jwriyadh

Cold pressure testing: Disconnect one of the heater pipes, block one of the openings. Now bodge a tubeless tyre valve into the other opening. Pressurise from a pump or compressor or spare tyre to about 18 psi. Rad cap should release pressure to 15 psi. Watch the system for water leaking and check system pressure with a tyre pressure gauge. Simples. jw

For the 24 volt ignition system: Disconnect the 24 volt feed to the dropper/interference suppression box. Open the box, you will find a wire in and a wire out, connected to either end of a resistor, move one wire and connect to the other end of the resistor so that both wirres are under the same terminal. Close box. Job done, supply box with 12 volts. The above worked fine for twelve years, no hiccups and allowed me to retain the screened dizzy and plugs/leads. The screened items do afford a higher level of water protection. 24 volt starter, needs replacing with 12 volt version. If you really want to retain the 90 amp alternator the existing control system can be disconnected and replaced by a 12 volt external regulator. This can be easily hidden in one of the existing control boxes. jw

Streaky, read, learn and understand that write-up from Steve's site. However the only way you will get the job done to your satsfaction is to be stood next to the fitter as he does the job. Then you can verify that all the setup is correct. If you're not present you know as well as I do that all checks will be a figment of imagination. jw

Follow the EFi loom down from the ECU plug for 4-8 inches, you should find a blue two pin plug and socket taped into the loom. This is the tune resistor and will probably be white, a value of 3900 ohms, it needs replacing with a green tune resistor which has a value of 470 ohms. The green tune resistor instructs the ECU to ignore the lambda signals and run in the open loop mode. jw

The motor should be wired direct to the inverter. Use the inverter switches to start and stop. Now get a grownup to read the manual and explain how to drive it. All the start, stop and protection functions of the original motor starter switch are built into the inverter. The motor protection function may need adjustment, hence the need for a grownup. jw

If Outdoor Ed is wandering Lincolnshire looking for Newark then he needs all the help he can get. jw

The only ground anchor I have used is the PullPal, this worked fine in sand, just give it enough length of pull to allow it to burrow down far enough to reach compacted sand. The alternative is to carry one or two winch extension straps to allow placement well away from the soft sand area. Please dont use winches and ground anchors to build false confidence into people taking a single heavily laden vehicle into an area where common sense would dictate they should not be. jwriyadh

Find the "Tune resistor" , usually located about 6-8 inches down the loom from the ECU plug, taped into the loom. It's a blue two pin connector, disconnect the white resistor assembly and replace with a green one. If you don't want to buy the green tune resistor assembly then just cut the white assembly off and replace with a 470 ohm resistor. jw

From your description the alternator is destroyed. Since you don't seem to be familiar with the elctrical system your best option is to find a local auto electrician and get him to replace it. During the replacement he may find the original cause of the failure. Your fuel injection system will not work properly while the alternator is not charging. Check your engine performance after the alternator is fixed. jw

The working fuel pressure, 36psi, decays while the engine is not running. There will be minute leakages through the non-return valve in the fuel pump and through the fuel pressure regulator. The purpose of the fuel pump priming pulse at ignition switch-on is restore the fuel pressure prior to engine starting. This decay is noted in the LR hotwire system tests and limits are mentioned. Check the fuel pressure whilst running the engine and then note the pressure decay after switch-off. Fuel pump, fuel pressure regulator, dripping injectors or poor quality sections of fuel hose can cause rapid decay. If the vehicle is stood for long periods it is not uncommon for rapid pressure decay to occur in the fuel pump non-return valve, in my case this cured itself when the vehicle was used regularly. jw

For a Disco 1(none US market) the OBD socket will only allow access to the 10AS Alarm ECU. The socket, a 16 pin item, is at the bottom edge of the dash panel. The engine management system, called hotwire, uses a 14CUX ECU and is not OBD compliant. The socket is behind the panel on the outside of the RHS footwell. Diagnostic access can be achieved by units such as Rovacom or Autologic. There may be other economic systems that claim compatibility but these two do work. Rovacom will also access the 10AS Alarm ECU. jw

My Disco 1 purchased in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia required changes to speedo (from kph to mph), headlights ( dip left instead of dip right) and fitment of catalysts. None of them great problems. However, the DVLA require a Certificate of Conformity in order to register the vehicle, Land Rover will not supply a certificate since the vehicle was not supplied within the European Market. They do not require that certificate for a vehicle over ten years old, that happened today Check with Land Rover on the availability of the certificate for the future, alternatives are over ten years old or SVA. jw

Start with good recovery points, then start improving your driving technique. You will find that with plenty of practise that the Discovery needs very little in the way of modifications or upgrades. The less you have to add the less weight you carry and as Streaky says above vehicle weight is important. jw

There is plenty of space to relocate the battery to a point in front of the passenger side of the bulkhead. I think there is often a toolbox or similar there. I made up a small plate to seat the battery on, removed a small slice from the wing top and it fitted fine. The battery was a maintenance free type similar in size to an 069 and had 800 CCA, more than sufficient for a diseasel. jw

Nige, I don't see any reference to setting the steering box to the middle of travel, and I do see reference to re-setting the steering wheel. I usually centre the steering by counting turns for lock to lock then moving half the number of turns from one lock. If the steering wheel is not correct then check the steering joints and if correct then refit the steering wheel for straightahead. Then put the string around all four wheels and tie off. Then adjust N/S wheel to correct toe-in/out by altering the drag link. Now adjust O/S wheel by altering the track bar. jw

I'm watching. So now your heads have matching casting numbers and measure identical heights? Now work on the fuel pressure, you want 36 psi, idling, with the vacuum pipe removed from the regulator. It will reduce to about 31-32 when you replace the vacuum pipe. You have checked the calibration of the fuel pressure gauge haven't you? Now stick an extension hose on the pressure gauge and drive a little. Floor it and the pressure should at the 36 level, over-run and light cruise it should be 31 ish. Be careful!!! Now get some logging in. Nige, FF, his MS is sat in my bits box, ready built. It would have been installed 18 months ago but I got my foot crushed a bit so that arrangement went tits up. It was apparent that something was amiss on his motor so slowly that has been worked on bit by bit. TomG, my 3.9 hotwire was expected to achieve 0.3% CO when it went for MOT, but that is with cats, lambda and a different map. By tweaking the fuel pressure we achieved 0.5%, no cats or lambda. The idea was to just get it through MOT and then install MS, that has been messed up by DVLA who now want an SVA. Let's not go there! Streaky's fuel consumption is figured in kliks to a tankful, as you do when petrol is peanuts. Under the similar conditions my Disco would do a comfortable 400 kliks to the tankful, Streaky was getting 270. That with severe cokeing of the combustion chambers indicated something was wrong. I agree with Nige, I still don't think we have found the answer yet. jw

Heyup, Fuel pressure regulation and TPS signal want watching closely. Fuel pressure by SAFE gauge in cab while driving and TPS by using USR1 and 2 of 2J1 with a laptop. If you have one fit an in-cab vacuum gauge just to see what the manifold vacuum reaches. AFM air signal needs logging as well. E-mail with comments sent. johnw

Agree with the Scorpion A/Ts, superb for the Disco. Have a look round for Dunlop RV Major. Used them in 31x10.5 on 15x8 rims for the Series, did a great job. That size would probably screw up the gearing on a Disco, but they may be available in taller sizes. Failing that go for it on a set of proper Dunlop sand tyres in 900x16, bodywork will require re-working here and there, they are the dogs danglies. As long as it don't rain a lot where you are. jw

Fruit_uk, those Dakar jacks are air/gas operated from a hi-pressure bottle in the cab. They will cost a good wedge. Think carefully about the weight comparison between those Dakar vehicles and a normal vehicle, as the weight goes up so does the diameter of the rams. Thought about trying something similar on my Ltwt but decided it would be difficult to lose the required length (even with cart springs let alone coils) without ripping too much of the bodywork around. Later experiences showed that with a good rim to tyrewidth ratio the problems were always overcome by deflating to 4 psi and driving out. Tyre deflation valves set to very low pressure and on-board air made the process quick and easy. jw

Don't use flip-top jerry cans, they are too likely to leak eventually. When they do it's too late whether they are inside or outside. Look for the screw top models with the spout fitted inside, much safer. If you are travelling the desert then COG can make a big difference to your route and sometimes even whether you can move or not. When travelling to the Empty Quarter I always removed the back seat, stuck a second spare wheel behind the drivers seat and strapped 4 screwtop jerries on their sides, spouts up, between the wheel arches. The roof rack was saved for lighter, bulky parts of the load. Being picky with how I loaded the Disco made a termendous difference to the severity of the terrain I could tackle. The Disco 1 V8 had a 100 amp alternator as standard, there was a 120 amp version available as part of the "Gulf Campaign" during 97/98 to upgrade the cooling and A/C performance on hotter climates. jw

Hi Roger, whilst I can understand somebody wanting to stay RV8 based but as soon as he gets to bigger capacities then he is just buying problems. The only justification I can think of is to retain the standard engine management system (uprated) to tie in with the rest of the P38. Even if he does go that way the rest of the drivetrain is going to be under severe strain. It would be a never-ending project of uprate and strengthen. As suggested above an LSx would be a better choice in terms of reliability and longevity. Additionally this would also provide a simpler path to installing an uprated drivetrain which will be sorely needed. Two last reasons for that choice, firstly, is a that a carefully selected engine/drivetrain from Al Hai'ír would change a long moneypit project into a fairly rapid install and drive away, and secondly, no dependency on remote support or spares. jw

Sorry Bowie but you're going to cause someone to junk a usable battery. A lead acid cell has a normal voltage of 2.1volts. For 6 cells that makes 12.6 volts. After you have charged your next battery just flash a headlight bulb across the terminals to settle the charge and you will find 12.6 volts, or you need to re-calibrate your voltmeter. jw

Heyup lad, The tune resistor is in the wiring loom just down from the ECU plug, look for a blue two pin connector(sometimes taped into the loom). The colours mentioned are a simple way of differentiating the five different values without using an ohmmeter, ie yellow is 910 ohm, green is 470 ohm, etc. Your original standard 3.9 system uses a yellow tune resistor. This tells the ECU NOT to use any lambda sensor signals and that you don't have cats. If you use this standard ECU then check the resistor is yellow. If you use your modified ECU then you need to change the tune resistor to a green one. You will be lucky to find one where you are so get a spare yellow one, cut out the resistor and solder a 470 ohm resistor back in. This value also instructs the ECU to ignore lambda sensors and that you don't have cats. Although both the above instruct the ECU about cats and lambda sensors the different values also instruct the ECU about which of the five fuel maps to use. ie changing from yellow to green moves you to a different map. In your case the move to the green map is because this is the map Mark Adams has modified. You cannot run your ECU on one lambda sensor, this would cause massive problems. I suspect the sensor you refer to is the WB one from TechEdge, this does not count because no signals are connected to the ECU. Roger, that is just cruel........but true. jw

Bogmonster, we used breadcrumb trails for a similar purpose in Saudi. The topography was a waste of time, so breadcrumbs indicate the path we drove to avoid impossible obstacles and when saved would indicate a drivable route on future visits. I have just checked an old file and relived a trip to the Empty Quarter passing through "Streakies Arrow Head Souk" on the 15 February. What year I haven't worked out yet, messed up the filing system somewhere. The saved trail was/is quite accurate, one in particular just southwest of Riyadh taking a track round a cliff-face, this I actually drove at night with headlights out, just keeping the cursor on the breadcrumb trail. It was good enough to get me home in one piece. The GPS was Garmin 162 which came with a simple "World Map", just major roads and details, the software was MapSource.This was run on a laptop wedged on the passenger seat. I acquired a large number of waypoints and breadcrumb trails over the years. This setup was very useful in later years when work prevented me from leaving on trips with the rest of the group, I would agree an area or campsite then set off later after work. It was quite amusing to turn up at the campsite in the dark. Got me a few rollockings from various "desert gurus" as well. jw

Heyup lad, Get some numbers for steady state conditions, ie just cruising at 50, 70, 90 kph etc. Average the results for each speed and now you can get an idea of what is happening in the chamber. It would be easier to use a laptop to log the results. As Fridge says above only Mark Adams will know if your chipped ECU will respond to lambda sensors. It should do, it is unlikely he would disable that function. The problem arises in that to enable closed loop operation you will be switching to a different map, he may not have modified a closed loop map. You run an open loop system with a yellow tune resistor,if you change tune resistor to enable closed loop operation then you will probably end up with a non-modified map, hence his question about cats etc when you ordered the chip. Continue to try to contact Mark to confirm this. In the meantime you could use a standard ECU, change the tune resistor to white, install Land Rover lambda sensors and check out what AFR results that provides. It's getting chilly here, might soon need a holiday, if only work didn't get in the way. jw