Hello all! I have lurked on here for a while but it looks like I'm about to finally dive into this thing, so I figured it wouldn't be a bad idea to make a thread to help keep a log and seek guidance from you guys.

I have an '01 LE with about 165k miles on it. My dad bought it new in '00 off a dealership demo. It was pretty much trouble free throughout his ownership and I got it from him in 2010 with around 145k on it. While he owned it he added a TJM front bumper, OME 2" springs/shocks, and some audio stuff. Not a bad start, but I'd like to take it a little further. The truck is still in pretty nice shape overall, just getting a little rough around the edges. I haven't used it much and we all know these things don't like sitting, I've just always had other projects going on and haven't had the spare time to dedicate to it. I'm planning on setting aside some time to get it pretty well squared away now before it becomes a complete turd due to neglect. This is how it currently sits:

20150905_145030 by Jonathan braswell, on Flickr

I consider myself a fairly competent DIY wrench, I'm a BMW guy at heart, I currently have an e39 m5 and am building a spec e30 race car but have had a bunch of 5 series over the years (any other BMW people here?). Unfortunately for me, I don't have much experience working on the Land Rover (or anything else British) so I'm sure I'll have some questions along the way. I've done a decent amount of maintenance stuff to keep the thing on the road over the last few years, but I know things will be getting a little more in depth in the months/years to come. In it's current state, the truck has a pretty long list of needs (I've added some thoughts/questions in bold):

Issues:
-Broken Winshield cowling/passenger floorboard leak- Any good source for this part that's not as expensive as AB? This is priority one for me, this thing is torn up
-Oil leak on drivers front. Timing cover area- I've also had an intermittent (gone now) coolant leak in this area so I'm thinking I might need a timing cover gasket. I've read I should consider oil pump gears, but possible only on later DII?
-Blower motor noise, possible debris inside (see 1st item on list) and/or bad bearing
-Three Amigo's on occasion
-SRS light
-Shocks feel old- What is a common upgrade from OME? Fox or Bilstein maybe? Mostly street use, with some off-road weekends
-Intermittent coolant leak (currently non-existent but monitoring)
-Slight steering wobble, just starting to notice this but I'm assuming it won't be getting any better on it's own

Wants:
-Rear bumper- I sold a Greg Davis bumper a year or two ago but want to build something similar
-sliders- same as above
- Better shocks, maybe slightly more lift

Recent work:
-Radiator
-water pump
-T-body heater
-Coils/plugs
-Coolant resevoir

Sorry for the dis-jointed and long winded intro. Updates with photos to come

 

Hey :-)

Figured I'd say hi. Was a BMW guy for a long time...1985 M635, 1986 E28 with a '96 S50 from an M3 race car). Also raced SCCA, etc, for many years ...so good luck with the Spec. E30! Sold those cars and now have an '07 Ferrari F430.

I have an '04 D2, but it hasn't needed any serious wrenching on it, so I can't answer any of your questions.....but there certainly are others on here who can. I just thought I'd say hi because we have other things in common :-)

Good luck!

George

 

Just saw this, cool cars George! It's surprising to me that more people don't do the s5x e28 swap, great motor for that chassis. I have an e28 535is right now that isn't in great shape, and I'm trying to decide which direction to go with it. I worked for some arrive and drive SCCA outfits for a long time and now do engineering for an IMSA team as a side gig/break from reality, so I am aware of the slippery slope I'm on.

I'm finally getting around to working on the DII now. I did some cleaning and fluid tracing today.. I seem to have oil and coolant leaking from the front of the motor. I can almost see the source when looking w/ flashlight @ front of motor, behind pulleys from passenger side. but it gets pretty uniformly oily and coolant-y all along the passenger side of the timing cover. I am thinking of going ahead and doing timing cover gaset and valve cover gaskets, do I need to worry about oil pump gears on this thing? Maybe just an "if I'm in there already" kind of thing?

 

Im a big fan of UV dye. makes things a whole bunch easier. Like having Spiderman vision for finding leaks.

 

Yeah that's probably a good idea, the leak is originating in a place that's not visible, by the time I can see anything it's tough to isolate. I should probably start thinking about doing some preventative stuff on this thing though, it has 165k and is mostly original except for the things listed about that I've changed in the last year or so

 

If you remove the top fan cover, belt, and fan/clutch, you may have better access to the front cover to clean up and start over sourcing the leak. Most would replace pump gears and timing set so that your chances of ever removing the cover again become very slight if you use quality gasket and LocTite the bolts. Remove your driveshafts and check mobility of Ujoints. If the CV set nearest the transfer case in front DS do not possess grease zerks, either rebuild with greasable units or replace DS for $200 @ Lucky8
If you look through the classifieds, you will notice a handful of guys selling parts that can source your windshield cowling.
The blower unit/cage is held in with 3-4 small bolts. Upon removing you will most likely find a few small leaves that have been getting bounced around the cage. I was fully prepared to replace mine and it simply had some intake debris that had been causing my frustration.

 

I have a 2002 with 167k. Similar story as far as repair history. A few things come to mind. I'd get an OBDII gauge and see what temp you're running. 180 degree t-stat is a good option. I switched to Rotella 15W-40 and stopped dripping oil. My head gaskets went last year. Temp spikes and coolant loss then leaks preceded. I'd take a look at the 60k service in the sticky here under maintenance. Good stuff there. Also Option B for 3 amigos makes a big difference with brakes. About $15 in parts and 2 hours work.

 

I haven't really stayed on top of this thread, but I also haven't really stayed on top of the DII maintenance either... At the beginning of last year my DD BMW e39 m5 was rear-ended and totalled, which led to a long search for a suitable replacement followed by the normal maintenance + modifications that go with any new car purchase. However, two months ago I took the M5 off the road to do rod bearings and accompanying bits. I am just a one man show working in a normal garage so this job took about 2 weeks of tinkering with it after work and whatnot. Up to this point I had only been driving the Land Rover sporadically, maybe short trips twice a week hauling MTB's around, but with the M5 down it went from sitting in the side yard to my daily driver. I filled and bled the coolant resevoir, topped of the oil, and it never missed a beat for 3 weeks of DD duty. Now that the M5 is back on the road, it's time to give the DII some love.

This weekend- timing cover gasket and oil pump gears







Overall, the job itself wasn't too bad, except for the filth. This thing hasn't been apart since new, and has been leaking for years, so I took the time (hours) to brake clean/scrub everything that came off and all parts of the block/front side of the motor. I think I went through 4 cans of brake clean, 20+ rubber gloves. Oil pump gears looked fine, but I replaced them anyways. Timing cover casket and front seal had both been leaking, and while I was under there I think I found my coolant leak- valley pan! There was some coolant in the bellhousing seam, and it looks like its coming from under the intake on the back side. While I had the front cover off, I checked the valley pan bolts I could reach from the front and they were all finger tight, perfect! Do these motors have harmonic issues? Factory bolts coming loose seems to be more of an issues than I'm accustomed to.

Next on the list- valley pan and brakes. I think I'm going to go with EBC pads front and rear, they're cheap and decent for the money from my experience.

 

I have EBC brakes and rotors all the way around. Lucky8 has a good deal on the set up. Glad to see you giving the lady some love.

 

Thanks for the heads up! I already had some rotors laying around, so I just bought EBC pads (front/rear) and +2" SS lines.