D2 V8s are great

[Gullible]

I just thought I'd put up a positive post for factory standard V8 D2s.

After coming back from holiday I was musing over the uses we put ours to.


towed a 2 tonne caravan 2000km with a fuel consumption the same as our old unloaded D1
carried 4 adults, 2 kids and lots of bags for 300km in comfort
Drove to Pebbly Beach in Northern NSW with ease, no need to deflate tyres
Crossed a flooded creek
numerous runs to the beach, then the shops, then the beach


Not once did it miss a beat, make my heart flutter or in any way suggest we were doing things it wasn't meant to do.

These are incredible cars for the money.

[stevearm77]

My previous D2 V8 became a much loved family member for seven years until we finally let her go, my kids actually cried the day we sold her!! Was Landrover-less for two years but now own a series 1 300Tdi & a Series 2 Td5, after sampling the competition (GQ Patrol & 80 Series Cruiser) I'll never have anything else than a Land Rover for life!!!

[Roverlord off road spares]

I just thought I'd put up a positive post for factory standard V8 D2s.

After coming back from holiday I was musing over the uses we put ours to.


towed a 2 tonne caravan 2000km with a fuel consumption the same as our old unloaded D1
carried 4 adults, 2 kids and lots of bags for 300km in comfort
Drove to Pebbly Beach in Northern NSW with ease, no need to deflate tyres
Crossed a flooded creek
numerous runs to the beach, then the shops, then the beach


Not once did it miss a beat, make my heart flutter or in any way suggest we were doing things it wasn't meant to do.

These are incredible cars for the money.
And to top it off, no expensive Broken Harmonic Balancers, no leaking Fuel Regulators........
:D oops sorry TD5 owners

[Eevo]

love my v8

[ozscott]

I am not going to add fuel to the fire of some of the above re diesels - I have been known to have fun with that topic before though. The truth of it is that the Rover V8 IF well looked after - meaning normal oil changes every 10k on average and NOT being overheated (ie normal cooling system servicing) is a great bit of kit. The notion of slipped liners is exagerated without abusing them.

The V8's off idle torque is fantastic in low range off road. The V8 is well balanced from the factory - a beautifully smooth motor. The truth is that in D2 form they are unbeatable for reliability and simplicity. The D2 Bosch Motronic engine management is an utterly reliable system and is easy to diagnose and fix when problems do occur with age - for example replacing 02 sensors. 02 sensors and MAF sensors are relatively cheap. I just replaced my Crank Angle Position Sensor at 250,000k as preventative maintenance as I know it wont last forever and it is the one thing (apart from fuel pump) that will cause a no-start issue if it fails. I think from memory it was about $100 for Genuine Bosch and 15 mins work.

I have had 2 water pumps in 260,000k but the first one was not a genuine so it doesnt surprise me that it failed. So water pump at 200,000 and alternator at 180,000k.

Got to love them.

Cheers

[Road Stone]

Totally agree. A fantastic set up. Just keep the cooling system in order and all good.


I've just sold mine and now have TD5.....Need I say more!

[twr7cx]

Recently I have been regretting not getting a V8. I went the TD5 by default as it seemed the more appropriate motor when buying a 4WD and my other vehicle (Ford Pursuit ute) is a V8 so was nice to mix it up a bit.

The TD5 is a great motor when it is running, but when issues occur, they're a pain to work on - e.g. the radiator or water pump being replaced require so many other non-related items to be removed that it becomes a significant time consuming job. There's just so many things hanging off the motor and squished in with each other.

Fuel wise I don't think it would make much difference to me. My TD5 only gets 450km to a tank with all the performance modifications and running the big wheels, tyres, high suspension, roof rack, underbody protection, weight inside etc. I don't think the V8 would be much worse.

[Pedro_The_Swift]

Yep, I'm now on my 16th year of Disco V8 ownership. :D
Thats a lot of fuel and towtrucks!;)

[DaveA1963]

Hi guys,

I've just bought an '04 D2 V8 7-seater "Classic" with 150,000 on the clock for $3,900 with six months rego and a new battery. Pretty chuffed ;)

90145

I had it serviced last week and it came back as being pretty healthy. It turns out the water pump was just starting to weep, so they've replaced that. Two of the O2 sensors are faulty (one on one manifold and the other on the catalytic I think - still waiting for them).

At the moment she is running very rich and really doesn't like to rev, but starts beautifully & pulls like a train from rest. Does the richness issue sound like the O2 sensors or could it be something else?

Pardon my ignorance, but what is a MAF sensor? Is that some type of airflow sensor? If the MAF sensor was faulty, would they get a fault code for that? Could it cause it to run rich?

They also serviced the auto tranny and replaced the oil in the diffs and transfer box & conducted various other standard servicing tasks.

I've ordered a couple of new front window regulators (the front windows are held up with masking tape at present!) and a couple of secondhand winder motors. The driver's side motor is running, but clicks loudly.

I think the reason it was so cheap is that they thought the aircon was expensively stuffed. I took it to a fridgy mate of mine & he tested it - it held pressure fine & everything seemed okay, so he gassed it up and injected some dye. As he says, if it's still pumping cold air in a week, it's fine. If not, the dye will quickly show where any leaks are.

I've been recommended Penrite 10W40 engine oil.... Is this a good choice?

Any other "gotcha's" I should be aware of?

It's running very stiff aftermarket front springs & aftermarket shocks all round (airbag rear, non-ACE) so I'll be looking at replacing those items in the future. I understand that these D2's will never ride like a classic Rangie, but at the moment it's just ridiculous.

I'm loving this forum and have already received so much assistance :)

[Pedro_The_Swift]

yep, mafs usually fail slowly, look at your airbox, look at the tubing going to the engine, the round pipe with the electrical connector on top NEXT to the airbox is what you're after. You can test the connectors with a multimeter. Removal takes around 30 secs, beware of the small plastic radiator hose! Brittle!!
Dont buy cheap.

[JBM770]

I second how important the cooling system is for a Rover V8.

I have worked on my D2 myself and have found that things are mechanically complicated, sometimes seemingly unneccessarily. For example to lift off the lower inlet mainfold you have to remove the rocker covers and the rocker cover screws can barely be removed with a standard socket etc etc.

I am used to having Holdens where they can run with low coolant for awhile so have not been diligent with checking the coolant in my D2, its just not a habit. But when they are running they are excellent.

James

[Grumbles]

Sounds like a good pick up DaveA. Well done. You didn't mention the viscous cooling fan hub. It may be loosing efficiency at 150 thou and need replacing.

[DaveA1963]

Sounds like a good pick up DaveA. Well done. You didn't mention the viscous cooling fan hub. It may be loosing efficiency at 150 thou and need replacing.

Good point!

I've just ordered one from Rover Parts Plus. I'll get my mechanic to fit this whilst he's replacing the two faulty O2 sensors.

[Hoges]

Dave, couple of things
-the penrite 10w-40 everyday oil is ideal... make sure you change it regularly as with all other brands
- the engine has 2 oxygens sensors...each is screwed into the exhaust just shy of the catalytic converter. Chnging them is a 5 min job. Once changed, the "adaptive values" in the engine management ecu software should be reset to zero. You can do this yourself if you have the app Torque Pro on an android phone. You will also need a bluetooth dongle plugged into the obdll port which is in the passenger side footwell up under the rhs of the glove box. If your mechanic fits the oxygen sensors, make sure they reset these values...

[Pedro_The_Swift]

You can do this yourself if you have the app Torque Pro on an android phone. ..

ok,, what should it read if working correctly?
or,
will resetting them again do any harm?

[Pedro_The_Swift]

I've been recommended Penrite 10W40 engine oil.... Is this a good choice?


As Hoges says,,

the thing to remember is the RV8 has flat tappetts,, so needs added ZINC,, Most of the Penrite range has this,, but not all brands of oil do----;)

[Hoges]

ok,, what should it read if working correctly?
or,
will resetting them again do any harm?

(I) If everything is working correctly, the fuel Trim should be 1.0

(2) No, you are just resetting the values to the ECU firmware default values

Reasons:
The engine management system (EMS) ECU has a 'fuel map" in its firmware which adjusts the Air Fuel Ratio either side of a theoretical optimum of 14.6 (or 14.7) which represents the air/fuel mix for complete combustion of petrol. This ratio is often denoted by the Greek letter "lambda" and has a value of 1. The EMS adjusts the air/fuel mix depending on a range of external factors...air intake temperature, airflow through the MAF, fuel temperature, throttle opening, rpm, engine load, road speed, spark advance, and residual oxygen in the exhaust stream (from O2 sensors). Depending on demands, the ECU constantly changes the air/fuel ratio by altering the timing and duration of the fuel injection pulse on each cylinder.

for a fixed set of conditions, the timing and duration of the EFI pulse is determined from a database in the firmware. When the system goes "closed loop" the EFI pulse values for particular conditions may change as determined by the feedback from the O2 sensor... in which case, new values corresponding to actual conditions are added to the database. The default database values are "trimmed" accordingly. These new values are called the 'adaptive values' based on feedback from the O2 sensor as to how efficiently the fuel is being burned. As the system gets more data, it is continually comparing with known values and adapting the new data accordingly. On paper it is represented by a series of large three dimensional spreadsheets

Sometimes, you need a richer mix for sustained periods...e.g starting on cold mornings, sudden acceleration for overtaking... in which case the system will go "open loop" and use the predetermined values, and then drop back into closed loop for more efficient driving...

when you fit new injectors, a new MAF, a new O sensor etc they may have slightly different characteristics (due to manufacturing tolerances) which affect the burn ratio. So the system has to "learn" these new characteristics and make new changes...that's why you 'reset' the values back to the default values and let the system gradually allocate new values to achieve optimal burn ...


The android app Torque gives you the immediate/short term and long term fuel trim values. under normal circumstances they should not vary from 1 by more than 1 or 2 %. If they rise above 1 say to 8 or 9 it means the ECU senses there is a leak somewhere in the air intake and is supplying more fuel to try and compensate. If they drop below 1 significantly then there's probably a blockage somewhere causing a rich mixture. So the ECU reduces fuel flow accordingly. A faulty MAF, air temp sensor or fuel tem sensor can cause problems in this regard. These changes are flagged by the O2 sensor, which is why it's central to a properly operating system.

There's quite a lot of this stuff in the P38 forum about 6-12m ago with screen shots of the Torque app showing suss air/fuel ratios...
sorry for the long post;)
hope this makes sense...

[DaveA1963]

What a Truly Awesome Post!

I have just learnt SO much about how EFI works!

Thank you Sir!

[Hoges]

You're welcome DaveA...flattery will get you...everywhere!:p

FWIW: there are some very good explanations on the net on how all this stuff works... I find it interesting so I read up on it so I could maintain the P38..

If you can get a firm grasp on the underlying principles, then the rest is just different approaches to the same outcome (Ford vs Holden vs MB vs Audi etc). That's why in solving a generic problem you can sometimes find the answer on another forum...e.g. problems with a particular O sensor which may be used by a dozen different car companies. some clues to LR engine problems in the late 90s and early 2000s can be found on BMW forums...

SWMBO says I have too much time on my hands...but hell...a man needs a hobby:angel:

[Hoges]

Re Penrite oil
Actually when I looked at my stash (was on special at Sprcheap) it was Penrite 15w-40 "everyday" which I bought for the P38, and 10w40 for SWMBO's Astra AH 2005.

As Pedro pointed out, the zinc content is fairly critical for flat tappet engines. 15w40 is a premium mineral, zinc rich brew. The 10w40 is a semisynthetic well suited to the Astra's high revving roller rocker camshaft setup.

If you have already put the 10w40 into the Disco, no problem. When you do the next change, simply use the 15w40.
Cheer

[DaveA1963]

Not sure what went in, other than it was Penrite.

I know, I know...... I should be doing my own servicing, etc, etc. :)

Yes, I do intend doing as much as possible myself, but I'd just bought the car and wanted an expert (& bl**dy expensive) assessment of what needed to be done, apart from the obvious window regulators, LH door lock, A/C, etc.

Unfortunately, we live in a 3-bedroom duplex with only a single carport, so I'm a little limited in the scale of repairs I can attempt at present. My SWMBO wants a house, but the prices in Darwin are just insane at present (due to the Ichthys LNG Project) and I refuse to bite. What goes up....... Anyway, I'm too old for another huge mortgage at this time of life.

Hopefully the new O2 sensors should lob soon and I can get it running properly. I've ordered a new viscous fan hub & fan to go with the new water pump - I've heard that this is NOT the engine to overheat! - and they can bung that on at the same time.

I've seen talk of an Android app to "plug in" to the computer.... Is there an app for the iPhone/iPad too? :)

[ashhhhh]

Yeah you need a Bluetooth "dongle" to connect to the ODBC port.
Better off just buying a Nanocom, they're pretty sweet.

[Modelsp]

Firstly
thanks for your advice RE;kent cams and Mark Adams
The Beast is back on the road with the 4.6 Purring nicely
The Bloke across the road from me had big trouble with his D40 Nissan
At Talbingo in the Snowys so we went for a trip with less than 300k's on the new motor
towed a Uhaul Trailer Down @ 4.7k's Litre
towed the nissan and all his luggage back,All up combined 5.4tonne
fuel consumption 3.9k/ltr
so gents if the opportunity arises as it did for me take the plunge to 4.6ltr
so much torque its not funny
and to Hoges another thanks on your explanation of adaptive values,
going to reset mine tomorrow with the Nanocom,i've got soot on the exhaust pipe that needs removing
Anyhow that's my 2Bobs worth on V8's over oil burners.
cheers
Paul

[mrapocalypse]

We've had a D2 V8 since 2004 and to be frank, it's been so good that we almost grieved when it was badly hail damaged in November 2014. I do a LOT of work in the bush and we hire every kind of 4X4 you can possibly hire and do big distances (Mooloolabah to Perth, Perth to Alice Springs, Cairns to Cape York) and can I tell you, nothing compares to how our D2 looks after us in the bush and on the road. Comfort, economy and safety. Can't beat it

It has stopped three times in ten years, and thousands of bush Ks. Once with a salt water damaged Crank angle sensor, once with a chewed out front prop shaft and the last time it didn't stop but stripped a bolt in the tappet shaft and just made a lot of nasty noise. We had them replace everything in the engine that was accessible and really feel that was 4k well spent.

It's had salt over the bonnet, flood waters through the doors and up to the wipers and carried us and our gear all through the bush. Camping on Straddie and any number of lugging, hauling and speeding about the place making a little more V8 noise than Nanna would ordinarily approve of.

It's on LPG and that is the single most awesome Mod we ever did. 70c a litre and 30 bucks gets us 300K as well as a long range tank. It's cheaper to run than a VW Polo (Almost :-))

The worst part is the idiots who are experts that tell me stuff and then botch things up. Which is an experience we are currently in with the panel repairs. BUT we soldier on.

So yes, we love our D2 V8. It has its' moments, but speaking from experience, there's not much out there that beats it in any respect and nothing can touch it in the rough, especially not for the money.

Here it is on a 1000k dirt road trip, ending in Lonesome National Park and some Bulldust!!!!

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2017/03/148.jpg (http://s518.photobucket.com/user/NomadCamera/media/CominAtcha.jpg.html)

[ozscott]

Nice mate. I see you still have your Straddie beach pass on...me too:D:D

Cheers

[DaveA1963]

Great write up Mr Apocalypse!

I'm intrigued. ..... We've both got '04's, but we have different headlights. Mine has the setup which looks a lot like a D3, the ones where the low & high beam overlap and my park lights & indicators are two separate round lights.

90542

Was this a very late D2 "thing" or is it because mine is a "Classic" (according to the badges on the front quarter panels :) )

My badges are also flat black & it doesn't have a V8 badge on the back.

[discorevy]

Re-read the post Dave , Mr Apocalypse has had a d2 since 2004
He has a d2 , you have a d2a

[MR LR]

I am not going to add fuel to the fire of some of the above re diesels - I have been known to have fun with that topic before though. The truth of it is that the Rover V8 IF well looked after - meaning normal oil changes every 10k on average and NOT being overheated (ie normal cooling system servicing) is a great bit of kit. The notion of slipped liners is exagerated without abusing them.

The V8's off idle torque is fantastic in low range off road. The V8 is well balanced from the factory - a beautifully smooth motor. The truth is that in D2 form they are unbeatable for reliability and simplicity. The D2 Bosch Motronic engine management is an utterly reliable system and is easy to diagnose and fix when problems do occur with age - for example replacing 02 sensors. 02 sensors and MAF sensors are relatively cheap. I just replaced my Crank Angle Position Sensor at 250,000k as preventative maintenance as I know it wont last forever and it is the one thing (apart from fuel pump) that will cause a no-start issue if it fails. I think from memory it was about $100 for Genuine Bosch and 15 mins work.

I have had 2 water pumps in 260,000k but the first one was not a genuine so it doesnt surprise me that it failed. So water pump at 200,000 and alternator at 180,000k.

Got to love them.

Cheers
Nah... The pre-84, 3.5 carbies with points ignition are the true meaning of smooth reliability!

I wouldn't touch a D2 V8 with a 10ft barge pole, love my '83 V8 though!

[DaveA1963]

Re-read the post Dave , Mr Apocalypse has had a d2 since 2004

He has a d2 , you have a d2a

Well, the last Land Rover I had was a '58, so I'm not up on the idiosyncrasies of these modern jalopies yet.... ;)

I didn't even realise there WAS a D2A.....

[ozscott]

True the 3.5 had some sweet wall thickness. Didnt stop head gasket failure if abused of course...which i have seen. You would never see me going back to points ignition. I grew up with points and also electronic. Points are hardly the last word in reliability. I just did a new coil in my d1...after 98,000k of short trips on same rotor button, cap, hei module and coil (i had used a cheap crap.resin coil..back to oil filled bosch) Utter reliability with no service or adjustments required. AND a nice fat spark for LPG. On my d2 v8 the electronic ignition side of things is even more reliable. One of the advantages of the d2 set up is the ability to effeciently run injected lpg straight out of the box.

Cheers