New V8 (L322 Range Rover) Shyte Bought(ed) Coolerection Saturday Coming!

[Hawkeyethenoo]

Rain stops play today, for painting at least. Hope to get a little rubbing down done later. Glad I got some top coat on last night.

 

[Hawkeyethenoo]

Not much happened in the ?bodyshop today, except a little, flatting down, I think is the technical term. I now have some of Holts finest cataloy knife putty in stock and can see where it will be going alright. Bit damp still up here so will be delaying breaking the 'bondo' out just yet, until it dries out a little. ?

 

[Hawkeyethenoo]

De-rusting continues, other side isn't as bad/caught in time. New distration arrived in the form of the new 502 style wheels N tyres. ?

Fitted theses big heavy buggers today with the help of my apprentice/son Jake. He was massively hung-over and seemed to think he should be lying in bed drinking IRN BRU, not grappling with big heavy LR wheels.

Nonsense I retorted. You can sleep when your dead, get that wheel on! ?

Took it in turn to bleed the brakes as the wheel came off. Front left, front right, rear left, rear right. Brake fluid was skank so overdue a change.

Look at the shiny!

 

 

Brakes get a major upgrade on the V8. Rear discs are 310mm. Big Brembo calipers up front.  That shocker looks to be leaking though and it's going to need discs on the front pretty soon....

 

These trucks really do turn in so much better on 20s. The Dunlop F1 tyres that came with the wheels are dated 2013, but only half worn so should last quite a while, I hope as they're £200 a pop!

[Hawkeyethenoo]

Wee update. Nothing to report. It just works everytime and is generally a pleasure to own and drive. When the wheels were off, front discs were noted to be a bit on the thin side. Previous owner had fitted new pads, when really it needed both doing. He was obviously thinking of getting rid at that point, so can't blame him. I usually go for Tarox dics, but came over all tight and ended up with a set of discs N pads from https://www.mtecbrakes.com/

UK made, Norn Iron and £55 per wheel delivered, which is pretty good value for what are mahoosive 360mm discs and Mtec matching pads N shims. Discs are drilled and grooved too which is err, groovy.  Hope to get them fitted at the weekend. Should be a straighforward enough job, but will be calling on the apprentice to help with the heavy lifting. The discs weigh in at 12kg each.

Mtec threw in a tube of copper grease, gratis, which was nice of them, but this has no place anywhere near brakes and will be kept for other jobs more suitable of that type of thing. 🤓

[Hawkeyethenoo]

Second MOT in my ownership booked for 2nd March and the cars twelvth. I will be fitting new rear discs N pads at the weekend, have those in stock, let's hope my OB2 machine can conquer the leccy handbrake, it should.... That's not all though as I was told by MOT man last year, I'm putting the brake pipes, front, middle and rear as an advisory for this year, but they're fucked and will need replacing in full next year.  You have been warned! 💀

Well it's next year already! I've been quoted somewhere between £200 and £400 depending on how it goes and whether it also needs the flexi hoses doing which are only available from, gulp. Land Rover. Best not scrimp on brakes though as they're needed, sometimes.....

P.S. The MTEC front discs and pads are very really good indeed, bit more noise stopping from high speed due to the drilled and grooved'ness. But it's not excessive, just a quirk of the design.

[Hawkeyethenoo]

Still here, still doing the job. Have grown to love this car, spoils you for everything else, that's the problem with Range Rovers. Nothing really to report, had brake pipes replaced for the last MOT and that was it, then front N/S pipe split while parked and had to be recovered by the AA, thanks, from my work to the local indy, split was hidden underneath the wheel well cover so invisible to the human eye.

Claim was put into the AA for the £199 costs of breakdown repairs, they rejected the claim as the car had advisories for yes you guessed it, brake pipe corrosion, as do nearly all Scottish based motors, lol. We argued that those pipes were replaced and they were, but they still said no, claim regected pal. Fair enough as it wasn't a big bill after all and they did recover it. Nae hassle.

This weekend, went to check the front pads as the brakes have been squeeking and didn't seem happy. Found the outer top caliper pistons to be frozen seized on both sides. This was a big change from when the discs and pads were fitted 10k miles ago, bugger. That's torn it, I thought. 

Offending item and only 148,000 miles covered too....

Big lump of a thing and there's two of them obviously. I need the car back on the road by tonight and as it was it wasn't roadworthy, double bugger. Seal kits are about 40 quid per side and pistons if required would be more, and would need ordering in, much more including the Brembo tax. New calipers are £900 + tax each.  Reasuringly expensive, or, daylight robbery you choose.

Then I remembered I'd saw someone selling the same set of calipers refurbished on one of the ahem, other forums. Contact was made money changed hands in a Tesco car park, natch, and we had a way! 

 

 

 

[Hawkeyethenoo]

Last night I was mostly shopping for new to me brake calipers.

New insides without looking new, only bloody perfect!

So today it was off with the old on with the new. Tried to keep the brake fluid loss to the min, but still ended up with a puddle to clean up after, decided against clamping the pipe with mole grips, must get a proper pipe clamp thing, One man bleeder finished up the job easily added maybe 350ml to bring the res' up to the max, brakes are much improved even with the new Brembo pads from stock still bedding.  Will be towing that 1250kg ABI caravan mid-week so not a moment too soon. Love your brakes and they will love you back. Money spent on them is never money wasted. 

 

[Hawkeyethenoo]

Caliper securing bolts torque 110NM - you really don't want those coming loose and I will be ordered in a new sets of those bolts for when the discs need changed next, which they will. Wheel nut torque 140NM. You really don't want them coming loose either and I may well be changing those for new ones too as one of them has already lost it's shiny chrome cap.

Bonus caravan shot.

[Hawkeyethenoo]

Now have a spare set of calipers. Have put them on eBay as they are ripe for refurbishing, strange how's it's the same pistons on both calipers that have frozen/seized, the other 3 on both sides can be easily moved but those two are stuck hard with corrosion no doubt. Can't think of anything that gets more abuse than brake calipers...

[Hawkeyethenoo]

Further bonus, expect the fuel economy will rocket upwards as that N/S caliper was deffo binding, the outer pad was nearly worn out, while the inner pad was only half worn and the pads on the O/S caliper, were about equally half worn. Worth 2mpg?

Nerd bonus, single pad wear warning sensor is fitted to the inner pad on N/S caliper. That was carefully removed and reused. Yah!