Snagger

The Discovery LT230 with 4.71s would be quite low geared. That LT would be 1.22: vs the 1.15: of the Series, so with 4.71s and an LT77 which overdrives by around 20% compared to a Series' overdrives 28%, and I think you'd have a final ratio not far of standard Series without overdrive. The 1.22 LT would really need 3.9-4.1 diffs to give it similar final gearing in hihg as a Defender. The reason I say it's an expensive method is the cost of buying the C&P gears, which will come in at about $1000 new before even paying for fitting or getting the bearings, seals and other bits involved in building up diffs. That's a lot compared to just getting the right LT230 to start with. I did a few spread sheets on Ashcroft's gearing calculator to consider options for my 109, and the ZF with 1.2 transfer box gave very similar top gearing to the Series with overdrive, and by using 4.1 diffs, it'd come out very close to a standard Defender's 5th high. Because of my low range mod, my low range 1st with 4.1s would be close to a Defender's 1st low, too, if I remember correctly. It was just the ZF combination that had a much higher first low, no trouble going up with the torque converter, but could be an issue going down with the lost engine braking. A 1.002: LT230 (from a V8?) would fix that with 4.71 diffs, but I think they're pretty rare.

Discovery 200 has a green plastic ring, while the 300 has a yellow plastic rectangle end. The 200 type fits the block with an olive and male threaded sleeve, while the 300 type has a rubbur o-ring and us pressed into a plain drilling, held in place only by the upper bracket.

POR15 is the usual response for a high strength paint for the underside.

Nationwide Trim in Warwick are the RRC trim experts. They should be able to tell you what fits, refurbish old seats or maybe even source replacements. I hope they're still trading - not seen any conversation about them in a while but never read about them stopping.

They crack the pistons and the heads, and the hot spots can sometimes drop out. All in all, they're not a good engine - a Tdi is far more robust, powerful and frugal, so few will repair one of these. Since you have already embarked on it, though, the crank shells should definitely be replaced as you have them, and if you've already got the head off and are undoing the big ends for the bearings, then it's little extra effort to replace the pistons. In all honesty, it's unlikely a 19J will have achieved enough mileage for significant bore wear, so a rebore is highly unlikely to be needed. A hone might be needed if the bores are polished or glazed. Piston damage is likely, but only fit genuine AE or Heppolite pistons (and rings); don't bother with pattern parts.

Even if the pistons do suffer, you'd only be changing them in just the same way later on anyway, so it may be worth leaving the pistons as they are and trying your luck - a cracked piston won't wreck the engine if the worst happens.

Me too - had similar since rebuilding with an overbore in 2008, with associated oil loss and blue smoke on idle and over-run, but not labouring. Head rebuilt twice, two new turbos. Suspicion has fallen on glazing from too gentle a run in and using Slick 50 and vegoil as fuel (pre-heated) after a few thousand miles. Other suggestions were the turbo drain pipe being clogged and the exhaust causing a vacuum and sucking oil out of the turbine seal (unlikely on a new Turbotechnics one though, I think).

Hi Robbie Knowing Seattle (I do go there periodically on work), I can see why you're having trouble with the transmission. I know it cuts against the grain of a modern American petrol-head, but I reckon your best transmission for the city would be an automatic from a Discovery, with the LT230 and 4.1 or (at a pinch) 3.54 diffs, but that isn't very characteristic of the vehicle. US cities are even more stop-start for traffic than in the UK, and those hills would require a lot of gear changes. Failing that, an R380 and 1.4:1 (Defender) LT230 would be a good second alternative, again with 3.54s. I don't think you'd enjoy the set up I have in mind for my 109 of standard transmission with overdrive and 4.1 diffs just because of those hills and crossroad junctions. I had more of the open country driving in mind when we talked. Just so you know, a ZF4HP auto with a 1.22 transfer box (RR and Disco) has a very similar top gear to a SIII with overdrive in high range, and lower first in low range (OD disengaged), so the gearing range is spread well over what you have already got, but it'll handle a lot more torque and deal better with taller diffs than the Series box. Springs will be sorted with decent quality parabolics. I have TI Console (now Heystee), and the ride was far more comfortable than my wife's standard 2009 90XS. Given your location, Rocky Mountain springs would be perfect, with two or three leafs in the front and four at the back. Engine vibration of a 200 in a Series is a well known issue, but using the softer Bearmach mounts that Rich Hall at Glencoyne.co.uk sells helps enormously (remember to replace the transmission mounts too). You can also bolt a block of steel to the aircon compressor mount on the timing case, which I found made a fair improvement by reducing the harmonic frequency of the engine mass (LR bolted a mass damper to the Discovery II's LT230 to acheive the same thing, which you could also do if you fit one). A Discovery LT230 with 4.1 diffs will have comparable high range to a Defender, but with significantly lower low range. It's a more expensive and laborious way of achieving the same thing as using standard Defender gearings, but if you need the really low low range, it'd work well. KAM Diffs made 4.1 Salisbury c&p gears for a while, but they have closed down and I think they'd stopped making Salisbury gears a while before. Ashcroft only make Rover gear sets. I got a second hand Dana 60 4.1 gear set on ebay with a 10-spline pinion (was told it was from a Ford, but unsure), but I don't know for certain that the pinion dimensions for bearings and prop flange match the Salisbury pinion. The Dana crown gear uses 1/2 bolts instead of the M12 of the Salisbury, so the diff bolt holes will need a small tweak. As Fridge says, the disc brake conversion is simple enough at the back, but not the front, needing expensive kits. Zeus Engineering do kits that can be installed on either axle and are far cheaper than any others I have seen. However, like Fridge says, the drum system will stop the car just as quickly if in proper order - it just needs periodic cleaning and adjustment, and bleeding is more difficult on the front end. I don't think it's a worthwhile conversion unless you're already swapping the axles for Defender (or other) units. Very envious of the RRCs - you didn't mention them before! Welcome to the forum.

It was only the TDCI that had an inclined engine and transmission axis, but that was only for sump clearance from the axle, nothing to do with transmission geometry.

That's definitely a scam. No way would any real organisation be trying to build such an extreme vehicle that would cost so much - they'd have done enough research to know the Icelandic vehicles would be inappropriate and that the grey vehicle is just about aesthetics. There's no mention of an organisation name or any related services or charities.

The centre console is the same except for the colour in grey trimmed models (RR has a dark brownish grey, while Discovery has paler pure grey) and the RR has a different transfer box instructions sticker inside the lid while the Disco's is on the slightly raised area beside the lighter. AS Jon says, the coil sprung RR (like mine) have the Discovery's coin tray where EAS models have their switch gear.

Just no, to both methods. Seriously, the suggestion of sleeving the splines, securing the sleeve with Locktite and recutting? That's like supergluing matchsticks to the end of a plain shaft and hoping they'll stay on! As for what he did with the screwed joint, that's the same strength shaft as cutting a groove through 1/4 diameter of the shaft! What a botch! He has no idea of what he's done. They'll snap like toothpicks the first time they get a decent amount of torque through them. He'd have been better off welding cut down shafts together, even though he recognised the issue of heat treatment.

Captain Tolly's Stop Leak is a thin liquid that you pour into leaking seals or joints to seal them up. It is a common product at boat chandlers. That will sort any new Alpine Light seals. Personally, I'd replace any damaged seals as soon as possible, rather than waiting for them to leak. You will need the seal insert tool.

The greatest risk is warping the head, but you'd probably have had temperature indications of that happening. Just keep an eye on all fluid levels over the next month or so, and keep a listen out for a sound like someone flicking a sheet of taught paper, which is a sign of a head gasket leak from bore ot outside (not affecting fluids). If you don't get symptoms of those nature, you're almost sure to be fine.

If the tyre manufacturer wants my vehicle to be a roving advert, they'll have to give me the tyres for free. I had the tyres reversed when I bought my RRC as the PO had fitted BFG ATs white-out. I don't like that on a Defender (and it's very out of character on a Series), but on a RRC, it's plain vulgar!

I used a paint stripper air gun to heat the plastic so that it could be peeled off. The trick is not to overheat it so that it melts.

If tower blocks can be without sprinklers, then there's little chance of them being mandated for car parks. And without them being mandated, no car park owner or operator is likely to fit them - the first thing you see as you enter any car park is a legal disclaimer.

Sadly, some LR owners abuse and neglect their vehicles, and others carry out botched mods. You see utter wrecks all the time. They're the ones who got Series and Defenders a bad name for reliability and reputation for bad brakes and vague steering, insisting that the result of the negligence was "normal". Whether this vehicle was such a case remains to be seen - it may have been a new vehicle professionally maintained; other manufacturers have been synonymous with electrical fires, particularly Ford and Peugeot, but some LR owners do us and the marque no favours, and Cackshifter is right that premiums could go up for us as a result.

Soft dash didn't have the hard moulded rear cases for the front seats, just the cloth or leather with a soft pocket.

Britpart copies, probably. Vass in Amptill had hundreds of them kicking about, used and new ex-MoD stock, most with XZL or G90 tyres, for very sensible prices. They'd be worth a call.

It's a certain generation of men that have a specific appreciation of Anthea, Eric!

RTV silicone sealant is not the same as plumbing or window silicone sealant, but is commonly used instead of gaskets by manufacturers since the 90s.

If you want variable speed control, then fine, but I take issue with its claim of higher fan speed - the high setting on the Defender is a plain wire with no resistor, so as long as the switch is in good order, the resistance can't be greater than their electronic unit and the fan speed can't be greater. If it deletes the function of the blocking flap, it seems a backwards step to me.

That's a problem with the heat control flap or its lever and cable. I have a bog standard second hand heater tied to my 200Tdi, and the air from the vents is hot enough on high or low flow to be uncomfortable to hold your fingers in for more than a few seconds, without any additional heat source. You're quite right that increasing airflow will lower the temperature - mine is slightly cooler at high flow. But you need to ensure the blower air is forced through the matrix, not allowed to bypass around it, which is how the Defender box temperature control works. It's highly unlikely that the new matrix has a blockage, air or coolant side, so it must be that the air is flowing around rather than through it, or the coolant is being blocked (delaminated hoses or a rusty steel pipe along the head would do it). If the top of the matrix stays that hot after a couple of minutes of the fan being on, then it can't be a coolant flow restriction.

They look similar enough to be worth a try, but it needs to be s 300Tdi unit, not the earlier type. I suspect the TD5 type may work too, but it's a bit of a guess - it looks the same as the 300Tdi binnacle, but that could be misleading.