There's a familiar view, I spent most of the weekend looking at that very same thing. A few months ago I replaced the heater matrix on Nigelbb's car but his carpet still seemed to be wet so he dropped it off so I could have another look and see if I'd cocked up somewhere. I ended up taking the whole lot out so I could have a good look and then pressurised the cooling system up to 20 psi so I could watch for any coolant coming out. Pressurising it showed that the reservoir pressure cap was leaking but nothing coming out of the O rings or matrix so it all went back together again. On that, someone had been in there before and had cut the duct as high up as it can be seen looking through the hole so only the lower part has to be pulled out. Even then, due to the shape of it, it still needs a good tug to get it out although it slots straight back in when you come to put it together. Having found no signs of a coolant leak and the leaking cap would explain why he was losing coolant, took the trims off so I could lift the carpet and found it sodden with water but clear water not coolant. Seems his plenum was leaking rainwater in adding to the coolant that was already there.
Taking the instrument panel out will let you see things a bit better but doesn't help with removing anything so while some will not approve and it does seem like a bodge, I'd say cut the duct up around the blend motor level. Just be careful that you don't nick the alloy pipes behind it or you'll have an even bigger coolant leak. When it goes back together you can use duct tape for its designed purpose to join it back together and seal where you cut it. I can see where you've drilled the hole to get at the hidden screw but to get on the screw absolutely perpendicular you'll need to put the hole in the side panel to the left and slightly higher of the hole you've already got. The wayback link shows where someone put two overlapping round holes but I normally use a cutting disc on an angle grinder to put a diamond shaped hole there.
When you put the O rings back, get them in place then start to do the screw up. Once it starts to do something, give the pipes a wiggle to make sure they are fully home before tightening it fully. Once you have changed the O rings, start the car up and let it run up to temperature so you can confirm it isn't leaking before putting everything else back in.
I've just been and filled up at Northmead in Peterborough (and did yesterday, and likely to be doing again tomorrow too!) at 64.9 ppl which I reckon looking at Autogas.app makes it one of the cheapest in the country.
It's LPG (Propane) which is a waste product from producing petrol so shouldn't be affected (although it will no doubt be used as another excuse to put the price up). It varies in price between 50 and 70% of the petrol price so even when it goes up it's still cheaper than running on petrol. UK only takes 8% of it's natural gas from Russia anyway, pipelines run into mainland Europe but there's a bit of water between us and there.
Also, dip the tip of the screwdriver in valve grinding paste so there is much less chance of it riding out and damaging the screw head.
On that video he puts gloop on the O rings but RAVE says to just dip them in antifreeze. I don't suppose it makes much difference until someone comes to try to change them in a few years time.
Absolutely correct, heaving on the hoses under the bonnet will almost certainly cause the, already hardened, O rings to crack and start to leak. The clamp doesn't clamp them tight but holds them in place while allowing a small amount of movement so the flexibility of the O rings keeps the seal. I changed mine when I first got the car and they aren't leaking nearly 12 years later so you'll get more than a couple of months.
At the age it's almost certainly time for a new pair of O rings. Only get the genuine LR ones, for the sake of the minimal extra cost it isn't worth saving a couple of quid. You'll need a long (300mm) number 2 pozidrive screwdriver. It isn't difficult just fiddly, see https://web.archive.org/web/20180530141620/http://www.rangerovers.net/repairdetails/heateroring.html.
Heater cores tend to only fail after someone has changed the O rings and got brutal with the screw and cracked the matrix. Yes, matrix bypass is just linking the in and out under the bonnet and leaving the pipes through the bulkhead open.
Biggest problem with leaving it dripping is the inch of foam under the carpets. That soaks up the coolant and it just stays there, taking the carpet out to dry it out isn't a fun job.
Door outstation. Everything on the door goes via that so if it dies, nothing on the door will work. Both are fed from the same fuses and don't go via the connections behind the kick panel. Easiest check is to swap it for the one on the passenger door and if the fault moves that is definitely the problem.
I quite like it. Is the BeCM happy and not giving any bulb blown messages?
No, not the horrid little bits of plastic with a springy plate on them that ping out and disappear when you take the sunshade out. He's talking about the washer type clips that go on the pins on either side. I normally call them C clips as they are like a washer but with a bit missing.
Active low means they are grounded, so presumably if you were to ground both it would switch on.
Take the drivers side panel off the centre console and have a look. If it's coming from the O rings, a relativity simple and quick job, if it's coming from the bottom of the vent, it's a dash out job.
Or fit the glass and shove it down into the hole. Satisfactory operation of the sunroof isn't an MoT item......
Thinking about it, when we first put the glass with the new seal into the Classic, we had the same problem. We cured it by polishing the opening with wax polish and putting a smear of something, either Vaseline or silicone grease I don't remember, on the back edge of the seal on the glass so it would slide easier.
Afraid I can't measure mine, it's buried on my mates garage, or was last time I saw it. We were going to put it on his Classic that he was restoring to save him having to find a new seal, only to find that while it was exactly the same size, it was more curved than the Classic one. David is considerably more organised than me so will probably going to be able to lay his hands on it immediately.
I'll admit when I changed the complete cassette on the Ascot, I fitted it complete with the glass in place. Maybe fitting the glass, dropping it and seeing if it will adjust itself to the correct position?
Most reliable one is autogas.app
There's an Android app for it too the only downside is it is always a couple of days out of date. The previous one was www.filllpg.co.uk, which still works but is horrendously slow, was updated by users instantly whereas autogas.app has any updates checked and confirmed before it is updated.
I don't think I could ever have afforded to do the mileage I do if I was running on petrol......
Hi Dave, we are all a bit older than some young kids don't have the aptitude to work on cars and you need to be able to do that if you own a P38 and don't have bottomless pockets. Simon, on here as LPGC, is a full time LPG installer and one of the few I would trust to do the job right. He's just off the A1 near Doncaster so may be a fair way from you but he will do it properly. See http://www.lpgc.co.uk/ for his contact details.
I have as well but how a bit of glass can be transported in one piece to the Scottish highlands is the difficult part.
What was the problem with the EAS?
But who in their right mind would want to swap a P38 for a Velar?
Not quite Triggers broom, still got the original chassis, body, engine, gearbox, transfer case, rear axle, interior and quite a few bits that haven't been replaced because I've worn them out or been refurbed. Even 3 of the wheel bearings are the originals.....