Jocklandjohn

Update! Checked all fuses, swapped around a few, still got problem. Swapped out relays, still got problem. Pulled headlight checked bulb, high beam filament is blown. Replaced bulb and happy days - it all works fine. Swapped out the other one and its all working normally. So I'm guessing that for the brief time the errant alternator had it voltage regulator go awol it must have been too much for the bulbs. So all working normally, and thanks for the guidance. I now know also that there's a dimdip black transformer lurking in the dash waiting to gremlin me! (Thanks Ralph!).

Ok thank you for the advice!

Its one big fancy double relay, but I presume its just a normal relay but twice!? So if I cant find a double job, two single ones will do the same I presume?

Hi Ralph - not sure! I dont recall removing anything like that when I fitted the loom. I take it thats this thing:

I did think of that, given that both had failed, but before dismantling I thought I'd ask. Its not entirely out of question as the recent alternator swap was because it's regulator was toast and it was chucking out stupid Volts so not inconceivable its fried the main beams. I shall replace bulbs and let you know!

As above. 110, 1989MY I switch lights on (switch to bottom on steering column) and I get Dipped Beam coming on. Pull big stalk (horn, indicators/lights etc) right up and I get a flash from auxiliary spotlights, dipped beam stays on, but no main beam flash as you'd expect. Push same big stalk down (which should put on main beam and aux spots together) and I get dipped beams going off completely and aux spots come on and stay on. In both cases of engaging main beam the blue main beam warning light on the dash illuminates. I renewed the stalk assembly an hour ago but the problem persists so its obvoiusly downstream of the steering column. All fuses are intact as far as I can see. The vehicle has the Landreiziger wiring loom, connected directly to alternator and its been fine for a couple of years now. It connects in place of the old lighting loom, but uses the old loom's wiring to trigger the relays to operate the lights via the new heavier duty wiring. So my thinking is its possibly an issue related to the relay? I've checked the big Landreiziger-supplied relay and it all seems to be connected appropriately and no dodgy/exposed wires. Anyone suggest any other possible culprits based on that specific lights on/off/dipped etc behaviour described?

Update - I concluded that what several of you and peaklander suggested (regulator goosed) was the issue. On removal the bearings felt a bit rough too so I decided to replace the whole alternator and then at my leisure renovate the removed one. I think this issue has been plaguing the charging system for some time but not so obvious that I really noticed. I had a period of non-charging which *seemed* to have been remedied by tightening the pulley bolt, but I suspect that may have been a red herring as the batteries appear to have been affected - presumably by the wandering voltage that was obviously too high for them. Presently doing battery testing and a recovery cycle to see what results. Thanks for the assistance (again!).

Ah ok. I've got: W Thin wire to tacho which I fitted. B+ Thick wire to battery PLUS a direct feed to a landreiziger headlight loom as per their fitting instructions. D+ Thin wire which will be the ignition warning.

Aye, just been in and had a look - all the wiring is in place as it should be, all connections tight and wires look to be intact. I pulled the alternator out anyway and it does look pretty grotty so it might be worth a replacement anyway. Sigh.

Correction: this might be a 65A alternator if the old box I found in the garage is what is fitted. Anyway tried running engine and metered whats going on - volts at battery with meter is high 14v's then up towards 15.8 to 16.5 with revving. Its a split charge system so checked and its same at both batteries. Readings confirmed on various monitors in the vehicle. Then as cack suggested I connected the meter to the alternator case and to a good earth - zero readings so assume thats ok. I also have a flying lead off the alternator rear I can meter off - tried that and and connected to a good earth and readings are same as at battery and varying with increasing revs to over 16v. So issue is with alternator it seems.

Thank you. The former I can understand. The latter is above my pay grade! Is the "remote voltage sensing wire" a thing I'd have had to add myself at some point, or is it a standard fitment? And is the implication from it having a bad contact that it either gives a dodgy reading (to a monitor like I have) or it sends a duff signal to the alternator to allow it to deliver over-voltage?

I've a couple of monitors on the 110, the IBS split charge system is one, which has a series voltage indicating LED's which show yellow (low v) green (ok/normal v) and red (too high v) and for a year or two the red light has flickered on and off at idle, but disappeared when running. I contacted IBS and they said the switch-over voltage might be being approached and the lamp just tickling the over-voltage threshold and all else being ok it was probably fine - I;d given them the indicated voltage readings from my meter to clearly show voltages at battery. However today as I drove down the road the red warning light stayed on, then the red warning for over-voltage on my solar controller went on saying battery 1 and 2 receiving over-voltage, and a separate battery monitor also gave an over-voltage error message. I could see it in real time as I quickly returned home rather than continue on my journey, and it was varying between 15v then up to 15.5v then 16v and finally 16.8v depending on RPM. One of the meter's error message indicated the voltage had gone just over 17v which is its max measuring range. I'm assuming this is likely an alternator issue? Is this a toasted alternator or a voltage regulator issue? DO I need a new alternator or a repair? Or should I be looking anywhere else? I keep all connections tight and clean, the earth straps are regularly cleaned and vaselined too*. *Which doesn't meant they're not culprits, as they've not been done very recently. PS alternator is normal 45A version.

Update on this - just discovered this is a HUGE and ongoing problem with Cooper tyres - just came across this lot, although its talking about the US market it would appear from the experiences offered by folks on here to my original post, that the issue may be more widespread, so if any of you are using them you'd best be aware of whats going on: https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-d&q='cooper+discoverer+sidwall+failure'

For anyone following this thread in future - unfortunately the pictures in my original post were externally hosted and disappeared when I changed service provider so here they are again so you can follow the fix described in text above.

Chimes with my experience and numerous folks who’ve commented here and on various forums UK and abroad. Pfft what a waste of money buying Cooper.

Funny how when you dig a wee bit you start hearing a lot of these stories....

Thread here - did you find this one? https://www.defendersource.com/threads/new-ashcroft-lt230-1-301-gear-set.154238/

Yikes thats a bit drastic! That was what I was afraid of, and what several other posters I've read described. I'm taking things very gingerly until they're replaced!

Thanks for that Taurion and Flash. Interesting to hear first-hand accounts of the same problem. It was very easy to find similar examples online for this brand and Cooper are not interested. I quoted them the various complaints I'd found, with screen grabsa, and they've said tough, out of warranty, you're on your own. Caveat emptor! Last Cooper tyre I'll ever buy.

Aye, many variables! Have to say their wet grip and snow performace was excellent plus how quiet they are. Shame they've fallen apart so 'quickly' is all I can say!

I'm resigned to new tyres (!) I was just curious after reading several other complaints whether there was a (known) issue and if anyone had experienced similar. I noticed the cracking on one tyre at the start of lockdown but hadn't realised all four had done the same. Never seen it on any tryres I've owned previously. Ah well...another item line on the list of Land Rover consumables....!

My expectation was for them to be as long lasting as the previous sets! Thats really the only yardstick I'd have from personal experience. Aye the MOT tester said they were ok for use currently, but he was a tad perplexed as he's the same lad who's tested it every year for 15 years or so and noted it as something he's not seen very often. Maybe with 10+ year old tyres but for 5+ he thought it a bit premature.

Bought a full set of Cooper STT's several years ago (I think it was late 2016 and so far have done around 28K miles on them. MOT tester drew my attention to sidewall cracking, which I'd noticed on the outer wall of one tyre, but which he showed me underneath was affecting all four tyres all around the sidewalls, not just in one or two places. I did a web search and found several complaints about this exact issue from various buyers. I contacted Cooper UK this week and they asked about the tyre age - dates on sides show a 43/13 and 44/13 so we determined it was week 43 & 44 of 2013. Coopers response was a stock one that: "sunlight, wear, your use, etc etc all variables can affect tyres" and whilst, "yes there's a warranty," it's a 6 year warranty, but it starts from when they were made NOT from when you buy and use them and as dealers are independent once they leave Coopers, Coopers have no control over storage conditions nor time stored. I've had this LR for over 25 years and put several sets of tyres on it and NEVER seen anything like this. I dont use chemicals or cleaners on them, they get minimal sunlight (Scotland!) and are correctly inflated for intended use. My spare, a Wildcat, is over 12 years old and looks immaculate and has zero cracking or perishing of any sort. If it was one tyre I'd be philosophical about it but for all four to go at once is bizarre and concerning, particularly when a quick web search turned up comments like: "After only 35,000 miles of pretty good driving, I had to replace my Cooper Discoverer A/Ts on short notice because the sidewalls had started to crack. When I had the truck in for service, the tech noticed the sidewalls cracking along the circumference of the tire (all the way around, on all 6 tires) in between the sidewall and the tread." and "I was just out rotating my tires and noticed that two of my four 285 Cooper STTs are cracking at the sidewall? This was on the inside of the two front tires. What gives? Should I be upset? The tires have about 3/4 tread left. Have not been out in the sun. Have not used any tire shine product that would effect the rubber. I am also suspicious that the two that are cracking were both made in the same week of 2008?" and "I just noticed today that quite a few places on my tires (Cooper Discoverer STT) are cracking/splitting in front of the tread lugs, mostly in the center lugs. They range fron about 1/4" to about 5/8", looks like the carcass is slowly seperating." and "Ugh. Cooper sidewalls cracking. I bought these Cooper Adventurer A/T after reading good things. 265/75r16 with aftermarket FN Wheels and a 3"/2" level. They've been on my truck for 8 months and maybe 10k miles. Mild off-roading. I mean like, putting around the farm at 5mph or treking across clay fields to dirt tracks. I keep them between 40-42psi. The cracking is minimal but it's there on three of four tires. I didn't notice it until rotating tires and detailing today. " Final response to me from Coopers is basically: out of warranty, could be anything, nothing to do with us, sorry. You can see the cracking in the pictures, also how much tread is left. Also pic from US commentator with same issue. Any of you had this problem? So - if any of you are considering buying Cooper STT's - maybe think twice about it. Personally I'll never buy their products ever again. This is my front tyre. This is my back tire. Tread rear Tread front

I had a noise like that, did my head in for ages as I tried to resolve it, new belts, and all sorts. Turns out the pulley was *just* loose enough to squeal under load but tight enough to not move when I tried turning it with the engine off. I removed and cleaned it all up rebolted it and did it up tightly again and it was all ok afterwards.

Yes, all the shocks compressed slowly under my weight, and extended again, but the Monroes required far less effort to compress and were fairly quick to extend. That was reflected in their performance on the vehicle too. (The vehicle weight is within the recommended loading so the only oddity is the Monroe shocks.) But yes, very happy to have it resolved!