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Random musings on the D4


ThreeSheds

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58 minutes ago, Red90 said:

AGM are better from physical damage, but they are no better as a "battery".  Cycle life and sulfudation resistance is worse than a properly built flooded battery.  Unless you "need" one do to hard off road use, they are a waste of money.

This would appear to be at odds with much of what I have read, but then I have read it on the internet so who knows if it's right or not. Thanks for your comment :)

59 minutes ago, Red90 said:

The problem with modern cars and I'm sure the D4 is no exception is that they turn the alternator off as much as possible with the goal of saving fuel.  It kills batteries.

Now that IS something new... I have not heard of that one but it kindof makes sense...

How do they 'turn them off'? I have noticed that when the D4 is on a longer journey the voltage starts out at 14.7 volts, then after a while it drops to 12.6 - this is (I assume) when it's stopped charging the battery (ie I think it's at 100%) and the alternator is merely producing enough juice to power whatever is running... but I don't think that would count as turning it off???

Rog

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Got the GAP Diagnostic IID Tool yesterday and got it set up last night - a bit of a faff but made it in the end... So  - to the error codes!

  1. DABM-Digital Radio      B1A56-13 ("F) Antenna circuit - General electrical failure - circuit open 
  2. DDM-Driver Door           B110A-11 (6C) Rear door driver side central locking motor - General electrical failure - circuit short to ground

Well I guess I am a bit disappointed, but it could be (a lot) worse. The DAB fault probably explains why the DAB radio is poor, although since I live in rural Aberdeenshire I don't expect much on that front anyway, and I still have VHF radio...

It's a shame about the door - it's been that way since November and I never noticed! Good job it didn't get nicked eh? Anyway - I can lock it from the inside, manually, but obviously it is something I have to get fixed. Now... I have one of those 'second hand car breakdown insurance' things, and I have never thought them to be any good, but we will see... The company is "Warranty Wise" which do have a decent reputation. Be interesting to see how this goes. Watch this space! :D 

I guess that overall I am pleased that there is nothing too bad, lets hope it stays that way!

Rog

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20 minutes ago, ThreeSheds said:

I guess that overall I am pleased that there is nothing too bad, lets hope it stays that way!

I would take the faults that the IID tool reports with a minor pinch of salt - you get quite a lot of white noise from it. My old L322 used to report all sorts of errors - fan circuits open, drivers seat circuits open, speakers etc etc. If you cleared them, they'd come back again fairly soon. Everything worked though, so no idea why things would trigger...

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 2/20/2019 at 9:02 AM, =jon= said:

I would take the faults that the IID tool reports with a minor pinch of salt - you get quite a lot of white noise from it. My old L322 used to report all sorts of errors - fan circuits open, drivers seat circuits open, speakers etc etc. If you cleared them, they'd come back again fairly soon. Everything worked though, so no idea why things would trigger...

Thanks - I'll remember that.. There were loads that didn't come back once cleared, but the back door actually doesn't lock, and the DAB radio is poor, and  both faults were reported again after being cleared :(

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Most annoying thing so far on this car:

You can't just roll it forwards a few feet...

I often park the car reversed up to the garage door, which is a little bit up hill. This morning I needed access to the rear of the car and there wasn't enough room for the tailgate to lift up. So I got in the car with the intent of rolling it forward a couple of feet. 

And of course you can't get it out of P without starting the engine! And since it it below 5oC out there, the FBH started up, and continued running after I had finished and came inside. All in all a big hit on the battery and probably 1/2 a litre of fuel wasted...

It's a great car and all but sometimes I just hanker after something a bit more basic - like my old 80" series 1... :D:D:D

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  • 2 weeks later...

Fuel consumption testing... 

Two checks from tank full to tank full, 340 miles and 268 miles of mixed commuting and country driving (FYI my commute is mainly 60mph roads)...

Calculated values about 26mpg, when the instruments 'average mpg' value is about 28mpg.

 

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3 hours ago, Bowie69 said:

Very good, a mate only manages 20 if he is really restrained -but that is just not his driving style!

:D It's an easy car to drive fast (well faster than you should, anyway)

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  • 1 month later...

Thoughts about the gearbox and the flappy paddle things..

The gearbox is the 8 speed auto and it has a problem that I like to call "the min-roundabout death roll".

The scenario is always similar to this (the first time): I was approaching a min-roundabout, driving quite sedately, and there was a stream of traffic entering from the right and going straight on. As I got close, braking to maybe 5mph, the next car from my right indicated that he was turning left. This was an opportunity. There was a truck behind him, but I could make the gap ok... I take my foot off the brake and onto the throttle - slightly heavier than normal since I need to make the gap... and ... and ... The car rolls sedately out into the path of the truck ... NOTHING IS HAPPENING! Getting worried now I apply more throttle, and finally after about a second, the engine revs, the torque converter engages, and  the flipping thing takes off like a scolded cat. By now the truck is having  a great time on his air horns. Can't say as I blame him.

The problem as I see it is this:

Whereas with my TD5 auto in the same situation, the box would already be in 1st (of four) gear, and applying throttle instantly causes the engine to rev and hence it starts to pull, I think with the Disco 4, the car is probably still in 2nd or even 3rd at that point, and so the electronics (when they see a larger than normal throttle applied) decide to change down a gear or two. While this change is taking place, the engine is prevented from revving (that would stress the box internals) until the change is complete. Of course by the time everything is ready to go, I have realised that nothing is happening and automatically applied even more throttle. Now everything engages and 255bhp is released which launches the car, wheels squealing for the centre of the roundbout.

So now to possible solutions...

  1. I have heard that there is a software update that goes a long way to solving it.
  2. Use sport mode.
  3. Pre-select a low gear the flappy paddle shifters.

I haven't yet investigated the software fix and TBH I am not entirely sure from what I have read that it is worth it. (Has anyone gone down this route? Does it work or is it only a partial improvement?)

Sport mode improves the situation, but there is still a delay, and I would need to predict before I get to the roundabout/junction etc that I might need since I wouldn't want to normally drive in sport mode..

Flappy paddle shifters - well they work, but IMHO, they are not really fit for purpose (if that purpose is normal highway driving) since by half way around the roundabout I find myself still in 1st gear, revving the nuts off it and not sure where the 'up' paddle is because the wheel is turned 180or more.

Maybe one day I'll sort it, but for now I just wanted to vent a bit...

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My 322 (with the 6 speed auto) used to do a very similar thing with the gearbox - it would roll up to a junction in second, you'd put your foot down there'd be a pause then a massive driveline thump as it dropped to 1st and pulled away. Very un-RR like. 

There was a software update for it via GAP, but to be honest it didn't make much difference...

  • Confused 1
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  • 1 month later...

Hello again... It's been a while, but now I am starting to look at non-permanent mods for car camping this summer, and I am looking to power a fridge from the middle/rear accessory socket. So what I need, in an ideal world, is to replace the original 40a  relay that controls these sockets, with a:

 12v 40a automotive latching relay with voltage sensing.... (???)

It would:

  • Fit in place of the existing relay.
  • Stay on when the ignition (switched feed) goes off.
  • Go off if the supply voltage drops below a set figure (usually 11.5v but up to 12v would probs be ok)

I have had a look around on tinternet, but I'm not sure I am asking the right questions, so I thought I would seek the wisdom of the forum... Does such a thing exist or am I living in cloud-cuckoo land?

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ISTR the land Rover voltage-sensing relay and/or rear window heater timer can be modified to change the cutoff voltage, pretty sure TSD did the mod and posted it here before now.

Most VSR's will be for split-charge so will cut off pretty soon after the engine stops.

Edit: TSD's site has a schematic and everything: http://www.ep90.com/simple-split-charge.html

 

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If you buy a decent fridge, they often come with them built in.

Alternatively I know my solar panel charge controller does exactly what you are after, while it doesn't plug into a relay socket, it does demonstrate that the tech is available.

You could intercept the incoming wires to your existing relay with one of these:

http://www.reuk.co.uk/wordpress/reuk-shop-low-voltage-disconnects-lvd/buy-mini-12v-programmable-low-voltage-disconnect-lvd/

Minimum of mods, and reversible if you use pin extraction tools.

Anything with a 40A relay attached otherwise will be spendy.

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4 hours ago, Bowie69 said:

If you buy a decent fridge, they often come with them built in.

Thanks Bowie69, yes - my fridge does have a voltage sensing switch-off, but to get that to work I have to make the rear power wockets on all the time - and I am not comfortable with that you see... 

In the D4 both the centre and rear sockets are controlled by a 40 amp relay that it very easy to get at so I was thinking that maybe I could just replace that.

5 hours ago, FridgeFreezer said:

Edit: TSD's site has a schematic and everything: http://www.ep90.com/simple-split-charge.html

Thanks for that FF - it looks like a fascinating site which I will read when I have more time, but as I said above I am looking more for plug and play...

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