NegevLandRover

Slightly OT but worth trying.... Really smart young lady walks into a highstreet bank in the city and politely asks to see the manager and explains to him that she needs a small loan of 2000 pounds for a couple of weeks. The manager asks if she can provide any collateral and she places a bunch of keys on the table and says that they are to her Bentley which is parked outside. The manager sends one of the clerks who returns after a few minutes to confirm that the keys do belong to a well kept and new Bentley - the manager asks the clerk to take the car down into the bank's underground car park and counts out the 2000 pounds for the lady. A couple of weeks later the young lady returns to the bank and counts out the 2000 pounds and the small interest fee of 20 pounds and the manager hands over the keys. As he walks her out to the Bentley he can no longer contain his curiosity and politely asks her why a young laday obviously as well off as she needs such a loan to which she answers: "I dont know any other place where I can park my Bentley in an underground and gaurded car park in the city for that price"

Don't know what all the excitement is about - we have had one of these in our "back yard" for at least 8 years now. The one here is on a 130 chasis with two rear axels on a sort of bogey see saw set up. The guy who used to drive really put it through its paces and with a pretyy hefty payload too so if it survived then it must be pretty good. I saw it a few times tearing around the desert here. This one had the military HD axels, gearbox and transfer and was running a LR V8. Adam

Been busy and only just seen this. Had a similar problem a couple of years back. Pulled the rad out and towed the LR to a truck tyre place and got them to apply one of those MEGA compreseed air powered jack hammers used to undo truck wheel bolts - took all of a few seconds to budge the culprit. Brute force and ignorance can do wonders. Adam

Thanks guys. I'll try and find a dead Defender and relive it of the relavant part. Adam

Thanks Western The upper clutch pump is leaking so that will have to come out anyway in the near future so no problems there. I don't really understand which bits swap out - can you please explain it slowly ? TIA Adam

I have two Defenders - the first is a 1994 200 TDI now running a 1996 300 TDI and the other is a 1996 300 TDI. The clutch pedal on the older vehichile is much much harder/stiffer to depress relative to the "newer" model. The stiffness has nothing to do with hydraulics, top or bottom, which have been chaged several times during the 675000+ kms that I have done so far. So 1. what is the difference between the two models ? 2. can the older model's pedal be "softened" and if then how ? TIA Adam

Thanks MO - worth a try and on the basis of "start with the small/easy stuff first and work up from there" definetly worth a try so I'll go and do that and see what happens. How far back did you go and if I want to go all the way back where does that wire begin ? Adam

Possible and an idea I have entertained the main reason I have not persued this path, yet, is that the problem only occurs on rough roads when the engine is taking a shaking and when on paved surfaces, even when I really turn the power on, there is no problem ?! Adam

Maybe one of you can point me in the right direction ?! The engine is a slightly modified 300 TDI - the mods are turbo and breather related. The problem seems to be electric at least as far as I can figure. While driving on rough tracks the engine suddenly looses power for a second or so at a time, it never cuts out just stops pulling momentarily and then comes on line again. Symptoms rather like a momentary fuel block on a carbed engine but like I said only on rough roads so unlikely to be dirty or impure fuel. Also the engine never cuts out just drops to tickover or close. No electric surges such as lights dimming etc. The engine does not surge so it is not a traction thing and it happens when in locked diff mode both high and low as well as in unlocked diff mode. Checked the wire to the fuel pump and that seems OK. The problem is obviously more noticeable when climbing but I am pretty sure that it is there on the flat and decending but as the power cut is momentary it is hardly noticeable. TIA Adam

There you go then David - you cannot even agree with yourself , so what do you expect from all of us ?!! Judging by many of the offroaders that I come across I reckon your M8 is right, the stuff people buy and never use, let alone know how to use, is astounding and when it comes to offraoders the very fact that many people buy one in the firstplace is often just a fashion or status statement. Adam

First off apart from the fact that you may not care about your passenger - but if he comes loose then you may end up getting very seriously injured by him flying about let alone the fact that he is likely to get a bashing. More to the point I had to fit seat belts to a 1994 110 that came without and when I had look at the factory fited seat belts on other 110s I was suprised at how flimsy the fittings seem. However on second thoughts, and drawing on my other backgrounds (namely SAR and High Angle Rescue) I figured that after a certain point even if the belt holds the person in is pretty irrelevant as the kinetics of the crash will be more than the human body can suffer. Imagine how much energy it requires to pull one of those oblong "spreader" plates through the ali/tin and I am sure that you will agree that if that much energy is involved then the chances are that if that "plate" gets pulled through it will be pretty irrelevant ?! So when I fitted my belts I doubled the size of the spreader plate and used M10 bolts with nylo nuts - I have not crash tested .....Yet ! nor indeed do I intend to. Adam

Yes it does rain, as in wet rain - aswell as scud missiles and all sorts of other pieces of ordanance but where I am it is dry both in terms of rain (being a desert and all that) and in terms of the other stuff (the rag heads don't even know where this is let alone care). In Israel we build using concrete and brick with little or no wood especially in this area where we have LOTS of termites. Generally floors are laid over a layer of sand which has all the plumbing etc in it and are held in place by cement. If all is well than the area beneath the soon to be laid slate should be sealed irrespective of whether any water gets benaeth the slate or not however if the sand soaks up enough water dampness will spread and the structural stress of the weight of the wet sand will not do the building any good. NB with a user name like Jericho you belong here !! Adam

This is completly O/T but I thought that some of you may be able to help. I am planing on laying slate floors on the up stairs verandahs of my soon to be completed home. Slate is rarely used in these parts and the know how considering it's use is poor to non-existent. Some of the contactors tell me that laying slate on an upstairs verandah (there are rooms beneath) is suicidal in that it will never keep the water out ?! I have grown tired of contarctors and am thinking of doing the job myself - I have good hands but am I biting off more than I can chew ?! The slate comes in 30 X 30 cm pieces and is fairly even but not smooth. It is a yellowish brown and as yet not sealed. I know that slate is fairly common in the UK so maybe you can give me some pointers ?! LR content - if I can avoid a disaster then I will be left with more money to play with on my two Defender 110s. TIA Adam

What ever you do I suggest that you see what affect the cleaning agent has on a bit of carpet that is less visible - you do not want to get out of the pan just to find that you landed in the fire - DON'T ASK ME HOW I KNOW !!!!!!

The grease comes in a "one shot" tube the whole of which goes into one swivel - two swivels = two tubes. The tubes are a sort of plastic bag - you simply snip off the tip and squeeze the contents in. I dont bother re-filling untill I replace the swivel seal - once in the five years since I went grease. As the graese is thicker than oil it tends to leak less. To reduce water ingress you want to make sure that the diff breathers are working properly and then there will be no ingress via the swivels towards the diff when the diff suddenly cools and sucks in air/water. IMHO grease is the way forwards and I would never go back to oil. Adam

About 15 years ago I droped my two way Motorola radio (walkie-talkie) down a long drop field latrine. Had a couple of M8s lower me head first down into the smelly depths from where I was able to rescue the thing. After a good clean with disinfectant it continued to give reliable service for years to come. If that doesn't make you feel that you got off lightly then I don't know what will. The memory still causes me to shudder with disgust. Adam

In my opinion there is nothing such as a fool proof anti theft device. The thing about immobilizers and the like is that if they go wrong in the wild then you may be stuck on the wrong side of the device. On both my vehichles I have a hidden pre wired bypasses so that I can bypass the device if it turns belly up or when I am in a difficult situation where I cannot afford to have the immobilizer activte itself at it's preset failsafe activation point which most of these devices have. A M8 of mine lost his LR when he fumbled the immobilizer while trying to escape from a camping spot that was flash flooded. Another guy I know had an immobilizer suddenly kick in while he was in the middle of a technical climb - he ended up rolling. In these parts anyway what ever you can put in without involving a contractor will give you better security as contractors all do everything the same way and alot of the thieves know how and where the devices are placed by different companies etc and hence their job is easy. IMHO the best approach is to use a combination of devices and a wheel clamp as one of the parts of that combination is one of the better options. Adam

For some reason I cannot access my palm desktop (Zire 72s). The Hotsync function seems to be working I just cannot see any of it on the PC. I figure the problem is the preferences and tried changing the preferences which show the "read only" option as checked, when I un-check the option and "apply" it just goes back to "read only" Any one got any ideas how to solve this ? TIA Adam

In Northern Kenya there is a group of incredible drivers who run Gat (a leaf that is chewed by the locals for it's buzz) from Somalia and Ethiopia to Kenya. The leaves have to be delivered at market within 24 hours of harvest and in order to do so have to cross about 700 kms of dirt tracks. The "runners" use ancient LRs held together with pure inginuity and bush sense and the drivers can do the most incredible repairs in the middle of no where with very few tools - anyway rather than jack up or crawl under it is not uncommon to see the LR being reapired turned over on it's side so enabling quick and easy access. You got to see these guys to believe it. Adam

Pull up to a HEAVILY bogged down J33P, position LR, unravel winch cable, toggle the "Line in" switch and............... nothing, nada, not even a click After stowing the steel cable on the front fender I pulled him out the old fashioned way which was probably even more humilating for him than getting winched out. That was when I decided to go MM and Plasma. Adam

Reads 90 - do your self a big favour and change the standard LR temp gauge ASAP - they are no where near adequate for hot climate engine management and by the time it screams it will be too late to save the day. Most will tell you that the ambient temp will not make much of a difference but I live in an area with extreme temp variations from season to season and from day to night and with the after market temp gauges I run I can see a marked difference in engine temps related to both ambient temps and engine loading. I run a mechanical VDO and a thermocouple digital gauge (the latter is linked to an audible buzzer just in case I am day dreaming when the proverbial sh!i hits the fan). The main problem with coolant gauges is that if and when the coolant level drops the gauge will not register a temp change untill it is too late so you should fit either a coolant level alarm or a thermocouple temp gauge which measures engine head temps. Adam

For all you people who do not own a ground anchor and get stuck in sand (or if one ground anchor is not enough) you should know that one can improvise very easily - take spare wheel and place/bury it in the sand at a 45 degree angle away from the direction of pull and tie the winch cable to the rim. If you leave a 'tether' on it then can easily pull the wheel out once you get to it. Adam

The 300 TDI optimum operateing temp is 88 celsius. Each engine has it's optimum temp which is, if all is working properly, determined for the most part by your coolant thermostat which opens at a set temp. Some engines like the 200 TDI and 300 TDI also have oil thermostats which also help determine engine temp - mainly keeping them warm enough. A cold engine can be as disastorous as a hot one in that cold oil does not get to all the places it should and then the engine self destructs - this happened to me as the previous owner took out the oil thermostat for some weird reason. Red line on a 300 TDI is 116 celsius. I run a VGO coolant temp gauge aswell as a thermocouple electronic gauge which measures the block temperature giving me a cross reference aswell as a failsafe should the coolant level fall or the pump cease etc. The thermocouple gauge is also linked to a buzzer that is set to sound a 112 celsius. Adam

I could write a looooong article on this subject, Bottom line is that after checking a host of after market "upgrades", and their modifications, I have gone back to the standard Defender hoses. Fortunately I have good eyesight and have managed to notice the oil loss before losing the engine/turbo - oil drops on rear window, oli pressure warning light etc. Last misshap was this week when the jubilee cliped oil hose blew clean off - I really gave the garage owner an ear full - there is NO WAY that jubilee clips will hold oil pipes on a smooth male pipe - NO WAY AT ALL !!. Had I known that the last repair he made was with jubilee clips I would not have bothered collecting the LR at all - he agreed and said that the job was "an emergency repair he planed to change at the next service" - it only lasted 2000 kms. Adam

Roaring trade in 'new secondhand cars' in Kenya. People are buying bulk secondhand in the far east and Europe and then repainting and selling as refurbished at a huge profit margin. Cars and especially 4X4s are very expensive there mostly thanks to the taxes. If you buy petrol be warned that the Kenyan Gov't dictates that fuel is watered down with sugar cane spirit to make the fuel go futher and while this just makes the older engines alittle slower it plays havoc wth the more modern motors. By the may we pay just under GBP30k for a new TD5 110 here too thanks mainly to a massive tax on new cars especially those deemed to be luxury (HAHAHA !!! - Defender Luxury ??!! Pull the other leg!!!) the luxury bit being a function of it's shelf price to the importer. If I were you I'd check the feasability of taking a second hand LR into Kenya. Adam