Seems likely that the solid floor over the fuel tank without an access hatch for the pump may have been due to a proposed regulation or regulation interpretation thing floating around when the P38 was designed.
Having direct access to the fuel tank from inside the car, especially a plastic one, is the sort of thing that would be seriously frowned upon by more modern regulatory authorities so designing with the tank outside of a solid floor might well have been the safe option. With quick detachable connections and everything pretty accessible if the car is up on a ramp only draining the fuel would seem to be a major downside from the design staff viewpoint. Realistically its not as if things need frequent attention.
(Often wondered how Bristol got away with their layout. A whacking great alloy tank immediately behind the backseat with a (very) thin alloy sheet self tapper screwed on between tank and seat. Glass fibre parcel shelf above, no metal. Couple of simple straps to keep it in place. Seems to work but ... The strong steel panel is between the tank and the boot. Structurally essential because the chassis ends about there with the back axle and Watt links overhung out back.)
Clive
Now he says.
Got 8 left out of a 10 bag of non return valves with correct Land Rover part number on the shelf. Blue Britpart bag so how OEM or how good may be open to question but I can't see me using them all.
Easy to send but apparently just too thick for letter post.
Clive
Might be worth looking to see if its a "standard" section that can be got from the likes of COH Bains https://coh-baines.co.uk .
COH Bains are just up the road from me so if anyone has a sample I can easily take it in for them to look at.
These seals seem to be becoming an age out item.
Clive
Heat shrink quality seems to be somewhat variable these days. Back in my lab rat days, usually using whatever RS were selling, it would just shrink enough and excess heat did nothing noticeable. Quite practical to work it nicely over lumps
In the last couple or three years I've had it split almost immediately after its gotten down to size. Had one on an admittedly really lumpy joint that split before it came down onto the wire proper despite using the localised heating and aiming tricks to produce uneven shrinkage.
Clive
Allegedly simple heat or sunshine is pretty ineffective and slow at drying the foam. Was told that laying something on it to draw or wick the water out works better.
Certainly seems to be working on the 'orrible silver 1.1 Corsa sat on my drive awaiting disposal as a bereavement sale. Carpets were super squishy but after a couple of weeks of having newspaper laid over them most of the water seems to have been pulled out. Half a Daily Telegraph opened out and held down over the carpet with some suitable paving slab offcuts seems to work well. Certainly when changing the paper its about ready to fall apart.
Clive
Generally a straightforward job but best with three pairs of hands to keep the new headlining under control as you roll it onto the adhesive. Two of us managed mine but the result isn't perfect. I know exactly where we ran out of hands, probably due to inadequate technique!
Shifting all the old foam off the backing is "messy".
Crowborough to Dorking isn't far so if you want another pair of hands I can easily slide over for the day but mine has a solid roof so I've no experience of pulling a sunroof out. I imagine that, like everything P38, third times the charm.
Clive
Pity there isn't quite enough room to slot the spare wheel in one rear quarter almost tight up against the outer skin after removing the trim panel and shelf. Need to re-work the parcel shelf of course.
If memory serves me right I reckoned 2" more behind the seat would have been plenty!
Clive
Isn't there a design for an external spare wheel carrier on a hinged and quick detachable bracket floating around on the internet. As I recall it the originator said he was only going to fit the bracket and carry a spare wheel on longer trips as it might get in the way on shopping runs et al where full boot space isn't needed.
Assuming you go all modern and dump the CD player for a tablet or memory based music player I guess something could be crafted to fit in place of the rear quarter trim panels for storage. Doesn't seem impossible to make one side capable of holding the spare wheel upright as Gordon plans.
That two pronged strategy was more or less my plan when I looked into going LPG but I don't do the miles to justify it and nearest supplier is 12 miles away so it never got any further than concept sketches.
Clive
David
If its the 7" screen X702D-F Freestyle system its discontinued. Current version is X703D-F UK price seems to be £1,200 - £1,500 or thereabouts. The larger, 9" version X903D-F seems to be nearer £1,500 although one site suggests list is £2,000 all but a few pennies.
Yikes!
Presumably that includes gold plated oxygen free speaker wires.
But you do get 3 years of Tom Tom map updates.
Clive
Generally getting oil lines off an old alloy radiator / cooler is a pure crapshoot. Getting them off in re-useable condition even more so.
My AC pipes were still decent when I did my condenser a few years back but the unions were "stubborn" and I was very lucky to be able to refurbish one back to a condition where it could be re-used. Had to make a special re-rounding and thread straightening device to massage the alloy nut back into shape.
As everyone here knows my view is to do it all, do it once wherever possible and funds permit. Coolers and pipes. Generally all these things last for pretty similar mileages so when one goes the others aren't that far behind. What does them in is heating and cooling cycles. So mostly (too) short run, lots of starts & stops, folks like me don't get the component life that high mileage folk do.
Clive
This is the hydraulic splitter I got https://tools2udirectsw.com/us-pro-hydraulic-manual-ball-joint-splitter-12-ton-heavy-duty-kit-6029/ , found one for around £55 - £55 after a fair bit of searching. Its really too big but will wiggle in.
My hydraulic bearing & gear puller set is essentially the same as this one:-
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Hydraulic-Gear-Bearing-Puller-Set-4-6-8-3-2-Leg-Internal-External-Tool-Kit/283827953087?hash=item421576ddbf:g:jskAAOSwEpBefM0a .
Being 30 years older the case and arrangements are a little different but the contents look to be the same. £90 odd plus or minus a bit seems to be todays going price. I paid about double back then. However it seems you can pay over £1,000 for "same" thing. WTF! I used the ram, the long slotted thingy and my shop made bottom adapter to replicate the the official ball joint removal tool.
Having got fed up with not having a full range of pusher sleeves and plates I splashed out on one of the universal bearing sleeve & puller kits like this:-
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Universal-Press-Pull-Sleeve-Bush-Bearing-Removal-Silent-Bearing-Set-27-Pc/264087766603?hash=item3d7cdb864b:g:e1IAAOSw96ZcE5ve
for £70 odd and one of the 51 piece bearing, bushing, and seal driver kits for around £50 off E-Bay. No examples as all the E-Bay links are about 3 lines of gobbledegook long.
When I factor in the time spent looking for something or making up something I should have bought years ago.
Still having trouble coming too terms with being able to afford stuff at Chinee prices after lifetime of make do'n mend.
If someone has the dimensions it would be easy to make collet setting tool.
Maybe its time to look into sorting out loaner tool kits for forumites faced with "I'll only do it once" jobs like steering ball joints, radius arm bushes
et al where having the proper thing, or equivalent, makes for a fast and certain job.
Clive
New Hankook battery arrived lunch time yesterday. An hour and a half later it was installed "OK" (ish) with windows and radio re-set.
Took longer than it should have because I had to service the terminal connectors. Clearly just bashed on by the folk who installed the previous battery because the nuts were locked up so tight that I had to put the impact driver on to undo them whilst holding the connector in my biggest mole grips.
How hard is it to see how the things work? Battery terminal tapered, connector innards tapered, split in the connector with a male taper above the split so female tapered washer under the nut closes it all up tight. Objectively its lunatic over clever engineering but it does make for a really good contact. Poxy hammer mechanics.
Todays job is to re-shape the strap so it sits down properly over the battery. Its about 1/8" too narrow.
Installation apart I can't really complain about the "old tyre place special" battery. 7 years seems a good life although when it died it did so frighteningly quickly. Hopped in Friday morning for 12 mile run up to the hospital for a pre-op assessment. Got the spurious gearbox, abs et al fault warnings and an unenthusiastic start. Same warnings on start up to come home but a bit more starting oomph. Charger went on for all of Saturday at around 6 amps. Wires hot when I pulled it off to go to a Covid test appointment. No start, barely turned over.
Panic.
Dragged out the big, battered, Sealy Starter Charger box I rescued from a skip getting on for 40 years ago. Figured it would come in handy so £12 (ish) to replace the broken switch seemed reasonable. Didn't expect to wait that long for to use it for the first time but it did come in handy. Neighbour borrowed it 15 years ago so thats twice in 40 odd years. Worth the shelf space. Spun the big V8 over "just-like-that". Impressed. Off for the test making sure not to stop the engine. Unimpressed by the process!
Back home, parked up, opened the door and stopped the engine. Thought I'd try a restart. Not even enough power left to light up the fake faults correctly. All in all I figure I was a little lucky.
Clive
Like Marty I have the 21 piece "big G clamp" style set in the red case. I'm sure there are enough sleeves of appropriate sizes in that set. But I also have one of the big red boxes with 30 or so sleeves in it so can't be sure which ones I actually used.
Long 1/2" drive breaker bar did one right hand ball joint in a single session with moderate verbal encouragement. The other one that side took 3 days! Gave up after a couple of hours and just went out morning, after lunch and after tea to give it another heave. With a 3 ft cheater bar over the breaker bar handle. At around 11 o'clock on the third day after the sun had gotten round to warm things up it started to move. And promptly wound straight out with a spanner.
The G clamp thingy was now less than straight.
Which was about where I wised up and made the hydraulic ram adapter system. If I'd had the sense of a pot of clotted cream I'd have done that in the first place. I'd also have made something serious to get the hub out. Bashing on a reversed disk does work, but I broke one of my old pair saved specially for that job.
Be careful of the steering box angle when splitting balljoints. Some how when battling with mine I managed to over travel the steering box and jam open the relief valve on the turning left side. Ended up getting a second hand box as temporary measure. Really need to send my known lower mileage unit away for reconditioning. Probably due to trying wedge type separators on the steering box arm end when my screw'n lever one failed to shift. Ended up getting a hydraulic one from US Pro Tools. To big really but it managed the job. Albeit with some fluid leakage. Need to figure out how that breed of ram comes apart to refill it. Naturally all the other tapers had spilt with barely more than a harsh look from the lever splitter!
I didn't touch the alignment collet and all seems fine.
Clive
Dunno if the actual pump is the same but the sockets on the OEM ones are colour coded to match the plugs. I got a pattern set (Britpart I think) and these were also colour coded.
As I recall it just pulling the bumper forward, with appropriate supports, made room to do mine. Hate those wheel arch liner plug clip things!
Clive
Tie wraps can be OK if they are the right heavy duty type, not the ordinary electrical ones, and if you have the tool to pull them up properly. I have the tool and a small stash of good heavy duty ones as thats the only way to properly hold the rectangular chain gaiters of a rotary Norton final drive. But getting a few proper heavy duty tie wraps can be difficult. The tool will easily snap most ordinary electrical tie wraps. Even if not snapped it will generally pull them tighter than their ability to hold.
I really should get round to producing a carrier to take the standard import ram thread to go with the base unit I made. Easily loaned out if folk already have a ram, some 3/6 x 16 UNC studding and some suitable spacers to do the pushing and accommodate the removed ball joint. If I'd had brain engaged at the time I'd have measured the spacers I used so folk would know what to look for. Supposed to be an ex someone elses' scrapbox ram hanging around the workshop somewhere waiting for a re-fill, new seals or both. With that to hand producing a complete kit and caboodle would be little little extra effort. Add a few more bits and it could do the radius arm bushes too. But its at least 15 years since I saw that ram. Its around somewhere.
According to HerLadyship its against my religion to use the words "throw" and "away" in the same sentence for anything not obviously one time use.
When it comes to shifting the steering ball joints I'm now convinced that the only sensible approach is to arrange an equivalent to the proper land Rover factory tool using the short "10 ton" hydraulic rams found in the import hydraulic joint splitters and hefty puller sets. Naked rams can be got for around £30 via E-Bay, Amazon et al. The official Sykes Picavant spare is only 8 tons and three times the price!
The issue for normal folk is arranging a threaded adapter to fit the ram if you don't buy a full puller kit. Although the monster G clap thingy set managed two of mine, slowly and with much verbal encouragement and several hours of wait-a-bit with things under pressure, I had to fake up a hydraulic system for the stubborn pair. 20/20 hindsight says a leisurely day in the toybox making up a properly engineered version would have been much faster overall and saved me a fair bit of cash on not up to the job kit.
Clive
I think I used a breaker bar and either 6 point or wall drive socket on my carrier bolts the first time. But it was maybe 8 or 9 years ago so can't be sure. No issues since as I use appropriate amounts of coppaslip and a bit of loctite to seal things.
I also have one of the big Makita battery impact wrenches. Proper beast, more oomph than my old air ones or the mains electric job.
Pozidrive brake disk / drum retaining screws are the invention of Beezlebub!
Bought my first impact driver 49 years back to deal with them on the rear drum brakes of my first "car". The twist and belt with a hammer type. Still made I see and still a slippery plated body with grossly inadequate knurling to give not enough grip for oil hands. Every time I use mine I vow to fit a nice metal hexagonal sleeve so I can twist it easily. But always summatt else to do. Bit carrier sits nicely on the Makita anyway.
Clive
Generally things that are still in factory bolted up state seem to come undone quite easily however rough looking the bolt head might be. Virtually everything factory assembled on mine has come out with nice clean threads.
Impact wrench always seems kinder to corroded heads than heaving.
Separating closely fitted parts pushed together is a whole 'other matter tho'. Yes Mr Brake Disk I'm looking at you!
Meet Mr Slammy the club hammer for a short, but loud, relationship.
Clive
i'm no fan of ratchet torque wrenches, although I have a Norbar one. Never seem to have the feel that a classic Britool or similar has.
The one Morat linked to is very short for a high range torque wrench, barely 2 ft so will need a fair old heave.
Seems to be a good week for Britool on E-Bay. Choice of used ETV3000 around the £50 - £60 mark. Simple, robust and usefully longer. Push the square through and flip over to reverse.
My big one is a Britool HTV version, 3/4" drive and getting on for four ft long. Can be a cumbersome beast, light it isn't, but don't need to heave unless things are very serious.
Clive
The P38 is probably the easiest modern brake system to bleed.
RAVE makes it look a total faff but its basically painting by numbers.
Just follow the steps and it works, every time. If it doesn't you have a problem that needs sorting whilst the car is standing still and even then its about as straightforward as a full on power brake system with ABS can possibly be.
Concerning callipers my year 2000 4.0 HSE blew a seal on one front brake about a 18 months back. I said stuff it and threw a full set of new TRW callipers and flexi hoses on. Do it once, do it right being my motto. Extra cost over Britpart set, DIY new seal rebuild of the bad calliper or other economy options wasn't worth the potential hassle if things needed to be looked at again in short order.
So I have a set of 85,000 or so mile old original callipers sitting around in the "it might be handy" box that only need new seals and new bleed nipples to be good to go. I'd give them a quick trip through the sandblaster and a paint job too if I were ever to use them again. In all honesty they are just taking up space and ought to go to a new home.
Clive