tychoS

Here's mine. 235/85R16 BFG AT on wolf rims, standard suspension.

My 1988 90" TD has 402.000 km / 250.000 miles on the odometer The engine is still on std. size pistons. The LT77 was swapped for a refurb. a year ago.

Last summer we drove our 1988 90" TD softtop from Copenhagen, up along the Atlantic coast of Norway, across Lapland to Vardø then back through the forests of Sweden. 6686 km in a bit more than two weeks. At the time we started, the odometer said 382.000 km, the engine is still on std. size pistons. I brought some spares, oil, grease, tools etc., but only needed to tighten a hoseclamp and top up the engine oil at the regular interval of 0.5 liter pr. 1000 km driven. Actually the only reason for the hoseclamp issue was that I had been changing the timing belt a few days before departure and apparently not put the hose back on properly.

I used one of that type for a timing belt change. So far it has lasted approx 20.000 km with no signs of trouble ;-) It's a damn inaccurate piece of "#¤%& though, but apparently good enough for the tolerances on a Land Rover engine.

The cracking pattern visible in the picture in the grooves looks like what you would expect to see on a tyre that's some years old. It's perfectly sane to replace a set of tires due to age, despite them having plenty of thread left. Old tires can be quite dangerous for a number of reasons.

For mostly tarmac with some field & forest I've had good experience with Cooper Discoverer Radial LT http://www.coopertire.com/html/products/tires_lighttruck.aspx?page=discoverer_lt I'm running BFG AT at the moment for the same type of driving. In comparison they are less good on wet tarmac than the Coopers and they have a very annoying tendency to pick up stones - klak - klak - klak - klak

Changing an UJ takes only five minutes ;-)

http://www.adwest-engineering.co.uk My 6-bolt box is on it's way out too. When it's finally time to replace it, I intend to ask Adwest if they can supply a suitable replacement. Watch out for differences in pipe thread for the oil connections.

I fitted new foam and covers to the seats in our 90". It made a huge improvement. The seats are now very comfortable. I've had no complaints over seat comfort from the female passenger seat occupant at all since then, not even during a 15 day 6686 km road trip.

My rostyle rims have NTC2165 TUBED 16x6JKx33 stamped into them. So 6 inches wide. There's another part number for tubeless rostyle rims, I'am under the impression the width & offset is the same, but do not have one available for confirmation.

You use a drill made for drilling square holes of course ,-) http://bbs.homeshopmachinist.net/showthread.php?t=92&page=4 The Math behind the drill, the "Reuleaux triangle" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reuleaux_triangle As for a quick, dirty and cheap approach for drilling one or a few holes in thin aluminium that does not have to be super perfect, I use ordinary round drills and small files.

Freeze dried rations, both food and cake/chocolate variants, water, proper coffee, and a Trangia. "Turmat" from Norway are the most tasty freeze dried rations, "Expedition Foods" from UK cost half as much and are nearly as good. More often than not we go to a local restaurant/pizza place/cafe/whatever, but having food and coffee with us means we are free to roam the countryside without having to be limited by restaurant closing times and the like.

I have one of those "PRT - Portable Rescue Tree". Very easy to stow away. Roughly the size of a large briefcase. Haven't had it for very long so not yet enough experience using it to say how good it is in various types of soil/mud/sand/etc.

Try holding the little gearlever in position for the first couple of meters driving after switching between low and high range. I've found in several Land Rovers that the reduction box would jump back into neutral if this was not done. Also keep in mind that the central lock will usually not engage or disengage at the moment you move the lever, but only after a couple meters driving. Therefore you have to think ahead and engage it shortly before it's needed. Make sure you do not drive with the central differential lock engaged while on hard firm ground. If there's no Land Rover club in or near Hamburg, then consider driving north and joining The Danish Land Rover Club we do offer beginners offroad driving courses for new members.

I suppose your present rims are the rostyles seen on your avatar picture, since they have the dimensions you mention? I've run 235/85R16 on rostyles. The 6" rim width seemed to fit the tyre well. Rostyle rims for the Land Rover have been made both as tubed and tubeless. Look for the word "TUBELESS" or "TUBED" stamped into the metal around the center hole. If you have the tubeless type, I suggest you keep the rims and fit new 235/85R16 tyres. If you have the tubed type, scrap them and fit something else unless you absolutely want tubes for some reason. Good suggestions for replacements have been provided by others in this thread.

I've seen an 8274 mounted to an ARB, and seen it perform well. Don't know if all ARB bumpers are alike though.

Cooper Discoverer STT2 Nokian Vatiiva M/T

Consider the more recent AGM types of starter batteries. AGM stands for Absorbed Glass Mat, meaning there are glass fiber mats sandwiched in between the metal plates. The acid is absorbed in the glassfiber mats so it will not spill out in case the case cracks in a crash or roll-over, and you hcan have the battery sit at an angle with no worry. I've had one in my 90 for a couple of months now. A Varta G14. So far it has been super good at being re-charged quickly and holding a charge even after a week of standing at -15 degree celcius. They are not the cheapest though.

Try swapping the voltage regulator unit, which consists of the diodes, the brushes etc. Last time I bought one it cost me slightly less than £10. With the alternator out of the vehicle it took me a couple minutes to swap the regulator unit. I've seen two different types of regulators on Land Rover alternators on NA/TD/200tdi types of engines. It the alternator on the table, you will easily see which type you have. In some cases it's hidden under a plastic cover covering one end of the alternator. (Links are only to get images so you know what to look for, I have no connection with the actual auctions) : http://cgi.ebay.de/Lichtmaschinenregler-Regler-Ford-Fiesta-Rover-Neu_W0QQitemZ360189261761QQcmdZViewItemQQptZAutoteile_Zubeh%C3%B6r?hash=item53dcf3f7c1 http://cgi.ebay.de/Lichtmaschinenregler-BMW-AUDI-CITROEN-FERRARI-FIAT_W0QQitemZ360223478099QQcmdZViewItemQQptZAutoteile_Zubeh%C3%B6r?hash=item53defe1153

I had a 663 also known as 61047 in the battery box of a 90" 1988. It fits, but the negative terminal is nearly touching the seatbox lid. There is room for a longer battery though. Now I have a Varta G14 in the same car. It's a few cm lower and therefore a more comfortable fit. The G14 uses the new spill proof AGM technology, where the 663/61047 uses liquid acid. I know which of the two I prefer to have under the seat in a crash+roll ;-) Varta G14 Capacity - 95Ah CCA(EN) - 850A L x W x H - 353 x 175 x 190 mm Varta 663/61047 Capacity - 110A CCA(EN) - 680A L x W x H - 347 x 173 x 234 mm http://www.barden-uk.com/quick-view-varta-commercial.html http://www.tayna.co.uk/catalog/619/0/Car-Batteries-Varta-Gel-AGM-Ultra-Dynamic-Batteries-page1.html

I fitted a pair of "Wipac Crystal Halogen" from Paddocks in place of some cracked old ones. They came fitted with osram bulbs. I couldn't be more satisfied. High beam lights up the road and road sides well far enough ahead, and low beam provides lots of light as well as having a very sharply defined light pattern so incoming traffic is not bothered. They were really cheap as well. Paid more to replace the bowls they sit in than replacing the lights & bulbs.

Is there a table of Land Rover "book times" for various repairs available on the net somewhere?

Sorry for being awfully late in responding Siddy. Yes the hotplugs can be pulled or wiggled out fairly easily. The locating peg is there to keep the plug from rotating in the hole, the plug is kept in the head simply by half of it being over the engine block when the head is placed on the block. The cracks in your photo are bad enough that I would change all four hotplugs. You do not want one to break up and ruin the cylinder wall. There's no need to have the head skimmed just because you changed the hotplugs. However if the head has been skimmed at some point, the hotplugs will not sit flush with the surface of the head, and you will therefore have to have the plugs skimmed so they do sit flush with the head. I've never been in that particular situation myself though, so cannot advice on the best way to get this done.

Actually a 90/110" with an LT77 behind a 2,5 n/a, td or 200tdi is "mid-engined", which is a part of what gives them such good high speed road holding ;-)

The parts with the cracks, are they the round inserts with the little square holes in them? If so they are called hotplugs and they do crack after a while on this particular model of engine. Hot plug ERR1223 Locating peg PA105101L It's only a problem if the cracks gets to a state that the hotplug might break up into bits that will fall onto the piston. You can buy new hotplugs and the little locating pegs for sensible money. Swapping is fairly strait forward, ease out the old ones, put the new ones in.