smallfry

Yes those, and the same on the cylinder to the left to a lesser extent. Another thought I had, was that although the composite gaskets are supposed to seal the waterways better, the fact that they must "give" a little when the head is tightened down might allow the head itself to be distorted slightly, and also allow the block face around the bolt holes to be pulled up. This never used to be a problem on the 3.5 engines that had steel shim gaskets. Although the accepted wisdom with the early 14 bolt heads was that the extra row of bolts "tipped" the head, and allowed combustion products into the crankcase, which allegedly degraded the oil and hastened camshaft wear . I am not convinced of this personally, as cam wear problems is STILL the Achilles heel of these engines, despite the deletion of the third row of bolts and the use of composite gaskets. It is my opinion that the steel shim gaskets are better, as they would not allow this distortion to a similar degree. If I were ever to build a large bore Rover V8 for myself (unlikely as I hate them now) I would use steel gaskets as fitted to the early 3.9s. I still have two pairs that I am holding on to "just in case"

Looking at the first picture, at the edge of the liners adjacent to the head bolt holes, you can see marking that is the classic sign of liner leaks. When the engine is stopped, the cooling system is still pressurised, forcing a small amount of water vapour into the cylinder, which will then condense as the engine cools, and sits there until the engine is started again, which is why rust can form. Its fairly obvious that it is the strain of the head bolts that distort the block that causes this, Likely because the bigger bores have weakened the block casting in this area. Would doing up the head bolts less tight have helped ? Who knows. Lots of people have used studs and even more torque to tighten the heads down, but I cant help wondering if this only makes it worse. Best solution would be to fit a 3.5

MK 1 or MK2 ?

Probably keeps them afloat !

I suspect this is probably true. A friend uses one in his van (it is tracked), so his employers cannot see that he has gone "off piste"

Would be nice to get a breakdown of the figures. I would assume that the vast majority of these will be high end more modern models, stolen to order and/or export. Would be nice to see how my scrappy old Defender figures in the scheme of things, now that values seem to be falling.

I know nowt about electronics, I can't understand it, so just pointing out stuff I have heard or read ! Mostly via the internet, so it MUST be true.

You will never find the airflow to be on par with a modern car though, so don't expect too much !

What size engine ? Assume its 3.5 ?

I did all this stuff (uprated but not VNT turbo) to a 200Tdi 90 I had back in the early nineties. I always found it underwhelming. Are you sure you are not expecting too much from it ? The injection pump will need tuning too, not just random fiddling. As Hurbie rightly says, most people ignore the pump, as it gets expensive ! How do you KNOW that the CSW with the trailer had a Tdi in it ? Might have had a BMW M57 conversion, or even a big petrol engine, in which case you have no hope of keeping up with it !

Don't these things have some sort of transformer inside, similar to the wall outlet ones used in the home ? Apart from the parasitic drain, there is a (small) fire risk if they do. Also, will permanent connection reduce the phone battery capacity, like it does with laptops, limiting the time the tracker will work if disconnected ? Would it be better to have a plain socket/adaptor, with a resistor in line to reduce to a suitable voltage, which will have no drain, other than the phone itself ?

A good customer of mine back in the Eighties had a Ferrari 308 with this "character". One day he said to me to take it up the road and try it. Horrid to drive. I was glad to be going home in the V8 series I had at the time !

I believe the pre formed bends are cast rather than bent, as the radius is tighter than could be achieved with a die type bender. Remember you are bolting this bar to relatively flimsy bodywork.

Could you not have the V5/s in your name and the address as one of the kids, relos, friend ? Does the insurance co. have to know you are overseas ? After all, its not like you are driving them.

You could indeed ! Lord Flashheart comes to mind.............

Layup cover requires the vehicles to be kept in a locked garage. On a drive or private land is NOT acceptable (just my own experience) I dont see that being an expat would be a problem, but try RH Specialist Insurance, I have always found them very helpful, reasonable price, and most importantly very helpful if the time comes to make a claim.

Wouldn't it be cheaper and more sensible just to stuff a pair of rolled up socks in the front of your underpants ?

I wonder if the recent event at Wimbledon will hasten their decision to distance themselves from the Land Rover marque ?

Eight tons ? Really ? On those tiddly little tyres, and the breakover angle. I wouldn't even want to take that over a speedbump.

A well kept secret. Congratulations to them both !

Screwfix is owned by Kingfisher Group, who also own B&Q, so a lot of their hardware stuff is the same, but Screwfix being a bit cheaper. Yes never use stainless on anything critical, and as said, it causes even worse galvanic corrosion. The only stainless stuff I ever use on a vehicle is self tapping screws. Falcon workshop supplies also do good run of the mill stuff. Generally cheaper than other sources too.

I still think the RRC is the best looking. Three spoke wheels ? Come on. It needs a modern take on the original rostyles. But how on earth can this possibly keep the original registration number as claimed. Points just don't stack up, even if they do have an original "unmodified" chassis. If it can, why on earth am I worrying?

Not necessary. Just hope you are sorted. Could have done it myself as we have a 7.5 tonne transporter here, but just like having a Land Rover, it is never working when you really need it. Broken Chassis ! Keep us posted though. On the bright side, a holiday with a load of hassle is usually the most memorable, looking back.

Front a bit more difficult, as apparently there are a couple of choices. Ben has moved things for me and I can thoroughly recommend him. I will always use him in the future when I need something moved. Good luck!

Hello Herb Glad to hear you are having a great time here !!! Is it a front or rear bearing ? If its rear, that can be done at the roadside ! What happens after you get to Dover ? I guess you can be recovered once in France ? I know of someone who might be able to help. Try Ben, on 07718 986820 he does vehicle transport and is not expensive. He can only do Tuesday onwards though, if thats any good to you ?