Thanks guys,
(Not diesel - it's a 4.0 Thor)
Picking up on most of this:
Not going to fit Polybush, but I might fit Superpro ;-) However I've just priced up OEM vs Superpro and it looks like the price difference is substantial. Probably enough to pay for a press - even if not the shipping to Inverness... :-( So we'll see.
Lemforder - yep - went for them where I could on the Defender
Track rod and drag link. Again, there's a price difference between Gwyn's Sumobars and standard/OEM but in this instance it's only about £50/60 - and for that you get good stainless bars that could even be taken off and sold on if the time ever comes.
And talking about pricing up, I've gone through the parts list and it could be anything between £800 and £950 to do a suspension overhaul. By that I mean the stuff that bounces and keeps it in a straight line, not wheel bearings, halfshafts, hubs etc. Spread over 3 or 4 months that's OK - and the MOT's not due till September...
I think I'm going to get quite used to lying underneath it - but the state of the air springs at the moment mean I'll definitely want to use extra supports!
So.... back on topic a bit, like I said "baby steps". I got the car on one axle stand tonight, and took the NS front wheel off! Yay!
I had the "wrong clothes" on to go much further, and it was a Friday evening so I had better things to do....
But first thoughts:
Def going to need new air springs on the front. The one I was looking at, on its extended setting, was pretty heavily crumbling away at the bottom. Something to get parts for and look forward to.
There's no obvious play on the wheel top/bottom or side to side, so it's not really about to fall off. I'll see what the other one's like tomorrow.
None of the ball joints look anything close to 'fresh' - drag link/track rod etc - so probably as well just to swap out all of that.
Been watching videos on the steering knuckle ball joints. That looks like a whole lot of fun... not. And an expensive new tool to buy unless there's a workaround?
radius arms - hmmm. It almost looks as if it's the wrong radius arm for the axle. There must be about 3/4 to 1 inch of clearance between the radius arms and the axle brackets. I didn't have a camera handy. I'll post pics later. I've looked online for pics and haven't found anything which shows the same area. Can't really say about the bushes... maybe Ok.
Happy to get any observations on the above, but specific questions
1) Gwyn Lewis does a sumobar set for the drag link and track rods incl. ball joints. Just fitted a set to the Defender and I love them. Can't see any reason they'd be different on a P38? Any thoughts?
2) OK - I'll open the can of worms... I know there's a huge OEM vs 'polybush' debate for Defenders. So I've gone for superpro all round - polyurethane bushes, yes, but not 'Polybush'. Has anyone used them on the P38? I don't have a press, so OEM are a bit tricky.
3) Front propshaft - no rubber dougnut; rear propshaft does?? Is that right?
Many thanks.
Donald
Thanks guys, I appreciate that.
I think I'm still slightly unsure of the EAS, hence why I'm nervous. It drops overnight in my car port, but it could be because the ground isn't entirely level, so the corners could be chasing each other.
Two jacks as described sounds nice and simple and worth it for my peace of mind alone.
Once I get it up, and the front wheels off ( I do think it's roughly from the front) I'll have a poke around and, fingers crossed, find something obvious. When you say balljoints, I assume you mean track rod and drag link? Or is there something else in there I'm not familiar with?
I've recently put superpro bushes all round on the Defender, and I've bought a spare set of rear arms for the P38 with the idea of prepping them for a straight swap - hoping the superpro bushes will be as easy to install this time around as they were on the 110.
I think ( as with another recent thread ) that I'm still in two minds whether it's a long term keeper or not. There's a good enough list of stuff to do, and that's before I've even had a good look underneath:
One the one hand, once I'm more comfortable with the basic systems of the car - i.e. confident that I can work safely around it, then none of the list above really bothers me, financially or technically.
On the other hand all the electrical control systems are not my strong point. Basic agricultural electrics, like my 300Tdi-era Defender are no bother; ECUs not so much.....
But its baby steps for now. I don't want to drive the car at all at the moment for fear of something falling off, so I need to get underneath and figure this one out.
Hi guys,
Well, just about getting to the point where I need to do a little more to my 2000 4.0. 77k miles.
One of the small mental obstacles has been: how do I get underneath safely without any risk of the car collapsing on me? I did read one thing about blocks under the axles, or something like that - harder to understand without pics - but I almost took it to mean that I would need to fit wooden blocks above the axles, between them and the bodywork.
I certainly don't think I'd be happy relying on the car's systems itself (locking with the switch, or with a door open) so looking for the practical but sensible methods that experienced owners use. I have a concrete floored garage, hefty axle stands, a big (3 ton?)trolley jack, and a 'little' trolley jack. Well used to using all of these on the 110 Defender, so not a complete novice, but it's one of these things that you don't know until you know. I've tried searching the web, but not found anything.
Why? I have a nasty wobble which I need to investigate. It feels like a wheel's about to fall off. (I've been there before with another vehicle). It used to be very occasional - i.e. happend on a longer trip back in March, barely happened again until last week.
I used to think it was speed related - if I pootled about at 50, then no bother; if I went up to 70+ then it would kick in, but ease again once I'd slowed. Now I'm not so sure - it happened on a short run home last Friday (and I haven't used it since - because I don't want a wheel to fall off!) and on that occasion it seemed to be present even down to lower speeds.
My thoughts are - in no real order - a duff propshaft UJ which is getting worse; a diff missing it's damper thing; or a wheel bearing that's on the way out. On a Defender I'd also be wondering about the front swivel tension.
Any help you can offer on safely getting underneath, and pointers on likely wobble candidates would be very gratefully received.
(off out now to replace a timing cover on a 1.2 Clio!)
Thanks for the reply!
I figured this out kind of by default. I had the panels either side of the centre console out, to remove the HEVAC controller - no wires under there. Then I took the LH kick panel out while I was working on the heater blower and found a few bits of the loom.
Without disturbing things at all, everything looks pretty good in there. Nothing that would make me think there was any corrosion or the like.
Which does point more towards the 2nd row speakers. I'll need to take the RH driver's side off shortly to see if I can figure out why the window isn't working - and that will be a good opportunity to check out the speakers too.
Hi GD,
Thanks for that. Followed these instructions earlier today, and everything's now working fine. Back to having 2 keys that work. Really appreciate that.
Maybe those instructions aren't in my driver's handbook, because it's supposed to smart synch. Anyway, now I know.
On the point about the car coming with 4 keys, mine's a pretty lowline spec, so no memory seats. But is it possible that the third fob I have will also synch along with the other two?
Ta
Donald
Nope - still the same.
Out to the car; tried to open it with key #1 (the original one) - nothing.
Opened it with key #2, put key #1 into the ignition and started the car with it (momentarily) and all was OK. Switched the engine off, key #1 out of the ignition; tried to lock the doors with it - nope. The lights on the fob are working, but the car's not doing anything.
Locked the car with #2, no problems there.
So somehow, the original key, #1, will still start the car but won't work the doors...?
Edit - should maybe had said earlier - it's a 2000 year vehicle, so 'smart synch' should work...?
Hi GD,
Not so far. If I open the car, with fob #2, I can put #1 into the ignition and start the engine, but it still won't lock the car using the buttons. I thought that putting the key in the ignition was enough to synchronise it - that certainly worked very easily with key #2 when I put it back into service.
Having said that, a few hours have passed. Let me nip out now and see if things have changed.
Hey guys,
Hope everyone's well.
I think I've had my first brush with key fob shenanigans.
I was working on the car this afternoon, fitting the trim back in after fitting the new fan controller and refurbed switchpack and HEVAC controller. So I had two key fobs with me, both sitting on the top of the dash. After I'd finished, I put one key into the ignition, tried to start the car and got the engine disabled message.... and this was the original key that used to do everything. Puzzled.
But maybe I should go back to the beginning:
When I got the car I was given three fobs - we'll call them 1, 2 and 3.
Fob 1 was the only one I was using. The other two were in the house. I thought they were actually broken/dead batteries, but I was also concerned that relying on just #1 was a bit risky. Examining #2 and #3 I discovered the little red light was working on both. Result! So I took #2 down, synched it with the car just be sticking it in the ignition and had 2 good keys. Happy chappy.
So, today. Fobs 1 and 2 are clipped together (don't ask me why). Opened the car, drove it into the garage, took the keys out and left them on the dash. Because of the work, I had 2 or 3 of the doors being opened and shut frequently.
Finished the work, went to start the car, picked up the fobs, put #1 into the ignition, and got the engine disabled; press fob message. Tried pressing the buttons on fob #1 and it did absolutely nothing.
In the end I put fob #2 into the ignition, started the car, parked and locked it, with fob #2. Fob #1 - the original one I was using from the begining will now not lock or unlock the doors - but will start the car again!?
I thought synchronising was as simple as putting the key into the ignition?
I did look at the drivers manual - but couldn't find anything helpful in there.
I'm hoping it's something simple - but any advice on what I might have done wrong? Hopefully I've explained things clearly enough.
Ta
Donald
I thought I'd just update this, on the question of the Citroen fan compatibility.
Fan arrived, as did my HEVAC controller back from Martin in double-quick time. Time to get busy.
I have photos I can put up if anyone's interested, once I look into how to do that on this forum. Basically though, by cutting off one connector on the car loom, and crimping on another to fit the Citroen fan wiring, I think I could have slotted it right in with no trouble. They are from the same manufacturer and clearly share the same DNA.
In the end though, I didn't: I changed over the transistor/relay controller thing, slotted the old fan back in and..... silence! Unless I want the fan running of course, when I simpy turn it on! Brilliantly simple. Amazing no-one's ever thought of it before!
Why not use the Citroen fan? Two reasons really: the RR fan has four screws to fit the casing into the car; the Citroen just 3 - although those three are compatible and line up; and the RR fan fits into its housing using three rubber mounts. The Citroen one has four plastic leaves/springs moulded in. I'm sure they work OK, but it seemed to me that the rubber mounts would maybe do a better job of isolating fan noise/vibration from the dash. But it would probably have been entirely marginal.
I did also consider swapping the Citroen motor and 'hamster wheel' into the RR casing, but the main plug socket into the motor is sufficiently different not to make this straightforward.
Also, it only took me about 30 mins to get the fan out, so I thought that even if the RR fan does give up the ghost, it's not a big deal to go back in and swap them over.
Like I say, the end result is... silence... and it's lovely! Just a shame I can't take it for a nice long drive!
hi,
Thanks for the offer - that's very generous indeed, but I think I'll let you hang onto that as a spare and I'll just get the Citroen one. I can find a fan and resistor for £30 so, for the extra £20 it's probably worth it as an experiment and I can report back on whether it fits or not.
The fan in my car has been running constantly with the ignition for who knows how long - hours and hours and hours even since I've had the car - so it's worth a punt to see if a new Citroen fan will go in there anyway. At least now I can buy it with a little more confidence. Thanks.
Hi guys,
I have exactly the same issue as described in the original post. I'd hoped that taking the HEVAC controller out might fix it, but no such luck.
Over here in the UK I think I can probably find used fan/controllers OK, but they'll all be a bit old by now.
Can someone confirm that the "Citroen" unit will provide a suitable 'plug and play' controller - or are the whole fan/controller assemblies really identical? I think that's what I'm getting from the posts above, but just to be sure before buying something.
Ta
Donald
Gilbertd wrote:
Mid range speakers are pretty obvious, as they have their own cloth covered grille above the grille for the woofers. Speaker feeds also go via a multiway connector behind the LH kick panel although it would be a bit of a coincidence if only the feeds to the rear speakers had gone green and hairy and neither of the feeds to the fronts.
Updating this as I now have a little more info.
It is a mid range install - I just hadn't noticed the additional speaker cover.
I was able to have a look at the install yesterday, as I was pulling out the HEVAC controller anyway. It's a pretty basic Sony unit that's in there - no sub outlets or anything - just the aerial coax, and the ISO plug link from the unit to the car wiring. I couldn't see anything wrong with that at all.
So - when you say the LH kick panel - is that the one I'd have removed to get access to the HEVAC screws? Or is it something on the other side of the footwell? i.e. adjacent to the door/wing?
Once I get my window switch panel back I suspect I might be having to go into the doors anyway to check out the mechanisms, so that would be a good opportunity to investigate the speakers.
Ta.
Thanks for the help folks. Just to report that it all went smoothly - my first P38 battery off/on under my belt :-) From such small acorns, who knows where we'll get to!?
Brilliant - thanks guys.
Can't get a more relevant answer than that!
Cheers
Hi guys,
As above, I'm hoping to remove these to get them sent down to Marty for a fix. I'd do the job in the garage, but after that it would be good to move the car back out into the carport.
Will it still run / move with these things removed? I know I oughtn't to "big up" the Defender too much on here :-) but unless it's missing a wheel or something it will still go....!
It seems to me that neither the switch panel or HEVAC should be 'mission critical' as far as the car starting and running is concerned, but I don't know if the car's brain will like them being missing?
Thanks
Donald
Thanks very much guys. After posting the first message I had a further google and became quickly more confused (and discouraged..). However what's here is more straightforward.
I never thought to mention the lack of steering wheel controls and, as far as I can tell, no mid-range speakers in the door cards. Which does suggest a 'low line' system. I'm completely fine with that to be honest, especially if it makes installing or working on it more straightforward.
So, the back door speakers not working could be:
something wrong with the installation (haven't had a look yet - Defender still hogging the garage)
the speakers themselves being broken
or, a break in the loom somewhere between the radio and the rear speakers.
This gives me a good steer for when I get a chance to look at this.
Ta
Evening all,
(I did try a forum search first, but didn't find anything in the first couple of pages of results).
My car (2000 4.0L 'base spec) came to me with an aftermarket stereo - a Sony radio/ CD player. However while it plays OK in the front doors, there's no sound in the back.
In my internet wanderings about P38s I thought I'd seen something about the radio install not being as straightforward as unplugging one and swapping in another, but I can't find anything which outlines the basic issues or any options.
Can anyone point me in the direction of this sort of info?
(It probably isn't the most important thing I should be thinking about - but you've got to start somewhere!)
Ta
Donald
Morning all,
In a very similar vein, though I've driven autos a few times, I'm not that experienced with them.
In the P38 though, I've found that if I'm coasting to a stop at some traffic lights or a queue at a junction, I feel as if I'm applying the brakes harder than I should - as if the brakes are fighting against the engine gearbox which is still trying to drive the car forward. So, I've taken to just slipping the car into neutral and coasting to a stop with more gentle braking. The car stops more easily.
This is what I'd do in a manual, but is it OK in an auto? I don't know anything at all about the 'anatomy' of an auto box, so good to know if this is fine. Certainly feels more mechanically sympathetic.
Ta
Hi guys,
Thanks for the welcomes.
I did notice the 'summer camp' thing and thought it sounded fun - but Marlborough is some long way down for me.
Hoping to get my Defender back on the road towards the end of the month, then I can turn my attentin to the RR - prepare for lots of daft questions!