Discovery desires - rot replacement

[dollywobbler]

Hmmm. I live in Wales! Mind you, I don't hoon about in the Disco. Not the most relaxing of experiences!

[dollywobbler]

Albert Ross - stop reading now.

 

More laning has taken place. It was actually week ago, but I introduced the neighbour to laning with a gentle trip around an area known as Nant-y-Moch. A few technical challenges but nothing that requires you to churn up lanes or anything like that. We did get his traction control kicking in quite a few times though, and I stupidly forgot the diff-lock again, making one climb a little more tricky than it should have been. The Rangie had a viscous centre diff and the Maverick no centre diff at all, so I'm out of the habit of engaging it.

 

Nice chance to compare Disco 1 with Disco 2 though. Mine looks all feeble and lightweight by comparison!

 

I'm still trying to sort this oil leak out. Chassis protection FTW!

 

I called a main dealer earlier, thinking I'm sure the o-rings I need can't be expensive. After a very lengthy phone conversation, the chap eventually found them on the system. £6.50 each, plus VAT! I thanked him for his efforts but clearly Land Rover has gone down the route of "price everything really high so demand drops off." Something Citroen are experts at. Balls to heritage!

 

Thankfully, a local Landy specialist reckons he has them on the shelf, so I'll be heading over to see him tomorrow. No doubt there will then be a mucky job while I try and fit them, but to be fair, it's already covered in oil!

 

Next priorities are to get the wheels off and give the brakes a proper checking over, and continue the fluid changes - transfer box and axles next. I also need to discover why the washer bottle level seems to plummet. 

[dollywobbler]

Managed to get a pair of o-rings for free. Didn't do the trick. I could see oil seeping out through the threaded part of the union. It then got very hot and I got very lazy.

 

Much cooler today though, so I whipped the oil cooler pipes off and removed the unions for closer inspection. PTFE tape had been used to try and create a seal, but obviously wasn't working. I opted for Blue Hylomar instead and it was noticable that the unions actually screwed into the cooler much more than before. Perhaps how they should have been. Back together, a good Gunk session and off for a test drive.

 

Initial findings are that this has been a success. Need to take it for a long run with plenty of hills to really give it a proper test - which I may well do next week some time as I've found a free set of tyres in the Forest of Dean.

 

The tyres are still a mix, but would at least leave me with matching axle sets - what luxury! They're the narrow 205 section ones it would have had from new, rather than the wider 235s it currently wears - all good. Still need to do more fluid changes and I'll crack on with brake investigations after a cup of Success Tea.

[dollywobbler]

Had a bit of a butcher's at the brakes this afternoon. They seem ok, but it is still slightly pulling to the left under heavy braking. Further investigations required.

 

While doing that job, I found some horrific splitting on one of the inside sidewalls. If I do go on a tyre collecting mission, looks like I'll be in the BX, which at least saves a fair bit in fuel.

[Brent_Crude]

Had a bit of a butcher's at the brakes this afternoon. They seem ok, but it is still slightly pulling to the left under heavy braking. Further investigations required.

 

While doing that job, I found some horrific splitting on one of the inside sidewalls. If I do go on a tyre collecting mission, looks like I'll be in the BX, which at least saves a fair bit in fuel.

 

I am pretty sure that the spare in my Range Rover is the same type as your Disco wheels and has a newish looking tyre on (a Goodyear Wrangler IIRC). If a Classic 3 spoke wheel (preferably in Ardennes Green) with a reasonable tyre can be found, I'd be happy to offload the Disco wheel if it would be of interest and logistics allow it (I am near Reading)? The tread on the spare is much greater than the Pirrelli Scorpions I have - it looks like a real off-road tyre, so it is of limited use to me.  

[dollywobbler]

Thanks. Probably not going to be down your way for a while. Hoping to collect a fresh set of tyres on Wednesday - they're coming on standard Landy Defender steels which hopefully I can flog on.

[knacklers yard]

A 27mm socket on a mahoosive breaker bar are part of the in-car tool kit in my Disco

 snigger, shame yerz aint gorra jack tho

[dollywobbler]

I boldly asserted earlier that at least the Disco was working properly. Well, that isn't entirely true. It's pulling to the left slightly under braking and feels horrifically vague when the stoppers are applied. I suspect both may be related to what seems to be some play in the swivel that side. I need to learn how these things work so I can find out if it can be sorted. I think you can remove shims or something (if they haven't been removed already). Certainly, hitting a bump with the left front results in a hefty thump and at speed, there was an occasional shimmy.

[Rusty_Rocket]

Rebuild those front calipers

It's a simple job and will take a couple of hours to do both sides.  I'd imagine that'll sort the pulling.  Slack in the swivels doesn't normally cause pulling to one side.. but they certainly cause the shimmy or 'Disco death wobble' as it's known   

[dollywobbler]

I rebuilt the calipers on the Rangie - it was a horrible job! Satisfying to do, but not very enjoyable at the time. The wear seems pretty even on the pads, though I think it was treated to new ones not long before I bought it. I do need to do something about it though because when braking and aiming for a narrow gap (like every road around here when something comes the other way) I don't feel I can accurately point it. Not nice.

[Rusty_Rocket]

Maybe just free them up then!  I seem to remember my pads sometimes used to jam in the calliper, which does generally cause uneven wear but as you say, the pads could have been recently replaced..

What you describe certainly doesn't sound normal, my 2.5t beast can be hurled into corners under braking/ acceleration with no problems, it feels totally planted- and I must admit to having a little play in my n/s swivel.  It's probably a combination of wear in different places.

[dollywobbler]

It's certainly not how I remember the Rangie handling, but then it doesn't ride like the Rangie either - much bouncier. I'm wondering if someone has chucked HD springs on it because at times it's almost as bouncy as the Maverick. I don't carry much weight in it. I must also concede that it doesn't roll about anywhere near as much as the Rangie - in fact, my neighbours (with a Disco 2 and it's Xantia-Activa-esque anti-roll system) were well impressed at how stable it is when cornering.

[Rusty_Rocket]

I'm surprised you say it's bouncy.. mine is anything but.  I'm now wondering if your dampers are shot?  May be a mileage/ time expired thing.

[dollywobbler]

Aye. It has a number of 'worn out' issues. Dampers are definitely of the 'not-brand-new' category. Too many cars with too many issues and not enough time/money!

[dollywobbler]

Today, I collected a set of wheels and tyres. They were taken off a 110 which now wears alloys.

 

Mix and match.

 

Much more of a difference than I expected! I'll now refurb the original wheels and then get the tyres swapped over. The rears aren't brilliant, with minor cracks between the treads and on the sidewalls. However, brand new replacements are only £64. Bonus!

 

Talking of cracks, this is the worst of the ones I took of. Glad I did!

 

As mentioned earlier, no cracking was visible at all on the outside edge, so I had no idea how bad it was until I removed the wheel. Really quite scary.

 

So, here's how she looks at the moment.

 

Skinny!

 

The white wheels are almost entirely wrong for a Disco - they were fitted to the Camel Trophy ones. Guess I could always Sandglow it to match the wheels! I think repainting the original wheels is still the way to go.

 

I may very well be imagining it, but it seems to drive more sweetly on the new rubber. Now hoping I can flog the old tyres and eventually, the Landy steels to cover today's fuel costs.

[Partridge]

Nothing says “Unstable ex-bootie with a collection of knives and dead things†like a manky Disco 1.

[Lord Sterling]

Sweet stuff Mr Wobblah, there seems to be quite a few of these earlier Discoverys around Birmingham still.

[dollywobbler]

Bit of a disaster today. It's my 7-year anniversary, so though I'd celebrate by heading out on the lanes. To be fair, my wife is working this afternoon and I've booked a nice meal for the two of us - just in case you were starting to question my priorities.

 

That's not the disaster. The clutch on the Disco is though. I was nicely in the middle of nowhere when the clutch bite started sinking. I stopped for a gate, closed it and set off with a lurch, and then there was no clutch at all. Thankfully I managed to get through the lane, though it was annoying having to stop to select a different gear if required. It started quite merrily in low third, but I occasionally needed first or second for tricky bits. Gates quickly became a nightmare. Select neutral, stop. Get out. Open gate. Start in low first. Stop. Close gate. Engine off and start in second or third. 

 

Then I was out on the road, but it was only tiny lanes, so I opted to stay in low third. A handily placed friend was less-handily out, so I was forced to keep going. It would just about start in high second, but didn't really like it. I stayed in second to noisily get to the top of a hill, then drove a few miles in neutral, coasting along in just the way you're told not too. Gave me a chance to listen to all the rattles and squeaks I can't usually hear over the engine...

 

Coasted all the way to a garage. They chucked some DOT4 in while I pumped the pedal. Nothing happened, though the fluid seemed to go somewhere. I wonder where? No pedal at all though. I was still about 12 miles from home, but there were no town sections. I decided to go for it. For safety, I engaged low box to turn around in the tight garage car park. Then it wouldn't go back into high. Gah! Had to turn the engine off, then back on, then gently move the lever which eventually slipped into high again. A very jolty second-gear start had me on my way. "Out of the way everyone!"

 

Cruising along in second was getting tiresome, so I attempted to change into third. Didn't quite rev-match so it crunched in, but then I got fourth pretty easily. Here we go! Then came a junction. With cars behind, I had to stop, turn the engine off, select second, check it was clear then start and floor it so it'd pick up. A mile later, I had to repeat that trick for a roundabout. I was on a quiet, main road now and worked my way up to fifth. Then realised that I wouldn't get up the next, steeper section in top gear. More rev-matching and I managed to find fourth quite nicely. That did for most of the way back. I was concerned about an upcoming right turn. Would it be clear? If it wasn't, I'd have to stop in the middle of the road, with cars behind who wouldn't expect me to get away so slowly. All was well though. I did a perfect downshift into third, no traffic came and I was away.

 

I'm very grateful that third gear can be used as low as 10mph. This engine has a lot of low-down torque. I got home with no further drama. Now I guess I need to order a clutch slave cylinder.

[dollywobbler]

Got the clutch working again. More fluid and a bleed. Level still seems to be dropping though, so a temporary cure I feel!

[meggersdog]

Was the pedal creaking or clicking before it happened? If so sounds like the clutch fork has burst through the pivot.Gearbox out job if it is.

A heavy duty fork is the one to fit.

[dollywobbler]

Thankfully not. It just went soft, then went totally. It's back now, so can't be the fork.

[Rusty_Rocket]

I was initially going to blame the fork too but a simple hydraulic cylinder is a much easier/ cheaper fix Don't be tempted by a 'blue box' replacement.. they're very cheap but not up to it 

[cort16]

I once had to drive the wife's seicento like that for about 3 miles and it was bloody terrifying .

[meggersdog]

I was in the centre of town on a Saturday afternoon when my clutch fork broke.Having to stand on the brake to stall at junctions then start the Discovery in second whilst kangarooing like a first time learner driver in busy traffic was not very pleasant.

[beko1987]

The pipe that fed the clutch popped out on the missus corsa once, whilst I was driving. 8 miles to halfords with no clutch, just banging it into gear as and when! Then another 2 hours stripping the plastic shite off so I could pop the pipe back on! Don't like clutches, hope you get it sorted quickly and easily and cheaply (select 2 choices only...)

[dollywobbler]

I was in the centre of town on a Saturday afternoon when my clutch fork broke.Having to stand on the brake to stall at junctions then start the Discovery in second whilst kangarooing like a first time learner driver in busy traffic was not very pleasant.

 

That wouldn't be fun. You can just turn the engine off to 'stall' it. I found that generally, it was quite easy to pop it into neutral as well. Did a lot of experimenting!

 

I think I've confirmed that it's the slave cylinder after the bleeding session, so I'll get a new one ordered (not Shitpart!). 

[dollywobbler]

I think I've done a stupid. For some reason, I ordered a rebuild kit. It was just a pair of rubber seals. Easy, surely? Between showers, I managed to remove the slave cylinder - releasing it certainly allowed a lot of fluid to leak out, so that confirms the diagnosis I feel. Managed to avoid pulling the clutch pin out of the gearbox, which is good. 

 

But I now wish I'd just bought another slave cylinder. I can't see how the old one comes apart and Googling it just seems to result in people saying "don't bother rebuilding it. It'll just leak again." Ugh.

[Rusty_Rocket]

Do you have one of the little hone tools that go into a cordless drill? Whenever we rebuild cylinders we always hone them or they will probably leak!    

If not make sure the inside of the cylinder is perfectly smooth with some paper- any rust and you're wasting your time! 

[dollywobbler]

I haven't worked out how it comes apart yet. I seem to be missing the main rubber cover - when it stops raining I'll see if I can find it. 

[meggersdog]

Once the circlip has been removed ease the piston out with air pressure.A bicycle pump might do the job if you haven't got a compressor.