poohbear

Oh bummer, guess my only option for a working fob is the main stealer then!?! Understood re. adaptive values - will start as suggested and go from there. Thanks, Dave

Thanks for the replies - hope to be the owner of a nanocom-evo in the next couple of weeks, so will have a look at resetting those values - along with resetting the SRS, coding new remote fobs etc, etc............ Dave.

Hi all, Slowly working through the various niggles the truck came with but I have a new problem to diagnose. It starts and idles fine 90% of the time but recently it occasionally starts, revs leap up to around 1500 as normal but then will stall. It has also developed a nasty habit of when you put your foot on the gas it practically dies before picking up. It will do this if just pullung off or when accelerating hard between gears. I have recently changed the MAF, Centre exhaust (cat section) including both O2 sensors, ignition leads. Though can't tie it down to any individual component change. Can anyone point me in the right direction to start looking for faults? Thanks in advance. Dave.

Having forgotten to fit the housing before putting the head back on in the past, I can confirm the bolts are too long to do it once the engine is built up! And yes it is a stupid design. Dave

The rest of the srs system is wired in yellow cable/conduit with red connectors - I don't have any like this under my seats. I'm not convinced I have seatbelt tensioners fitted. Whatever is going on I think I need some sort of diagnostic device in the toolkit otherwise it's going to be hell to try and fix anything on this beast! Dave.

Hi Jason, Apparantly the underseat connectors are a common fault point- However I don't have side airbags - plus I think my vehicle is to early to self reset, can only be done via nanocom/hawkeye etc. I'm guessing that the srs module reports a fault to the becm which is where the fault code is generated. Dave.

Thanks for the replies guys. I found a local guy who used his hawkeye for the handsome total of £10 cash. Unfortunately it wouldn't talk to the srs module which kind of supports the theory that it is toast. Does anyone know if the srs 'brain' is locked to the vin or can I just swap it out with one from a scrapper? Dave

I had planned to run the 110, as you suggest, on veg oil - but there was no way SWMBO would ever drive it. Compared to a 'proper' car the defender is way under spec safety wise for travelling about with three kids on board and I couldn't justify spending the time fixing it up. As it is I found a 95 4.0 SE with 155k on the clock, service history to 153k, for a snip under 2k. It was fitted with a sequential lpg system in 2010 and having replaced the MAF and Lambda sensors is giving me around 18mpg. Yes there are some niggles but I have a background in fixing brocken electrical 'stuff' so am not phased by the presence of numerous computers running things. Spare parts are plentiful and there is at least as much forum support for the P38 as there is the Defender. I spent Friday working on a waterlogged site and it has towed everything the defender would have towed - 2 weeks in and I'm glad I made the change. Dave.

Thanks for the pointers. Blocked/restricted exhaust had crossed my mind - both cats are rattling which points in that direction. Can I bung a multimeter on the lambda sensors to see if one is dead - any ideas of good values

It's a 4.0 GEMS - last service at 151K now at 153K, Sequential LPG system fitted in 2010 - it was done abroad so I can't give any more details until I've translated the certificate! I have only had it a week and so haven't had a chance to give it a thorough going over yet - oil looks clean and supports recent sevice. I have cleaned the MAF and both O2 sensors (using isoprop) and will pull the plugs today to see if they point to anything obvious mixture wise - however one of the Lambdas was well sooty so I expect it's over fuelling on that bank. I am just trying to work out if it's worth keeping and working through the niggles or whether I'm going to end up chasing my tale and digging into my pockets. After all it's fine up to 40 and it will cruise at 70 easily - it just takes forever to get there and at 10mpg I can't justify the running cost. Thanks, Dave.

Hi all, I have a '95 P38 running on lpg that wont return more than 10 - 12mpg and is also sluggish and down on power. It starts and runs fine and pulls off ok but has no acceleration over 40 - 50 though when it does get there it will sit at 70+ fine, in fact it wont do over 50 going up hill. It kicks down and sounds like it's trying but just doesn't pick up. I'm also struggling to get above 10mpg on both lpg and petrol. Hawkeye shows a bad O2 sensor on bank A which I guess could explain bad mpg if it's running rich but would it also cause the other symptoms? Anybody got any ideas - come across this before? Thanks, Dave.

Thanks for the reply - I think you are correct in that the different systems use different 'test leads' but I think they all use the same port on the vehicle and the same tester whether it be rovacon/hawkeye/T4. I'll seek out a local independant as suggested. I'm starting to think I really should have gone dor a post 96 truck which would have made all this much easier. Dave

Hi all, I need to identify an SRS fault on a 1995 P38 - I can't afford to go down the rovacom/hawkeye route at the moment and really don't want to put my cash over the main stealers counter - will the cheaper EOBD compliant readers even look at the SRS system, or do they just return generic EMS codes? Much research seems to point to the fact that pre 96 vehicles need a much more complicated and proportionally expensive bit of kit! If there is anyone local to Northampton that is willing to put their own tester on my truck for beer tokens I would be very grateful. Thanks in advance, Dave.

Hi all, I have just aquired a '95 P38 which is showing an SRS warning light. Having looked on the web there seem a number of options for using the obd port for diagnosing the exact fault. However most of these refer to obd II compliance which is from '96 onwards. I can't afford to splash out on a hawkeye at the moment and so was wondering if any of you guys knew whether any of the cheaper options, standalone or laptop based, will work with a '95 vehicle? Alternatively - anyone near Northampton with a suitable tester to loan for some beer tokens? Thanks in advance. Dave.

I think in a defender involved in a crash I'd prefer to be as far away from the vehicle itself as possible! Dave.

Well that was a wasted day...... Turned up to look at the DSE which would have been a straight swap for my Defender only to find that it was in bits - baring in mind I had been having a quite in depth email exchange regarding wanting to part-ex my defender - alarm bells getting primed and ready to go. So asked about the LPG HSE from the same yard that I had had previous email correspondence about - "it's over at the gaffers house mate" - Alarm bells now getting well and truly warmed up. So the HSE gets parked up on the street, seriously, it had one set of wheels in the road, so I tried to have a look round without getting run over. Engine is well hot, not just warm - Alarm bells now making a merry little tune in my head but I've driven 50 miles in the defender to get here so I might as well have a look. Front foot wells are damp around transmission tunnel, C/C display is showing the dreaded book with an exclamation mark and doesn't blow cold and the dash is telling me that non of the windows are set. on the plus side air suspension seems to work faultlessly.alarm bells now playing a merry little tune in the back of my mind. Under the bonnet - sounds alright, maybe a slight misfire but starts, runs and revs freely. Pull the oil filler cap off and can't find any evidence of the wet black stuff, transmission dip stick similarly vague as to the location of lubricant, also found a random bit of emery paper in the engine bay?! Alarm bells now hammering out at full volume. Needless to say - turned it off, returned the key and drove away in the Defender. Oh, and having got back home I have realised there was no fan cowling. Still I'm now one closer to the one I want. Thanks to all who have given advice/info or just piped up - I feel I may be at the start of a very long journey. Anybody want to swap a P38 for a Defender? Dave.

Thanks gentlemen - some great stuff there. I'll let you know how I get on. Dave.

Right, off to part-ex the 110 on Tuesday (hopefully!), option of either a '96 DSE or a '99 HSE V8 on LPG - now the V8 has a very good service history with a price to match and the DSE has less evidence of service history but will be a straight swap for the 110. So performance aside, which will prove to be the most hassle free motor? Answers on a postcard to...... But in all seriousness, is there anything in particular I should be looking at when giving them both the once over. One of the advertising photos of the DSE dash shows a yellow/amber warning light which is a picture of the vehicle over an arrow pointing upwards, is this anything to worry about? Dave.

Hose from back of head goes to rear of heater matrix (closest to bulkhead), front of heater matrix goes to thermostat housing via metal pipe connected to exhaust manifold. D.

Thanks gents - some interesting reading there! Dave.

OK - final dumb question: I'm assuming all lpg converted engines have to warm up on their native fuel before being able to run on the lpg?

Thanks Dave, any chance the MPG of either would be comparable to a 110 200Tdi, which is currently around 24'ish? I'm desperately trying to convince myself that I can make the figures stack up! At this rate I might be sticking with the Defender and running it on veg oil! Dave.

OK, not wishing to start a debate here but - Which will be cheaper to run fuel wise for a regular 5 mile commute - mostly through town and twice a week on dual carriageway, plus the odd journey to shops and out of town - a 1996 DSE manual or 99 HSE 4L V8 with multipoint lpg? My guess is the diesel has it due to warm up time on petrol with the v8. Dave

You'll be looking at between £300 - £500 depending on age/condition and what ancillaries come with it. At least that's what was when I did mine a couple of years ago - They are getting a little rare now though. Try and get as many of the bolt on bits as you can - starter/PAS pump/alternater/brackets & plumbing, it makes life much easier! D.

Yes it will - no modifications required. Use the TD engine mounts on the disco lump, and either use the TD flywheel housing or tap the bottom of the disco housing and it's a straight swap. Oil cooler and PAS hoses will need sorting but all the bits are there between the two engines. Exhaust downpipe will need fabricating/buying and air ducting needs some creative plumbing. Can all be done in a weekend if you're keen enough. Dave.