After over an year of procrastination, I've decided to tackle this messy job because I got tired of having a mess of oil everywhere.
Plus, even if my beloved will go to my friend - and he and my other friend mechanic are aware of this job - he will call me to help him do it.
Since car is still in a relatevely warm garage (mine) and not in his driveway/street, I'd rather get started and do it on my own.
I started as described above by Richard by removing fan, aux belt. I was going to get on with the tensioner, but it seems wedged solid. Luckily before I get onto heavier pounding, I had to quit and go to the school as my kid was not feeling well. Tomorrow with a clearer mind will approach, but I think from above there is not much that can be done, the manual required oil filter to be removed and access everything from below.
Anyone has done a Thor accessing the switch and relief valve from above? Maybe the battery box to get out of the way?
Worse case scenario I'll drop the filter and get my friend to buy oil and filter, it is for replace by age anyway ...
ahhaaha ... thanks! I also noted the possible irony of the tone, but no harm done lol!
I did not know OME had springs applicable to the P38, or probably are adapted from some other vehicle ... would be interesting to know what number (code) are they.
I actually did not mature much in the rest of the activities, here it has been freezing cold and therefore minimum work outside ....
I have a friend with D2 with compass and he mounted it also on his P38.
He told me only the one with the straight "slide type" fits.
The one with the BMW "rotating" type does not fit.
If I remember, I will check on mine later today when I go to the garage to put some parts in the interior that I neglected for a long time.
As Gordon mentioned, for a working CC you need the two switches to work OK, any of them will fail the system.
However, I have experienced a brake switch that would seem to "move", would open/close the contacts when tested with a multimeter, BUT would not work when fitted to the pedal. I still have it in a plastic bag with a sticker that says "?"
So never fully trust the initial check ....
I had also this happening before xmass on a W126SEL that I had to finish for sale, and it drove me crazy for days, until finally I got fed up and just bought a new brake switch and that is it.
I knew I would come within the wrath of the air gods, but have mercy on me! :-)
He is a very good friend and will take good care of it, and he is mechanically inclined as well, but in our latitudes incurring in an EAS failure out in the fields means a very complicated way back. And I will have to keep an eye on this - and him and the car - and this is another worry in my mind.
To make it clear with a more graphic example, you go ski in the Dolomites, make a bad fall and break a leg, you got either either Mountain Rescue with the motorized sleds with a stretcher or you could be airlifted to the nearest med center - I have seen this live, it was amazing.
Here where I am, you do the same fall and break a leg, you will be reliving the story of Leo DiCaprio in 'The Revenant' ...
Same goes with the EAS.
Actually, I have been thinking long and hard to keep the P38 and make her do a "third" lease of life as an off-road toy, and in my list would be anyway to remove the air - as much as I like it - to remove a liability, and by extension replace front and rear bumpers with reinforced metal ones, the original ones are now very rare to find here in good condition, and are expensive, put at least a rear locker, and some nice muds .... not else needed really.
But, chance has sent my way (finally!) what I have been craving since a long time ... and could not resist, and I cannot afford two toys, I am now fitting a Def 90 Td5 and I am overly happy with the way things are turning out :-)
I missed that, I thought the key worked in the keyhole. I stand corrected then ... it is a problem!
My second fob - which is actually Key 1, incidentally - does open from the lock and is able to start the engine fine, but I find impossible in any way to make it work "remotely" ... probably something inside is not working as it should.
I had this issue, and my door was super-locked ... only the driver's door!!
Once I opened it and re-set it, it never made it again.
Can't stress enough to have two fobs in working order ....
If your metal blade works, you should still be able to "mechanically" open the door, regardless of the microswitch failure, or superlock if active.
Even if you make the alarm/immobilizer upset, at least you get the car to open ...
Well, this concludes - for now - the saga, curiously on my last days owning the P38 ... I recommend to all with a working EAS to take a couple of hours and openup the compressor and check it, especially if it is got a few years of operation, check the brushes, grease the bearings if possible, and in general clean well the head, cylinder and piston, there are two valves - reed valve is called? - that on both I opened were very dirty, lots of "metallic dust" and deposits, very fine dust, and one breathing hole in the head was clogged...
I know I slept on it, but once again, preventative maintenance gives a clue, or two, about the condition of this component before it goes south and leaves you ... with you butt on the ground, literally!
I got now the task to seatch for a lift kit, any experiences with the Terrafirma one? Or to go Britpart?
My mate wants to run 32s or 33s for now, bumpers and winch.
I will stick around aynway, this pub is always a nice place to be!
Well, I made of the two one alive, mixing the motor and electrical parts, at least it works ... barely, but I managed to lift the car enough to be usable.
I obviously made a short and burned the thermalswitch, but I made a bypass sending to ground the small orange wire in the connector, at least it has to make it until my friend selects a suitable lift kit - he will go on coils, EAS too much of a liability for a primary off-road vehicle.
Then I open the other one, which was the one I bought new back then, and that worked fine until it made some strange noises, and i replaced in a hurry ... I open the head and I see the piston is damaged, and the bore is scored, but especially ....
…. the magnet (? dont' know the technical term) is literally destroyed, sending pieces everywhere, and probably shifting the axle - the end after the brushes was dislogded from its seat - maybe the reason why the piston was scored?
https://1drv.ms/i/c/05b738b1c4563d88/IQB2B_O2SwPHSrcX4p0p1vl-AXS7zUAGuEYF9UE87z9FmEU?e=NODhXA
https://1drv.ms/i/c/05b738b1c4563d88/IQByByiLXdniR6BH5XsFhuCQAXIV1dBYdf2zk5NP4GnD9Xw?e=J6aA2I
A few days later, in a moment of enlightenment, I find the other compressor, the one I bought "new" in 2016 and used for at least eight years ... and a couple of 40 fuses.
Time to get back to work ... first I test the compressor on the workbench; it makes noise, but it works, fine ... I put it in the car, it doesn't work ...
Oh well, I say, stop mess around, I take both of them, put them on the bench, and make a... Franken compressor! If I can, of course. Another day. But in the meantime, I have to stop by my auto electrician friend, and while I'm at it, I'll bring him the compressor that's not working, to see if it's an electrical problem — like worn brushes — or something else.
I stop by, we check it out, the electrical parts are fine, the brushes are perfect, but... there's a terrible burning smell inside....
https://1drv.ms/i/c/05b738b1c4563d88/IQDv2if7vfAKSqLWzwkL88KFAeSLD90zDzr0-oz-Ot-A-ec?e=PlOanP
...in short, the bearing seems to have disintegrated, locking the motor ... it turns by hand but in a certain point "tightens", thus blocking the compressor. Curiously, piston and cylinder seem fine, a bit worn the "ring" if you pass me the term, but not destroyed.
I call my friend back and explain, laughs of course (he also has a D2 Td5, so it's a knowing laugh, especially since every time he thinks of the P38, Rick Astley comes to mind!) ... we analyze the options ... we have no tools, no diagnostics (I left the nano at home), the trailer is occupied by the ML, which we should take to his workshop, unload, then come back, re-load (with the winch), go there ... I don't feel like it. I leave the vehicle in the parking lot and sadly return home by bus.
The next day, Sunday, after taking a few hours off from home, I take the bus again with the nanocom, a few meters of cable, some tools ... usual tests, no engine errors on the nano, EAS says "compressor faulty" which I expected, but also "ECU cannot detect road speed" which seemed strange to me, I check with a multimeter, look here look there ... Siberian freezing cold and with a wind that blows you away ... cold ... I say let's cut it short, I take a jack and raise the vehicle a bit, friend throws himself under it (he’s slimmer ah ah), I pass a 12V cable straight to the engine, the V8 starts without hesitation ... I decide then to go home, put it in the garage and I'll check it out there with more calm and plus degrees temperature ...
I returned home without exceeding 30 km/h so as not to trigger the EAS error and bring me down to the bumpstops, took all the small streets so as not to be too much of a pain in the ass in the traffic, in any case a couple of times I went over 30 and I saw it start flashing to rise, which means perhaps the speed error was something random – in fact it never recurred.
I raise the Range on the axle stands, start checking under the starter, see the small cable connector soaked in oil — I've had a pressure sensor leak that needs fixing for months, what a drag — but oh well, I clean it well and put it back in its place, check here and there... blown fuse ... I replace it, start it, no problems and I'm already happy, so now it's time to look at the EAS compressor.
I open the box, unplug the connector and give it 12V to exclude the compressor itself from the car, nothing, sparks but it's dead. I check continuity at the thermal sensor, knocked out, I tell myself, oh well, it must be that one, I disassemble it and in the meantime I start to think where the hell I left the other compressor ... somewhere, in some box. I used to keep it on board ... oh well. Last start-up test before leaving... tac tac... everything dead. Back to the beginning!
Ahh... what a drag! The circus starts again, here and there, touch here, try there... in the end I only find the blown starter fuse ... I think strange ... I look closely, see the table on the fuse box and read the labels and …. and I get nervous ... I ask myself: of all the stupid things that the dimwitted who designed this car did, who in their right mind decided to put the EAS compressor and starter motor in the same line—fuse and relay? So if the compressor blows and shorts—like in my case — the line for the starter motor will also go down, preventing the car from starting? Idiocy, if you ask me ... it's one thing when you are dealing with secondary systems, but, it's another thing to not even be able to start the engine...
Well, in the meantime, I don't have any other 40 fuses, and I have to find the other compressor. I put this off to another time.
It's been a long time since the last update ... I haven't used the P38 much lately, sold the trailer so no heavy towing, for family there is other, ditto for the city, so is left only load and dirt work, a few trips... maybe 5,000 km in the last year, so, with great sadness... time to find another destiny, and make room for a new toy.
So ... it will go to a friend of mine, he really likes it, we went to see a couple of Discos but he prefers the look and ride of the P38, he wants the V8 and ... I'll get back to the subject later! I'm happy anyway, honestly, in 10 years I don't have much to complain about, even though it's the black sheep of the RR models, it's performed more than decently. And it will continue in the family, in a certain sense...
BUT
As usual, every time you make plans, something unexpected happens ... last week I was driving to another friend's house (early, it was 6:30 AM) to do some work together ... I went out, starts up fine, I go from the highway position (it's in a garage that's not very high), immediately onto the ring road, and after a few kilometers I entered the city. I saw the light in the raise flashing more than usual and thought, "Surely some sensor isn't finding the right height." At that moment, I heard the compressor rattling strangely, so I go "Well, it's time." So I continued driving in the "low" position.
A small digression: when I got the vehicle in 2016, I immediately bought a new compressor (Dunlop) and left the old one as a spare, not knowing how much use it had received. The "new" one was dated '14', the existing one '08'. The new one lasted until last year, when it started making ominous noises, so I replaced it with the "old" one. I had already planned to retire the P38, so it was enough to survive until the sale. But as usual, the timeframes are extended, and so ... seeing the four lights flashing, I already knew I was to get the overhaul kit ... ugh.
I arrive at my friend's house, park, jump in his ML, and we go with the trailer to pick up another ML that he's taken as an organ donor for an engine transplant, as well as spare parts.
Once the job was done, we say goodbye, kisses, and hugs, and I head back to the car. It had stopped at "highway" level. I wasn't worried; I knew what was waiting for me. I get in, put the key in, turn the ignition, and... nothing. The starter doesn't turn.
Ignition is on, there's power, I hear the click in the BeCM, but nothing, no sound. It was late, dark, and below freezing (we're in the usual winter ice age, in the Balkans). Shit... what to do?
That is a very diplomatic and useful piece of advice ... if it ain't broken, don't bother with it!
I will refer at the earliest opportunity ...
I came wandering in here because of a question of another fellow P38 Diesel owner.
He has the same -38.8 display on the nano, and was wondering about it.
His point is that perhaps the difference comes from the setup of the cars: early/older Diesels, without MAF, have the IAT sensor on the manifold, whereas 'late' ones is integrated on the MAF.
Perhaps Nanocom has not updated the logic e either the signal is not coming through the way the Nano expects it ....
However now I read above Richard seems to have solved the mystery with another ECU ... here I am to pick your brain on that, so I can suggest it as an option. It would be interesting to know what exactly makes the ECU fail at sending the signal ... his car runs sweet and fine.
Sometimes the little jobs are the most satisfying ... I got so much to update, hope I can do it soon!
I thought of many ideas at the time, but I am out of patience and interest to keep playing. Nevertheless,
The idea of Richard for the speakers is far simpler than the attenuator, which unfortunately fails over time. I did mine first time in 2016 and I had to re-do it last year, but I could not find the same components and now it does not sound as good as it was.
I never manage to make my PWIRC work however ... darn
I assume running Waze via the phone means I loos navigation if I have to deal with a call.
Not necessarily! I am jumping across different vehicles, sometimes in the day, and I did setup Waze to 'stay on top' the screen at all times. It means if a call comes through, Waze remains on, and if you make a call, is just the time you take to dial in, then it returnd. I have an old Samsung, so is not top notch technology ....
I used kitchen products, those above the owens, cut to shape.
Those two pipes are driving me crazy ... I got one lamp always foggy, the pipes are free of debris - blasted with compressed air, yet nothing seems to take away the misty condition, then in some moment bulb goes kaputt ... I am already on the third one. Ohwell.
I have shortened the plug years ago, and never got the messagge again, except in one time in which I was low on power and propably the BeCM was out of ideas of how to get my attention. Immediately I though "I need to shorten the plug again" but instead went away and never back since.
I made this work years ago from underneath with the raised vehicle, lots of sweat and swear words - curious how similar the two words are LOL
Bumper off is ideal to get at the pumps, but there is also the simpler option of removing the headlight and access from above. This is also good to check the condition of the nuts holding the headlamp, which tend to rust happily, and grease them accordingly.
Good you solved!
Talking about rear wiper, I can say the Britpart blade is really a shitpart blade ... very short-lasting product!