Which engine in Defender 130 for the big trip?

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Originally Posted by Tusker

Interesting thread... again.

Having had a 200tdi & a TD5, I'd go TD5 every time.

Memory is a bit hazy now of tdi problems so I happily stand corrected on any of the following..

Timing belts will always be an issue. I had one walk & fray, picked up by Graeme Coopers on service, changed at 20,000 kms Too Tight, the wrong belt or the backing plate was warped or an Idler failed.....My money is on too tight.

I have no problem getting 80,000kms out of mine as do most people on here with Tdi's

I think I'd rather clean loom connections than change a belt in the bush! There really aren't any ECU issues other than the oil in the loom thing. Nonetheless, a Nanocom & a satphone is piece of mind. How much is Nanocom worth?

Not sure about tdis, but the TD5 will run on low cetane African diesel. Its a one-spec world engine. Bad fuel will kill both though. There is no reason you cant run a Tdi on low grade fuel, you lose economy and you lose power but they run fine and will do forever as long as it is deisel related....or something like it

And I know from experience, the Td5 will run for 3 days with the underseat area full of muddy water. Not to be recommended obviuosly, it was the fuel regulator that finally played up & stopped it.

As I understand it the military don't like TD5s, or any other modern EFI diesel, is that the loom interferes with HF radio. That's all. Fair enough, I wondered why they didnt use them and i have never said that I wouldnt buy one because the army didnt use it

Tdis need a mod to warn you of coolant loss. The std sensor is to low, & the damage is done when the dashboard light comes on. You dont need anything if you check your coolant and keep a nose out for burning coolant to let you know there is a leak

Tdis do head gaskets about every 150-160,000 kms. And replacement heads are getting very scarce. Absolute rubbish I am sorry to say, maybe some of the early ones had issues but mine has doen 300,000kms and the head has never been off and the engine hasnt been away from the trans in that whole time.

Tdis have a clutch thats too small, doesn't last long enough with any loads, towing etc. I wouldnt know as mines auto but I don know people who have had to do clutches in both, just ask Hiline about TD5 clutches or for that matter any TD5 manual owner, $2500 in parts to do a clutch due to having to replace the flywheel and all and they dont last long at all if abused as with all clutches

All the non-ECU Td5 issues that come to mind can be sorted before you go. Exhaust manifold, oil pump bolt, & head studs on early vehicles. Preventative maintenance applies to any vehicle.

That's enough from me..

Regards
Max P

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Im not bagging the TD5 altogether, it is a good engine and as I have done lots of research in the matter I wouldnt be afraid of owning one myself as long as I could also get the diagnostic equipment.

The thing is, where not talking about me and my trips into the high country, where talking about an international trip in third world countries.

Im not knocking you Max and Im not bagging your choice ok :D

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Originally Posted by mark2

I would think that power on the steep roads in third world countries wont be an issue for consideration. The roads will likely be narrow and winding with terrifying drop-offs and you wont be able to go safely fast, even if you had more power. Chances are, you'll be stuck behind a slow moving, grossly underpowered, overloaded truck anyway.

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Good point. One day in Guatemala we spent the whole day driving a gravel road where we could rarely go faster than 2nd. On most roads you drove slowly because of the bad weather (rained every arvo) or because of the numerous washouts and craters in the road (we had no wish to inadvertently drive off the side of a volcano).

Only on the US highways (and then only when we were at high altitude with a HUGE headwind) did we find the NA 4BD1 a bit lacking.

A Dutch Kiwi........don't we have border guards:D:D..mate I would recommend the TDi for simplicity.....not power but pure ease of use and general lack of electrics when very remote...

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Originally Posted by isuzurover

One day in Guatemala we spent the whole day driving a gravel road where we could rarely go faster than 2nd. On most roads you drove slowly because of the bad weather (rained every arvo) or because of the numerous washouts and craters in the road (we had no wish to inadvertently drive off the side of a volcano).

Only on the US highways (and then only when we were at high altitude with a HUGE headwind) did we find the NA 4BD1 a bit lacking.

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Yeah, i know power isn't that crucial, I did a 20,000 k round trip from holland to the eastern border of turkey and back in '95, vehicle: Citroen 2cv, which is powered by a 2 cylinder 600cc engine. Didn't miss a beat on the whole trip, it's the ultimate 'keep it simple stupid' vehicle… On the whole trip there was only one hill it couldn't get up, and that was due to lack of traction on the front wheels, solution: get the passenger to sit on the bonnet for improved traction!

or you could have gone up the hill in reverse!

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Originally Posted by barney

or you could have gone up the hill in reverse!

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Yes you are so right, I've never had to do that but it's a viable option especiallysince the gearing in reverse is lower then in 1st gear

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Originally Posted by dutchontoast

Yeah, i know power isn't that crucial, I did a 20,000 k round trip from holland to the eastern border of turkey and back in '95, vehicle: Citroen 2cv, which is powered by a 2 cylinder 600cc engine. Didn't miss a beat on the whole trip, it's the ultimate 'keep it simple stupid' vehicle… On the whole trip there was only one hill it couldn't get up, and that was due to lack of traction on the front wheels, solution: get the passenger to sit on the bonnet for improved traction!

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The 2CV is a great little car!!!

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Originally Posted by isuzurover

The 2CV is a great little car!!!

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x2 :D

[quote=mcrover;832643]

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I dont understand why people keep bringing up 300Tdi timing belts.

As long as they are done regularly (80,000kms) and are done properly they dont fail.

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I had one fail at 69000km (from new).

...and for what it's worth I'll put in another vote for the Tdi. I've owned Td5s and Tdis, and I certainly wouldn't be considering a Td5 for an undertaking like that. There's so much less to worry about with a Tdi. Buy one with a good history, make sure your timing belt's done, fit an engine temp alarm and chances are it's going to get you there.