OK will do! Today on way to work Ill check lower hose, Im also going to get some flush, I could not get to it yesterday but will in morning... I work only coupe miles away and 15 mins driving and thats all I do mostly and on mondays and tuesdays I drive it up nicely .. anyway, mine never goes past 9:00 but Im like you not convinced until thermostat is replaced, new ultra gauge says OK temps ect... might just be worrying about nothing but worrying until you have reason to cuss is worse than finding the facts! lol

 

OK I got started with flushing but ran out of daylight no buggy will start back tomorrow... so far I reverse flushed without using a flush first time and dexcool was clear an clean but I think I only recovered about 1 gal even though expansion tank was full.. assuming more is in block... I just was curious to see if anything came up from lower hose... seemed to flow pretty freely... so decided to remove thermostat anyway since I was replacing it and compare.. I even found a little shard or spiraled metal from thermostat! was in one of those 4 holes... ( see attached pics ) anyway, Im going to install new thermostat so I can make sure I get coolant circulating through.. then add flush.. and drain and flush and drain then fill once all clear! question.. when turning on Disco while having hose in for the flushing of the block, will the fluid run back out the same hole I have the hose in?

here are a few pics... Untitled | Flickr - Photo Sharing!
SOON DEXCOOL GONE!!! AND GREEN PEAK GOING IN!

 

Not sure if this matters, but I would keep the old thermostat in until all flushing was finished and doing the final coolant fill. Seems like you could clog one of the 4 holes if the flush breaks something loose and it might be a pain to clear it.

 

times 2 why chance screwing up the new one

 

well I was thinking if the old one was not functioning then the new one would allow more flush to clean it all out.. just running the flush with new thermostat in it has made a huge difference in temps! I was getting temps like 235+ by the water temp sensor with my IR temp gun on the top of engine! that has to be too hot! fortunately I never have far to drive.. anyway now its a nice 198-205 same place! and as soon as the flush is changed to Green PEAK then lll retest.... I did a quick back flush of the DEXCOOL before sealing up and putting in the flush and the radiator seems to flow very well.. hopefully that continues! lol

 

Great write up, I just got an 03 Disco, with 78K miles. I'm working my way through the major services.

Ive got a couple questions. What is the best way to get to the lower Rad. hose? There is a plastic shield under the front of the engine, does this need to be removed for the best access to the lower hose for draining? Or can this all be done from the top? By removing the fan shroud.

Also I have a new Rad. cap and thermastat which I plan on replacing during this service. Do you really need to remove the fan to change the Tstat? Which the SM says to do.

I'm gonna use Peak for replacement.

 

when I changed my T/stat and flushed my system as per the rave I removed the 4 screws holding the fan shroud which then gives you acsess to the spring hose clips. These can be a pita to remove but with patience and pliers they can be removed. You might also want to go to a BMW stealership and get the plastic bleed screw for the t-piece. When doing mine it broke and after trying to get one from various L/R stealerships it was suggetsted to go to BMW. It only cost about $8 so does not break the bank and wont ruin your day like it did mine

 

Seems like if replacing stat you could do the flush just before changing out the stat. The stat has little holes in the top leg, don't want them clogged by gunk. If you can reverse flush it is a plus. Also consider flush of the heater core. Messy. Chart of hose connections, pix of why you flush, and stat. You want an OEM stat, there have been several posts of aftermarket users that had stats that would not open at right temp.

 

Thanks for the heads up on the bleeder screw, Heading to BMW soon. Also the PITA this is gonna be!!! But now the pics bring up a quesion, i got my Tsat from NAPA, does the plastic housing that holds it come apart for replacement or did I get the wrong one???

 

You got the wrong one. It should look like this Thermostat Discovery II (Genuine Part # PEM100990) - Land Rover cooling/heating from Atlantic British