Project Taming the Beast... A Journey* of Discovery. All systems GO!...

[Crispian_J_Hotson]

Well, the time has come. The V8 4.0 Discovery has decided to show me who is boss and utterly destroy itself. We were going to take it to the airport when going on hollybobs but the day before it shat itself, so we went in the BM back up family truckster instead.

To add to the many things that sit on my mind whilst abroad, I knew that when I returned I'd have to face this fucker and mend it. That time is now.

 

Q: What's the problem dude?

 

Well, Besides needing rocker gaskets it eats HT leads and they are a bastad to change if you like your skin on your hands. Changing the gaskets looks to involve a bit of surgery so its been put off but now they might as well be made from paper and they are doing nothing. The leads are just as bad, the cars history file shows regular replacements and it is need of a good hard service.

 

A couple of days before I left the country it started 'chuffing' from what seemed like the middle of the engine and power was down on at least one cylinder, perhaps two, also the accelerator pedal was stuck solid first thing in the morning until it warmed up a bit.

Not wanting to totally destroy it, I laid it up until now. This morning I went out and started it after 3 weeks or so standing and it failed to extinguish the oil pressure light.

 

So, I have a few issues to attend to. I've started stripping the thing creating and finding more problems along the way like this little beauty:

 

 

This is the coolant line to the throttle body, blocked with some alien material... This:

 

 

Which is where someone has fitted a new* part and has been a bit over enthusiastic with the instant gasket on the water pump. I know this because I can spy the exact same sealant oozing out from the pump itself deep in the bowels of the engine. Great. I suspect, and it's only a theory, that this blockage has stopped whatever was supposed to happen to the throttle body and caused it to gunk up because its got a nice coating of sticky oil holding the butterfly shut. I cleaned this part only a few months ago. This pipe also shattered into 4 pieces trying to remove it so I need a new one now.

 

What else? Oh yeah, I got to the coil pack to remove it along the way and found suspicious looking HT leads...

 

 

 

Both have strange deposits of shite in them where they have obviously been correctly* doing their job. I have a replacement coil pack and leads to go on.

 

So after a few hours with a ratchet where are we? Here...

 

 

I am now faced with a stuck steel water pipe into the alloy inlet manifold which will not budge for toffee so I need a new one of those, missing bolts from the intake manifold top bit, so I need a set of those and I plan to pull the inlet manifold completely and replace that gasket as a matter of course as it's soaked in oil, full on service which I think will solve the sudden oil pressure issue, a bit of a clean up, rocker gaskets, those coolant pipes and hey presto, we will be good to go right?

 

Whilst I'm here, I'd like a linky to a decent parts catalogue for the 4.0 V8 so I can get some numbers pls. It's the first time I've performed surgery on this heap but it's not difficult, just er... tight and there is plenty of evidence that a blind bloke has been in there before keeping removed nuts and bolts safe* for refitting.

[Crispian_J_Hotson]

Oil separator blocked and broken in rocker cover. Probably explains some of the oil in the throttle housing.

 

 

Pictures show 5 discs on replacements, I counted 4 but found the 5th had crumbled upon removal. Luckily the missis is at work so I have full access to the dishwasher for cleaning engine parts. Smells funky. She will be pleased with me.

 

 

Oh, and I am fairly amused at being able to take apart this engine with little more than a hammer, screwdriver, 10 and 8mm socket and a bar. That was until I came to remove the rocker covers. An 8mm 12 point deep socket is required. What's the only tool I don't own?

[mrbenn]

 Luckily the missis is at work so I have full access to the dishwasher for cleaning engine parts. Smells funky. She will be pleased with me.

 

 

Brave man

[Crispian_J_Hotson]

Inlet manifold off and revealed years of crap and a sick looking gasket

 

 

 

Plenty of oil and water leaks on here although the underside is in good shape. I found a complete spark plug lead end on the gearbox housing showing that a previous replacement attempt was also a c-nut to somebody.

 

In general terms the internals are in good order.

 

 

A fair bit of crud was pulled out by adapting my vacuum with a hosepipe, bits of hardened oil deposits, gasket and other unidentified rubbish was cleaned out of there and all the mating surfaces were prepared for new gaskets.

 

Shopping list:

 

1- Throttle housing return pipe

2- Manifold outlet pipe (tbc)

3- Oil separator 

4- Oil filler cap

5- All service items inc oil

6- Top end gaskets

7- bolts for inlet manifold

 

I also pulled the plugs as they are going too and I've only had the odd one out before when the engine had a lead down at Christmas. It was tight! Interesting red tarnish to the insulation...

 

 

I've pulled a fair amount of plugs in my time and never seen this before from what I can remember. Apparently it's additives put in the unleaded fuel that does this, it's normal and this car really only gets it's fuel from Tosco's. The only plug in that picture that I can say is working 100% is the bottom right one as I replaced that lead only. The others? Gawd knows.

 

So now I have a lot of cleaning to do as everything is pretty much rotten with oil marks and old water leak scale. I'm in two minds as to replacing the head gaskets whilst I'm here, I'm just trying to draw a line on the cans of worms I'm opening but it doesn't make sense to not do them... ???

[Talbot]

Given the habit this engine has for OMGHGF, I would pull the heads (easy enough, you've done a lot of the hard work already) and check very carefully for liner drop. If all looks good, new HG's and re-assemble. Should be good for several years thereafter.

[Crispian_J_Hotson]

Yeah, the more I look at it the more convinced I am that there is an issue with one of them at least as there is an oil leak from that join to the block but I can't see a track down the head from the rocker covers above... PLUS, I'd do all this faffing and then drive it worried about when the HG is going to go pop. It's well into the danger zone at 105,000 odd miles!

[Crispian_J_Hotson]

ORF WIV HEEZ EDDD (s)! Was the cry that could be heard yesterday morning and was I right to do it!

 

 

Urgh, She's been running like a sack for a while by the looks of it. Surprisingly it ran fairly well considering this...

 

 

So that chuffing noise I was hearing from the rear of the lump on the drivers side was actually coming from the front passenger side head. The other cylinder head gasket was A1. Liners are bang on, no weird cracks and everything else is straight and in line so it should go back together well enough.

 

Then a shit tonne of parts were ordered and whilst I am/was waiting I got on with sorting out the bits that I'd took off which looked like they had been living in a swamp for the last 10 years.

 

First up, the minging rocker covers...

 

 

 

 

...And then today I set to all the other crap...

 

 

 

Finally done and now have a nice selection of stuff to bolt back on...

 

 

Tomorrow the heads will be going back on as the gaskets and bolts all turned up today except the inlet/ plenum one but I've got to clean up the piston heads first as they have crusty shit on them, the block faces have been done already.

[Guest Hooli]

MMmmmm shiney V8 bits, me likely.

[Crispian_J_Hotson]

Today was productive with more bits arriving. Still waiting for some coolant but that's about it. Key turning is planned for Friday as I have to do a bit of work on the touring tomorrow morning, nothing major, just routine stuff. Still, I spent the whole day on the Disco today turning from dismantling horrible oily soaked bits to actually fitting clean bits.

 

First off was to clean up the pistonies using elbow grease...

 

 

 

These had their fair share of carbon deposits but are now worthy of something you could eat 8 dinners off of.

That was the last of it really, some tarting up of the surrounding areas and some mounts for the alternator, air con pump etc was all that was left for now. Then the head gaskets could go on and I could start sellotaping it all back together again.

 

 

 

All done by the book. It always surprises me that when not going by the book how I hang off the end of a ratchet to make sure it's tight. Most of the stuff going back on defies my logic and seems quite 'loose' by my standards anyway.

 

Now it's starting to come together...

 

Before:

 

 

Now:

 

 

I should have it more or less back together tomorrow PM ready for fun time on Friday!

[N Dentressangle]

Looks ace.

 

Can you come and do mine? 

[spartacus]

I like all sorts of engines but a freshened up V8 nestled in an engine bay is something a bit special, in a good way. Keep it up, will there be a start up video?

Top work.

[Crispian_J_Hotson]

Looks ace.

 

Can you come and do mine? 

 

Ta, With the amount of stuff I'm fixing at the moment, if you park it outside I'd probably not even notice. I wrote a long list of of about 20 things to do this week and have achieved one and three quarters of them. That's progress.

 

I like all sorts of engines but a freshened up V8 nestled in an engine bay is something a bit special, in a good way. Keep it up, will there be a start up video?

Top work.

 

They look daunting when they are in a shit state but fixing it back together with some fresh paint is like assembling a real life airfix kit, it's quite rewarding. A start up video is on the cards as I'm fully confident* everything will go well* when I turn the key.

[bezzabsa]

least the 4.0 doesnt self destruct like the 4.6.....

you could always throw a TVR 5.0 in there

[Crispian_J_Hotson]

5.0.... Hope that doesn't use up any more space, jesus, they've put pipes in places where pipes shouldn't go! As I experienced this afternoon during my tinkering session. Undoing stuff I just put on just to run a 10mm pipe through... It can be pretty tight that's for sure. Not so much in the way of pictures today really as it was piping up and fitting ancillaries, that air compressor mount is a fucker. It would be fine if all the bits weren't painted but it involves smashing and bashing to get it to sit in right and then there's the engine lifting hook, don't forget to fit that bit first.......... ok, I did but learned my lesson I can tell you.

Fiddling with some of these bolts meant that I had to dislocate my fingers in 17 places to get them in but we're all good. Also, that coil pack at the back was a stupid idea, who thought that it was a good idea to stick 8 sparking things in a small space, out of sight and inaccessible an inch away from the fuel supply? I think the worst of it is over now and I can see the finish line.

 

I've done away with the HT lead holders bolted to the back of the plenum because that design is also stupid and causes the HT leads to be stretched in a stupid position and when you need to change the leads they carve up your skin like a mincing machine.

 

This afternoons progress*:

 

 

I can also tell you that I was a damn sight cleaner after it too, the last few days I've looked like I've done a stint down a coal mine! A seller has let me down on ebay, delivering only 5L of coolant concentrate instead of 10L. I called them and they said that they'll try to get it to me tomorrow, fucking try? Depends on how you like your positive feedback I suppose. If that doesn't turn up I'll have to go get fleeced at Halfrauds.

 

I've also been having 'cluster headaches' the last two nights, a bit like a migraine and it bleedin hurts, I actually threw up last night and that's because I'm stupid and haven't been wearing breathing stuff when painting and cleaning. Wear your masks!

 

So, tomorrow is hopefully the big day, I can't* wait!

[paulplom]

Brilliant job. Good luck today.

[Crispian_J_Hotson]

Well, here it is folks with added comedy leak over reaction!

 

 

Yes, I left the bleed screw loose! I swapped the vacuum pipes for some blue silicon hose as it looks way betterer than the falling apart shit that was on there.

 

 

So far, so good and the missis has took it off to Tesco's as you do with a fuel drinking off roader. It's nice and smoove and pulls great but the rear brake discs have rotted up causing a bit of a rumble under braking and the exhaust is about to fall off so I'd better start saving... again.