2006 TD5 110 Vibration / Rattle

[Taylor85]

Good afternoon, new to the forum and LR ownership.

I purchased my first Landy, a 2006 TD5 110 SW back in March and (touch wood) have not had any major issues at all. However, there is a vibration / rattle that I would like to get to the bottom of!

The vibration / rattle seems to be coming from the bell housing/trnsmission/transfer area and only occurs in specific circumstances as follows: 

a) On the flat if I change from first to second whilst doing less than 10mph, second to third at less than 20mph, etc. (If I am very gentle with the accelerator pedal then the vibration often does not occur and I'm not very heavy on the pedals anyway!);

b) If going up an incline then the same occurs however at a  higher speed, i.e. second to third I would need to get the speed up to approaching 25mph to avoid the vibration (the speed changes relative to the angle of the incline).

(NB: If going downhill then generally I can change gears earlier).

Having done a fair amount of reading and research on the LR manuals, Haynes Manual and forums there are a number of potential issues of varying severity. The most common I have seen on the forums seem to be UJ's, bearings, etc. in the transmission and driveshaft, however, having read a fair bit about these issues my impression is that if this were the issue then I would be experiencing vibrations, etc. almost constantly, not just in the circumstances described above.

My dad (ex-army) and a friend (also ex-army) have both driven the wagon and have suggested possible loose / perished mounts either for the engine or transmission/driveshaft (the explanation being that this is allowing part of the system to twist under unusual load as described which is resulting in the vibration). To a lay person with limited experience, this does sound feasible and more likely given the specific circs. when the vibration occurs. (Having read up on loose mountings, etc. as a vibration cause, I did come across a post by someone (forgotten who and where) commenting on a tendency of youth today to seek to get in to the highest gear possible as quickly as possible and this does seem to correspond with my mystery vibration!)

Today I have been under the vehicle exploring for any looseness, etc. and as far as I can ascertain there is no obvious issue with the UJ's/driveshafts, etc. being loose or having any play. Likewise, the rubber pads for all of the mounting brackets seem to be in good condition and the mounts all seem to be properly secure.

However, I did wonder if it could be something relating to the exhaust system as the pipework passes through the same area, I've attached an image of a bracket for the exhaust where it runs past the transmission/transfer area. At this bracket there is some play to allow the system to flex, and from giving it a bit of a nudge, the pipe does knock against the edge of the bracket (left side of the pipe) and gives a fairly clear metal on metal knocking sound. I know that if changing gears to early an engine will labour and that the corresponding vibrations would be transmitted through the exhaust. 

Does anyone with more experience and knowledge than me (not hard) think the exhaust is a red herring? 

 

Cheers,

Dan

 

[Lightning]

It might be the DMF, it was on the missus's 90 TD5. It only occurred at lower speeds and in low gears, as with yours.

l got a new clutch plus flywheel and after that it was fine.

 

[Taylor85]

Cheers Lightning, now you've said that I do seem to recall reading the flywheel being mentioned somewhere in respect of vibrations.

Did you replace with a SMF or stick with DM?

 

Dan

[V8 Freak]

Dan,

I went SMF and it was an amazing setup. Really smooth and amazing clutch grip etc.. No issues towing my old Golf on a trailer etc.

The only issue I had was there was a rattle on tick-over in neutral that annoyed me. Basically without the DMF the gears in the gearbox (R380) rattle and chatter on tick-over.

No damage is being done but I found myself dipping the clutch and sitting like that when stationary to stop the noise.  

 

I've since converted the truck to auto and that problem seems to have gone away.

I still have all the Rakeway setup but you should be able to get a DMF, clutch and pressure plate etc. for less that I would sell it for....

 

Standard setup is very good on a TD5...

 

Edit: Thinking on your noise... An old / worn DMF typically rattles when the clutch is depressed or released... Basically you are putting the rubber bond under or releasing tension doing this and hence the rattle is noticeable.

Other than that you may hear a rattle, or more of a knock, when it knocks to its full rotational limits. (Under heavy torque loading in lower gears.)

 

Looking at your picture that does look a lot closer to the mount than I would like.... The simple way to test that would be to fit a block of wood in that gap and remove the movement for a short test run.

If the rattle is gone, then unclamp and reset the position of the centre box so it's weight and location help to settle the exhaust further away from the chassis mounts.

[V8 Freak]

I know it's a different length of vehicle, but this was mine with centre box removed but pipes basically in the same place.

It was closer to the Transfer box than I'd have liked.

When i switched to a Griffin exhaust with a few amends we aimed for the centre gaps in the mounts....

 

Neil