Ditch the TBH

 

this sums it up right here why these things have such a bad name. All these places are just waiting to suprise you one day. Peekaboo which one is next lol

 

Yeah but most cars have the same connections or gaskets which also fail over time. On these old D2's it's all about the condition of what you've got. I've seen 15 year old water pump gaskets untouched without a drop coming from them, and then I've seen a 2 month old install leaking like it didn't even have a gasket. One D2 I got a hold of had a piece of cloth cut out for the upper plenum gasket between the lower intake manifold and the upper on a Bosch engine!!!!! I kept that sucker to show folks just how bad some people repair things!

I cruised around during the artic blast in my D1 which doesn't have a TBH on it and I didn't have any issues in the cold. Deleting that on a D2 is certainly knocking out a weak link. D1 design is MUCH better for the TBH, but it's still another spot which can eventually go out and cause you to overheat when you least expect it. I always do a pre-flight inspection on everything I drive and so far that's treated me very well over the years.

 

Would ditching the TBH require any recoding? It seldom gets that cold here in southeastern North Carolina--that would get rid of a weak link...

I have not replaced the reservoir or cap yet, although I don't see any visible indications of a leak there, engine running or not. Might look at that anyway.

 

Bypass, re-route the 5/16 line, and never look back. Vehicle doesn't need anything done.

 

Well that sounds awfully easy. I like it!

 

I recommended replacing the cap back in September. That seems to be a cause of phantom coolant loss.

 

I have a cap on order. We'll see if that works before I try anything else. Been concentrating on keeping my old Saab in one piece as it's my commuter car (better gas mileage). Project for today is replacing the batteries (one's not good enough apparently) in my wife's Mercedes--that's a royal pain in the rear as they're both inside the car, under the floor...

 

a Saab, Mercedes and a Land Rover?

a man of taste and refinement.

and, perhaps, a bit of a masochist.

 

Ha, that may be true. I must say however, I've had pretty good luck so far with the Saab and the Mercedes. 2005 Saab 9-3 with 230K miles and didn't have to do anything more than normal brakes, batteries, etc. until around 185K when I finally had to put new CV joints in (actually it was easier to just replace the whole axles and they weren't terribly expensive). Now I might be looking at a water pump or front crank seal, which will be a fair amount of work... Wife's 2013 ML350 with 185K (lots of highway miles) had to have the engine wiring harness replaced but otherwise no major work so far--even the dealer maintenance guys were amazed.
The 2004 Disco 2, on the other hand, has reminded me of my childhood, helping my dad keep all our hand-me-down antique farm equipment running--and I've had it only a year and a half. My in-laws had it in the shop several times and probably paid for the car twice between the cost of parts and labor.