Someone Else's Problem: 1994 Land Rover Discovery ES

[Matt2000]

Well I'd be able to knock some money off the asking price for an FG member, currently on ebay for ?1750 but an offer of ?1500 would get it. It does need small amounts of work though.

Edit: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/160685095549?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649

 

[KaJuN]

Damn now I want it! My coworker/friend is doing that same sort of repair work on his Series so that should be a super easy fix.

PM sent.

 

[captain_70s]

Sounds like a bargain for a tidy Series III sir!

 

[Matt2000]

Damn now I want it! My coworker/friend is doing that same sort of repair work on his Series so that should be a super easy fix.

PM sent.

Superb, replied to the PM before reading this by the way.

So what you said spurred me on to get the plastic sorted, at least for now. I used trim wax, sort of like the old 'Back To Black' stuff that I think Danny Baker used to advertise...

Here are the before & after shots!

Before:

After:

I know it'll wash off but it looks good in the short term, I'll probably get some satin black paint after winter.

I also found out today that I need a new reverse light switch, it's just worn out. ?8 on ebay, so I'll get one of those ordered at some point.

 

[Matt2000]

Electrics update! Instrument lights all working!

It turned out that someone had unplugged one of the speedometer rear bulbs and plugged it back in the wrong place, a blanked off warning light that had no power. I had noticed before that the right side of the speedo wasn't lit up but as it was the 110-130mph section I thought I'll never need it.

It didn't take long (surprisingly) to put 2 and 2 together and plug the bulb back in where it belongs, and hey presto! Lights!

Amazingly that means that all electrics bar one electric window switch are now working... to a fashion. Next I'll be spending money on tyres though, one of the current tyres is quite low and even a new one of the same size and tread won't be good enough for playing.

How about these then?

 

[KaJuN]

Are you going to be running with two sets of boots like you did with the Series? That tyre you're looking at almost seems tame enough to keep on at all times.

 

[Matt2000]

Are you going to be running with two sets of boots like you did with the Series? That tyre you're looking at almost seems tame enough to keep on at all times.

Still not decided yet, recommendations have been to get the new tyres on steel wheels then keep these for any long journeys (like the Ringmeet or whatever), but that adds about ?150 on to the purchase price so I'm not sure yet. These should be fine to keep on all the time, and the miles I do won't wear them out any time soon.

 

[KaJuN]

Don't worry about the long trip to the Ringmeet; you can ride along with me in the MG. We can even arrive there with the top down and it will be totally not gay because we won't be in an MX-5.

 

[Davetouch]

^ Definitely not gay. Its totally not gay because you're not being gay, just fabulous.

 

[Hbriz]

"Are there any fighter jets around here?"

 

[Matt2000]

The Disco has a new look.

Not the best photos I know, but by the time I arrived the sun had disappeared. I have to say I'm over the moon with these tyres, with only a few niggles.

First, the suppliers only gave me 15 wheel nuts instead of 16 to go with the 5 lock nuts (one for the spare) so I've had to use a second lock nut on one wheel. The second problem is a knock on, there is now wheel wobble at 60mph, presumably because the lock nuts are considerably heavier than the standard nuts. Third is the fact that the speedometer, while being out as much as I expected, is out enough to make working out the speed a bit tricky. It's within 2mph but I'll just keep below the limit I think.

Here's how I got to this stage today:
[video=youtube;8QMN-EbYl_k]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8QMN-EbYl_k[/video]

 

[Cobol74]

Looks good - well done, nice project.

 

[Der Stig]

Excellent. Now bathe in mud, repeat as needed

 

[JipJopJones]

Wow, that looks really burly. So cool. I love it.

 

[KaJuN]

Glad to see neither of us are waiting to dive into the fun. The Disco is looking downright awesome already!

 

[Matt2000]

I'm now official into the world of diesel tuning, albeit at the lowest level.

The new tyres have knocked the performance a bit so I've been reading guides on tuning the VE injection pump. The easiest adjustment is the stop screw on the boost compensator, so I followed the guide and gave myself a slightly larger shot of fuel at low boost. Results are good, you can feel and hear the extra power without any black smoke (which I suppose means I could go further).

However it hasn't helped with my other issue. With these tyres 70mph now sits out of the power band in 5th so if you reach any kind of incline on the motorway the speed starts to drop, even at full throttle. Get above 75mph and it wants to go. I may need to look at fitting Defender differentials at some point but I don't do many motorway miles at the moment so I'll deal with it in the spring.

I couldn't resist a bit of light off roading yesterday while testing the adjustment, there's a small 'green lane' a few miles away that was perfect for a nice gentle drive in 2nd-low at idle. There's mud up the side and on the tyres too which is always good.

 

[JipJopJones]

I wish we had "green lanes" around here. It really sucks having to drive 45mins or more just to go wheeling. There used to be a small spot underneath a bridge on the north shore that you could go, but it closed off now and it wasn't ever that great.

 

[Matt2000]

Minor Christmas Eve update:

Tried to free up the seemingly seized centre diff. lock today ready for some off road fun next week, failed, broke a chunk of brittle plastic off the centre console. Fortunately it's barely visible and they're not too difficult to find.

My failure combined with the fact that I'm missing a bump stop, have no underbody protection at all fitted, no front recovery points and my plough (drop plate and tow bar) on the back mean I'll be sticking to very easy routes at the off road site next week.

 

[KaJuN]

So does that mean I should bring my tow strap to pull you out?

 

[Matt2000]

So does that mean I should bring my tow strap to pull you out?

I've got my own somewhere but I'm hoping it won't come to that, not least because you shouldn't really put a recovery rope on the tow ball. Hence the tow pin on the Series.