Today, I'm looking at my rig and it occurs to me that I should probably check the radiator....y'know, make sure there is liquid in there, so I pop the hood and notice that it's located under this big plastic "radiator cover". When I see it.... I just smile, take a swig of my beer and think.... "those thoughtful Brits sure are helpful to design this big dirt reducing radiator protector for me "..... and really it's a snap to get off. Four large screws and it's free....cept for that big hose that slots across the front, and has to be maneuvered around. It's pretty easy actually. Also....wow, my engine sure got dirty after I went off roading on saturday



So I get the cover removed and I notice .....there is no radiator cap. Uh... what? There is no radiator cap ? That's right.... I searched closely, across the entire length of the radiator. I even shone my flashlight down the sides in case those tricky Brits placed it in an unusual place. Nope.... nuthin



So I realize it's once again time to consult my trusty Owners Manual. I flip to the index at the back...... locate the letter "R".... and run my finger down the list.

 

Overflow/expansion tank behind your battery/jack compartment

 

are you planning on covering all of the parts of the vehicle? If you are then I'm bookmarking this and you should make it a sticky... good stuff to know and probably will be very helpful when you get it all done. Don't worry, I'll answer your question regarding the drive shafts - I've just been strategically selecting the right words. Carry on...


Oh yeah.. btw, you may want to switch over to classic green coolant. That red stuff and aluminum don't jive.

 

Yup..... my trusty Owners Manual shows this picture under the letter "C" for cooling system.....ha ha..... those crazy Brits and their quirky language differences. Imagine listing radiator under the letter "C". They probably howled with laughter on their break time talking about all the american Rover owners who's rigs were overheating cuz of their little trick.

Anyways, I found it .......



Then found it under the hood....



....and traced the tiny black hose....backwards.....past the jack (made in Italy )......



....backwards......along the top forward edge of the radiator.....



....and backwards..... till I saw where it connected to the radiator.



Why did they do it this way? I guess because they are not FORD

 

Well, I'm planning on sharing everything I can about my exploration of this interesting and amazing piece of machinery. I figure there will be folks who will see something I share that will help them. New people. Maybe new to auto mechanics....like me. IDK....

If the mods think this thread should be located somewhere else....it's ok with me. I'm still just learning my way around these forums too.

Classic green coolant? You mean you can pick the color? Cool !! And I'm all for comments and suggestions from the "experienced" mechanical types around here. If anyone see's something in my photos that I should maybe pay attention to or put on my list of things to do..... lets have it. Some other newbie might be in the same situation.

 

if you want to swap in the green coolant (highly recommended)) you need to do a flush of the entire cooling system. you'll want all the dex cool out. then you can go with green. prestone or whatever.

 

Ok.... flush the cooling system and switch to GREEN COOLANT....check. I'll get to that as soon as I can.

In the meantime.....well, something kind of embarrassing happened a few months ago. Something kind of .....DUH !! Too bad I hadn't read the LR Owners Manual before I switched the rear window wiper switch on that cold frozen day. Why? Because the LR Owners Manual clearly states......in the box titled IMPORTANT INFORMATION....



I switched the switch and then I heard a sound like a plastic wiper arm snapping off. Yea....really. My wiper was frozen to the rear windshield and the motor just over powered the strength of the plastic/vinyl or whatever it's made of....and broke it off. I felt like Homer Simpson...DOH !! I just left it that way for the last few months, but today I took off the spare with my 27mm socket and my breaker torque bar ..... and got access to the broken part.








Pretty simple really, I disconnected the old wiper arm and removed the broken part. I had to "carefully" pull out the slender hose that sends a jet of windshield cleaner fluid to the rear tuck it safely around the spare wheel bracket with electrical tape to hold. I don't have the replacement part yet but at least it isn't laying there over the spare bar

 

So, time to try something a little bit more difficult. My wife was driving the Rover to the market a while back and she pushed the "roll down the window" button..... and heard a big "CHUNK" sound and the window fell down into an open position and wouldn't move again. When she got home I tried it and could definitely hear the sound of the window engine working, but nothing was happening to the window.

Thank you ....thank you.... thank you for posting the entire "RAVE" Land Rovers manual in the Sticky "New Members Must Read" thread in the "New Members Introduction" section. I can already tell, it's gonna be a big help. And this situation..... is my first opportunity to use it.




So I open the door and using a thin point Philips screw driver I un-screw the 2 screws in the door handle, the 4 screws along the bottom tray, and the kind of secret/ hidden screw in the door open latch. Next I have to pry open the door panel with a standard screwdriver, moving it along the edge of the door and popping out the plastic holding pins as I go along. I was a bit worried I was breaking something.... but it was just the noise of prying open the plastic holders.



As the panel becomes looser and looser.... be sure to hold/support it in a position that is close to where it is now, because there are wires to the speakers on the inside that are not long enough to reach to the ground but must be supported until they can be disconnected. The last thing I want to do is more damage. Breaking thing "B" while trying to fix thing "A" ..... no thank you.

 

So I used a tiny small standard screwdriver to push in the holding pin on these speaker clips, in order to pull them apart.



Then I set the door panel down and considered what I saw. The inside door panel has a sheet of plastic protection in place with a bead sticky black goop all along the edge. I could see/feel where the openings in the door were and so only pulled the plastic up (starting at the bottom) until the opening was accessable and taped it up and out of the way. It seems to be quite reusable..... I don't really want to re-goop it

 

When I get the plastic goop lined barrier up and out of the way, I find this part laying in the bottom of the door. Somehow, I don't think it's a spare