Snagger

If any of you guys could shove up some photos of the transmissions and their mountings, including yours, Chris, that'd be really helpful. Chris, I understand your last post to mean that your engine is in the standard Series position and the transmission extends further aft - is that right?

I'm trying to decide which must be the lower number - your IQ or your age. I think the more positive advice is pretty good. You never know what else is going on in someone else's life, and noise can be the final straw for them and not the underlaying cause for pent up anger. Some sort of dialogue usually works, like an invitation for a tea and a friendly chat, and then explaining what you're doing. It's persistent noise, or the perception that it's persistent, that winds people up. I have some noisy neighbours who have far too many loud garden parties. They restrict it to weekends and finish around midnight, but it is a source of irritation when they have so many and I have to be up at 3am for work. I don't have a choice over my shifts, either. Still, they would consider their behaviour reasonable, and I can see that they are avoiding noise when they expect others to be resting. Unfortunately, increasing numbers of people work overnight and at weekends, especially those in emergency services, transport, farming and retail. Most people have more stable, social hours and fail to consider that not everyone has that luxury. Ask your neigbour what times would fit his work/rest pattern.

The 19J TD tends to crack heads as well as pistons, but if it's not pressurising, causing excessive breathing and oil being forced out of the various plugs, gaskets and seals (look around the brake vacuum pump and the back right corner of the head gasket/block), then it's probably OK. Just be sure to service it regularly, especially the cooling system, to keep it that way.

The plug is more likely to come out without damage if done with the engine warm. Cleaning the threads with a cotton q-tip or similar and brake cleaning fluid, or better still using an aerosol of electrical cleaner from Maplins or similar to blow the threads clean with solvent, and cleaning the plug threads with the same, will allow you to use thread lock on the plug. That'll be the end of the problem.

Or even just a re-tap to take a thicker threaded plug. The mechanic sounds pretty inexperienced...

SO those rubbers sit on the mountings used by the Series transfer box rubbers?

I have suffered the same leak-off pipe failure as Gremlin. It seems to afflict my 300 Tdi frequently, but not the 200, even though the pipe is similar. It's the rubber hose hidden inside the black braiding which splits, initially leaking air in and if the leak gets bad enough, diesel out. Don't buy the whole pipe from LR - it costs a fortune. Just get a roll of 4mm fuel hose from Halfords and replace the hoses with the fittings still on the injectors.

You can try that screw. Just rotate it a little at a time, no more than 90 degrees, and make a note of its starting orientation and how much you have moved it ach time so that you can set it back to its current position if need be.

Your description of working on the adjusters sounds as if you may have the shoes on the wrong way around, so that one of the shoes is jammed on and the other adjuster spins without achieving anything. The pegs on the shoes are in different positions, so if the shoes are back to front, the adjusters malfunction in this way. Just an additional thing to look at, but hoses and MC adjustment (there should be a small amount of play on the pedal before it actuates the MC) sound most likely as culprits.

I used strips of 2mm self adhesive neoprene. It worked perfectly with no mess and should be easy to remove.

I should think that the viscous coupling would have a damping effect on the torque to the front axle, reducing shock or snatch, and that should have some reduction in engine produced wrap. The reasons I want to use the BW is the fact that it works so well on tarmac roads with slippery patches as it's permanently "locked" but has the slip to prevent wind up. Its comparative quietness is a secondary benefit. Thanks for the explanation on fitting and the photos. I'd like to keep the engine axis where it is if possible, as having the engine and transmission so low is what gives a Series vehicle such a low CoG compared to a coiler. It all depends on how deep the BW or LT230 is compared to the Series transfer box. There would be room to raise them, though, after modifying the cabin, to make sure they clear the chassis cross members - I'd rather leave the bell housing cross member in place, and the current prop angle suggests I would be able to do so with the later transmission. Good stuff, guys. How did you get on with the seats, Chris?

The BW has the forward/aft movement of the small stick to select high and low, but no lateral movement as there is no diff lock. I had no idea the Discovery II used a cable for the high/low selector - hand to know if it becomes a snag. I hadn't considered that the BW might reduce shock loads and hence axle wrap on the front axle. That'd be beneficial too. When you say you positioned the gear box 4" further forwards, did you put the rear output flange of the transfer box in the same place as the original transmission? That'd be handy as it'd keep the rear prop standard... How did you guys mount the transmission - did you fabricate custom mountings to attach to the Series transmission cross member, or did you drill and sleeve the chassis to mount directly to the chassis rails?

The CAV and Bosch filter housings have the same bolt pattern to secure them to the bulkhead. The problem is that their piping is different and the size of banjo bolts varies too. Ultimately, the Bosh filter housing would allow you to use standard plumbing under the bonnet as and when the existing pipes sprout leaks, but you will need to replace a lot of the pipe work to get it to connect up correctly - the CAV piping is a little more complex, so a Bosch retrofit isn't difficult. You'll just need to swap everything over from where the feed and return lines cross the bulkhead threshold, in essence.

The fault must be in the sender - you have proven the wiring is fine by disconnecting it from the sender and finding the bulb stays out. I don't think diesel is very conductive, but I'm pretty sure it does help reduce the resistance within the sender. Regardless, the warning light circuit is not behaving correctly, and would work the same way irrespective of the gauge used because that is on a separate, parallel circuit. I didn't bother with a warning light when I converted my 109 to diesel - I use the space in the dash for an alternator warning light as the instrument cluster has an oil temperature gauge as well as the two standard gauges (MoD style), so my original charge light was ousted. If you're determined to have the fuel warning light, I'd look into whether it should have another component in the circuit to step the voltage, like a resistor, transistor or capacitor. If not, then I'd suspect a worn out sender - it could be that a resistive coating on a winding or area of contacts in the sender has worn away, allowing a restricted current across when it should be isolated.

That's pretty smart - I like it. I don't have as much space as that under my bonnet, but because I mounted the Tdi rad and intercooler ahead of the front cross member and used an electric fan ( ), I do have plenty of room for the engine to move forwards. I have a Wright Off Road matting set, which I'd like to keep. If the tunnel has to be significantly altered, I'd probably look to fit a Defender one and maybe get a new floor mat from Drew rather than replace the whole kit, but if I had to do something custom, then ali sheet with noise proofing sheeting and a little carpet might do the job, concealed as much as possible by a centre tray over the tunnel, like the Mudstuff tray. As far as stick position goes, I already have a cranked stick on my s SIII box because the standard stick fouled the Mudstuff dash centre console with all my accessories - it made driving so much easier without that reach, so if the stick on the 5-speed ends up in a funny position, I'll have no compunction in taking to it with the vice, blow torch and scaffold tube like last time!

The roofs are fundamentally the same. The only difference is that a Staion Wagon roof will have Alpine Lights (the ovalised windows) and possibly have a Safari panel (second outer skin for shading and heat control) and four vents (like mini sunroofs) in the centre section. They are directly interchangeable, being a bolt-on, bolt-off affair with the same gutter and basic aluminium panels as the plain roof on a utility model. The side sections for a utility 109 would have been solid panelled from the factory, but many have been fitted with windows. If you can't find a good pair of 109 panels, then worry not - 110 panels bolt straight in too and are dimensionally identical. They differ slightly on the door seal flanges, but Defender door seals are a nice, simple upgrade anyway.

Thanks lads! I agree with you, Fridge - accurate measurements done by yourself are vital in the final planning stages. At the moment though I'm just trying to consider my options. Certainly the desire for a tougher transmission than the Series is there - the prospect of a single gear box for all the main gears rather than having a separate lever for a pseudo 5th, with the mild nuisance that creates slowing down for junctions, and the prospect of a much quieter set of gears (the SIII box and the overdrive make a bit of noise, especially on over-run with enough throttle to prevent engine braking, so they chatter a little with all the back lash). And I do fancy permanent 4wd. I think you're right, Fridge - as easy as the diff swap would be, it doesn't address the fundamental weaknesses of the existing transmission, while going with a later transmission and standard 3.54 diffs, which I already have and would thus cost nothing, should cost about the same in buying, even if it's a little more graft to fit. Moving the engine forward 3" shouldn't be too challenging, either. A pair of engine mounts and a little fiddling with some of the plumbing would be all that's needed. It'd create a bit of space between the bulkhead and engine, too - Marsland fitted my mountings and gear box cross member well aft of where they're supposed to be, so the engine is a bit tight and more airflow would be welcome around the back of the block and head. It'd allow a noise blanket or a second layer of Dynamat or Noise Killer sound proofing on the bulkhead, too. I don't think cross members will be a problem - the diff inclination of the front axle has my front prop close to horizontal with the vehicle parked. Now that I have sorted out the engine mount, a new bracket for the chassis would be simple enough. The only present concern is the proximity of the prop to the oil filter, which may have to be relocated with a remote kit. See - mods interfering with each other again, requiring tertiary mods to resolve conflicts! So, does any of the Series tunnel fit with the LT77, with the engine moved forward, or does the whole tunnel have to come out and bulkhead/seat base need trimming? I'd be very keen to see photos of how you two did it, given your Jedi-like abilities on modifying these buggers! This means I'll now be looking out for good deals on a 5-speed and a 1.22 transfer box to go with it (don't want to go for a 1.44 and overdrive again - I want to keep it as simple and robust as possible). Is there much difference in robustness between an LT77S and an R380? Obviously, the former will be easier and cheaper to source in short form. Likewise the transfer boxes - is there much benefit to the LT 230Q over the BW? I know the BW goes through tyres faster and the viscous unit is expensive if it seizes, but I do like how it behaves in my RR. Is the 230 a better alternative, or just a bit cheaper to live with? Sorry to keep asking similar questions over several threads. I like to research things thoroughly before embarking on mods to make sure I have the best solution and don't run into problems. Doesn't always work out as trouble free as I'd hoped, but I havene't had too many issues over all except this front diff position!

4" is the number I was told by my local specialist. I was just wary because 4" is also the length difference between a stock Series transmission and a short LT77 mated to a Series transfer box with the Ashcorft adapter. Anyone know how much lower or more offset the transfer box outpu shafts are on the later units than the Series'?

Shoot the cat!

Thanks Pat. I already have Defender axles on the 109, as well as the Tdi engine. I think the big problem will be transmission length - I don't want to be chopping cross members out of the galv chassis. I have a few inches spare ahead of the engine at the moment and a little space behind the transmission, but I don't know how much space would have to be retained to allow the units to be separated for maintenance, like replacing a torque converter. I'll be refitting the 109's head this weekend (gasket failed), but I would like to see your handiwork. I'll PM you when I can get down, and hopefully we can set something up. Thanks for your help.

It might be that someone tried playing with the fueling screw below the stop solenoid.

Anglian Fasteners are just down the road from me, and they are quite happy so sell me small quantities over the counter when I take down old used samples. They're much cheaper than the quote you were given. I imagine you'd have a similar business near you.

I would guess that the auto is about the same length as a short stick LT77 or standard R380. So, it would fit if you were willing to cut out all the cross members, including the one under the rad and move it forwards. I have the Stage 1/Defender body already, so that would be doable, but I don't want to chop up a galv chassis. I'd still like to look at your 109, Grem, when I come down there! An LT77S and BW might till be viable, and I could do with the inspiration and your lessons!

I'm still mulling over a few ideas for my 109's transmission to get the overall gearing up a little from standard SIII with overdrive, including upping the diffs, as it's just too noisy on long drives, but I'm worried about over-stressing the gear box. The 3.54 diffs broke the gear box and were too tall anyway, but 4.1s would be a very simple conversion compared to ripping out the whole transmission and modifying the chassis and cab to suit. So, the question is, has anyone run an Ashcroft High Ratio Transfer Case behind a much driven Tdi or V8 for some time, and how well did the box cope? I think this would have a slightly greater strain on the box than upping the diffs to 4.1, as long as the overdrive was only used in 4th, so I'd love to hear how well SIIIs with HRTCs have stood up in the long term. It looks like my hopes to fit a ZF auto are out - it's just too long. So, it comes down to a manual transmission. Given that, I'm wondering how worthwhile all the effort in fitting an LT77 and LT230 or BW unit is, if I can do something easier without breaking stuff. I still fancy the idea of an LT77S and BW, but it's a hell of a lot of work and cost, and would leave me with a few issues to sort inside the car. Diffs could be an easier solution, if the box will take it, but I'm worried after breaking the box a few months ago. I'm also becoming increasingly wary of complex mods, like swapping the whole transmission, because they all seem to have serious consequences, sometimes unseen, especially where mods interact with each other.

The hissing could come from a number of sources. I would suggest the most likely are the brake servo vacuum system or, more worryingly, a fault in the engine that is resulting in pressurisation of the coolant (head gasket failure or a crack or erosion of the head or block). Run the engine up to temperature and then let it cool completely. If the header tank is still pressurised when cold (remove the cap), then it's cylinder gasses getting into the coolant system. The idle speed is set by adjusting a stop bolt on the front end of the injection pump against which the throttle arm rests - get someone to move the pedal while you watch the pump, and you will see the throttle arm moving and thus see the idle stop bolt.