and an electromagnetic clutch. Not a success, the belt started slipping when wet or when full power was needed. Upgraded to a chain, inspired by the setup on Petal. That moved the weak point to the clutch. We designed a cable operated clutch, but unfortunately that broke on our first stage in a Russian swamp... On the P38 I had a smaller pump, 8.5cc. Speed was not an issue (although it could rev to 5000rpm to get a good output), reliability was. Drive was via the serpentine belt, with the pump installed where the aircon compressor normally sits, and an electromagnetic clutch matched to the pump and factory fitted with the correct pulley for the belt. That worked very well, never noticed any slip. I plan to install a similar setup to my 'new' Range Rover, possibly with a slightly bigger pump, but nothing to extreme. Good idea to mount the oil tank where the washer bottle sits. I'll have to relocate/change that anyway to clear the bigger tires. Best of luck! Filip

Vertical sliding channels with some sort of hold function would be the easiest solution. With mechanisms like for the table shown above you'll struggle to get the required opening height. Filip

I've since gone from a twin axle Ifor CT177 to a tri axle Ifor tiltbed (TB5021-353). I loved the CT177 and still miss it when I'm loading cars on my own. But I needed/wanted something more versatile, hence the choice for a tiltbed. Despite my earlier reservation (see also my earlier post) I went with a tri-axle. Main reason was the lower loading height because of the smaller tires (about 3" lower). Weight is only 50kg over the twin axle, and technical GVW is a bit higher. I don't notice much difference when towing, it's a very stable trailer, as was the CT177. When manoevering, it can be a bit unpredictable as the weight shifts from one axle to the other, especially on uneven ground. Just a minor detail, and I'm very happy with my choice. Filip

I spent last weekend getting the wireloom ready for the MegaSquirt (thanks again @FridgeFreezer). With a little help from my friends, including the resident electricat. Great for stripping wire ends! We put the MS on another P38 for a trial run, so as not to have an untested controller on a newly build engine. Good thing too, as we did need plenty of starting to get the VR parameters working. But in the end she did fire up! 😄 Some tuning needs to be done, but at least the concept of using all original sensors and wireloom is proven. Next step is to take the body off the car, remove engine + autobox and replace with the new engine and manual gearbox and install the lockers (with a bit of axle refurbishing on the side). Filip

MS1 only has 4 injector drivers if I'm not mistaken. Enough for a 4 pot or bank fire in a V8 petrol, but no good for a 5 or 6 pot diesel. I'm sure MS2 or MS3 can cope though. Filip

No, it's about smiles per gallon. 🙂

or http://new.lrcat.com/ Faster and easier to use than the old Russian site.

I have one for the 4.6 with GEMS and Bosch. Interesting to see the difference, the earlier torque of the Bosch:h is noticeable and very nice, especially with an autobox.

Not a bad article, as it gives pros and cons for each engine. And it does state they've included pre-defender types to make the list more comprehensive. I also agree with the end verdict in favor of the TD5. I loved mine, if I ever have another Defender it will be a TD5 (I'll reserve the V8 for a Range Rover). The tdci, while more modern, lacks character and the tdi always felt sluggish and unrefined in comparison. That special 5-pot sound just suits a special car like a Defender. Often driven by special people, with special needs. 🙂 Filip

It's not unusual for old batteries to maintain voltage, but fail when current needs to flow. The lead plates get damaged over time. You only need a little bit of material for no-load voltage, but a current draw will highlight the problem. The battery tester I use is basically a big resistor in parallel with a voltage gauge. You first measure no load voltage, if that's OK you flip a switch to add the resistor to the circuit and measure again while a large current is flowing. Often, especially if recently charged, the voltage will be OK until the load is added and then drop dramatically. Much like you are seeing. A lot of info on batteries on https://batteryuniversity.com/learn/article/how_to_restore_and_prolong_lead_acid_batteries Filip

Just Lotus (all RHD) and Range Rover (1 RHD, 2 LHD) at the moment. 😉 And I am planning to sell a couple...

Ross, that's actually one of only 2 of my cars that is LHD, all the others are RHD. 🙂

It's been a while, but a little progress has been made. I got some nice tires shipped from US (quite a nightmare to find a seller that would ship them and quite expensive to get through customs, as they don't seem to conform to some EU regulation). Next to a standard tire for comparison. Some trimming might be needed... Also got the new block on the engine stand, ready to start the build: And I've taken out most of the interior to swap the pedalbox for a manual one. Definitely not an easy conversion! As soon as my 2-post lift is available again, I'll take off the body and have a go at the driveline. Ashcroft has supplied a nice set of pegged lockers (forgot to take pictures) and I'll want to redo most of the suspension bushes and balljoints as well while they're easily accessible. I seems Lagoda 2019 is no longer a realistic goal... Filip

The P38 uses an hydraulic booster instead of a vacuum operated brake servo. So o take-off or one-way valve present in the base plate. But should be easy enough to swap over. I agree with above it probably wont make a noticeable difference which one you use. Filip

I had similar with a Range Rover P38 manual. As long as you used the clutch, it was fine. But after doing some distance on the highway, it felt like there was air in the system and the pedal needed pumping before the clutch would fully disengage. Heat from the exhaust sounds like a very probable explanation. As repeated bleeding didn't work (not for long at least), I carried on like that for some time. By accident, I found a solution: I didn't tighten the cap from the reservoir fully at some point, and that solved the issue. I can only assume the improved venting was enough to prevent air from accumulation in the system. Filip

Looks even more like a Transit than the Puma 😞 But still better than the new G-class, that's actually cramped and crowded inside despite the huge size.

We'll need a bit more info. Left/right, front/rear, does it drop to the bumpstops or just leaning, does it happen once or regularly on the same drive? Locking/unlocking wont affect the EAS, but by doing so you are cycling the system. Playing with the height selector should have the same effect. To determine leaks, disable the EAS by either pulling fuse 44 or the timer relay under the left front seat. Then check which corner or side drops. The EAS is actually pretty robust and reliable, but it helps if you have some understanding of how the system works. Rave is a good start. Filip

Maybe the records aren't up to date? It started with the website being 'temporarily unavailable', now https://www.totalparts.co.uk/ can't even be found. 😞

Last couple of years I've bought most of my parts from Total Parts (from Skelmersdale, Lancashire). About 2 weeks ago their website went offline and mails don't get answered. I fear they may be out of business. Anybody know more? It would be a shame, they were always ready to help and had good prices and shipping to Belgium. Filip

Not sure what you mea by 'hold it in by hand'. If you're just bypassing the relay, try putting in another one.

If the pump is running, remove the exhaust damper and check there is no air escaping. If there is, the diaphragm valve is leaking and needs to be replaced. It will dump all the compressed air before it can reach the tank. Filip