It's probably just been rolled in glitter by some "classic car restorer" type ;)

Mine looked a lot worse than that and was still working despite the crownwheel bearings having partially turned into shrapnel and caused much more damage than those chips. If you clean it all out to get rid of the broken bits and it still sounds OK - I don't see there being a problem.
On the other hand, a replacement is £280 from Ashcrofts....

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/RANGE-ROVER-4-6-VOGUE-P38-AUTO-2000-X-/252631784193?_trksid=p2141725.m3641.l6368
looks what back at £2750 BIN!

Everyone wants a shiny sump! don't they?

Martyuk wrote:

I've got a heater box here which I'll be freeing up the flaps on - so when I'm back and we work out when you can come down for me to fit the Audi heater core, I'll get that prepped with the new core, and then it will just be a case of swapping it out for the box which is in there..

I have spare blend motors, and the likes aswell, so it will be able to sort out whatever is going on.. but it could be a case of the motor stalling because the flaps are stuck, and with a freer heater box in there it might just all work as it should...

No doubt after I get back, I'll be itching to get stuck into Range Rovers again..

Awesome :) Thanks Marty! I'm sure we'll be ready for a toasty range rover by the time you get back. Thank God you fixed the heated seats, they're going to be a real necessity after all.

Well exactly, but they didn't want to hear about it. :shrug:
I think the boss wanted the work but the guy who looked it up online was less keen :)

duh.. yurp.
I guess that could have been related :)

Sloth wrote:

simply opening a door - this will stop it raising or lowering itself.

I can see why you would think so....
Marty and I did a classic Hollywood double-take when mine gracefully lowered itself while the FL door was open :) But hey, what's another door latch between friends?

I'm going to need new vent doors/motors for at least one motor and I'm starting to wonder if it's worth just changing the whole damn lot. Hopefully the only changes needed under the bonnet will to un-bypass the Heater Matrix. Hopefully....

My only question now is: If coolant has corrosion inhibitors, do I have to worry about the floors rotting out?

gordonjcp wrote:

Still, I'll have at least 2 more engines to work on once this one is done for the other 2 RR's at the workshop... I probably won't do full build threads on them, but I can send you photos of shiny engine parts direct to your inbox.. maybe I could set up a subscription service for it...

Pay-per-view streaming video. Hmm, revenue stream for the site... :-D

Good idea! can I come along when you visit some reference sites? :)

The gasket test came back OK :) No exhaust gases in the coolant \o/
New rad tomorrow and the heater matrix will be bypassed as long as I sign a disclaimer (whut?) in case I crash due to a misted screen.
I explained that it's a temporary fix until I can see a specialist who does Audi style heater matrices ;)
So @martyuk I hope your work trip goes well and you come back dreaming of Range Rovers.

MMmmmmmm shiny shiny engine parts with lovely machining and all slathered in lube...
I'm sorry, I think I just....
Bye!

I knew I should have taken a photo, it's gone now - but we topped out at 1 whole degree C today :/
(and sleet)

Thanks Orangebean!
I've caved, there's no way I'm going to DIY this in the snow. Also I can get the coolant sniffed first to eliminate the headgaskets. I'm hoping this was my gypsy's warning because it behaved perfectly after I stuck 4 litres* of water in it :O The priority here is get a water/pressure tight cooling circuit and then we'll have to revisit the heating. Thank God the windscreen still does the demist thing.

I'd better get the oil changed at the same time, I've been topping up with 10/40. FFS.

*Yes 4 litres... I really should have learnt by now that my wife has many excellent qualities but she's totally incapable of looking under a bonnet on a regular basis :/

I think that's been on the market for a while, there was one that colour knocking around when I bought mine, but I doubt there are two of them!

I had the same problem when I limped to a local Indy. They didn't have a press that was up to the job and would only swap the whole hub.
IIRC I got this one http://www.island-4x4.co.uk/front-assy-allmakes-ftc3226g-p-27883.html

More fun!
I came home late from work and noticed a familar vehicle parked up at the entrance to the village. Uh oh. The Range Rover has decided to release its coolant, not sure if it's all coming from the rad, but the slam panel had a good coating of coolant and the little plastic stub for the expansion bottle is still leaking. My Wife parked it up within a hundred metres or so of noticing the red light come up on the dash (She's not sure if it was temp or level, no beep) and the temp gauge was in the red. She had checked it a mile before hand at it was fine.
So, hoping it hasn't popped a head gasket....
I'm going bypass the leaking heater core and replace the radiator. I've had good results with Nissens in the past, are there any specific recommendations for P38s?

@Marty - guess it wouldn't have reached you anyway!!

Damn, 20/50? how loose are these engines?

I'm thinking about this: http://www.e30zone.net/e30zonewiki/index.php/Main_Page
It started out really small but has grown over the years.
I miss my E30 :( I think I need to scratch that itch again sometime!

Dave, I do agree with you. A wiki just makes the editing/controlling easier. You can also separate the moderator permissions from the wiki editing permissions so you don't have to have the same "team" doing both jobs - not a problem right now of course but something for the future perhaps.