Joseph

Oh and the ticking noise seems to go away as the car warms up and under acceleration. It seems worse in cooler weather...

After doing a bit of research, there has been a ticking noise coming from around the front of my car and i have noticed a residue around my head gasket area on the left side with occasional whitish smoke coming from the hood (i mistook for water vapor)- ill post a pic... Is this all related to a blown head gasket or just loose screws to hold the manifold onto the head? Thanks, Joe

Hi all - any tips for identifying the source of a leaking exhaust on a '97 Disco 4.0L V8? Should i be checking for physical holes or torn gaskets? Should i just start wiggling things to see what has play? Thanks, Joe

Yeah, thats what im worried about... but im going to byte the bullet and change it anyways, i suppose. Thanks for the advice, Joe

OK, but you dont think i severly risk breaking my transmission by doing an oil change now? I know its hard to say, but i though maybe Land Rover transmissions were tougher than normal and would be less likely to break with a change on extremly old oil... Thanks, Joe

Hi all, I'm looking for some advice on flushing my transmission. I have a 97 Disco 4.0L V8 and an automatic transmission. The problem is that since i bought the car, about 50,000 miles ago, the transmission fluid has not been changed. This is partially due to buying it as a young teenager for safety and also because i had almost no idea about car maintinance till about 1 year ago. I also dont know if it was ever changed before this. I have no reason to believe the tranny is going bad right now, but i would like to keep it going as long as possible, so if i dont try to change it, it will fail earlier than if i successfully change it. The fluid in there does not really look all that bad, its not too dark, but the truck has about 108K miles on it and im afraid that if i change the fluid the transmission will fail. Ive heard that the resin in the seals may wear away causing leakage and the gears themselves may fail due to the lack of friction that existed in my dirty fluid. This information was general, and not specific to land rovers. My though was to do a partial change and just drain the pan rather than hooking it up to a machine for a full change. Any land rover specific advice for my problem? Are these trannys prone to failure? Thanks, Joe

Also, to ammend my statement, it only SOUNDS like vibrating. The car itself does not shake. The soulnd can best be described as similar to spinning the big wheel on a game show where something is continually striking the wheel lightly, or similar to a fishing reel when the line is being quickly pulled out. Thought this might be relevant...? -Joe

Excellent, thanks... Ill download it after work today. -Joe

Its a 3 bolt flange but i dont know the difference between the nuts you mentioned, Dave. The flange doesnt seem to have any play while still bolted on, so ill remove the nut and look inside. Thanks, Joe

Hey all, I have a loud vibrating noise that comes from the back of my rover and as i replaced the diff about a year ago, i assume its coming from in there. The noise dissappears under load but reemerges as i coast. I think the pinion is not torqued properly and needs to be tightened. If i were to tighten the flange bolt, could i solve this? I dont know the right amount to torque it so i think i would try 1/4 turns till the noise dissappears (plus i dont own a torque wrench). Is this a bad idea? I would like to fix this without opening/removing the diff, but i suppose i could if necessary. Thanks, Joe

Hi all, I have a problem with my 97 Disco (4.0 L V8 Automatic), where fuel starts heavily dripping from my fuel line/tank when im filling up the tank. The line thats broken is the big one used for getting fuel into the tank. I originally fixed the broken part of the line with a hose patch kit, but i did not replace the entire hose because i cant figure out how to get to where it connects to the tank. The other end hooked to the funnel for filling is easy. Is there a way to easily get to this? I heard you can use the hole in the floor to access the fuel pump, but can i get to this hose from there? Thanks, Joe

Yeah, front seats is what i was thinking, just to get it all to match. I know i can pick up two from a scrapyard for around 300 US. As this is my first real mod, just wanted some input. Thanks for the replies! Joe

Hi all, Im at the point where id like to start experimenting with my 97 Disco. What id really like to do is tear out the second row bench seat and install 2 full sized seats in its place. Perhaps even push the seats back a bit and allow them to be easily removed for more cargo room. I've been searching for a mod like that but cant find anything. This isn't as drastic as some go with the traybacks but id rather not get into that yet cause i dont have welding equipment. Anyone seen anything like this? Thanks, Joe

yes yes, i already knocked it... its got a 4.0L V8 with automatic trans

Hey all, this will be another episode of what is it, do i need it, and how do i fix it? I was having trouble with my starter so i replaced it and my rover works great now (97 disco), however, in the process with little room to work underneath, i broke something next to the starter with my ratchet trying to get to the top bolt. To describe what it is and the location, it looks like a sensor going into the engine block and its connected with an electrical wire which was bunched together with my wires going to the starter from the battery. If you can imagine the cilindrical starter popping out towards the front of the car, just at the end of it (the end closest to the front) is where the thing broke. The piece is plastic and im not really sure if its broken or if i just pulled off the cap or something (the cap attached to the wire). In any event, my truck seems to run fine, so what is that thing? Note, this may be a stupid question but please entertain it. Ill try and post a picture later. Thanks, Joe

Funny enough, i replaced my rear diff about a year ago (thanks to the help from the fine folks on this forum). I cant imagine how the noise could be due to that, however, when it is centralized somewhere around the transmission... I will check anyhow because I'm certainly no authority on the subject. Thanks, Joe

Hi all, just want a few other opinions on my problem. I have a 97 disco with an automatic transmission just over 100k miles. I have a fairly loud grinding, oscillating (kind of a vibrating sound as if metal was loose and shaking violently) sound which appears to be coming from the transmission area (when i stick my head under there to listen). It does not always make the sound when i just start the car, but once i begin to drive it makes the sound when my foot IS OFF the accelerator. If i put my foot back on the accelerator, even lightly, the noise stops until i let off again. It also seems to stop when i brake. There is also a clunking sound that seems to cycle (about 4 to 6 times a second ad repeat) and is there more often than the grinding sound... i don't know if the two are related, but the second sound makes my car sound like a diesel. I don't really have a problem with the car shifting and the noise does not get better or worse no matter what gear I'm in... even if I'm just idling. I'm thinking of replacing the transmission for 500 bucks (do it myself). Any advice for double checking that the problem is the transmission or for removing my transmission? Thanks, Joe

Sure thing. Its petrol, automatic, 4.0L V8 and no modifications. The loss in power only occours when going up hill and there is total loss... as in i get stuck going slower and slower until i stop. The fumes i see are light-blueish but this only happens as the car struggles up the hill. This was not a problem yesterday. I know my engine air filter is probably very dirty cause ive been meaning to replace it... could a clogged air filter cause this? thanks, Joe

Hi all, I have a 97 disco that failed to make it up the hill on my street today. I have noticed the car running rough for a few weeks and there is a noticible ticking sound at about 8th intervals coming from the front underside of the car. I noticed some fumes coming from the engine compartment when it began to stall and there is a smell of something burning... maybe oil. It has very, very little gas in the tank, though that doesnt seen to affect how rough it runs and i am about 300 miles overdue for an oil change (3,000 mile oil change). The oil level smmes to be fine though and the car does not overheat. The car will go if i step on the gas on level ground but definately has trouble when i try to make it up a hill, no matter how small. I assume this corresponds to the ammount of gas being used. Also, i removed the exhaust about a year ago and replaced it myself.. i heard a leak in there and the corresponding clicking noise may be the source of my trouble. I dont suspect the transmission as i think it shifts fine when on a level surface... any help? Thanks, Joe

Valid points. I have a guy near me that sells scrapped disco stuff for cheap, but before i ask him, are there better quality headliners or are they all pretty standard? Maybe a plastic one of some sort?

Hi, ive posted here before and you all saved my LR, Larry, so i thought id ask for a bit more advice. My 97 Disco has a lot of water damage on the interior, particularly with the felt covering the top interior around the sunroofs and above the front windshield where it is drooping down. Ive tried putting it back up but it looks horrible. My other thought was to tear it out of the truck completely, but i dont know whats under there. I thought it would be neat having a completly metal roof over my head instead of cleaned up felt. Does anyone know whats under there and could i do this fairly easily? Also, if i were to replace the felt, how do you go about doing that? Thanks, Joe

ok thanks, is the pinion seal the same as the hub seal or the same as the pinion bearing seal? and do i have to drain the oil out of the diff for replacement? Thanks, Joe

I replaced the rear diff a few days ago and its up and running, but now the diff is leaking oil out of the flange assembly where the driveshaft connects. Anyone know a common leakpoint or gasket i need to replace? Thanks, Joe

No i bought a used one from a pretty straightforward guy. $150.00 US dollars... with a credit card of course. He runs a land rover only scrapyard and repair here in Virginia. Had a good talk with him, he owns 3 rovers himself but i think he only does local. So long as it works, i dont need a brand new one. If all goes well, ill probably buy a lot more from him. -joe By the way, It was the bearing at the front of the differential that jumped the track and broke, locking it up.

As long as im fixing up my rover, the ant lock light has been on for some time though the anti lock brake system seems to function just fine. If i remember correctly, this began after a trip to the shop. Anyone know how to get it off?