Hi all,

I recently purchased an 01 Discovery 2 SE7 with SLS but no SAI. Having put a couple hundred miles on it since I took ownership, I have a few questions for the community. The truck in question has 165k miles. I've found some answers with searching, but these have escaped me thus far. Thanks in advance!

1. Is the horn supposed to honk when you lock the doors? This has happened like twice, and I cannot figure out why it's inconsistent. No issues with doors locking/unlocking, and the horn works fine with the buttons on the steering wheel.

2. How frequently does the SLS pump kick in? When driving with the windows down around town, it seems like it kicks on pretty frequently… not sure if this is expected. The bags appear to retain air when it's parked for 1+ days at a time. It's also rather loud… is this normal? Any preventative maintenance I can perform?

3. I recently changed the rear differential fluid and unfortunately it came out looking like this:

Obviously this is an indicator of water in the diff. I didn't really have the time to figure out how I was supposed to properly flush this, so I drained it as much as I could, flushed it a little bit with new oil (leaving the drain plug open), and then refilled with new fluid. Presumably it's not yet in good shape, and there is still a milky color in there. What's the best way to deal with this - continue to flush with new gear oil until it starts coming out? I'd prefer not to open up the diff unless absolutely necessary since the gasket seems to be working at the moment.

4. I'm getting a hum/whirring noise from the truck that appears only from around 74-82mph. It is presumably drivetrain related (since it does not matter if there is any stress on the engine), and sounds a bit like very low frequency bass. It's difficult to ascertain where on the truck it's coming from, but it is rather loud. It is not accompanied by any noticeable vibration or shaking, and it doesn't sound like metal-on-metal either. I was hoping that changing the differential oil would help, but it didn't (for the rear, at least). I still need to change transfer case and front diff oil. Any other insights or suggestions would be welcome. I think the front wheel hubs have been changed lately… perhaps it's the back ones? Any troubleshooting recommendations would be appreciated!

5. I'm hearing an odd noise, also on the highway, around 68-72mph that sounds as though it's coming from the steering column (though presumably isn't). This one is almost like a quiet whistle noise, and only occurs when my foot is on the gas (just enough to maintain speed at like 72mph). Is this one normal?

6. The air conditioning is not currently working. The previous owner diagnosed this as a leaking condenser, and actually included a replacement with the sale. I don't really plan to address this until the spring, but I'd rather not run the compressor in the meantime. If I leave the HVAC system on "Econ" mode does that disable the AC? Other makes generally have a specific button to turn on/off the AC.

7. I've purchased an UltraGauge to monitor engine temperatures, and so that I can set up an alarm in case it goes too high. The PO stated that he had installed a 180 T-Stat already. What temperatures should I be looking to see while driving under various conditions? How high should I set the alarm? At what point should I stop the truck and turn it off? Just not sure what thresholds to be concerned with.



Thanks so much!

 

Does it when a door or hood is open, won't if everything is closed.
Jack up one wheel at a time, fluid will run to the center. You should be good after that. Looks like someone submerged the axle, there should have been a vent tube on the axle to prevent that, you might want to check for that.
Normal, its the transfer case. These truck weren't really made to go that fast.
Yep, you got it.

Normal to run 180-200 in hot weather, will start creeping up if you idle for long periods of time. I recommend an alarm around 220, you should be on the side of the road at 230. 250 is damage temperature. [/QUOTE]

 

1. Chances are your rear hatch is misaligned. The hinges often warp. You really have to out some muscle into it, or it will latch, but not register as closed.

Regarding the sounds... it's an 18 year old truck. There's gonna be some thrumming, some clunking, some rattling, and LOT of wind noise. Basically, if it's not a death screech, a bunch of rocks in a coffee can, or the twang of metal snapping, you can safely ignore it. Offer not valid if you don't do regular maintenance.

The AC has a low pressure switch that will turn the compressor off if the system is empty, so you don't have to worry about running the compressor dry. Unless he had visual confirmation of the leak location, I would be skeptical though. There's a pipe next to the condenser that often wears out; check that before you throw parts at it.

 

My D2 used to horn when i lock it. the car used to trigger the alarm by it self at night with no reason what so ever.

the problem was in the hood sensor .. it was broken. After the fix the car stoped horn when i lock it ... it only do only when i leave a door open as if it tells me that.
and no alarms at night what so ever.

 

Here’s a 14-month, 10k mile update on these issues for anyone who is curious.

1. This was user error - one of the doors was open and I didn’t realize.
2. SLS pump is still loud but it works fine. Bags don’t deflate after 2-3+ weeks sitting - it only sags a bit if the temperature drops substantially since it was parked.
3. Flushed and working fine now.
4. This was mitigated substantially by replacing the front driveshaft and changing the transfer case fluid - it only had about 3/4 of a quart.
5. This is still there. I dunno, it doesn’t happen that often. I assume it’s normal.
6. Replaced the AC pipe running from the joint on the driver side to the receiver/dryer in the front grill. Vacuumed, recharged, and now working perfectly.
7. Replaced the previous “180” Motorrad stat with an OEM one and dropped temps by 10+ degrees.

Overall truck is running well. Like any 20 year old Rover, there are minor issues, but nothing major. This thread was one of my first posts on the forum and I’ve been able to do a bunch of my own repairs and maintenance in the past year.

 

This is awesome! Glad you are getting this in ship shape and enjoying it!