Landrover Defender TD5 90 - What do I need for deep water?

[BeirutTaxi]

Hey guys,

My parents have a TD5 Defender 90 (T Reg). Equipped with a snorkel.

What else will the car need for going through deep water? (and general ingress protection?) I'm thinking of buying the bits for him as a present

Best regards,

Matt

[rhinochopig]

What type of snorkel? IIRC For wading you need diff breather pipes routed into it and 1 or two others which I can't remember.

[thinfourth2]

How deep do you want to go?

And i bet the snorkel is useless as most are fitted for looks only

[300bhp/ton]

BeirutTaxi said:

Hey guys,

My parents have a TD5 Defender 90 (T Reg). Equipped with a snorkel.

What else will the car need for going through deep water? (and general ingress protection?) I'm thinking of buying the bits for him as a present

Best regards,

Matt

Extended breathers, you'll need two sets, one for the axles and one for the gearboxes.

This sort of thing: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/LAND-ROVER-DISCOVERY-WAD...

(note thats a Disco one as the seller seems to have made a typo on their Defender listing and it's £100 more than it should be).

[BeirutTaxi]

Not sure on the Snorkel, It was fitted at the dealer. I will see if I can find a photo of the car to aid the identification.

RE: The diff breather kit, is there a specific one that is best to go for? From memory some diff locks are operated by air pressure, is that the case with the Defender? and if so I presume that is what the hoses are needed for.

Also are any bungs/grommets needed?

Thank you for the replies so far

Best regards,

Matt

ETA: Depth of water is probably up to the radiator grill. Maybe just over 1m/3.5 ft.

[RJP001]

Stock Defenders lock the central diff, not those in the axles. The linkage is mechanical to the centre diff lock on the transfer box.

Extended breathers for gearbox, transfer box, and axles would be preferable as when submerged and rapidly cooled they'll suck in water through the breather if the breather is below the water line. Typical places for the breathers to be fed to is against the bulkhead in the engine bay or up the side of the snorkal to the top.

Snorkal sealing means that the joints need to have sealant applied and the drain holes in the air filter box need blanking off (else it'll just suck the water up through them).

I think you'll need to look at how deep you plan to go because the Td5 is electronically managed and has an engine ECU. If you plan to go bonnet deep regularly then protecting the electronics may be worth looking at because Defenders do let the water in the cabin when wading deep (good too else it'd float away!).

[wst]

Apart from the obvious mechanical concerns, take a shufti at the door seals as at 1m depth the bottoms of the doors will be under as well. Get him wellies until he knows that they'll hold out

[300bhp/ton]

BeirutTaxi said:

Not sure on the Snorkel, It was fitted at the dealer. I will see if I can find a photo of the car to aid the identification.

RE: The diff breather kit, is there a specific one that is best to go for? From memory some diff locks are operated by air pressure, is that the case with the Defender? and if so I presume that is what the hoses are needed for.

Also are any bungs/grommets needed?

Thank you for the replies so far

Best regards,

Matt

ETA: Depth of water is probably up to the radiator grill. Maybe just over 1m/3.5 ft.

You just need a breather kit for a Td5 Defender (although they are much the same for the Disco). This has nothing to do with lockers. Indeed a Defender does not have locking diffs, only a selectable centre diff, both axles diffs are open.

If they don't have things like a recovery rope and proper recovery points you might want to consider them.

[xuy]

It would be a good idea to move the ECU or at least waterproof it.

And, make sure that the snorkel is properly fitted and the system is sealed.

Breathers, eaxt to extend I think I used tubing from a garden watering system when I did mine. Extend them to the top of the snorkel.

If you decide to go really deep, i.e. halfway up the windscreen be prepared for electrical issues such as lights not working properly afterwards!

[xuy]

It would be a good idea to move the ECU or at least waterproof it.

And, make sure that the snorkel is properly fitted and the system is sealed.

Breathers, eaxt to extend I think I used tubing from a garden watering system when I did mine. Extend them to the top of the snorkel.

If you decide to go really deep, i.e. halfway up the windscreen be prepared for electrical issues such as lights not working properly afterwards!

[xuy]

It would be a good idea to move the ECU or at least waterproof it.

And, make sure that the snorkel is properly fitted and the system is sealed.

Breathers, eaxt to extend I think I used tubing from a garden watering system when I did mine. Extend them to the top of the snorkel.

If you decide to go really deep, i.e. halfway up the windscreen be prepared for electrical issues such as lights not working properly afterwards!

[BeirutTaxi]

RE: The ECU, would a watertight box around the ECU with a sealing gland (that cable can run through) work? Also, where is the best place to buy the breather/hose kit? Would the dealers sell it for a fair price?

Thanks again,

Matt

[300bhp/ton]

BeirutTaxi said:

RE: The ECU, would a watertight box around the ECU with a sealing gland (that cable can run through) work? Also, where is the best place to buy the breather/hose kit? Would the dealers sell it for a fair price?

Thanks again,

Matt

The one on ebay is fine, or plenty of aftermarket LR places. A dealer would be the last place I'd go to for such a thing. In fact despite the fact LR do/did supply such kits I'd be gobsmacked that anyone at an average dealers would even have a clue what you were on about

[BeirutTaxi]

300bhp/ton said:

The one on ebay is fine, or plenty of aftermarket LR places. A dealer would be the last place I'd go to for such a thing. In fact despite the fact LR do/did supply such kits I'd be gobsmacked that anyone at an average dealers would even have a clue what you were on about

Ah cool, Given the price error with the Ebay Defender kit would the Disco one you posted the link to be fine?

[The Wookie]

wst said:

Apart from the obvious mechanical concerns, take a shufti at the door seals as at 1m depth the bottoms of the doors will be under as well. Get him wellies until he knows that they'll hold out

There's no need to wait, just get him the wellies

[300bhp/ton]

BeirutTaxi said:

Ah cool, Given the price error with the Ebay Defender kit would the Disco one you posted the link to be fine?

Just contact the seller or see there are anymore on line.

Places like Paddocks, MM4x4, Famous Four and the like probably have them (I've not looked). My brother got some off ebay and they were fine though.

[Morris]

Maybe contact this guy:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0dXq8kl0bI8

Although it looks like it needs a bit of work in the front bulkhead area.

[Caulkhead]

The Wookie said:

wst said:

Apart from the obvious mechanical concerns, take a shufti at the door seals as at 1m depth the bottoms of the doors will be under as well. Get him wellies until he knows that they'll hold out

There's no need to wait, just get him the wellies

Yep, funniest thing I've ever read - someone expecting Defender door seals to keep out water!

If you're wading deep, especially where there is a cross current like at a flooded ford, rather than try to seal the LR up, open the doors slightly so the interior fills up quickly. If it don't fill with water it tries to float and that means little or no traction.

[Caulkhead]

Morris said:

Maybe contact this guy:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0dXq8kl0bI8

Although it looks like it needs a bit of work in the front bulkhead area.

Nothing wrong with his bulkhead, those are the heater vents spewing out water as the intake is on the wing top. He should've shut them off before wading.

[wst]

Caulkhead said:

The Wookie said:

wst said:

Apart from the obvious mechanical concerns, take a shufti at the door seals as at 1m depth the bottoms of the doors will be under as well. Get him wellies until he knows that they'll hold out

There's no need to wait, just get him the wellies

Yep, funniest thing I've ever read - someone expecting Defender door seals to keep out water!

If you're wading deep, especially where there is a cross current like at a flooded ford, rather than try to seal the LR up, open the doors slightly so the interior fills up quickly. If it don't fill with water it tries to float and that means little or no traction.

I was tempted to suggest General Lee-ing the doors up with weld but now I've learned about this feature I'll reconsider

But seriously, he might have got a straight one... right?