I bought a 2000 Discovery 2 , the owner told me it had a coolant leak and he would have to put coolant in every 2 weeks, it also had the 2 green flashing lights on and the 3 Trios. Owner said the Disco never left him stranding .
I thought I got it for a good price and figured I could get it fixed. My son replaced the radiator and the thermostat. I had a friend who also has a Rover install the xyz switch , which got rid of the blinking green lights, he replaced the waterpump , sparkpluggs, he told me the system had a lot of air in it and he saw that someone had tried to to fix the headgasket before but only did one of them instead of the two and then put it back together. He told me that it might have a slipped sleeve and I should just sell it. After all this work I really don't want to sell it, I have another friend whi is a diesel mechanic and he told me he can fix it for me in a few weeks. The symptoms now are still overheating, I poured more coolant in it and it drives really good but will still overheat. Should I sell or just fix the head gasket does it seem like it is the engine ?
This is my first Land Rover and I love this car already eventhough I hardly drove it yet I just want to get it running, it has 134,000 miles on it , the inside looks great , need advice please , thanks ...Bianka

 

1. The factory temp gauge is programmed to show 50% from 130- 240F, or close. So if you mean overheating by gauge rising above 50%, I would take the position that it was already overheating long before that. A scanner or Ultra Gauge connected to the OBDII port is the only way to get an accurate view of the sensor data. This way you can tell if you are making progress. Normal temps would be 190-210, with oem stat.

Put in a new coolant cap. If it is not holding pressure it will vent while driving. A coolant pressure tester can be rented, pump up to 15 PSI, and wait. Leak will display normally within 30 minutes.

2. A slipped sleeve normally starts to make a ticking sound after warmed up. It may go away at revved up, but returns when piston travel slows down. Options include pin liners and top hat liners with machine shop work.

3. A cracked block can make massive overheat, boil coolant jug, etc. A pressure test of block with heads off can show that, before HG or machining of heads.

4. If they only did one side, they probably also skipped machining the heads ($200). Spec for flatness is 0.002 inch, or about 1/2 the thickness of printer paper.

5. One test you can run now is exhaust gas in coolant, about $50, changes color, kit does 15 tests. Some parts stores rent them out.

6. After WP install, you need to verify the belt route.

7. An oem stat can be replaced with a 180F version, drops temps across the board.

8. If overheats slow and parked, check fan clutch (spin and release when hot, should stop in less than 1 revolution).

9. Electric fan should spin freely, and should be coming on at 212F. If hasn't been coming on check fuse, relay, etc. If fan is siezing up will blow fuse.

10. You did not mention other things like white smoke out exhaust, rock hard hoses, coolant in oil (overfilled and milkshake color).

The factory shop manual set is called the RAVE, free download links below.

 

Oil has chocolate milkshake color, white smoke coming from exhaust and leaking water from exhaust also. Cap was replaced already, and yes have a slight ticking noise and sound like a diesel motor, that is why my friend said it probably has more wrong with it , looked to him like someone attempted to fix HG and then realized issue is worse then just that or they felt they could't do it , I don't know. I had the red light come on 4 times, I know that is not good at all, I have seen where on here it said don't ever drive it with red light on, which I then turned it of immediately and then drove it home was about a mile.
It did have a hose leak, but all hoses are soft none are hard at all.

 

Red light comes on at like 284F, so you have been to the drive-thru at the Colonel and ordered "extra crispy". Doing the head gaskets and machining heads will certainly help all of this, with the exception of the slipping liner. Some guys pin them, some drive with it, some swap engines from boneyard (plan on HGs as a minimum). One recent thread covered ordering top hat liners from the UK, having machine shop install them, and new head gaskets, seems like it was under $3 grand in parts and machine shop. DIY head gaskets is 2 weekends with machine shop inbetween. $300 parts kit (use new bolts, or go withARP studs), and $200 skim the heads and install valve seals that come with the HG kit. Many shops figure 12 hours for the HG job alone. There are threads on here about pinning your liners, which would seem to be OK, if there is not a cracked block.

Milkshake oil is eating up the main bearings faster than SWMBO can rub the numbers off a credit card. Drain and change oil.

It won't make you feel good, but this is one of the most common reasons we get new members, the new-to-me Rover is overheating.

So, in summary - if you can get a junk yard engine that is one path. I would point out that many boneyards will have a special half price sale or such on Memorial day weekend.

With current engine, when it is opened up to do head gaskets, a block pressure test can be done with shop air and block of plates. If no leakage around liners great. One member did it this way
You can pin liners, of course part of the issue is that the liner has to be where you want it when pinned, and block might need to be heated. Top hat liners are the final solution. Repair of a cracked block (TIG welding, etc.) might be possible and your machine shop would comment.

HGs are a given, and machine shop work. Ditto if you go with a used engine, most Discos are in the boneyard for engine problems.

A bottle of stopz leakz of any brand is a last ditch effort. It is unlikely it will be successful with a profound multi-direction leak like yours. Most of these products contain sodium silicate (water glass) which is the same thing dealers added to oil to kill the engines in cash for clunker cars.

 

WOW...can you come over and do this for me ?? LOL
Thank you so much , will let my friend read this when he is ready to take on the job , sounds promising to me ....I am an optimist !!!