isuzu newbie - insulation? oil choice? tips? etc

[3.9 110]

is engine heat / noise much of an issue with the isuzu countys?

I've got my first landrover :) , thou it needed a bit of work when I got it and currently its got its head and turbo off, so with the engine bay relatively empty now would seem to be the time to consider insulating my firewall
however as i haven't really had chance to drive the car much yet I don't really have a feel for how much of an issue noise and/or heat might be, and hence how much trouble i should go to trying to insulate


what's the best choice of engine oil?

I reckon this info is probably in the forum already, just I was having a little trouble finding it, specifically for a turbo'd 4BD1, amongst the plethora of info in the forums... perhaps someone could point me to a link...
the engines got about 300k 'on the clock', has an an after market turbo (nissan), the heads just been serviced and the turbo reconditioned


any tips?

because the car has sat for soooo long, when I finally get it together I'm planning to disconnect the fuel pump so I can turn it over till I have proper oil pressure before letting the motor start
anything else i should know, tips/tricks re engine reassembly, etc, from those familiar with the vehicle, would be much appreciated...


lastly (for now), should the hole at the bottom of the flywheel housing be open, or should it have a plug/bolt in it?

[isuzutoo-eh]

Heat, not so much as bother as most comes through the passenger side footwell, from the exhaust. Noise, definately an issue, do it while you have access,you will regret it otherwise, but make sure you arrest any rust that is forming, and prevent moisture retention too. Firewalls love to grow a bit of cancer...
The hole in the bellhousing is a breather/drain hole, and you should only plug it with a bolt when wading or going for a roadworthy certificate.

This is worth more than the purchase price:
Dave's Interesting Things - LANDY4BD1CD (http://www.davesitshop.com/davesitshop/index.php?_a=viewProd&productId=55)
and proceeds keep the forum alive :)

[isuzurover]

I use Castrol RX Super in mine.
Good insulation is needed - search for Offender90's posts on the topic.
Heat is an issue on the passenger side. The exhaust is on that side, but is fairly easy to insulate.

[McBrain]

I use Penrite HPR 15 diesel.

[Sprint]

best way to deal with the noise problem would be to give the county to me and start looking for a V8 county instead :-P

[3.9 110]

Thanks Mark,

please excuse my slow reply,

re the bellhousing drain hole - when you say wading do you mean like driving along a creek, does it include crossing causeways and going through large potholes/puddles/bogs - it gets pretty wet around here in the rainy season, and some of the many dirt roads aren't the best

as for the firewall rust - yes, i will definiately be rust converting then painting it, before i cover it with anything

I'd buy Dave's Landy CD except that i've already bought manuals off ebay (if only i could get the LR manual i do have to save to my harddrive, setting up a 240v CD drive just to look at the manual sort of defeats the purpose of having an ultramobile pc)

still assessing my insulation options

cheers,
Lis

[isuzutoo-eh]

With the wading plug, if the water body (not just splashes) is likely to be high enough to reach the drain hole for more than a few seconds, fit the plug. The main danger is getting water in the clutch as far as I know. So if you are on a formed ford, you'll likely be fine as there isn't much that'll stop you, but for a sandy, muddy or rock strewn water crossing, i'd fit it as the risk of having to stop is greater.

[flagg]

still assessing my insulation options


Have a search around.. there are heaps of threads on it. (make sure you check the defender thread too).

[3.9 110]

Thanks Guys,

I've now found and read various threads on soundproofing - using the right search terms made all the difference - thank-you.

I'd originally only thought of adding heat insulation to engine side of the firewall, but after reading all the posts I've started to think i should be considering noise as well....

However, finding a suitable material seems a little tricky, as there's only about an inch between the firewall and exhaust pipe, it would have to cope with high heat, water and oil, and preferably be not too complicated to apply.... Any suggestions?

Alternatively, having found suitable heat insulation (thou poor sound proofing), i could just leave dealing with noise from the cabin side of things


thanks for the oil comments - i'm familiar with penrite (the oil i couldn't get for the oil change that my motorcycle died on) - this is my first diesel, will probably go for the penrite with castrol as second option

sorry Sprint - you'd have had a better chance before i fixed the head and turbo - anyway i wouldn't want to have to change all those spark plugs...

thanks Mark, I'll get a wading plug and keep it in the car for the rainy season


looking forward to having my landy together so i can finally get to drive it :D (rather than just talk about it ;) )

cheers, Lis

[flagg]

Hey mate,

I've got some dynamat, and some tar/felt stuff. (I ordered a bunch of stuff from trufit which never arrived.. YMMV.)

I'm going to put the dynamat on the inside with some rubber backed marine carpet on top. I'm going to put some whitworths marine sound insulation on the engine side of the firewall as well.

With new rubbers all around (door seals etc) and fibrefill in all the gaps and holes it should quieten it down a lot. The key is to make sure that there are NO gaps. NONE. Not even a hole for a wire (use gromets).

[rick130]

Re insulation, Wright Off Road in the UK make a nice, all in one floor/tunnel/seat insulated mat.

Wright Off-Road (http://www.wrightoffroad.com/index.htm)

A bit exxy landed here after the last enquiry, but might be just the ticket for a 4BD1

[3.9 110]

the guy at whitworths marine didn't think their fire retardant sound foam would handle the heat - however my exhaust runs close to the firewall having come off an after market turbo mounted at the back of the engine - you may have more space - anyway, i'd be interested to hear how yours goes, ie if it stays stuck, delaminates or melts - what are you going to stick it on with?

not having driven the car much yet i hadn't really noticed the noise, but it sounds like a bit of an issue with so many people soundproofing their landy's.
Maybe i could put a thin layer of foil faced EVA foam on my firewall and then cover it with the heat insulation (if they're compatible) near the exhaust. And slightly thicker foam on its own over the rest of the firewall where its not so hot. I hadn't been planning to go all the way out to the sides (across the footwell, under the aircon, around the brake/clutch bits, etc), but it sounds like doing the extra bit would help reduce noise

i spoke with tru-fit about their firewall shields, they reckon the one on their website wouldn't be suitable for my application but that they have a different version (not on their site yet) - one inch thick and able to cope with the temperature - but it has to be screwed/clipped on (sounds like a hassel to me) - anyway, i only have 1" space so it would be pretty much touching my exhaust pipe at one point which seems a bit dubious

although there's loads of stuff to do to this car, at least there aren't any unfilled holes in my firewall, will deal with door seals etc, etc, etc, once its driveable

cheers, Lis

[rick130]

You can lag your dump pipe with header wrap to dramatically reduce the heat soak into the firewall, engine bay and floor.

Best to use the silica based stuff, I wrapped my 300Tdi all the way to the t/case, made massive difference to heat soak around the trans tunnel in summer and dropped a small amount of noise too. Thermo-tec is a well known brand.

[flagg]

You can lag your dump pipe with header wrap to dramatically reduce the heat soak into the firewall, engine bay and floor.

Best to use the silica based stuff, I wrapped my 300Tdi all the way to the t/case, made massive difference to heat soak around the trans tunnel in summer and dropped a small amount of noise too. Thermo-tec is a well known brand.

That's a fantastic idea. I've got some whitworths stuff too but was a little unsure about the exhaust heat.

[rar110]

Re insulation, Wright Off Road in the UK make a nice, all in one floor/tunnel/seat insulated mat.

Wright Off-Road (http://www.wrightoffroad.com/index.htm)

A bit exxy landed here after the last enquiry, but might be just the ticket for a 4BD1

I fitted their product couple of years ago. Very happy with it.