(newbie 2000 D2)

Besides my leaking self leveling air suspension ($1400 quote to switch to springs. Will have to wait on that) so far so good on a week of ownership! Knocking on wood.

I have a question on breaks. I've read you SHOULD NOT pump the breaks. With that said... it seems that when I break it stops slowly (smooth and takes awhile, BUT if I let up and hit the breaks a second time, the car will stop on a dime! Am I doing something wrong? or are my breaks bad, or is this how it;s done?

AGAIN. I'm Newbie with a boring non temperamental Honda CRV as a reference. I love this Rover and want to make sure I treat it right. Is there a good book anyone can recommend as far as maintenance?

Thanks!

 

on my disco2 it does the same thing .. the first time i press the brakes the petal goes a little low but if i release it and press it a second time the petal stays higher but the stopping power is the same on the first press or the second pressing .. on my car it looks like the master cylinder is leaking so i am going to order the rebuild kit for it

 

Only thing I can think of is that you have an air bubble somewhere in your brake system. That's the only reason I can think of why it would apply more force on the second pump. You have to compress the air bubble before the fluid can apply pressure at the calipers. With anti-lock brakes you shouldn't pump the brakes because every time you release the pedal and press it again the ABS computer starts it process all over again. Have you checked the thickness of your pads and rotors? I would bleed your brake system and while you're under the truck take a close look at the condition of the pads and rotors.

If you haven't already you may want to download the RAVE manual. It's a huge help in troubleshooting and repair as well as routine maintenance.
http://www.landroverresource.com/ click on the link to go to the RAVE download site.

 

Don't go to the dealer for your suspension issues. Why not fix your air suspensuion instead of switching to coils.
By the way, you can switch to good coils for around $300 if you do it your self, so how mwchanical are you?
If you want some help finding the SLS problem, get back to me.

 

I'm more of a weekend fluid changer. I don't think I'd have the tools to do an air bag swap. I do have a mechanic I like that I'm taking it to today for a checkup (they don't usually work on Land Rovers though) so at some point I'll have to find a LR mechanic around here.

I'll try to find more info on changing them and if you have a list of tool I would need, I'm always open to trying something new. With what I've read so far, it sounds doable.

 

land rovers are no different mechanically than any other vehicle or tractor... 8 cylinder gasoline engine, transmission, and differentials... suspension is suspension no matter what its mounted to... changing bags to springs only requires a decent socket set, a couple jackstands, a good floor jack, and coil spring compressors(which you can rent from any auto parts store)... its not rocket science, but it may be frustrating at times and time consuming... some mechanics just wont mess with rovers because their "british" and "built all weird"... but after owning a load of different vehicles my disco is way easier to work on than most others i have had...

as for your brake issue, try bleeding the lines to make sure you do not have air trapped in the lines... should help...

 

Either way, changing the bags , repairing a leak or doing a conversion is not a big deal.
Have yo considered just repairing the current system?
As for the brakes, what you have described is pretty normal on out trucks. Consider doing a full brake fluid bleed, 3 pints of DOT 4, this will help.

 

I had my mechanic take a look at everything today. not bad shape. will need some new tires soon, break master cylinder "slightly dirty", transmission is "a little whiny" and the heater fan "whistles" and of course the rear air bag(s) need to be replaced. He wasn't too thrilled with working on LRs, but was a good sport. I like him and he's very honest and thorough. He gave me a name of a LR mechanic I'll checkout. I'm trying to talk him into doing the work. He's open to it and I said I'd forward info on kits for the new bags or a conversion kit. I've read about a couple places to get bags and/or kits. Would they come with instructions? I guessing they would, but who knows. I'm thinking of trying to do a new air bag(s) before a conversion kit. A few options. Any suggestions:

http://www.arnottindustries.com/part...id4_pid48.html

http://www.roversnorth.com/store/c-422-kits.aspx

http://www.strutmasters.com/range-ro...sion-s/100.htm

as far as the drive shaft problem these rigs have, sounds like I should get that fixed or looked at asap? is this a MUST do or is it a "check and see how it looks" type thing?? If I have to have it rebuilt or get a new one, how is this one:
http://www.4xshaft.com/index.html

thanks for your help!

 

The driveshaft issue is a must, unless it has been done already. Look for grease fittings in the u-joints. On a 200o, you can manually lock the transfer case, pull the front shaft and have it rebuilt. You can do light driving in town and then unlock it when you get the front shaft back in. Do a search for more info.

The bags at arnott are good from what I hear. Mike really likes his ride, and they have a great warranty.

 

if I do go with the Arnott conversion kit, will I need to worry about any computer reprogramming or disabling anything electronically?

"Snap-on" scanners my mechanic uses I'm guessing are not compatible with LR.

Sorry for all the knuckle-head questions.

thanks.