Thread: '02 Defender TD5 with a starting/running issue!

Hi All!

Glad to be a new member of the Defender community! I've got a (new to me) '02 Defender 110 TD5. I love driving it, even more after I found the wastegate actuator disconnected after a couple days of driving it - I knew they were slow, but maybe not that slow! Anyway, after a bodgy cut washer to hold that bad boy back on, I've since replaced it with a proper E-Clip and its now acting more like a turbo diesel, rather than just a diesel pulling like the little steam train that a lightly loaded Defender is! There was a couple of things I did to the little truck over the weekend, which included the fitting of the EGR delete (supplied by the previous owner in a big box of spares), and putting a double cut and shut on a wire to the ECU that was frayed, the CAS with a bit of digging in the manual- only 2 strands left! (see photo below)

I've had one loss of power on the highway that was easily rectified by disconnecting the MAF and then driving home, cleaning the plug/sensor and we're back to normal.

However, today, the same thing happened, loss of power, engine chugging - no big deal I thought, I'll just unplug the MAF and whizz home - not to be the case. The poor Landy wouldn't even keep running - it would turn over, run for a few seconds and then cut out. After a (moderately) frantic call home from the side of the road to my cool and calm Father - he said give anything you've F$%d with recently a wiggle and see what happens. So under the driver seat I go, give my home auto-electrician splice a wiggle and the old girl fired up running a bit rough, and I chugged the last couple of Km's home.

Awesome, we're home - lucky I have a spare car! (like all Defender owners should as I'm quickly learning in the week of ownership so far!)

After a few beers and trolling of the AULRO forums, I've ordered a NANOCOM Evo ($589.31!) to help me diagnose whats going on, but I feel like I need a better way to connect these wires from the CAS. I'll have a go at soldering them together a bit later in the week, but they're a very strange wire in that they seem to be a bundle of strands that run inside a sheath to the ECU with two other wires. I know they're shielded because they're close to the starter motor in the engine bay but still - running strands into a pin in the ECU seems a bit strange - even for Land Rover!

If anyone's come across this/similar problem in their TD5 please send me a message as I'm going crazy here - and I'm pretty sure thats supposed to take at least 3 weeks of Defender ownership!


Wiring.jpgDefender.jpg

The injector loom has been replaced at some point, and the ECU loom has a very small amount of oil residue on the wires.