pat_pending

I've done this to my 110 ex TD. Fitted a 200 tdi Defender lump that sits where the old engine did, an M&D conversion plate and a modified V8 auto box. The trans' sits 4" further back, this has meant modded props, trans tunnel, chassis X member and g/box mounts. As others have said, by far the easiest way to go is buy a complete 300tdi auto Disco. Then everything sits where it should. Buying all the bits individual is expensive and time consuming.

So long as the oil and filter aren't overdue for a change, try a new oil pressure sender. Cheap enough from a motor factors.

Well, I've always defined a fitter as just that, someone who fits things, tyres, exhausts brakes etc. A mechanic is someone who can repair/overhaul/make or modify. Please don't tar all garages or mechanics with the same brush. There maybe some really bad ones out there, but there are a lot of really good ones. I don't think you are any more likely to be ripped off by a garage than you are by any other tradesman, it's just that people will always visit garages more often than they will use plumbers, builders or decorators, so statistically you are bound to have more bad experiences. As for dealer labour rates, as the profit margin on a new cars is really quite small, how do you think they pay for... Heating, lighting,reception staff, admin, accounts, parts staff, car valeters, drivers, telephonists, cleaners, then there's insurance, business rates, rent, training, special tools, courtesy cars, parts in stock, cars in stock, building and equipment maintenance and host of other costs? If you think the motor trade is a licence to print money your very wrong. Mechanics are not that well paid and have to buy all their own hand tools, mine are worth over £30,000 at last valuation. Modern cars are changing all the time and we have to buy new tools and keep up to date with all the technology. Manufacturers are often very poor with backup and technical infomation, they don't pay us the same labour rate for warranty as we charge customers for retail work(a lot less) and are very strict in what they will and will not pay us for. We can waste days searching for obscure intermittent faults without a hope of ever getting the money back. Then there is all the time we waste on customers vehicles with non existent faults because they don't understand how things work or can't be bothered to read their handbook. Some of us try very hard to look after our customers in what can be a very demanding and stressful job. Sorry to go on but I get fed up of people knocking the trade because of a few bad experiences. Thanks, Pat. Time served, 30 years experience, workshop foreman, MOT tester... and all round good guy.

Never heard of them, but at that price i'd expect it's just a bare crack tested rebored block less pistons with maybe new core plugs and a thread inspection and a clean. Exchange rather than outright too. So, rebore at say £30 a bore= £120, £20 for a chemy clean, a few £s worth of core plugs and an hours labour.

I use brake cleaner, about £10 for 5 litres from your local motor factors, any residue just evaporates.

The engine will bolt straight in. You will need the TD down pipe and intermediate pipe, then it will mate to the rest of your existing system. You need the turbo to air cleaner hose and the adapter that takes the crankcase breather onto the air cleaner. You cant swop injection pumps as the TD one has a boost sensor fitted to provide extra fuel with boost pressure. If yours doesn't have an oil cooler in the rad you'll also need a TD radiator. If you don't want to buy an engine crane look in yellow pages under tool hire shops. It's worth fitting a new cam belt and possibly a clutch and dealing with any obvious oil leaks before the engine goes in.

Sounds like a made up excuse why your new vehicles gearbox is knackered already. "Bugger it's stuck in gear, how do we explain how that happened." I smell male bovine excrement.

Ah yes, they may well be aware that SOME vehicles require an SVA, but the onus is on YOU to have checked. They would make the assumption you had and it wasn't required. They have huge legal dept's that will fire off arguments like these for months on end. However right you feel you might be, it's no consolation while your truck sits rusting in a compound. Anyone who's had to wrangle with an insurance company knows what a bunch of a***holes they can be.

OK, let's play Devils advocate. I, as the insurance company would say...YOU should have been aware that your truck was required to have undergone an SVA test. Had it done so, and subsequently been issued with a Q plate, we MAY have assesed the insurance risk differently. In this case we MAY declare your policy void due to the non disclosure of a material fact that could affect our risk.

I think you may need to plough through the construction and use regulations with all it's amendments. Of course it is possible that DVLA/VOSA are applying the rules incorrectly. But if they are, you would have to be prepared to take them on in court to prove it. In the mean time flouting the rules and just ignoring them (whether they're right or wrong) can do the modified vehicle movement no good at all.

NFU every time. But... whoever you go with if it's not bog standard, take photos, list all modifications/extras, send two copies to the insurance company (not the brokers) by registered post. Enclose an SAE and ask them to sign and return one copy to say they have seen and understood what you've sent. Saves an awful lot of trouble if the worst happens.

It's been previously discussed, MOT and SVA are two completely separate issues. If the law requires your modified truck to undergo an SVA and it hasn't, you're breaking the law. At what rate they catch up with all the modified trucks remains to be seen, but they will. At that Point it's too late. MOT examiners are obliged to report seriously modified vehicles,(even if they pass them) though in practice most are unaware or dont bother. You wont know yours has been reported until you get a letter requesting a vehicle examination. If you happen to have built a hybrid and been running it (illegally) as tax exempt, it's always possible they may try to do you for the back tax you should have paid if you'd registered it properly when you built it.

Originally they where only fitted to the rear of 110 csw's together with the Boge self leveller and softer rear springs. So they wouldn't be on pick ups, or hard tops or if HD non levelled suspension had been specified on a csw. Then it all gets a bit confusing with the advent of the 300 tdi, and then td5, when they could also be found on the front and rear of 90s 110s and 130s as standard, but SOME suspension options still did not have them. They were also optional/standard fit on later RRCs and then Discos. So the brackets being on the chassis is no indication of whether they should be there or not, it's what SPRINGS are fitted that decide. If a vehicle is fitted with springs designed to be used in conjunction with anti roll bars then removal of the bars IS an MOT fail. So how does an MOT examiner know if anti roll bars should be fitted or not ?.....He probably wont have a clue (though he might). If you fit OE springs designed to run without them, remove them. If you have aftermarket springs and the manufacturer states that they can be used without anti roll bars then it's OK to remove them. Otherwise don't or risk an MOT fail.

Did you try running a new earth from the battery to the bulkhead as a check ? If cleaning the earths has improved matters it looks like you're on the right lines.

Well you said the problem seemed to start after the starter was replaced, the earth lead attaches to one of the starter mounting bolts, it's difficult to see and is often forgoten when refitting, that's why i sugested it may be the cause. Be aware though that it may have been moved/replaced in the past. The important thing is that you have a good earths from the bulkhead/engine/chassis to battery SOMEWHERE. The engine to chassis earth often fails on Discoverys, though it still looks OK, leading to the engine earthing via the hand brake cable melting the nylon liner in the process.

Starter connections are as jim said above. The earth lead at the gear box earths the engine block/transmission straight back to the battery, but the body electrics require an earth path from the body via the chassis (where they bolt together) and then to the engine block, the chassis to engine block earth runs between the tag on the chassis that the n/s inner wing bolts to and the lower starter motor mounting bolt. Try running a lead from the battery earth post to a good clean point on the bulkhead and see if this cures the problem. This will confirm that you have a missing/poor earth somwhere between the two.

If you're getting 1 bar boost under load then the turbo/wastegate are working ok. Has this drop in performance happened suddenly or has it been a gradual drop off ? What is the performance like through the gears ? Is it getting to max revs ? Lots of things can cause this, have you checked the basics, when were the valve clearances last done, stretched timing belt, pump timing slightly out ? Does it smoke at idle or under load ?

Sounds like an earth fault. Make sure the earth lead between the starter mounting bolt and the chassis has been refitted and is clean and tight. Also check the earth point located on the drivers side of the upper bulkhead in the engine bay ( 4 or 5 wires with ring terminals screwed to the bulkhead).

I've used Sikaflex and a few countersunk pop rivets. The countersunk rivets aren't as strong as domed rivets on thin panels hence the added sikaflex. If you push some filler into the hole in the middle they look like factory spot welds after painting. By using both rivets and bonding you can line everything up first, drill holes for the rivets and then be certain that it's all in the right place when it goes back on with the bond, also it wont move while it sets and you have all the joints clamped up tight.

If the filter's not been off and the oil's still in the sump, it shouldn't need to be primed. If however you want/need to, the easiest way is to pop the filter off, unbolt the bottom of the pump and pack the gears with vaseline (NOT grease, cos it blocks the lifters, vaseline just dissolves) bolt back up and if it's a new filter make sure it's full of oil before you fit it. Fire up and you should have near instant oil pressure.

Take a look here, http://www.travall.com Click on the Land Rover section for pictures and fitting instructions.

Hi all, I've just signed up after lurking for ages. I'm a motor mechanic by trade, worked on most 4x4s, been workshop foreman at a Land Rover main stealer and currently doing the same at a Suzuki dealers. I'm into all things Land Rover, and I've been greenlaning for 25years. I sold my 88" hybrid last year, had a few series series motors, early RR and and an early 110 v8. At the moment I run a 3.5 Range Rover classic and I've nearly finished my 110TD that I've fitted a 200tdi (defender)lump and auto box to. Hope i can add to the good standard of technical advice and friendly banter. Cheers.