Hello all!

I own a 2002 Disco II SD7 with about 78K miles on it. Around Jan/Feb timeframe, it overheated. I took it to a local shop and they determined that the bypass hose was leaking. So we replaced that. Two weeks later it over heated again. The same shop told me the work that they did was solid and that they couldn't figure out where the coolant was going. So I took her to the Land Rover dealership to get checked out. They said that the bypass hose held fine and that now there was a small leak in the head gasket. So both head gaskets where replaced. Two weeks go by and BAM! over heated again. This time the dealership said it needed a new radiator cap. That was a cheap enough fix. But then just a couple days later it over heats again. This time the dealership says I have a slipped cylinder sleeve, and will need to replace the motor. At the time I didn't have the kind of money it would take to fix it, and parked it. (I do take her out on occasion, I just make sure she has coolant) Now I'm were I can consider replacing the motor, however I'm concerned that I'll dump all this money into her and she'll just die on me again.

I would like to hear from someone who has had this kind of work done on thier Disco. How much did it really cost you in the end? Were you happy with the work? Did you use the dealership or a local shop? Do you recomend doing the work, or should I just cut my losses and move on?

Any input will be welcome. Hope to hear from you soon!

 

Find an independent mechanic and get a second opinion. Your overheat problems could be a bad head gasket or numerous other things. Unless the engine has been severely overheated the liner should not have slipped.

 

Could be a bad water pump, bad thermostat, radiator...almost anything.
The only way to check for a dropped sleeve is to remove the oil pan and check for a slipped sleeve.
That is easy enough to do, you can do it if you are half way mechanical.
Just drain the oil, remove the 24 bolts on the oil pan and with a flash light look at the bottoms of the cylinders for a sleeve that is sticking down lower than the rest.
I seriously doubt that is your problem though, typically a slipped sleeve will hit the connecting rod and make one hell of a knocking sound, it would sound like your rods were going bad.
www.roverlandparts.com
www.autosportsunlimited.com
Unfortunately unless the shop knows how to re sleeve a engine it cannot be rebuilt.
And like AK said, unless you severly overheated the engine it is doubtful that you dropped a sleeve.

 

The second time it over heated I think is when it really went bad. I thought after the first round of fixes, it was fine so I wasn't watching...I was a mile from home when I looked down and it had red lined. I pulled over immediately after I noticed and waited in the cold for two hours for a tow truck. The head gaskets where replaced after that. And then so on and so on.

 

How does it sound when you run the engine?

 

Seriously don't lay down and accept the whole slipped sleeve thing until you remove the oil pan and see it for yourself.

 

The engine actually sounds alright. It does idle a little low at stops signs and such, but no knock or tick. I'll have to get someone to help me drop the oil pan. Maybe get some pics up or something.

 

It is a simple process. Clean up the screen that the oil gets pumped through. Let us know.

 

I too have the same issue of overheating. It has happened to me 3 times, once with the wife over a year ago and don’t know how hot it got. Just took it in to the dealership Friday and was told it was either a dropped sleeve or bad head gasket. They took the engine apart to find out if the sleeve dropped and said no. At that point they replaced the gaskets. All seemed fine today after a test drive. After prepping the truck for me to pick up, the engine light came on and the Code lead them to #6 cylinder. They found coolant in it. LR’s thought is once the engine heats up, the leak happens. They told me new engine. I will find out more tomorrow and share.
2004 Disco SE with 78K. New engine is more than the truck is worth.

 

Let me know how it goes, and what you decide. And you're right, the new motor would cost more then the truck is worth.