make sure when you do the shuttle valve that you replace the orings as well

 

Sinister:
I notice you say this; "[...] while under there, discovered that the rear air bags and self leveling system have been removed."
Just a thought; that may not be a bad thing. It is a common retrofit here in South Africa, you yank out the troublesome and expensive-to-repair compressor and bags, and replace them with new coils. No more self leveling suspension problems.
Guys here spend some 250 bucks to just change out the coils! Maybe yours has been done already, mine has and I like it as it is...

 

Sinister...

Enjoying your documenting the progress to date.

Just to add on to Joe's post about your "lack" of rear SLS.
You mentioned that your D2 does not have Sunroofs and is an SD model.
Do you have heated seats, heated front windshield, or CD changer?
Someone please correct me if I am mistaken, but did the SD's even offer those as an option?

You might consider yourself fortunate for finding a less optioned model - less to break, less to fix.

I had an '03 S model years ago, and in hindsight, I should have kept it since it spent a lot less time than my '04 getting fixed. Working on an '02 SE7 now and am thankful that is does not have ACE or SLS. Could use a CDL though....

Front bumpers are difficult to find unscathed. If you opt for an aftermarket steel bumper, please post some photos any fitment info.

Great colour BTW.

 

Thanks.

While the Disco doesn't have SD on it anywhere, I'm pretty sure it's an Entry-Level truck.

There was never a CD changer, it had a bad stereo in it, that had the CD buttons and controls, and it has the stereo controls on the steering wheel, as well as a two tone steering wheel.

It has cloth, non-heated, non-power seats (the driver's side has the same bolster hole I've seen in every other cloth Disco seat). No windshield heater, no Sunroofs, it's really a no-frills truck.

The rear air suspension bags were removed and coils installed some time in the past. The compressor, lines, and level sensors are still in place, just hanging there.

I recently discovered that the engine was replaced (which makes sense since the odometer has over 242K miles on it), and a 4.0 Thor was used from a truck with the ACE system, because the ACE pump is missing, the holes are there on the engine and the space where the ACE pump lived.

I'm glad I found such a low-spec truck, I only wish someone hadn't removed the three amigos bulbs. They were willing to put a replacement engine in the truck, but not fix the ABS/Brake system? Makes no sense.

The only options (if you could call them options) on this truck are power windows, keyless entry/alarm, dual zone climate control, front and rear fogs, auto dimming rear view mirror, power outside mirrors, and that's about it. I suspect that someone swapped the steering wheel out and that it wasn't supposed to have the two tone (black & tan) steering wheel.

I found a 2000 SD in a salvage yard and it's steering wheel was all black, and didn't have the stereo controls. The wheel was in good shape, so I'll probably go back and grab it.

I'm leaning toward a steel winch bumper. Several years ago, I found an SE7 in full safari garb, lifted with a monster winch on the front, but it was a hurricane Catrina flood victim that wouldn't start. It didn't have a snorkel, so the engine was probably full of water. I regretted not buying it for a while, but knowing what I know now... I'm sure the truck would have been a nightmare.

 

I've been keeping an eye on all the fluid levels, having driven "Ruby" regularly over the last couple of weeks. My wife has named the Disco now, so it's part of the family. (She also named the Jag XJ8 which is killing the grass in the back yard it's name is Loretta) I don't know where she comes up with these names.

Adjusting the slack out of the steering box made a HUGE difference. The new shocks, even though they're not EMU or ARB gold plated whatevers, also made a great difference. The Disco is actually great to drive now. It was a bit flobbery (I don't really think that's a word) before.

This evening I finally identified the infuriating rattle from the front suspension. It'll probably only take a few minutes to fix, and it probably won't cost anything. It's the passenger's front brake shield/dust shield. I walked by and kicked the tire tread on that side and it rattled. I had the wife stand there and kick the tire until I could find the problem. It's a noisy thing.

Now all I have to do is tighten up the bolts when I have the wheel off to do the brake job.

Oh yeah, that reminds me. I still haven't done the brakes. Life and work keep getting in the way.

"Ruby" also came with a mascot. Every morning when I go out to head to work, there is a new spider web on the back of the Disco. It's living somewhere around the spare tire.

 

I've been looking for an affordable front bumper. Winch bumpers are nice, but I don't want to sink $700 - $1400 in a bumper.

This weekend I found a 2004 SE7 in a junkyard. The center plastic of the bumper cover is damaged, but I believe I'll be able to trim it up, and weld a nice light bar to the bumper reinforcement so it'll look intentional.

I got the whole set up, including fog lights, light squirters and all the trim for $85.00, thank you pullapart.

While I was at it, I snagged a good air intake hose (mine's cracked at the ICV inlet temporarily patched), two door latches hopefully with good lock motors, both headlights (I know the installation requires cutting), a couple of other trim pieces and scored all this for only $65.

Since the round trip was 175 miles, I also decided to see just how bad the mileage was, and was happily surprised that the Disco got a manageable 15.5 mpg on 99% highway cruise.

Considering the oversized tires and that I had the air conditioning running the whole time, I'm not mad at that number.

I also had some exhaust work done. I ditched the front muffler, and rear resonator, had a flowmaster 90 installed in it's place, with a cheap stainless tip sticking straight out the back. Even the exhaust guy was surprised at how good it sounds. I'll try to get a vid of it.

I love the sound.