Jeff, where the f--k are you going to ............ the moon? I would include a spare D2 if I were you!

Seriously, unless you are doing 2K+ miles offroad but even then I wouldn't carry half of that stuff. If it were me, I would make sure I have a good sat phone and charger, GPS type if necessary, a serpentine belt, good comprehensive tool kit and some water and biscuits, first aid kit and very little else except 2 good spare tires/wheels. It really depends how confident you are of your truck.

 

Haha. All good ideas. What I have in mind is camping/offroading in the USA, often 100+ miles from anything. I pack light camp-wise, and I have a box to fill with spare parts. I know some of them are luxury, but its nice to be able to do a proper repair on the road and not limp home. If a thermosat sticks, it's a heck of a lot easier to just swap them rather than jerry rig a bypass.

Battery wise - yes I have jumpers but I might even leave them out. I have dual isolated batteries so theoretically I can never be left without a juiced starting battery. Plus I have 200w of solar, so a couple hours of sunlight and I should be good to go.

I do want to do something about spare fuel. On the spare tire is an idea, but I'm worried about weight on the hinge? I have a front runner rack, so I could easily get a dual jerry can mount, but I'm not too fond of carrying so much weight up there either. I already have a 12 gal water tank up there.
A swing out welded to the bumper would be cool!

Sat phone is on the wishlist, in particular the Inreach Explorer looks very neat. Can't stomach the price tag + monthly fees yet though.

fuel pump - not really practical considering their awkward shape and fragile-ness.

rotoflex - no need Converted to u-joints in the rear.

 

Here's what I'd take. Failures of each of these have left me stranded or very inconvenienced.

• Parts
  • Serp belt
  • Brake light switch
  • XYZ switch
  • Crankshaft position sensor
  • Thermostat
  • Water or premixed coolant

Other parts inspired by what I've read in this thread ---

• One spark plug wire and one spark plug (obviously a wire long enough for cylinder 1 or 7)

Related tools too, of course.

If you have concerns about the alternator, starter or the water pump just install new ones before you leave. Same for the pulleys and tensioner, and any hoses. I'd not worry about the nylon coolant and vac lines. Problems with them are WAY overblown. Yes I've broken at least one of them but that was my error, not them failing.

The jump box is a good idea too.

Done.

 

Dual isolated batteries sounds nice! Do you have a diesel or is that a custom modification to a gas motor?

200W of solar is golden.

Fuel pump "spare" should be a generic submersible bullet instead of a factory replacement.

 

No diesel (does gas vs diesel have anything to do with dual batts? Not that I know of). Custom mod... Blue Sea ML-ACR 7622 does all the magic of combining or disconnecting the starting battery from the other one. I have the starter cable on the starter battery (and nothing else) and moved the fuse box cable to the other battery.

Alternator... yeah mine is acting up. Yesterday I was getting no output. It's happened before. Had to restart the truck 5 times before it finally starting kicking the volts up to 13.5. Cables are clean, tight. Pulley is tight, no squeals. Sometimes the alternator will finally kick in after the truck is warm. Most of the time it works fine. Don't think it can be anything other than the alternator going bad yes?

brake light switch and xyz switch - good call! I've actually never touched or seen either or those.

My disco is very reliable. I've basically rebuilt the entire thing myself top to bottom so I'm very familiar with all the pieces. It's nice feeling to have personally been inside all the nooks and crannies of your vehicle and engine.

 

Many alternator cases simply unscrew with a philips screwdriver once you've unbolted them from the motor. The two components most likely to fail inside are the regulator and rectifier. Those 2 parts are often inexpensive and small. Install them on the roadside and you've done a cheapo/quickie alternator rebuild. Brushes would be the 3rd most common failure point...slightly more involved to install.

Just carrying those small internal spare parts would seem less burdensome than carrying an entire spare alternator.

 

Can the wires for the Disco's brake light switch simply be wound together to short a failed brake light switch in order to get home from a remote area?

 

Anyone mention a spare crank position sensor yet? I keep an extra in my disco and my E55 as both vehicles are prone to having them die

 

I would take 2 gallons of coolant.
brass barb adapter fittings / blade cutter for hoses
JB Weld (yellow and black) tubes
Replace all clamps with the screw type

Good tune up and newer tires

We drove NJ to Orlando Florida (6x)
over 2000 miles round trip and never had
problem but drove yesterday from NJ to Connecticut
for 62 miles and thermostat froze. Got towed back home.

Things happen, Cheers!

 

zip ties and duct tape.