Thread: Eny meny miney mo which diesel motors the go

Every thing you said is wrong IMHO.Diesel engines will not last any longer than petrol engines if driven under the same conditions and I don't think your Tdi is buggered it just needs some TLC,it has done 300k.Give the old girl a birthday,four injectors,valve set, new seals,a pump tweek and clean out the IC and service the rad and she'll be fine.People have this idea that diesel's go for ever,load of crap.All engines including diesel's wear out by stopping and starting them cold,truck engines go for ever because they run for ever,how many privately owned falcons do 1,000,000k's?,none yet 1000's of falcon taxi's have. Pat

Originally Posted by garryseries3

Hi thought I would post this up for discussion my 130 has now done 240,000 kms. The 300 continues to chug along and I am now having to consider when will it be time to give it a new motor?
It does all the things ageing diesels do (especially Landies), leak oil, puff smoke, slow down up hills and I suspect consume more diesel.
So doing a bit of research it seems that Tdi 300's are good for 200-400,000 kms; tgv 2.8 are good for 300-500,000 kms and isuzus well I am told a million kms. Which leads me think that an Isuzu is problerly more economic cost wise to tranplant or as Jeramy would say (or is it)??

I always thought diesels did a million miles not a problem, not so with landy oilers if one struggles with getting 300,000 out of one, have they secumb to consumer pressures of disposability too?
The 300 and tgv are on a par price wise I am to understand, Isuzus need a bit of modification but sorcing bits like bell housings etc lead me to consider this is the major issue with fitment.
So has any one crunched the number on costing taking into account longevity of the motor. I intend to be buried with my 130 already have the excavator organised.
Be great to hear thoughts and yes have read threads on here and I do love that defender from Geelong with the isuzu but that chap has created an artwork on wheels I think we would all have isuzus if the parts to convert were available. open to comments.

300Tdi's normally fail due to abuse or lack of maintenance, nothing to do with the design as such.

The Isuzu 4BD1/T is a great engine but the rest of your vehicle will rattle appart before the engine stops and this is one of the reasons the engine lasts so long, it is made to be tough like a tractor engine not meant to be in your family tourer.

300Tdi's are all slow on hills, if you fix the leaks, something more expensive will start leaking so I would just buy a tray to put under the thing when parked.

Originally Posted by PAT303

Every thing you said is wrong IMHO.Diesel engines will not last any longer than petrol engines if driven under the same conditions and I don't think your Tdi is buggered it just needs some TLC,it has done 300k.Give the old girl a birthday,four injectors,valve set, new seals,a pump tweek and clean out the IC and service the rad and she'll be fine.People have this idea that diesel's go for ever,load of crap.All engines including diesel's wear out by stopping and starting them cold,truck engines go for ever because they run for ever,how many privately owned falcons do 1,000,000k's?,none yet 1000's of falcon taxi's have. Pat

If looked after, nearly any diesel engine will out last 3 or 4 of the equivelent petrol engines, diesel engines nearly always fail due to lack of maintenance, or abuse (including winding up fueling and boost to get added performance).

Most of the rest I agree with other than the comment reguarding the taxi's, the taxi's in melb here are lucky to get 100,000kms from an engine.

RPM used to have (Im not sure if they still do) a contract to supply engines for the fleet of AU's and BA's and most operators used to keep a long motor or 2 sitting in the workshop along with the filters and tyres etc.

The old XD's to XF's ran a low compression version of the 4.1 cross flow in the taxi's and were capable of 1000000 on Lpg but were extremely gutless.

If you look after them and feed them good oil ANY landy engine should make 1M Km before its dead. But if you dont give it some TLC on the way forget it.

250K and most will appreciate a valve job, new rings and a bore hone. IF your lucky and youve been nice to it chuck some fresh gaskets and seals at it as well and thats it your done.

500K and its definately time for bearings, pistons, machining of the block+ crank, a repeat of the 250K interval stuff and your good again

750K and you redo the 250K service with a bit more attention to detail as everything is oversize so you bearings might be on the way again and your bores will be out of round so piston wear will be worse but if you did a good job at the 500K rebuild then you should be ok

1000K and its time to redo the whole thing, if you manage to get another oversize out of it then your good to rebuild again if not chuck in a newie.

even living on a diet of near neglect Ive seen tdi's do 500K between rebuilds and series donks that just flat out refuse to curl up and die.

An Isuzu 4BD1 turbo is a great option for a 130, but the gearing isn't high enough, and unless you have a 1998 suffix K or L R380 you'll break it The costs of modding the drivetrain to cope are a fair bit if done properly. I would throw some good lovin at the Tdi, I have a few customers with 450 to 500k on there 300Tdi's, all have been impeccably reliable and will continue to be if I have any say in it One 130 has 5 Simpson crossings under its belt now, and is still used as a 750k/week commuter...10l/100km, tweaked and will outpull a Toymota and uses no fluids

It is a good combination in a Defender and I would just keep on keeping on with it

JC

JC do you think Tdi's need thier headgasket's replaced once they reach 300k?.How often do you recomend the valve set. Pat

Every thing you said is wrong IMHO.Diesel engines will not last any longer than petrol engines if driven under the same conditions and I don't think your Tdi is buggered it just needs some TLC,it has done 300k.Give the old girl a birthday,four injectors,valve set, new seals,a pump tweek and clean out the IC and service the rad and she'll be fine.People have this idea that diesel's go for ever,load of crap.All engines including diesel's wear out by stopping and starting them cold,truck engines go for ever because they run for ever,how many privately owned falcons do 1,000,000k's?,none yet 1000's of falcon taxi's have. Pat

Ok Pat
everything I said is crap that maybe the case the kms figures were just what I keep coming across doing a search on tdis and alike. I'm glad to here the 130 got some more kims to go yet. It is service every 10,000, I would be happy to send it to someone that knows Landies and get a idea of what I need to get her feeling rejuvinated again In Torquay but could travel to have it looked at. Any suggestion greatly appreciated. Any AULRO members willing to stick there hand up to look under the bonnet and point a novice in the right direction to motoring longevity.
Garry

if your any good with the spanners the very basics of servicing and maintenance are DIY and just a tappet adjustment makes the world of difference if they are out.

Originally Posted by Blknight.aus

if your any good with the spanners the very basics of servicing and maintenance are DIY and just a tappet adjustment makes the world of difference if they are out.

Thanks Dave
My mechanic does not know DEfenders but he is honest and reasonable and we are both in the local fire bridage here so I can trust his work. Setting tappets no problem can do.
Garry