thirstybeast

Hi Dont know what age vehicle you have but for me the brackets on the LH wing that hold the heater air intake and coil were ideal for mounting the 200 disco filter brackets. The air filter is 300 TDI because the elements are cheaper.

The LDV 4x4 vans we ran at work were so bad we converted them back to 2 wheel drive! brakes pulled and bolts were always beaking on the steering. The minibus had a high low leaver that could easily be opperated by passengers in the rear! still have all the bits so could make up a nice 4 wheel steer truck. The transfere box looks like a G wagon type and is made by styr. We also run a few countys including one of the last built an 1184-40. I think we got it in 1995.

I had this problem a while ago, its was corosion on the diff lock switch terminals, a quick clean up sorted it for about 6 months. The problem re appeared on the weekend so I guess another go with the emery cloth is required.

Hi I am running a 200 TDI without an intercooler an its fine, probably best not to tweek the fuel pump though! A series is fairly light in weight so slight drop in power wont be too noticeable. .....of course I plan to fit an intercooler in the next few months in the quest for power.

Hi Abe Yes I plan to fit an intercooler in the next few months, I have the rad assembly with intercooler and just need to get a replacement coolant rad. Not sure about what problems I will have with hoses though as 200 and 300 are diffrent. My Glow plugs are wired up as it was a simple plug in job but the V8 dash harness must be diffrent so I hane no warning light. I know when the glow cycle is finished as the relay clunks off under my seat. Hopefully an intercooler will release more power, fitting a proper diesel exhaust has allready inproved thing.

I recently fitted a 200 TDI to a V8 so thought I would record it while still fresh in the memory. The Defender is a late model V8 rather than an old V8 or 2.5D so I though people may find the conversion of interest. Time taken was about 5 days (3 Saturdays and some evenings). The Donor vehicle was a crash damaged disco with 130k on the clock and more importantly I knew its service history for the last few years. I run a similar age disco so many other parts will be used on that. This is not the first engine swap I have done but probably the most useable. I have also fitted a 2 ¼ petrol into an 80” S1 (great fun but brakes weren’t up to the performance), 2.5 turbo Diesel into a 1983 2 ¼ Diesel 110 (huge leap forward and a real pleasure to drive when NA 2.5 was still the engine to have), 2.5 D into a 1963 fire-fly (worked well but a bit pointless). The vehicle requiring the engine was my 1999 3.5 carbed V8 Defender with 64k on the clock and a huge thirst, (5mpg being fairly normal fully laden and working off road for around 8 hours a stretch). As I was burning a tank of fuel a day while the TDI vehicles were getting around 12MPG something had to be done. Parts used were disco engine, 300TDI bell housing, disco engine mounts, air filter steering pump ect.300 engine harness,200 disco exhaust down pipe fitted to 300 inter and tail pipe. V8 rad was used to save cash and a basic oil cooler knocked up (the donor disco head eaten a Fiat Panda and the radiator was a bit bent!). To fit the engine, the V8 mounts were unbolted from the chassis (unusual, must have been LR SV job on TD5 Chassis). The V8 fly wheel housing was removed and the 300 one fitted. The R380 G/box has a smaller end than a TDI one so a top hat bush made up and fitted to the 200 fly wheel. 2 x metal dowels were knocked out of the flywheel housing. Clutch pipe removed and 300 tdi one fitted to opposite side of bulkhead. Engine then dropped in and mounts cut from the disco were tack welded at the appropriate height. Engine removed and clutch re -fitted, engine mounts fully welded in. The engine fits in the same position of a 300 TDI, at the front of the engine bay. 300 engine harnesses fitted and engine dropped it place. V8 steering pipes went straight on to 200 pump. Fuel filter went on bulkhead as steering reservoir was in the 300 location. First snag, how to get petrol out of tank? The ignition turned on but wiring to fuel pump now dead, found wiring colour codes on the web and powered up pump at bulkhead multi connector and pumped tank dry. Filled with diesel, removed petrol filter from chassis and made up new feed and return pipes. Turned key and engine ran. I then made up pipes from turbo to inlet manifold as no intercooler is used at moment. Fitted V8 rad and disco header tank, hoses a mixture of V8, 2.5D and 300 TDI. Engine fan is a wee bit offset from cowling but no horrible noises as yet! Disco throttle cable fitted to fuel pump. Air filter fitted on brackets that held heater intake and coil on the LH side of the engine. The air intake is in the engine bay, this is because last summer 300 TDI and TD5 vehicles were suffering from blocked air filters driving in dusty conditions. The V8 air filter in the engine bay never blocked so I figure the position is good. 200 Disco down pipe fitted to 300 intermediate pipes (all lined up perfectly). I originally used the V8 inter and tail sections of the exhaust but suffered from a lot of vibration at idle. I notice others fitting the engine at the back of the bay have trouble with space for the exhaust but for me it was all straight forward. Initially my temp gauge read very cold and I was told that the V8 dash wiring had a resistor in it, I bypassed that wire and it now reads in the same position as the V8 did. A test drive proved that it was no V8 and not as quick up hill as my 200 disco on 31/10.5/15 mud tyres but as the Defender is on 33/12.5/15 Hankook MT’s its not too bad The actual gearing is fine as the transfer box has the same ratio as a 300 Defender. I haven’t upped the fuelling yet as with no intercooler I don’t want to much heat. The defunct fuel pump in the tank does not seem to restrict flow and it starts instantly at zero Celsius without heat. I haven’t got a glow plug warning light sorted yet but will sort out something with the choke warning light some time. To the un-initiated the engine under the bonnet looks like a 300 TDI and only a closer inspection reveals that all is not as it seems. Only time will tell if I have done the right thing as despite the hype diesels are no match for a proper engine in a real slog. On the plus side I should have twice the range, half the fuel bill and of course I can no-longer hear my passengers complain about the bumps!

I think I have attached some pic's of my disco recovery points, though crude they have seen a lot use recovering the beast from the mud fully laden many times a day. This was while working with a fleet of defenders that were far better in soft conditions. After 6 years I have finaly got a defender so can normally stay on top now.

Hi I have just finnished fitting a disco 200TDI into a V8 Defender (1999 V8), I used a 300 TDI engine harness as it was a straight swap. left the fuel pump in the tank (no power to it with 300 harness).