thebiglad

If it's a std TDi 200 setup it's a viscous fan, not an electric fan.

I take the fan off all my Discos imediately after purchase, just like new oils, new filters, De-EGR - it's just part of the std initial service and checkover package. They always stay in the boot however, just in case I'm ever caught in slow-moving traffic for extended periods. Takes about 30secs to put it back on. Cheers Dave

Hi PaulN, I'll answer your question car by car if I may. Disco TDi 200 '93 manual - had the fan off for 3yrs, winter and summer, solo and towing - NEVER any temperature problems, NOW SOLD; Disco TDi 300 auto - fan off for 1 yr, winter and summer, throughout the Morocco trip up to 38°c, solo and towing - NEVER any temp problems Disco TDi 300 manual - recently purchased, immediately removed fan, achieves normal temps quicker with less noise - NO temp problems. I believe in doing this as long as you take the responsibilty of keeping a very regular eye on the header tank coolant levels. Never had any problems, but I check every two or three days - why wouldn't you it takes 20 secs?? Cheers Dave

Also, if using a larger breaker bar be careful not to snap the nuts off - don't ask me how I know They are VERY expensive if you buy LR ones (it was early days in my Disco apprenticeship) Cheers Dave

My wife's 'new' Tdi300 was slow to warm up heater & engine-wise, had a seized viscous fan (taken off imediately the piece of crâp!!) so I put in a new thermostat costing £3.50+vat. The difference is "night & day" !!! Now the heater starts putting out warmed air within a couple of mins and the engine is warmed up within 2-3 mls. Makes all the difference in this cold weather. Took 5-10 mins and no intelligence to do Cheers all, Merry Christmas & a very Happy, Healthy and Safe New Year Dave

My purpose in starting this thread was just to warn others, before they suffer the same misfortune as ourselves. Fortunately the damage was only minor. I'll be sticking to AT²'s from now on.

Thanks for that. LM In all the times I've had problems with these tyres there's be no snow or ice and the temps have been higher than 5°c. The question in my mind is "How do Continental define a summer tyre?" From 21st Juin to Sept 20th?? Do you then go to an autumn tyre? I'm not expecting to get anything from my enquiry with Continental, I just want to get these pieces of doggy-doo off my car asap. Cheers all, happy holidays Dave

I would like to add my two-penneth of thanks as well. The quality of responses has been superb and helped me loads. The quality of the Tech Section is just brill - highly reccomended reading. So, thanks again, Merry Christmas and a happy and Safe New Year. Cheers Dave

Hi Landymann, these tyres in France are not marketed as summer only tyres, they are just allrounders. Also, we have General AT2's on the other 300 and they were designed by Continental in Germany apparently, however they stick to the road like the proverbial 'shît to a blanket' I am very impressed with the AT2's at this early stage. Cheers all, happy Crimble Dave

Hiya Boggy, today I can see the funny side of your comment - yesterday when we were pirouetting like on an ice rink into oncoming traffic, I suspect I couldn't

Well they seem very good on the wifes Disco, but it's early days yet ??!! Cheers and a Merry Christmas and a Happy and SAFE New Year to you Dave

I just thought I would relay experiences I've had on a new set of tyres on my Tdi300auto Disco. Old ones were worn out so I searched the market and came across a bargain deal of 4 new tyres for 270 euros. The make was Continental and they were road-biased "Contact 4x4 m&s". Ok so new tyres always makes your car feel nice, but one day in Limoges I had to brake sharply (not paying enough attention :oops: ) and she locked up and slid, so I was into the old cadence braking like a man possessed and all was resolved without further drama. The road was slightly humid after a dry spell so I assumed it was muck and shîte on the roads, not yet washed away. Got to Guéret, going round a roundabout and lost the back end !!!! Didn't like this at all. When I got home I told the wife and she said get some more tyres!! I said no, it'll be fine. In the mean time I bought her another Disco and fitted it out with General AT2's - very confidence-inspiring. So, we went out in mine yesterday gently ambling along some country roads, through a series of bends, when the car starts doing a walzing Mathilda, first the backend slides to the right, steer into it and she slides violently to the left and we are heading for the edge of a ravine about 50mtrs deep !!! :shock: Managed to brake to stop us going over the edge. Damage? just a little bit of scrape (most of it will polish out??) down one side and nothing else - fortunately. Got home, straight on the phone to Paddocks - "4 General AT2's please - quick as you like !!!) You can only speak as you find, but I've NEVER lost traction on-road before with any of my Landys, so I can only put it down to these tyres. You have been warned :shock: Cheers and a Merry Christmas to all our readers Dave

Right, I just change the glowplugs on my TDI300 auto EDC and...............................................and blôôdy nothing, no difference at all !!!!!!

Thanks very much for that, I'll have a look tommorrow morning, we're off out now to the Notaires to sign for some more land !!! More money NOT being spent on Landys - boohoo

Hi there K, what I do when I buy another car and want to ensure long life for the engine is to do an oil change putting in some supermarket oil 10w-40, run it for about 100 miles then do an oil and filter change. The idea is that the cheap oil will wash out the inside of the engine and then you replace the cheap oil with good stuff, semi synth. Incidently, whenever you do oil changes, do make sure that you get the engine hot and you leave the old oil a long time to empty out thoroughly. I usually undo the sump plug leave the oil to empty out, then start something else - changing the air and fuel filters, draining the oil out of the axles, having a cup of coffee!! Anything that allows the engine oil perhaps an hour to fully discharge the old oil - if you do this the new oil stays cleaner for MUCH longer !! Good luck Dave

Hi Dave, I hope you don't mind but I'm after a bit of info before I go and have a look on my motor as the kick-down needs adjusting on it. I can't picture where this adjustment/cable is? I'm imagining looking into the engine bay, seeing the brake servo and master cylinder - so where is it in relation to them please, and what does it look like. I know this must sound really lame but the weather is really cold here at the mo' so I want to be in and out as quick as poss, if you understand me. Cheers & Merry Christmas Dave

Hi Dave, just a quick thought, you do know that the gear change points are dependant on the throttle position ie light throttle they change earlier, heavy throttle and they change later?? Cheers Dave

Hi there, I run my Tdi300 auto on 5w-30 fully synth during the winter and it makes a big difference on early morning starts, much quicker turning over. Get it from Carrefour 23 euros for 5 ltrs. Cheers Dave

I was under the impression that all petrolengined cars produced after a certain date, had to have cats, no question about it. I guess the question is - what's that date?? Sorry don't know for sure but I think it was 1998 ish????

Has your brother had 4x4's before?? The weight (over 2tons) and the compromise(offroad/onroad) tyres often used on them make for significantly longer stopping distances, by comparison to a std family car. Cheers Dave

Sounds to me like the abs is activating on a wet road, like it's supposed to. When the abs works, you will feel a pulsing through the brake pedal - perfectly normal if on low-grip surface. However if your brothers concern is about the speed with which the car is slowing down (rather than the pulsing) then other areas need to be checked such as: tyre condition, tyre pressures etc

Hi all, after ongoing trouble with the reversing lights (RL) on my wife's Tdi I've decided to sort them out, once & for all. The story so far: The lights stopped worked and I found that the RL switch was finished, so I ordered and installed a new switch. All was well for a while then they ceased to function - adjusted the switch and all was good - for a while. Now they are no longer working and I've had enough of this silly little but irritating fault. So my plan is to replace the LR switch with a manual illuminated one and install it on the elec windows control panel. Anyone got any ideas where I might get such a thing? Ideally something of a rocker switch style. Once the existing LR gearbox switch has been replaced with the above, I then plan to modify the RL's at the back, a little. I reckon that if I take out one of the RL bulbs and use it's elec feed I can then run a rear gutter-mounted worklight to improve rearward vision. Any comments on this?? Cheers in advance Dave

We run both our Tdi Discos without viscous fans and they never overheat. Even in the middle of summer, towing !! They do however warm up quicker in winter, use slightly less fuel and run quieter. The choice of course, is yours. Cheers Dave

Thanks very much Paul - now, where next??????

I did the floor on my wife's Tdi 200 and it was way less than £500. The floor and two new crossmembers came to about 100+vat, plus paint and ancills. Cheers Dave