Josh NZ

I agree with you on the OTT bit! I ended up not running with the do-er upper one as he was asking far too much for a worn out vehicle. It would seem (after yesterday's hunt around) that am now the owner of another, different stage 1. It's a truck cab, in desert sand. Good running motor, no rust and what seems to be a fully trimmed interior (door cards match seats plus what looks like a roof lining). I'll try and put a link in... http://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/used-cars/land-rover/109/auction-587566807.htm There we go! Very excited, need to find a long hard top now

Ok, thought I'd drop in a wee update. Series is now sold, but missed out on the previously mentioned stage 1. Found another which has had $1400 odd spent on it for the fella to be told that its cam is worn out. I'm currently doing some part research from glencoynes website and I've found the RPI engineering firm in the states. Am I better off going for an OEM style camshaft and tappets plus a beefier timing chain and gears? And would it be good practice to change the head gaskets as well just for piece of mind? Bearing in mind the truck will be used as a summer camper and work wagon all year round.

Yeah, if the hg was gone and was blowing into the cooling system you would notice it going down pretty quick, and the change in running characteristics would be very hard to miss. I have a Mazda familia with 70,000kms as my daily driver and I top up the coolant every once in a while, I don't know where it goes but the car is running just fine haha

I would just keep an eye on it. I remember someone once telling me that coolant expands when warm and this can lead to the system spitting it out, but when cold again will read lower again. Have you checked anywhere for leaks or even weeps? Glycol based coolant has a high searching attribute which means its very good at finding even the smallest gaps in a pressurised system. I don't know much at all about freelanders being a series lover myself, but Coolant issues are not vehicle specific google is your friend on this one too.

Head Gasket failure has a few signs... Lots of white steam/smoke indicating coolant being burnt is one. Coffee coloured oil is another. Take the cap off the rad and start the car. If the gasket is blowing into the coolant system it will bubble out of the top. Plus poor running/lack of power. When my series blew its gasket i had all these signs which made it easier to diagnose

Sounds as if the said removed injector may be having problems with the spray pattern. It probably wants replacing

I'm glad I'm not the only one thinking that! Hehe

The NZ army actually bought most of our series 2a skippys off australia if i remember right, so kinda recycled everything. There are only 4 lightweight s3 models registered in NZ but lots of stage 1's as they were primary vehicles along with the unimogs. I cant wait to have a look at some transmissions!! I want my landy back on the road

As are the nz army, but in a far smaller capacity.

Hmm that sounds like a nice piece of kit, I saw an article in the depths of a google search about Borg-Warner units being fitted to series landys.. Might have Teri-Ann's site. Bill, in regards to getting my hands on a suffix D unit from an s3, you say they were fitted on ex-mil series 3 wagons. I'm not sure if Our wee army ever used series 3s apart from stage 1s and skippy 2a models, so I may have to get lucky and find a civvy unit with one. My landys gearbox is coming out soon anyway for a clutch change and any other bits that may need looking at, so If its going to cost me too much to rebuild the box I may find a series 3 unit and fit the necessary bits needed for a swap over. If this comes to fruition I will keep a diary and do a write up too

It was a 4 speed full synchro unit if I remember the Internet article. It needed an adapter plate for the the series t/case but don't quote me on that!

Hmmm, ford Thames you say?? Had a look around, can't say I've ever seen one in my life haha but that might just be a little too much work for a weekend warrior!

Lexi, I am by no means a rivet counter and the truck is a mishmash of s2a and s3 bits (but you wouldn't know from looking at the outside) so I wouldn't lose any sleep about using a 3 box if I could make it fit, but it seems that if my 2a unit only needs a fresh set of hydraulic components and a new clutch then I may just soldier on with the 2a unit. I'm going to see a friend in the next few days who has the most wonderous series landy graveyard (population 50+ rotters/no rego-ers) and enquire about any suffix D g/box and t/box combos he may have. Bill- your technical knowledge is second to none, but it is simply too much for my pea-sized land rover brain I'm really only using the vehicle for the spring and summer so that amount of work would be unfeasible I fear.

Ok, cheers for the heads up! I'll add that to the list

Therein lies the problem. The vehicle is basically a weekend warrior or Sunday show off thing and my girlfriend likes driving it too, unfortunately the clutching action is hard for her to get and the gearbox takes a hiding haha. Hence the S3 box idea, but if I do refurb the s2a unit, it may play a bit nicer

Its on a series 2a Mr Phil, i'm only researching swapping a series 3 unit in at this stage. Although i'm encouraged by the state of mine by just changing the oil haha

Well bill i think its all of those haha! My landy has never been de-reg'd and been used its whole life so im not surprised its a little worn out. Ive never changed a UJ before in my life so im quite looking forward to trying!

So i cleaned up my gearbox tonight in search for the number. I have a suffix E model. I have decided to just check the condition of innards at this stage, so i drained the oil out and HOLY HECK!! It was like khaki coloured pea soup... bubbling and goopy (extremely aerated and full of water). I didn't find any metal chunks in the oil when i strained it so that cant be a bad start. I put some fresh oil in and i think it has a made difference in terms of noise. Its very quiet when i run it, i cant hear any howling or screaching. However... when i got to 40mph and feathered the throttle, it sounded like a motorway rumble strip or something and it was coming from the gearbox area. What could that be? And i think my clutch is poked as it shudders horribly on takeoff and any creeping or slow clutch release, and it sometimes wont change gear or go into gear from neutral. I also need to check the hydraulic system although i don't think there's any leaks. Josh

Ok, that narrows it down a bit. Would a suffix D type be sufficient with mostly overland type driving? Plus a bit of town driving (lightly driven) too. I'm guessing suffix D is around the 1980's?

Sweet as! so I need to swap my hydraulics over.. Which bits exactly? I'm basically after a bullet point list of bits needed and a blow by blow account of what needs to be done. Cab I use any old series 3 gearbox or is there a particular one I need? Cheers

Hi all, I'm not sure if this has been asked before and I couldn't find many clear answers on google so bear with me. I have a series 2a from 1970 with the standard 2.25 petrol motor. The gearbox is a past its best but still useable currently, however, I would like to investigate swapping it for a series 3 box to gain full synchro (not for my benefit but for those who aren't savvy with the series 2a shifting action whom I allow to drive). Series gearboxes are cheap and plentiful where I live so sourcing a particular type shouldn't be difficult. I would hazard a guess because my vehicle is a late 2a that it will have a suffix E gearbox but will check when I get a chance. What other things do I need to change? I understand the bell housing doesn't match, but that's as far as I know. Also, i would like to retain the bent gearstick for factory style if possible. The car doesn't get driven much but will be used off road predominantly. I'm not hard on it either Explanations In dummies language please Josh

Ok, so I have a prospective buyer for my series 2a lined up. I have since done some research into the stage 1 model and its quirks (thank you glen coyne!!) and I'm fairly certain I have a diagnosis on the running issues I noted earlier. Basically from what I can tell, the poor running/misfiring is down to camshaft wear and or a blown head gasket. Both are relatively cheap to replace although the 3.5 is totally unfamiliar to me so it's a little daunting! I'm really wanting to buy the vehicle though, it's in such sound condition body/chassis wise and its got history! Plus I want to set it up for over landing and as a part time camper too.. So I will hopefully be back soonish with some good news and I'll be starting a build diary. Watch this space!

Problem solved!! Turns out the carby tried to make an escape and unbolt itself. The bolt under the vacuum line was nearly off! Thanks very much for all your replies!

Loose or corroded connections on your battery terminals, and or your battery is shot.

I haven't used any exhaust paste on the joins, it sealed up nicely without it. I'm having a go at the carb tuning later today, I'll see if I can get a sneaky video if what's going on