hacked off

[streaky]

I'm getting really hacked off with my local Rover workshop now. Unfortunatly they are considered to be the best of a bad bunch and I don't have many other options or places to go to.

Truck is 1998 Disco 300 series. 4.6Efi with 2" lift on firm springs.

Tyres are BFG AT' 265/70-R16's on WOLF Rims.

1) Gearbox started making grinding noises on the overun @ 120kph. We checked everything and eventually decided to change the R380 box that had completed a hard 265,000 km.

A rebuilt box was put in but there were still minor sounds of the same nature coming from it. The manager went on to say that it's the 2" lift and slightly taller tyres that are adding to the premature wear and grinding noises in the box. I think he's talking out the seat of his pants and is just trying to get out of not having to supply another rebuilt box.

My theory says that even a lift would not affect the gearbox. The transfer box yes....gearbox no.

I told him that thousands of Discovery owners put a 2" lift on their vehicles and I hadnt heard of every one haveing this problem.

He then went on to pretty much insult every person on every forum that I go on by saying " all those blokes on the LR forums are simply weekend grease monkies who would never admit to f**king up their own trucks".

2) Next up is my fuel consumption issue that some of you may remember reading about in previous threads.

Admitedly the truck is 450kg overweight. Running a 4.6Hotwire with a MDC1 268Cam and Mark Adams Tornado chip.

Surely though the Land Rover Discovery is designed to carry 4-5 adult passengers in reasonable comfort all day long and still give better fuel consumption than 250-270km to the tank? Not according to my workshop manager who says the complete opposite of everything I say!

Performance is not Porche like, but the off road power is quite nice. I don't have a heavy right foot either.

Any comments on the above welcomed to help cement my arguments. I'm not a complete muppet when it comes to these things either.

Thanks guys.

Regards.

S.

[BogMonster]

Some of the "weekend grease monkeys" have probably been in the business for longer than he has... in my case I have been working in and around the vehicles for eleven years so while I am not a mechanic I have a pretty good understanding of diagnosing strange noises and then telling people what to do to fix them. Others such as Les Henson do it for a living.

He is definitely talking cr&p about a lift having any effect on the gearbox. Apart from the UJ's and possibly the output shaft bearings if the angle was really severe, I honestly doubt it would do anything to the t/box either. Are the noises definitely coming from the gearbox?

Regarding fuel consumption my 4.0 gives about the same miles to a tank as yours does kilometres (will hit 300 miles on a long steady run) so that would suggest a problem to me (the different breeds of EFI V8 aren't a lot different in fuel consumption).

[FridgeFreezer]

1) Sounds like arse gravy, how does a lift impart any extraordinary stress or strain to the gearbox?

2) What are the numbers in MPG, how big is a tank? 270km on a RR sized tank is (by my very rough calculations) about 15mpg which is probably not unreasonable for a tweaked up overweight disco.

[BogMonster]

270km = 167 miles

RR tank is what? 80 litres? if so 17.5 gal

167 miles on 17.5 gal is 9.5mpg if the above is approx correct

even if "a tankful" is only 15 gal as actual fuel used (nobody runs their tank to empty) then it barely cracks 11mpg - I'd be ****ed off if mine did that

[jules]

265/70/r16 is too big for a Discovery’s gearing

I fitted them to my Discovery 2 and it screwed the motorway gearing bigtime as it was for ever hunting for the next gear so I had to change them back down. Pulling away from a junction the auto box when cold hated them.

My dad used to run 110's on 205's towing to improve the gearing and a side affect was better economy even when towing.

I would put the excess fuel consumption and the gearbox wear to those and nothing to do with the 2" lift.

If you drop the transfer ratio to a defender one and the fuel consumption will improve it will reduce the load and the excess wear on the gear box as it will be the same set up as a county on 265/70 r16 and it should drive like it did when it left the factory

Its like riding a mountin bike in top gear every were for the car

I have been butchering LR's for about 15yrs

[Les Henson]

No way would a lift affect the gearbox - I would have suggested Spigot bearing off the top of my head, of perhaps U/J's - something along those lines. Gearbox would certainly have been right at the bottom of the list. The guy's an idiot.

Les

(weekend grease monkey)