My First Land Rover Experience, TD5 Disco
Discussion
Having never spent more than £300 on my own car (various small crappy hatches) and then managing to borrow friend's and family's cars, it was time for me to have something of my own that I actually wanted. I need to be able to tow 2.5 tons fairly regularly and do some mild off roading on a fairly small budget... Just as I was thinking this a friend of mine decided to sell their Discovery because it had gone wrong one too many times, I knew the car and had borrowed it a few times and really liked it. I'm fairly handy with a socket set so thought I will be able to sort out any little foibles it still had, so a deal was done!
2001 Discovery 2 TD5 with 103000 on the clock, 6 less than careful owners and pretty comprehensive service history! It also came complete with a few issues:
Wouldn't unlock without the alarm going off (remote for central locking was duff)
Oil in the injector wiring harness
Gunked up MAP sensor (thank you EGR valve)
Sunroofs were siliconed shut
Sagging headlining
Cracked front bumper
Disgustingly dirty interior
Leaking rocker gasket
Small coolant leak
Few other oil leaks from hidden places (just weeping so nothing too serious for the time being)
On the plus side the power steering rack and head gasket had both been replaced in the last 12 months.
First job that had to be done in my eyes was to remove the side steps, they kept bottoming out off road and personally think the car looks much better without them!
I also cleaned up the MAP sensor just so it ran a bit better and hoped it would up the fuel economy a little from 22 mpg (seemed it did, got about 27mpg over a full tank which I was very impressed with).
Got a new case for the key on ebay and then a local specialist soldered some new microswitches onto the circuit board, it now locks and unlocks from the remote as it should and only cost £25 all in!
Then the happy motoring could begin... until the clutch hydraulics all packed up, I needed the car back quickly so went into the local garage for this one... £230 later I was out with a new master and slave cylinder!
Next job was cleaning up the interior, the smell of wet dog and horses was over powering... centre console and all other bits of trim out then a good hover and scrub (with a little help from the cat) brought it up pretty well. Unfortunately I forgot to take any before pictures so after ones will have to do!
It had a quick once over with a sponge just to see if there were any serious battle scars and nothing too major, just car park dings and scuffs!
Anyway, thats all for now. Over the next few weeks I plan to sort out the EGR valve, injector harness problem and give it a full service, what could possibly go wrong!
2001 Discovery 2 TD5 with 103000 on the clock, 6 less than careful owners and pretty comprehensive service history! It also came complete with a few issues:
Wouldn't unlock without the alarm going off (remote for central locking was duff)
Oil in the injector wiring harness
Gunked up MAP sensor (thank you EGR valve)
Sunroofs were siliconed shut
Sagging headlining
Cracked front bumper
Disgustingly dirty interior
Leaking rocker gasket
Small coolant leak
Few other oil leaks from hidden places (just weeping so nothing too serious for the time being)
On the plus side the power steering rack and head gasket had both been replaced in the last 12 months.
First job that had to be done in my eyes was to remove the side steps, they kept bottoming out off road and personally think the car looks much better without them!
I also cleaned up the MAP sensor just so it ran a bit better and hoped it would up the fuel economy a little from 22 mpg (seemed it did, got about 27mpg over a full tank which I was very impressed with).
Got a new case for the key on ebay and then a local specialist soldered some new microswitches onto the circuit board, it now locks and unlocks from the remote as it should and only cost £25 all in!
Then the happy motoring could begin... until the clutch hydraulics all packed up, I needed the car back quickly so went into the local garage for this one... £230 later I was out with a new master and slave cylinder!
Next job was cleaning up the interior, the smell of wet dog and horses was over powering... centre console and all other bits of trim out then a good hover and scrub (with a little help from the cat) brought it up pretty well. Unfortunately I forgot to take any before pictures so after ones will have to do!
It had a quick once over with a sponge just to see if there were any serious battle scars and nothing too major, just car park dings and scuffs!
Anyway, thats all for now. Over the next few weeks I plan to sort out the EGR valve, injector harness problem and give it a full service, what could possibly go wrong!
Thanks guys, been looking through your thread Jordan and some really nice mods on yours! Would love to get started with some mods for mine but keeping the cash just to get all its problems sorted for now! Ordered all the bits I need to get the first problems sorted so hopefully get it done this week 
A V8 auto would be lovely but I don't think I could stomach the fuel consumption! I've got use of a Jag X308 to get a V8 hit every once in a while
A V8 auto would be lovely but I don't think I could stomach the fuel consumption! I've got use of a Jag X308 to get a V8 hit every once in a while
Nice D2.
We had a 2001 Epsom green td5 auto a few years ago (before it got replaced by a Td6 range rover)
We had the sunroof problem, injector harness problem, water leak, air suspension, turbo failure, fuel pressure regulator, multiple fuel pumps, rusty rear step and rusty rear steps.
Apart from that it was ace! In all fairness, we loved it to bits even though we had those problems. I still think it was more comfortable driving position than our L322 is and had I actually got off my bum and booked it into TD5 alive could have outperformed the Td6 too.
We had a 2001 Epsom green td5 auto a few years ago (before it got replaced by a Td6 range rover)
We had the sunroof problem, injector harness problem, water leak, air suspension, turbo failure, fuel pressure regulator, multiple fuel pumps, rusty rear step and rusty rear steps.
Apart from that it was ace! In all fairness, we loved it to bits even though we had those problems. I still think it was more comfortable driving position than our L322 is and had I actually got off my bum and booked it into TD5 alive could have outperformed the Td6 too.
24valve said:
We had the sunroof problem, injector harness problem, water leak, air suspension, turbo failure, fuel pressure regulator, multiple fuel pumps, rusty rear step and rusty rear steps.
Fingers crossed I won't be quite so unlucky but I'm not that hopeful!Had an incident with a pheasant last night on an already cracked bumper...
Fortunately found the foglight and some pieces of bumper at the roadside. I've bodged it together for now and have a front bumper on the shopping list too!
Local specialist is breaking a D2 at the minute so hoping to get over there at some point this week!
We've got a D2 (facelift) now on ~107K, we've had oil in harness (replace part harness), three amigos ABS issue (earth wire mod), and recently rust in rear chassis all nicely welded up now. Roof lining is sagging in a few places. Has been used for towing but no significant off-road use. A great workhorse that I'd love to keep until it becomes a classic, unless it gets changed for a L322 range rover.
Big plus point is finding a good LR specialist, we use 'Swindon 4x4' in err Swindon.
Big plus point is finding a good LR specialist, we use 'Swindon 4x4' in err Swindon.
It's probably worth checking the propshafts over. I've recently discovered that Land Rover no longer fit grease nipples to the universal joints and they are somewhat prone to seizing and failing.
A mate had the front propshaft part company from the car a couple of weeks ago, leaving it stranded, I'm currently in the process of sourcing replacement parts and fitting them for him.
It's not a difficult job, and is only in the region of £200 to sort, but for the sake of retrofitting some greasing points and a bit of preventative maintenance, one that's easily avoided.
A mate had the front propshaft part company from the car a couple of weeks ago, leaving it stranded, I'm currently in the process of sourcing replacement parts and fitting them for him.
It's not a difficult job, and is only in the region of £200 to sort, but for the sake of retrofitting some greasing points and a bit of preventative maintenance, one that's easily avoided.
CAPP0 said:
Super Slo Mo said:
leaving it stranded
No CDL? Or were the two halves left dangling?!Which reminds me, I must sort the one on my Defender, it's not currently working. Hopefully just a vacuum pipe or something equally simple.
The bizarre thing is, in most cases the Centre Diff Lock is there, but there's no linkage from the cab. It can be retrofitted, but it's not too straightforward. I intend doing it on the car in question at some stage, but I think I will leave it until the weather is better.
Super Slo Mo said:
CAPP0 said:
Super Slo Mo said:
leaving it stranded
No CDL? Or were the two halves left dangling?!Which reminds me, I must sort the one on my Defender, it's not currently working. Hopefully just a vacuum pipe or something equally simple.
The bizarre thing is, in most cases the Centre Diff Lock is there, but there's no linkage from the cab. It can be retrofitted, but it's not too straightforward. I intend doing it on the car in question at some stage, but I think I will leave it until the weather is better.
jumare said:
Ours, being a very late model, has CDL and it's been used a few times e.g. bogged down trailer.
Also in their infinite wisdom, Land Rover saw fit to use imperial 3/8 UNF nuts and bolts on the propshaft, which require a 9/16 spanner/socket combo to remove. A 14mm spanner more or less fits but ruins the bolt heads in the process As I found out the hard way.
Super Slo Mo said:
Also in their infinite wisdom, Land Rover saw fit to use imperial 3/8 UNF nuts and bolts on the propshaft, which require a 9/16 spanner/socket combo to remove. A 14mm spanner more or less fits but ruins the bolt heads in the process
As I found out the hard way.
lol, I'm old enough (and own enough of Solihull's output) to have both metric and AF spanner sets!As I found out the hard way.
I even have a box of Whitworth sockets for my old Matchless bike
CAPP0 said:
lol, I'm old enough (and own enough of Solihull's output) to have both metric and AF spanner sets!
I even have a box of Whitworth sockets for my old Matchless bike
I do too, but as the vehicle is not at my house, I took a limited amount of tools with me, most of which were metric, barring a couple of imperials, one of which was luckily the right size. However, I still damaged the bolt sides with a 14mm socket. That said, I think replacing the nuts is prudent anyway as they are nylocks.I even have a box of Whitworth sockets for my old Matchless bike
Super Slo Mo said:
Correct, no CDL. That model Disco had the CDL disabled for a few years. It was a little controversial at the time as I remember, but Land Rover decided the ABS based traction control would suffice. I think they re-instated it in newer models.
The bizarre thing is, in most cases the Centre Diff Lock is there, but there's no linkage from the cab....
Yep.The bizarre thing is, in most cases the Centre Diff Lock is there, but there's no linkage from the cab....
From launch to mid 2001, the D2s have CDL equiped tranfer boxes but no lever to actuate it, while LR used up the remaining factory stock of LT230 boxes.
2001 to 2003 they had nothing.
In 2003 the CDL was brought back in as an optional extra. So late D2s will tend to have all or nothing.
Some confusion comes with the very late D2s. Land Rover started to fit all of the levers with the CDL H-pattern marked knob even though there was no diff lock fitted and the lever didn't move left and right. It was probably because stock of the standard knob ran out toward the end of the D2 life span.
Super Slo Mo said:
It can be retrofitted, but it's not too straightforward. I intend doing it on the car in question at some stage, but I think I will leave it until the weather is better.
You can use a late D2 linkage (or aftermarket copy) to activate the CDL in the tranfer box. Thay arn't cheap but it's an easy bolt-on solution.A much cheaper option is to use the linkage from a Discovery 1. It's a straight fit to the D2 transmission, with a slight bend of the High/low rod. It does however require the hole in the transmission tunnel to be opened out a bit though. And you need to get the correct auto or manual version to suit your D2. There are a couple of pictures of the D1 linkage on the first page of my own Disco thread.
The Traction control/ABS system on early D2s don't like the CDL, and will throw a wobbly if they see it locked during the ignition self test.
The answer is either to:
(A) Always ensure the CDL is unlocked when the ignition is turned on. Then lock it afterwards. (This can be a pain off road if you are in/out a lot. And an extra hasle if you stall on a hill climb)
(B) Cut the CDL wire to the SLABS ECU so it doesn't detect it locked. Works fine and ran my previous TD5 like this for 2 years with no ill effects.
(C) Fit a later SLABS ECU that knows what to do with the CDL. This is the most costly option but the best, as the later ECU can switch to a new traction control map to make best use of the locked center diff.
Hope that helps.
Edited by JordanTurbo on Wednesday 23 November 13:28
Super Slo Mo said:
It's probably worth checking the propshafts over. I've recently discovered that Land Rover no longer fit grease nipples to the universal joints and they are somewhat prone to seizing and failing.
Thanks for the advice, will add it to the ever growing list of things to do!JordanTurbo said:
You can use a late D2 linkage (or aftermarket copy) to activate the CDL in the tranfer box. Thay arn't cheap but it's an easy bolt-on solution.
A much cheaper option is to use the linkage from a Discovery 1. It's a straight fit to the D2 transmission, with a slight bend of the High/low rod. It does however require the hole in the transmission tunnel to be opened out a bit though. And you need to get the correct auto or manual version to suit your D2. There are a couple of pictures of the D1 linkage on the first page of my own Disco thread.
Been looking into installing a CDL, Ashcroft Transmissons do what looks to be a pretty good kit but will have another look at your thread Jordan and a hunt for D1 linkages to see if I can do it for less A much cheaper option is to use the linkage from a Discovery 1. It's a straight fit to the D2 transmission, with a slight bend of the High/low rod. It does however require the hole in the transmission tunnel to be opened out a bit though. And you need to get the correct auto or manual version to suit your D2. There are a couple of pictures of the D1 linkage on the first page of my own Disco thread.
Service bits, EGR blank, gaskets, injector harness and 5l of Gunk degreaser all arrived today! Got my ECU stood on its end at the moment to see how much oil comes out of it, hoping to avoid opening it up so fingers crossed only a dribble of oil!
ty1013 said:
Been looking into installing a CDL, Ashcroft Transmissons do what looks to be a pretty good kit but will have another look at your thread Jordan and a hunt for D1 linkages to see if I can do it for less
The ashcroft offering is a good piece of kit, just a bit expencive.This is a very good guide to fitting the D1 linkage to the D2:
http://www.discovery2.co.uk/D1_to_D2_cdl.html
I have to say that out of all the modifications I've done over the course of owning 2 Discoverys, the CDL made the biggest difference to the vehicle's capability. The standard traction control system is very good, but TC + CDL is even better.
My old TD5 on full road bias tyres used to surprise many people at the local Pay&Play in Suffolk, with the only modification being a trimmed front bumper and the CDL.
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