Since I purchased my '04 a couple of months ago I've had issue with the oil light goin on at idle. So I finaly removed the front cover and took off the cover to the oil pump and this is what I found in the photos. So is this due to poor maintnenace by the precious owner or is this due to the famous engine design flaw? I was told by a specialist that there was a batch of bad '04s which had the same problem made famous by the '03s.

 

Classic design flaw failure. Eventually the gear would have broken in another place or cracked the housing leaving you with no oil pressure at all.

Can you save the cover and just replace the gear?

Chalk up another '04 failure despite what LR says about taking care of the problem.

 

Not from neglect or poor maintance, I have seen a few gear rings break like that, it is not related to the 03 issue, just a failure.
Make sure to flush out your engine well once it is back together and you should be fine.

 

Yup, bad engine.
There have been, including yours, no less then 6 '04's with this problem on the forum.

 

I checked the dowels and the holes they fit into on the pump and didn't see any major wearing. I also tought that well known failure was typically catastrophic and happened within the first 30k miles. This accured around 60-70k and only cuased low oil pressure at idle.

If in fact this is due to poor machining, how ofter should I be checking the gears after I install the new front cover?

Thanks!

 

You only get catastrophic failure if you dont pay attention and continue to drive with the oil light on.
We had a guy on here a couple of years ago with a '03, his oil light came on and he continued to drive for another 5 miles on the expressway at speeds of 70+, took his exit and she ground to a halt.
He wanted sympathy and got non.
The oil pump can fail at any time, most go between 40,000-60,000 miles. It just all depends on how hard it was driven.
Tow a trailer everyday and it wont make 50k.
After installing a new oil pump and front cover I would install a mechanical oil pressure gauge and then just drive it.
When you notice a big drop in oil PSI you will know what you need to do.

 

Yeah, I already ordered the oil gauge but which of the auxiliary ports pn the front cover should I install it in and what kind of NPT adaptor do I need? I'm think about returning the one I got for a dual gauge for both oil and water temp. Is there an installation guide or post for both gauges for a Disco II

Thanks!

 

jycsalas has a write up on how to install a oil gauge.
The last time I installed a oil gauge it was on a 1986 Chevy Celebrity station wagon that I had...that was 10 years ago.

 

Great! I'll check it out!

 

The breakage of your oil pump can happen to any engine and has while not being related to the 03 issue.
I think installing a gauge is a good idea but wouldn't be too concerned about the dowel pins.