Paddy_SP

I originally posted this over on the Discovery forum but as I didn't get very far over there, I wondered if any other LT230 users would be able to help: The gearstick on my 300 Tdi D1 has just started turning on its own axis - swivelling, in other words, whenever I change gear. The gears themselves change nicely, but the stick seems to have a mind of its own, and half the time it bashes up against the sides of the tunnel due to the misalignment. I know how to get into the top of the mechanism, but can't visualise what's causing it. Has anyone here any ideas so that I can prep everything beforehand to minimise the amount of vehicle downtime? I should add that it is not the joint halfway up the stick which is spinning - the whole affair, dog-leg and all, is turning. As ever, any help would be most appreciated!

Thanks - I haven't had an upper gaiter on the stick for years, so I can see that the problem is below the lower one. I suspect that you might be right about there being a broken guide pin - if I didn't have a bleddy Healey Sprite (my wife's) in bits on top of my spare LT230, I'd have been able to take a close look at that!

Has no-one here come across this before? Should I re-post it in the International section?

Further to the above - I forgot to add that it is not the joint halfway up the stick which is spinning - the whole affair, dog-leg and all, is turning.

The gearstick on my 300 Tdi D1 has just started turning on its own axis - swivelling, in other words, whenever I change gear. The gears themselves change nicely, but the stick seems to have a mind of its own, and half the time it bashes up against the sides of the tunnel due to the misalignment. I know how to get into the top of the mechanism, but can't visualise what's causing it. Has anyone here any ideas so that I can prep everything beforehand to minimise the amount of vehicle downtime? As ever, any help would be most appreciated!

Thanks for your thoughts and especially the contacts in Plymouth! I know it's not the fan motor though as I tried powering it separately, and it works well.

Thank you - I've been reading stuff on that excellent site ever since I bought my heater! Nothing there ties in with my specific faults though, so today's task is to go through and forensically check the wiring and rheostat. If they all prove to be working properly, then it looks as though the ECU is, indeed, the culprit.

As I said above, the fan motor works well - I agree that the ECU may not have enjoyed the experience though!

Thank you - I'll PM him and see if he can help!

So far, I've had some bloke start listing off ways to prevent my burner from producing white smoke. I'd be delighted if it would simply start, so I think he must have read someone else's thread and answered mine. Or he's simply nuts!

Ah - that's brilliant - many thanks - I'd not seen that site before!

Many thanks for your input - I agree it's looking that way, however, if it fired up on the previous owner's workbench, I'd have thought it unlikely that the ECU went wrong simply while being stored. I can see it going into lockout if he tried to start it too many times with the fan jammed, but - as far as I know, I've reset that. If no-one else has any suggestions, I guess I'll have to find another ECU somewhere!

I should have added that I checked the fan motor with a low voltage supply, and it spun nicely. According to the official manual, this is the start up sequence: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- On start up the indicator light illuminates and the following sequences take place: • Control unit does a systems check (glow plug, flame sensor, temperature sensor, safety thermal sensor). • Blower starts slowly and begins to accelerate. • Glow plug is energized and starts preheating the combustion chamber. • After a short delay (approximately 15 seconds) the fuel pump delivers fuel. • Ignition will take place as the fuel/air mixture contact the glow plug. • Blower speed and fuel delivery are slowly increased. • Once flame is established the glow plug will switch off. • Heater will begin heating. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- It must have got past the systems check as the glow plug is getting hot, however, the blower fan is not turning, so something is clearly wrong. What this is though, I've yet to work out...

I recently bought a D1LCc Eberspacher diesel heater off the big auction site - it was described as 'working a few months ago on the bench, but when I just tried it, it wouldn't start'. The first thing I did was identify the wiring connections and make sure everything was as it should be. I tried a trial run, but I got no response at all from it, so I stripped it and did all the obvious stuff; despite its age it was very clean inside and clearly hasn't run that many hours. The ECU was also clean inside - no corrosion or other horrors. I've checked the glowplug and screen as well as both sensors (all giving sensible values), checked the internal holes, replaced all the gaskets, set the clearance between the rotor and case to 13 thou, cleaned and checked the fuel pump (it clicks when 12v is applied) and primed it with white diesel. The fan rotor had clearly been fouling the casing as there was melted plastic on it - I cleaned all this off and made sure nothing was touching when it reassembled it; I can now spin the fan freely with my fingers through the inlet port. I made sure the voltage was high enough (13.2 volts on the ECU power leads) - it was fed off a car battery with jump leads attached off the Disco, and the motor was running. There are no fuses (only for a temp test) and no extra switches in the way. There are Lucar connectors on the harness, but they all appear to be intact and working. They will be consigned to history as soon as I've got this damned thing working, however, as I can't stand them. This model has a rotary rheostat, but no thermostat controller. When I turn it on, I get a green LED. It's currently sitting on a beer crate with the fuel pump at the correct angle and height, etc. There's nothing connected to any of the inlets/outlets, so I have full access to all points of relevance. I've done the lockout reset (pins 4 to 6 shorted for 5 seconds). So - I turned it on, and although the glowplug gets hot (checked with a thermal imager), nothing else happens. The fuel pump doesn't click, the fan doesn't move, and there's no sign of life from the burner. I've read countless posts online as well as every manual I can find, but can't think of anything else. I don't want to start replacing bits for the sake of it, but will do so if I can see that any of them are faulty. I would therefore really appreciate any constructive guidance!

Well - I found some stainless of a suitable thickness (2 mm) and hacked it about until I had two replacement supports. I think they look a little healthier than the original!

I'm much happier now - thanks to your help I now know what two previously unidentified bits of rusty metal are, and if all goes to plan will get my doors assembled at last. They were lying at one end of the bench where I've laid out all the door parts waiting for an until now unknown use. Despite the fact that they're the victims of protracted corrosion, there's enough left to get all the necessary dimensions, so it looks as though later this afternoon I'll be spending some time with the guillotine and folder!

Brilliant - thank you so much - at least I now know what to go trawling for in all the discarded bits boxes to get my template!

Ah - thank you - I wondered what that was - I'll have to dig some stainless out and make one!

So - having referred to your photos, I get most of it, but what is meant to locate the bottom sealing piece (the bit circled in red in the photo), that is, what stops it just dropping down inside the door? Whereas the originals seem to have been constructed from one length with vee cuts at the corners, the kit I bought from SP Panels is simply made up of four separate lengths. As there are absolutely no instructions though, I'm left scratching my head! There's a projection that presumably locates it at one end, but nothing at all at the other, so unless I bond it to the glass, there's nothing to hold it in place.

Ooh - just seen this - many thanks indeed!

Thank you, Gentlemen - the bit that's most confusing me is that there's a screw hole at the top (it's hidden inside the channel, so is far from obvious), but it's stepped back from the door frame, so one has to assume that something goes in between the two (the parts list didn't help there!). Without knowing what that something is, I can't get an exact vertical location, and so daren't bond it in place until I know...

Surely somebody on here must know how this part is fixed in place?

That looks superb - please don't let yourself get discouraged!

Neat idea! :)

Having got to the matter of rebuilding the rear side doors, I was seriously unimpressed to discover that the vertical divider bars (the bits that separate the two pieces of glass) were FUBARed. I did know it when I removed them, but as they've been hiding in a pile for more years than I care to remember I'd completely forgotten. I was even more unimpressed when I found out how much new ones were (£94 the pair). I would have made some new ones, but after examining the complicated extrusion they're made from, I decided that life was too short... Anyway - I've got them loosely in place, but without having an intact door to refer to, I thought it'd make sense to ask here just how they should be fixed in place. Is it with a screw at the top and a bolt at the bottom?