Hi, just a quick question - is this item with the two lenses the outside temperature sensor ? I have only just noticed it !!!!

It is in the lower grille under the front bumper.

Pierre3.

Hi, I wonder whether anyone can recommend somewhere I can get the air con repaired, whether north or south of the Scottish border ?

I am taking Mr. P38 to Edinburgh at the end of June, and I have time to spare so I would really like to find someone, or somewhere, that could sort out the air flaps and all the other possibilities that cause the text book to appear on the display.

I just don't think that I can tackle taking all the parts of the dashboard out, or digging into the back of the centre console, and I would like to get someone who knows how to do to sort out the problem. I am prepared to leave the vehicle for a day ot two if there is somewhere close to the premises to stay.

I read that some people have fitted parts out of Audi's to fix the problem, but I don't mind how it would be done once it works !! I tried fitting new filters in the Plenum department, but it didn't make any difference. I replaced the plenum filter mesh and the pollen filters, and hoovered out all the leaves and junk, there wasn't very much to be honest, and a replacement Hevac panel has been fitted, but the text book is still showing.

I would prefer if I could find somewhere reasonably near Edinburgh but the most important thing would be someone who can do the job properly, in one go. I don't want to have more problems later because something was not refitted correctly, or something was left out 😅.

Maybe someone can help ?

Pierre3.

Hi, I was wondering where is the OBD port in a UK RHD 2001 P38 ? I have been looking on the internet and there seems to be some confusion. Some sites say that it is under a large trim panel, under the steering wheel, and other say that it is somewhere under the passenger side trim panel under the glove box. Any help would be appreciated.

Also, I found what appears to be a 9 pin serial plug connection sitting behind the passenger side headlight, and I wonder whether anyone might know what it is for. Could it be an extension to the original OBD port, for access from the engine bay ? It has a small, thin wire from the back of the plug and connected to the large master plug, which, in turn, is plugged into what I believe is the diesel engine ECU.

The plug behind the headlight also has a flexi-tube cable protector from the back of the plug and going to what looks to be a screw-in electrical connection cap under the air intake duct and on the side of the engine block.

Perhaps someone might know what it could be. Could it be the OBD port plug ? As I asked earlier in the post, where otherwise, is the OBD plug, under the steering wheel, or in the passenger side footwell ?

Any advice would be appreciated.

Pierre3.

I don't mean to have another long thread on batteries, but I wonder if there might be a bit of advice about replacing the battery in my 2001 P38 2.5 DHSE.

I have read though a lot of the other threads and I notice that the preferred choice is the Hankook MF31 - 1000, but I don't think that this is available in Ireland. I have spent a while looking at suppliers in Ireland and the only other option that I can find, that has been recommended on the forum, is the Yuasa HSB334 which is available today in Halfords.

Is the Yuasa a good option, or would I be better to wait until I go to Scotland in July and buy a Hankook ?

Pierre3.

I would like to ask a quick question, please - is it possible to find any original, white, plastic door card fasteners ? If so, is it then possible to get them to refit onto the green studs which are located in the door card ?

I noticed that when I took off the drivers' door panel today, to fit a new door handle cable, that there are four black, slide-on fasteners. Would I be right in thinking that these guys replace the original white fasteners ?

I know that these - RANGE ROVER P38 DOOR PANEL CLIPS - 20 X MWC9134 - are easily available.

Pierre3.

I thought that it would be instructive to members who live outside the UK, and more specifically, in the EU, to find out what happens now the UK is out of the EU.

I bought a replacement switchpack [ which I know that I could have got from Marty Cox, and perhaps should have done - sorry Marty] from Rimmer Bros, which has an exchange surcharge on it, and cost £244 [ €283] with the surcharge being returned, £50 or so.
The exact breakdown was, in Euro's:
Switchpack - €209.10
Surcharge - €57.96
Sub-total - €267.06
Shipping - €16.16
Total - €283.22

All very well, I know it is pretty expensive but I was looking at the idea that because it has come from Rimmer Bros then it may have been repaired by Landrover, but again perhaps not. It was a cost I was prepared to accept to make sure that my windows go back up when I put them down !! I have just fitted a spare switchpack that I got from Marty early last year and I had kept as an emergency back-up. Now I have used it.

So the "new" switchpack was delivered by UPS this morning, and with a bit of a shock. The driver said that there was €80 due to be paid, care of Irish Revenue. I had an idea that there would be something due, but €80 ???? A bit steep.

The new import rules now, after Brexit, is that anything coming into Ireland with a value of over €150 gets [a] charged 12% import duty, [b] 23% VAT, and the VAT is charged on the sub-total of the cost of the item, the 12% duty, the shipping cost, and then, on top of that, 10% handling fee by the import delivery company.

So my switchpack ended up costing €363.22 !!

That is the cost of Brexit to people outside the UK. Anything that comes into Ireland, and probably applies to the rest of the EU, is subject, over certain limits, to 12% duty and whatever VAT rate is current in the importing country, currently 23% in Ireland. It effectively means that if I want to import spares for the P38 from a tax-compliant shipper and the total purchase cost is over €150 then I need to add around 33/34% to the initial purchase price. It doesn't matter if you buy 151 items at €1 each because the total is €151 and therefore subject to duties.

I can see that, if I have to replace something expensive which has to come from the UK, then the poor old P38 will have to be got rid off as it will be too expensive to repair. And, being a P38, I suspect that day may be sooner rather than later.

Pierre3.

Just a note for anyone requiring a good service. Jon Dean repairs key fobs, and he has just done one for me. It took about 2 weeks, bearing in mind that I am in Ireland, and it works perfectly. Now I have two perfectly working keyfobs for a change.

Jon has an Ebay listing as follows:
second-remote-repairs
https://www.ebay.ie/itm/265083658710?ViewItem=&item=265083658710

His email address is as follows:
Jon Dean

po box 160
Biggleswade
Bedfordshire
SG18 1BL
United Kingdom
Phone:07889761563
Email:Casper828_8@hotmail.com

I remember seeing Jon's name come up somewhere else on the forum, but maybe this post will help some-one in the future as it did for me.

Pierre3.

I wonder if anyone knows how to delete a topic which I duplicated by mistake ?

Pierre3.

I wonder whether anyone is breaking a P38 with either Beige or Lightstone trim ?

I am looking for some trim fasteners which are hard to find nowadays.
This fastener has a slot in the head:

The one below is a short trim fastener, one that joins two panels, stuff like that:

I would also like to find a front grab handle, complete with the screws, the screw cover caps and with the little metal inserts where the screws fit through the handle mounting holes.

Any help would be appreciated.

Pierre3.

I posted quite a bit of stuff on the "Opening Time" heading, about retrimming the headlining material which diverted a bit to the problems concerning the sunroof itself. So, I need to ask another question here.

Where is the "neutral" position for the sunroof when you want to start the "Settings" cycle ?

I thought that I had read somewhere that the sunroof needs to be wound back, fully open, first and then the "Close" switch is pressed and kept pressed until the sunroof reaches the "Tilt" position and stops, then press the "Close" until the glass comes back down.

I did try just starting from a closed position - so press "Open", run right back, immediately press "Close" and let the glass return to closed position and continue up to the "Tilt" position, finally pressing the "Close" switch again but having to guess where the correct closed position should be before releasing the "Close" switch. I keep getting a message "Sunroof Open" though.

So, my questions are:

[1] Do I need to start from a fully open position?

[2] Is there a "Neutral" or a "Stop/Start" position where you can set the glass first ?

P.S. As I have been outside a lot, working on the vehicle, my other half wants to paint the kitchen and she put it this way - "I think that we should paint the kitchen". I know what that means, it means "me", not "we". Why is it always "we" ?????????

Pierre3.

Hi, I am just wondering whether an OBD reader tool, Autophix OM850, is any good for doing stuff on the P38. I am guessing that it is only a code reader as it costs around £80.

I can't really justify a Nanocomso I am interested in whether there is much point in something like this Autophix OM850 ?

Pierre3.

Seeing as how it is Tuesday I thought that I would post a few jokes, just to make everyone miserable !!

Condoms don't guarantee safe sex! A friend of mine was wearing one when he was shot dead by the woman's husband!

A government survey has shown that 91% of illegal immigrants come to Britain so that they can see their own doctor.

Due to the current economic crisis, Greece is cancelling all production of humus and Taramasalata. It's a double dip recession.

A dwarf goes to a very good but very busy doctor and asks, "I know you are busy but do you treat dwarves?"

The doctor replies "Yes, but you will have to be a little patient".

In hindsight I should have posted my Facebook status as:
"I've blown the head gasket on my 1997 XR3i" rather than "I've just buggered a 14 year old escort".

The police still haven't seen the funny side, my laptop's been confiscated, and the wife has gone off to her mum's.

63 immigrants seriously hurt in Bradford this morning.
It was not a terrorist attack, a bunk bed collapsed.
The police are blaming AL IKEA.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Jonathan Ross has been accused of shoplifting a kitchen utensil from Tesco.
Ross says it was a whisk he was prepared to take.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Police stop an immigrant in his transit on the motorway. Policeman says, "Do you know the limit is 70?"
The driver leans into the back and says: "Hear that - 3 of you have got to get out!"

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

A very nice, innocent Australian woman wants to get married, but she is only willing to marry a man if he has never had sex with another woman.
After several unsuccessful years of searching, she decides to take out a personal ad.
She ends up corresponding with Scotty Greer, who is an average golfer and who has lived his entire life in the Australian Outback and he has had no experience with women. They meet and she is very happy with him; she feels that they are perfect for each other.
Eventually they end up getting married.
On their wedding night, she goes into the bathroom to prepare for the evening.
When she returns to the bedroom, she finds her new husband standing in the middle of the room. Naked. All the furniture from the room is piled in one corner.
"What happened?" she asks.
"I've never been with a woman," he says, “but if it's anything like a kangaroo, I'm gonna need all the f***kin' room I can get!"

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Paddy took 2 stuffed dogs to Antiques Roadshow
”Ooh!” said the presenter. “This is a very rare set produced by the celebrated Johns Brothers taxidermists who operated in London at the turn of last century. Do you have any idea what they would fetch if they were in good condition?”
“Sticks,” said Paddy.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Just got barred from B & Q.
Some guy in an orange apron came up to me and asked if I wanted decking.
Lucky for me, I got the first punch in.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Man walks into a shop in Australia.
Man: "I bought this second-hand boomerang yesterday, and it does not work. You clearly said 'It always returns' ".
Shopkeeper pauses, looks at the boomerang, then at the man, and says: "......well?"

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

I know this is controversial but I just have to stand up and be counted.
Been on the fence about this but there’s been a lot of debate about anti-Vaxxers in the news lately.
I am now coming forward to stand up and say I’m firmly in the anti-Vax camp. And I know most will be rolling their eyes at this now.
I have my reasons, like many anti-Vaxxers, but it’s important that everyone approaches this sensitive topic armed with the information THEY know to be true.
I know my truth and I have first-hand experience that backs up my stance.
I had a Vax once and it was the noisiest, worst vacuum cleaner ever. I will never buy one again. All these armchair experts have clearly never experienced the disappointment of having to go over the same piece of carpet again and again to pick up the same piece of fluff
I am firmly in the Dyson camp, and I will not be told otherwise…

I just don't like that numpty Riland either, I wish that they would take him off the TV.

Pierre3.

I am pleased that this forum is the preserve of adults and not children who shouldn't really be reading about driving and mechanical stuff - unless they are proper grown-up for their age kids !!!

I have the honour of being suspended by the Mercedes Benz Club forum yesterday because - My God - I posted an offensive cartoon that apparently could offend a 10 year old child reading the forum. What always fascinates me about car forums is who they are designed for, and I was unaware that the MB club forum promotes buying, selling, and driving Mercedes cars by 10 years olds. So there, you see. It seems that the Mrrcedes Club is not really intended only for owners buying and maintaining their 5 litre motors [or whatever] but is also for children under the legal driving age, as well.

I am now waiting to see a 14 year old legally owning and driving a 500SL which he has just spent his pocket money of £25,000 on !!! I don't, of course, include the 14 year old criminals who have just stolen that 500SL !

So, if and when, I bother going back to the MB club forum I must remember to stick to the rules as designed by the namby-pamby snowflakes who are the moderators and who don't like to see slightly risque jokes or cartoons. I think that these PC numpties are the same nuggets that have decided that the name of the childs toy, Mr Potatohead, is no longer acceptable. It seems that it is to be changed to a nice, grey, PC name, probably like Tuber Body Part !!

Here is my cartoon anyway, for better or for worse:

I think that we should have a jokes thread as well, by the way. Anything funny, sarcastic, amusing would do.

Pierre3.

Hi, can anyone suggest an upholstery company in Edinburgh, to retrim the roof lining in my P38 ?

I have emailed:
Tom Kelly in West Gorgie Park and
Samco

but any other contacts would be appreciated. But in Edinburgh or surrounding districts. Please don't suggest guys in Newcastle on Tyne, or Manchester or somewhere else miles away 😀.

I want to get the roof lining redone in the summer - provided that we can finally travel !!! 😂

I know a lot of guys have done this themselves but, to be really honest, I would find this a bit too big to do myself, especially outside on the drive, on my own.

Pierre3.

I was throwing out old paperwork this morning and I came across an old German fuel declaration form.

It might just bring back some memories from anyone who used to drive artic's on the continent back in the '60's and '70's.

Pierre3.

Hi guys, I'm looking for a bit of help.

My 2001 P38 has been behaving itself quite well during the pandemic, despite not being used very much. However, this weekend, after I had been out in it the keyfob didn't lock the vehicle when the button was pressed. It would unlock but not lock.

I have reregistered the key in the drivers' door lock, and I can lock and unlock with the key blade. The vehicle always starts when the key is put into the ignition.

But what I have noticed is that when I take the key out of the ignition switch there is no "click". I was explecting to hear the "click" when the key was removed and I am wondering whether this is somehow connected to the fact that the keyfob won't lock the vehicle.

Perhaps someone may have a solution to this issue. At least I can lock the motor with the key so that is something.

Pierre3.

Hi, I would like to ask for a bit of advice in relation to the never-ending issue of the book symbol on the HEVAC display.

I have read lots of posts giving solutions to the many issues which affect the air-con and ventilation in the P38, but I would like to see if these solutions are directly relevant to the reason the book symbol keeps appearing on the display in my P38.

I have replaced the pollen filters recently, cleaned and hoovered out the plenum area [?], fitted a new plenum filter, but the symbol is stillon the display.

The thing is, when I turn off the ignition, leave the car parked for a day or so and go back out in the vehicle then the symbol is not on the display, it only appears after about 15 minutes or so after setting off. Is this the air-mix flaps getting stuck, or will I need to go through the whole job of replacing the whole blower assembly.

The HEVAC display seems to clear the book symbol each time the ignition is turned off, but is this only the BeCM checking the system and then flagging the issue ?

I was hoping [!!!!!] that this may only be the air flap motor getting stuck, as described elsewhere, but I am wondering whether this is too simple a solution.

Any advice is appreciated, as I couldn't get cold air for the last few days in the hot weather.

Pierre3.

Or am I asking too generalised a question ?

I wonder whether anyone would know where to get a replacement drivers side [RHD] seat base ?

The leather is good to excellent but the bolster on the outer edge is starting to go flat. I have two new seat heating pads, drivers and passengers seats, but I would like to fit a new foam rubber seat base to the drivers side seat, to lift it back to near factory spec.

I have checked the usual P38 suppliers, and guys like Exmoor Trim, but I can't find anyone who does new seat bases.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Pierre3.

Hi guys, I wonder whether someone could upload a picture showing where the VIN number on the front of the chassis is ?

I am getting grief from the tossers at my local NCT [MOT equivalent but worse] test station. They are not satisfied with the ones that you can see normally, the numpties "want to see" the chassis one. Unfortunately, my motor has been painted with heavy "underseal" so I can't find anything !!

Pierre3.

Hi guys, I was reading the RAVE manual to see which washer pump is the windscreen one, but I have just noticed that RAVE seems only to refer to a LHD vehicle.

Are the washer pumps [and reservoir] located on the passenger side of the vehicle, whether the vehicle is LHD or RHD ? Or are they on the drivers's side, if we go by the RAVE manual ?

Pierre3.