Well here goes...I have always wanted a Disco...for as long as I could remember. I just puchased one last week....One Owner..It looks good for its age..interior looks good...typical rust, leaks, oil...that I knew I was getting into...but I drove it home 80miles.....then the fun started. Here are the issues that I am concerned about so far...maybe alittle help if any would be great to turn this frown upside down....

The Diff lock....the shift **** spins and does nothing...( i got under the truck and saw that the linkage was unnbolted????) (no light on dash for diff) Truck seems to drive fine....onlything I noticed was that when make a tight turn...tires really grab?????

ABS activated..... sets in and pedal goes to floor and then shuddering occurs and I cant stop...(sweet) during braking (not all the time) No abs light on....I unplugged the abs and problem stopped.

I had the AC on for the ride home...thermostat rose to near 2nd line before Hot...stopped there...then when I stoipped at a light or a toll..the Oil light came on?????

Also I noticed that there are 2 wires that are tied to the exhaust (o2 sensors are there but the wire are ripped from the other end)

Other then those things...lol I love it!!! It rides so smooth...had it up to 90...floating and straight....

This is my first time here and I would appreciate anything that you have to tell me about my new adventure....

Thank you in Advance!!!

99 Discovery SD Auto. 154000

 

I will talk about the major issue, which is overheating, you could kill the engine. Stop driving until you check it out and resolve it. But welcome to chaos manor.

1. Normal temp tange on the guage is 8:00 - 9:00. Where you saw it is the shake and bake zone - you bake it, then shake out the contents of your wallet. You are overheating, and the oil light came on at 7PSI because the oil was so thinned out from over heating. This is almost time to call the tow truck serious.

2. Be sure to download the RAVE tech manual set, it is free, covers shop, electrical, body/interior and owners manual. Tech section of our Discovery 1 forum has work arounds for many problems, new2me high mles service list, etc.

3. I will copy into this space the reply I just gave someone else on overheating. From what you have said, I think your radiator could be the main issue, or water pump. You are so marginal on cooling that just the extra from AC on puts you over the edge.

Let's cover all the bases. Not in order.

1. It might be the radiator, because on the highway you have a lot more air going through it. Check coolant jug level, and look in the space between the radiator and the condenser, and remove any build up of leaves and trash. Check radiator fins and condenser fins for gobs of mud, bugs, etc. Wash out with garden hose, but not pressure washer which will tear fins. You can take off the plastic plug on the top of the radiator and look inside with a flashlight, may see calcium build up on radiator tubes. Radiator is brass and copper. Even if you don't see it it may be present deep inside. Throw away plastic plug and replace with $2 brass 1/2 inch NPT plug and teflon tape. If radiator is really suspect, you can have a small indy radiator shop "boil it out" with hot acid, and "rod it out" (push small rods through tubes and knock out calcium) for about $65. A blocked up radiator won't cool, and also reduces air flow to the fan clutch. Fan clutch has to see 170 degrees on the face of it to start engaging to full power.

2. Test clutch fan when cold, not running. Should not spin, should only turn a small fracion of a revolution. Crank up, fan should "roar" from air flow, mine moves enough air to spin the electric fans even though they are not on. Wait until truck warms up. Roar goes away normally. Turn off truck. Spin fan, should not free wheel, and should not turn more than 1/2 revolution or so. Bad clutch is big problem with overheating, technical section has write up on conversion with $49 Chevy unit. https://landroverforums.com/forum/di...acement-32370/ Note - cupped side of fan blades toward engine block.

3. Electric fans should come on whenever AC is turned on. If they don't, you will have poor AC cooling in traffic. They can also come on when coolant hits 212, or when coolant is even hotter and fuel temp is 70C and truck is turned off, in which case they will run for about 10 minutes. A wierd problem happens if someone reverses the wires to those fans, they blow out the grille, subtracting air from the radiator instead of adding it, making overheat extra fast. Test fan direction by switching on truck, but don't crank, turn on AC and inside fan. Condenser fans should come on, and a wimpy plastic bag held by the grille should be pulled toward grill, not blown away.

4. In the technical section you will find a link to proper belt route. Be sure to check this out. Discover Defender Maintenance Tips, Accessories, Parts & More at Roverparts.com

5. I bought my truck and had belt route wrong, ac condenser fans wired backwards, radiator clogged up (PO had never used distilled water), wimpy thermostat, water pump started leaking, and fan clutch so bad it free wheeled. You might have a thermostat problem, but usually that does not show up just when AC is on and driving slow.

6. After I worked on all that, mine will idle and temp guage stays about 8:00 psoition. Over 9:00 is too warm. A scanner that can read live data will show you how bad things are getting.

7. The water wetter product at the auto parts stiore does work to drop temps while you await repairs.


Note: Pix show normal temp guage reading, but it should be 195 temp, I was at 207, imagine what yours was at the top of the guage. Also shows what to expect from a water pump that is wobbly or grinding, note coating from use of "stoppz leekz", and the replacement fill plug.

 

Forgot to mention - you will probably want to do a manual oil PSI test by removing the oil alarm switch (right front side of engine), and attaching a mechanical guage. Do the test both cold and fully warmed up, at idle and 2000 rpm. This will reveal any issues with oil pump, restrictions in the oil cooler part of the radiator (battery side), or lines going to it. The RAVE has the readings to be expected.

Yes, I am trying to scare you. IMHO you are damn lucky to have made it home, maybe you should go buy a lottery ticket - but drive something else.

 

Thank you very much for your reply...I will take warning and address as noted.

Quick question though??? Is it ok to drive with out AC on? I have been driving the past few days and the temp has been between 8 and 9. Also...could the wrong oil have been put in to make the Oil thin out??

Thanks Again

 

I would say if temp is as you describe then OK to drive with all fluids checked. Wrong oil is a tougher one. Many owners tried the once a year oil change method, and selected an oil that gave good winter starting performance in Idaho. A good basic oil is 15W40 Shell Rotella conventional, has lots of cleaning properties not found in non-diesel oils. But the tech manual says you can run 20W50 above 32 degrees F. Would not use 30 weight.

If you are only overheating with AC on then you should be able to troubleshoot that easily, do all the free things first, and save head gasket related items for very last. If overheating while at road speeds with AC on look for blocked radiator, clogged radiator, water pump. If it does it more at idle or very slow, look at radiator fan clutch, blocked radiator, clogged radiator. Thermostats are about $10, go with 190 or 180, but don't drop to 160 because 4th gear is blocked until radiator temp hits 150.

 

Thank you so much for all your knowledge. Once this Hurricane passes our area this wknd..Ill be jumping on this ASAP

 

If hurricane is headed your way, be sure to have cash money on hand, even if it will just be nearby. The winds blow all the tiny satellite dishes on the gas stations and C stores out of alignment, and their credit card process won't work, even though they have power. Most of those data dishes are just held in place with a couple of cinder blocks.

Let us know what you find. And remember that most young technicians quit looking after they find the first problem/solution - but being a frequent student of Murphy's Law, I like to look at and eliminate other related items.

 

Savannah...

Thank you very much for all your posts...they have been quite helpful..

I posted more to what I found in the "Disco I " section regarding the Diff....

Thanks again...I am leaving here tomorrow morning....They are calling for the South Jersey Area to have 75 and higher winds...the big concern being the flooding...Should be interesting!!