Member Since: 12 Feb 2021
Location: Mold
Posts: 196
Hello all!
I hope you all had a great Christmas and will have a good New Year.
Dave, you have been busy. I don't envy you having to roll around on the floor to fix the car. Good to hear you achieved your goal and the mission was successful but where's the pics?
I've not been up to much recently, Disco seems to be behaving, I will be changing one of the rear parking sensors but apart from that no spannering required. I bought a cheap smoke tester and had a play with it. I was interested to see if there were any induction leaks but couldn't find any. I did identify a very small amount of leakage on the oil separator seals but this doesn't cause any ill effect so I'll leave that for now.
MOT is not far away but I'm not bothered by that so I suppose the only other thing will be a good clean followed by machine polishing. In other news I bought some Car Pro Perl to try on the plastics. So far I have only applied under the bonnet but what a difference, all the plastic covers look new. I will attack the exterior plastic in due course and will post pics of the results.
Thank you Dave for the update and to you and everybody else who watches this thread I wish you a happy and successful 2023. Good health, good luck and happy motoring!
Cheers
30th Dec 2022 10:15 am
DaveCav
Member Since: 05 Jun 2021
Location: Luton
Posts: 44
Hi Kev
Good to hear all is well and minimal repairs on yours- great news
I tried 4 times to upload pics but each time it failed!
30th Dec 2022 10:32 am
classic kev
Member Since: 12 Feb 2021
Location: Mold
Posts: 196
I can't believe another year has already passed, I don't know where the time goes, it just flies by. Anyway, took the blue bus for test today and no issues so no imminent spannering required.
That said I am mindful that I should probably swap out the rear knuckle bushes so I ordered some from Advanced Factors. Super fast delivery so when the weather gets a bit warmer I'll have a crack at it. Might do a quick EPB service while I'm about it too.
Cheers!
27th Jan 2023 11:57 am
Ali4390
Member Since: 18 Jun 2021
Location: Derby
Posts: 43
Hi Kev, you've been quite on here. Hope the Discovery is still in your ownership.
4th Apr 2023 9:31 am
classic kev
Member Since: 12 Feb 2021
Location: Mold
Posts: 196
Hi Ali, don't worry the big blue bus is still with me, I just haven't had anything to fix (that's cursed it!).
The Disco has been well used. I took it down South and it proved itself in some pretty poor weather and on the way home it didn't miss a beat in the snow. Probably did 500ish miles in a couple of days and it just keeps on rolling. Mind you, it's not exactly a high miler so I think the work I have done so far has dealt with the main problems and I am properly pleased with it.
It's been to Sheffield a couple of times and all in all it is behaving itself. It does need a good clean though but other commitments and that work thing are rather in the way.
I am thinking about replacing the rear knuckle bushes/bearing things but there is no rush on that. The lacquer on the bonnet is starting to bubble and peel which is frustrating, I may have to send it to a body shop to have the bonnet flatted back and re-lacquered if such a thing is possible.
Anyway, thanks for your interest, I hope all is good with you.
Cheers.
5th Apr 2023 8:16 am
classic kev
Member Since: 12 Feb 2021
Location: Mold
Posts: 196
Hello again!
It's been a while since I posted, not much has been needed. Still haven't looked at the rear knuckle bushes but the lacquer peel is now a problem. The bonnet isn't too bad just a couple of isolated spots but the roof.....
I am working on a strategy to attempt a "repair". I know the best thing is to respray the roof but I think I'll try a localised repair first and see how long that lasts. Who knows, it might even work. I did quite successfully improve a couple of spots on the bonnet, I know the're not perfect but the casual observer doesn't notice them and the peel hasn't spread (yet!) from where I touched up the lacquer (or clear coat if you prefer).
Anyway, that's what's on the cards. When I've had at it I'll post the results, not sure how it will look, I am not the best at painting but you know how it is, you have to try.
Cheers.
12th Jul 2023 10:19 am
classic kev
Member Since: 12 Feb 2021
Location: Mold
Posts: 196
Howdy folks!
Ever got in to a job and wished you hadn't? My little paint repair has turned in to one of those
Anyway, here's the story so far. I have been keeping an eye on peeling lacquer, the back part of the roof was by far the worst area but also, some peeling was taking hold on the bonnet.
I did a couple of very amateur repairs to a couple of spots on the bonnet and they were not too bad but more recently, there are more and more small bits of peeling clear coat. The roof was at a point I wasn't able to just ignore it any more, my earlier post shows what's going on.
So I thought I would have a crack at a repair. I'm no painter but I thought it was worth a go.
First thing to do was give the Disco a quick wash.
Next I flatted the area I wanted to "fix", so 800 grit and some clay lube in hand
That was looking quite good, so I thought I would progress with some finer wet and dry and gave the area a quick rub down with 1200 grit
I suspected there has been a paint repair on the roof before, rubbing down highlighted the blend line
I was fairly happy at this point and gave the prepared paint a wipe down with some isopropanol.
Then I masked up.
Now at this point I wasn't sure what was best. Do I just put some 2k lacquer on it or should I give it a mist of paint? I decided I would lay some paint down.
I was quite happy with that, the colour match is good and the area looked quite uniform. I gave the paint a quick flat with some 2000grit then a quick wipe with IPA then the first coat of 2k clear. Let that flash then another light coat. I left it there overnight.
This morning, I flatted the lacquer with 2000 grit and applied 2 more fine coats. I have to say, once flatted and polished I think it will be quite good.
BUT....
After taking off the masking and putting a strong light on the roof it is very clear the roof has been painted (and not very well). There is a mismatch in the colour and the lacquer is noticeably thin and I suspect this is why the peeling problem is where it is. Have a look, see what I mean?
Now looking at the front part of the roof, you can see the paint match is near perfect, once polished I think it will blend in really well.
I can't very well leave it as it is. I know it's on the roof and nobody will see it but I know it's there and it needs sorting. So..... it looks like I'm going to have to paint the whole of the back part of the roof which I hadn't counted on. Not sure I've got enough paint but I suppose those are the breaks.
I also decided to have a go at some patch repairs on the bonnet. A highly risky proposition but I went for it anyway. Not sure how it will finish up once i have flatted back and polished the spot repairs but I'll let you know.
Happy motoring!
22nd Jul 2023 10:55 am
classic kev
Member Since: 12 Feb 2021
Location: Mold
Posts: 196
So how did it turn out?
Overall I would say not as well as I hoped but nowhere near as bad as it could have been.
Starting with the roof, the bit I painted has some orange peel but mostly I think it is alright. After some polishing this morning I was fairly happy, I might give it some more next week when the lacquer has hardened a bit more. The other side of the roof I decided to just spot spray the peeling lacquer to hopefully keep it from spreading too much. After a very quick hit with the polisher it doesn't look too horrendous and nobody really looks at the roof anyway. I am resigned to the fact the roof will need repainting properly.
The blend line is not what I was aiming for, I think I might have gone a bit early with polishing and I have burn through. I'll have another go with the polisher but might end up having to give it a mist of lacquer.
The bonnet is a bit of a mess. The peeling is not likely to stop. I have done what I can with the main areas, essentially I have encapsulated the flaking areas. After some machine polishing this morning I would say not the best but an improvement over the peeling lacquer.
The rest of the bonnet is on borrowed time, you can see the numerous small stone chips and flaked off lacquer although some local touching in has improved it marginally.
Lastly, the other side of the roof. You can see the spot spraying of clear, there is one bit I missed, I'll get that another time. You can also see where the roof had been previously sprayed by the blend line (it's better than mine!).
I'm glad I had a go at it, there wasn't really anything to lose. Hopefully it will get through the winter and I can consider getting the roof and bonnet painted properly next year. I also suspect the paint colour has a lot do with how successful spot repairs are. Lugano teal is, I suspect one of those colours that is challenging. Anyway, there it is, my attempt to repair some peeling lacquer.
Cheers.
23rd Jul 2023 12:49 pm
classic kev
Member Since: 12 Feb 2021
Location: Mold
Posts: 196
Hello, hello, hello!
I hope you all had a good Christmas and have a great 2024.
Anyway, MOT time is looming again so as it was rather wet and miserable today I thought I would have a poke around to see if anything needs doing.
Mostly it is all rather dull, the big blue bus seems pretty good. A check with the IID showed no faults. I checked the lights, they all work. I checked the wipers and washers, they work too. I looked under it, no evidence of leaks, nothing hanging off, when I drive it there are no squeaks, rattles or bangs so I was feeling pretty chuffed.
Then I remembered I was thinking there was a bit of play in the off side upper rear knuckle bearing. I decided to jack the car up and give the wheels a wobble to see what's what.
Near side was perfect, no play when rocking the wheel, so no bearing problems, the suspension arms and bushes appear good so nothing to do there. The offside however was a different story.
I grabbed the wheel top and bottom and gave it a wiggle - it moved. Mmmmm....... not sure about that so I grabbed it at the 3 and 9 o'clock positions and gave it another wiggle - nothing. Unlikely to be a wheel bearing then. I was convinced it was the top knuckle bearing but I couldn't see with the wheel on and couldn't get the leverage without it what a PITA.
I decided I should make up some sort of lever to attach to the hub, so I found some bits of scrap and welded blobs of metal together and hey presto a couple of levers!
Click image to enlarge
Click image to enlarge
I took the wheel off, attached said levers and rocked the hub but the problem is not the top knuckle bearing, I saw the top rear arm bush moving. That's not good. I remembered when I did the top rear arms I couldn't get on that bolt with anything useful to put a lot of torque on it and used the double spanner approach. The bolt had been tight at the time but it was now rather slack.
The bolt head is 21mm but a 13/16 socket or spanner fits nicely. You can't get in there with a socket and ratchet or torque wrench unless you want to release the body mounts or do who knows what to get the clearance to get in there. I get a spanner on the bolt and nip it up, then I go double spanner again but I wasn't happy it was tight enough. I messed about for a bit trying to come up with some sort of plan for making it a bit tighter.
In the end I decided to sacrifice a random 13/16 socket I had. So..... I grabbed another piece of old galvanised steel pipe, ground a couple of scalops in the end, lined up the socket and welded it in place.
Click image to enlarge
Not my best welding but hey, I only use gasless, it was cold and it was breezy, it is a bit Frankenstein but it seems to work.
Click image to enlarge
I wiggled the socket in place and gave a shove, the bolt turned. I faffed about a bit more using spanners and bits of pipe as levers and managed to get my socket on again for another bit of twist and now the bolt head is certainly very tight but is now in that exact position where I can't now get anything on to it to tighten it any more - hey ho!
Click image to enlarge
Click image to enlarge
While I was in there I had a look at the metal brake pipes on the arm, they looked alright, some slight surface corrosion is peeking through so I suppose that job will need doing within the next couple of years apart from that it all looked good.
Click image to enlarge
Click image to enlarge
I also decided while the wheel was off to replace the metal hook that supports the parking brake cable. By no means a difficult job but as with all things satisfying when done knowing you have made something better than it was.
Click image to enlarge
Click image to enlarge
Click image to enlarge
Yes, I did check the upper rear arm bolt on the other side, just in case and it was fine, still tight, no movement or play and I can only think the difference was that on the nearside you're pulling down to tighten so get a bit more weight behind it compared to the other side. Anyway, I decided I would also mark both bolts so I can see if they get slack again.
Click image to enlarge
Click image to enlarge
So that's about it for now, I hope you all have similarly little to do with your D3's especially at this time of year when you really want the assurance of four wheel drive. Cheers, Happy New Year!
30th Dec 2023 8:01 pm
classic kev
Member Since: 12 Feb 2021
Location: Mold
Posts: 196
It's MOT conspiracy time again!
Test is due within the next week or so and I was feeling smug not having any issues and all looking good. Serves me right! Just as I was going to book a test it starts playing up. It had been sat for a few days while we had that cold snap and when I fired it up there were clouds of smoke, the idle was rough and it wasn't happy but no warning lights. It shuddered for a few seconds then the idle settled down.
No warnings so just put it down to it being cold. Gave it a jet wash then I see the engine light come on, no power and it is having a hissy fit. I plugged it in and it is the bloody EGR valves again!
After some choice language I reconsidered the situation. The fault code points to the right hand side EGR valve which was replaced (twice) and eventually I reinstalled the original valve and it has now finally given up so despite the frustration I can't complain too much.
After much soul searching I have decided to buy 2 new Valeo EGR valves; I found a couple of new ones on ebay, advertised as genuine and will save a bit of money against retail prices so I will wait and see what comes in the post. Looks like I'm going to be doing EGR valves again at the weekend.
On top of all of that I've just renewed the insurance and taxed it so it has been a very expensive January! The vehicle tax is, as so many of us know, scandalous, but it is what it is! insurance isn't too bad but I'll stop there before I go off on one.
Cheers.
25th Jan 2024 11:41 am
classic kev
Member Since: 12 Feb 2021
Location: Mold
Posts: 196
Both EGR valves replaced!
What a nightmare. I have done both valves before but this time around if it could go wrong it did, it took forever. The main problem was the left hand side, I just couldn't get the right combination of extensions and adapters to get on that pesky rear screw that holds the valve to the cooler. After I don't know how long (hours) I managed to get the thing off but then I struggled to put the same screw back in.
In the end I cheated.... I grabbed a couple of long M6 set screws and cut them down a little then threaded them through the back of the valve and secured to the cooler with hex nuts, so much easier.
Along the way I also managed to drop just about everything, more than once. On the plus side, after a bit of magnet fishing to retrieve a spanner (or two!) I found that I wasn't the first to loose a spanner in to the bowels of the engine; I found a nice 8mm ratchet spanner, no idea how long it has been there, I've owned the car for a couple of years now and I know it wasn't mine.
Anyway, I summoned the strength to go straight in to the right hand EGR, relatively, it was a breeze and pretty quick too, partly because access is a bit better but also because when I was in there last I swapped out the torx head screws for hex head, straight in no problems valve changed in record time.
Threw the battery boxes back in, connected up the batteries tidied up the bewildering array of tools I had scattered around the engine bay and then fired it up. No warnings and a huge improvement in power. I don't think the big blue bus has ever felt so quick, certainly a marked improvement, I just hope it will last.
FWIW I used Valeo EGR valves this time around. I sourced them on ebay seeing a healthy saving on the retail cost and yes the vales are proper genuine Valeo not knock off copies.
I think if I have an more EGR related issues I will blank them for sure, there is just no way I fancy going through the marathon of changing that near side again.
Anyway, it is done. Sorry no pics, was way to annoyed to stop for photos, I'm still cursing this morning. 'nuf said!
29th Jan 2024 9:38 am
classic kev
Member Since: 12 Feb 2021
Location: Mold
Posts: 196
It was MOT day today.
As ever, the Land Rover wants to play games and world joined in on the conspiracy.
I gave it a quick jet wash and then thought it might be a good idea to get some more diesel. Jumped in, sparked it up.... RED light! Airbag.
Not sure what that's about.... turned off, turned on, still there. I don't believe it, less than an hour before test and it starts throwing faults, last week it was EGR valves. Harsh language was used.
Anyway, I thought it was most likely the seat belt pre-tensioner wiring under the drivers seat, it wouldn't be the first time but also, I replaced the rotary coupler on the steering wheel a little while ago. Plugged in the GAP IID, sure enough, seat belt pre-tensioner. Cleared the fault, light back on, cleared again, light back on.
So, I'm thinking I hope I don't have to cancel the test for a warning light, that would just take the biscuit after battling with the EGR valves. I tuned it off, raised the seat, jiggled the wires for the pre-tensioner, lowered the seat, pushed it right back and pulled it forward then set it where I want it. Ignition on, clear faults again, switch off then spark it up. NO LIGHT! What a faff.
Then, I drive down the road to get fuel. The forecourt is empty and then I was told there was a power issue so no fuel available. I'm tight on time, low on fuel and having a distinctly challenging afternoon.
I drove to the test centre and waited. All is good, passed test, no advisories (as I expected of course!).
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