Magical Mechanical Moments with Mick & The Mack Truck

[MickG]

Well folks, as some of you may know, my low coolant alarm has been squealing at me (and Stevo) for a few weeks now on and off and has proved fairly hard to determine why even when each time the system has been topped up. It would appear that it has been leaking from the over flow pipe on the expansion tank.....why, I have no idea. Now it is well documented, that I know next to nothing about how the whole system works, or indeed any part of the TD5, but figured it could have been an air lock in the system - any comments/ideas welcome;) So today (for the 2nd time in my relationship with the Mack Truck) I drained the coolant, flushed the system and topped her back up with fresh OAT coolant:D So far so good and will keep you posted as I go.

Stay tuned for another exciting installment of Magical Mechanical Moments with Mick & The Mack Truck:D:D:eek:

Aye, Mick

[Disco2]

Well Mick,

I'm glad to hear that you 'appear' to have had some success, and I really hope that everything turns out A.O.K.

At least you low coolant alarm appears to have a CAUSE for actuating.

Mine has a 'gremlin' and I kid you not.

Ever since Rick fixed my Maxi-Drive actuator light, the low coolant alarm has played all sorts of games. During this whole saga the coolant levels have been fine, no leaks no lossess.

Firstly , Rick thought that the coolant concentration might not be high enough. So, out with the old , in with the new at a much higher concentration. Good for two days only.

Then, Rick thought that an additional earth wire from the raditaor (which is a brass one-I ditched the aluminium jobbie) may fix the problem. Good for two days only.

Back to Ricks, who replaced the power source to the low coolant alarm. Good for two days only.

So, it's now booked back into Ricks to try goodness what else and he's tearing his hair out.

Me, well I've disconnected the whole bl**dy thing and that been good for three days so far.

So much for the new style low coolant alarm. The old one which was replaced by Rick because the manufacturer said so, never caused me an ounce of strife.

Cheers

Disco2

[DRanged]

Well folks, as some of you may know, my low coolant alarm has been squealing at me (and Stevo) for a few weeks now on and off and has proved fairly hard to determine why even when each time the system has been topped up. It would appear that it has been leaking from the over flow pipe on the expansion tank.....why, I have no idea. Now it is well documented, that I know next to nothing about how the whole system works, or indeed any part of the TD5, but figured it could have been an air lock in the system - any comments/ideas welcome;) So today (for the 2nd time in my relationship with the Mack Truck) I drained the coolant, flushed the system and topped her back up with fresh OAT coolant:D So far so good and will keep you posted as I go.

Stay tuned for another exciting installment of Magical Mechanical Moments with Mick & The Mack Truck:D:D:eek:

Aye, Mick

Well done for having a go Mick, would be like me doing finance:D

But seriously did you bleed the system properly????. If not you can pop a head gasket etc. Drive it round the block and then park it nose up in your driveway. With the engine running, gently crack the bleeder nipple located on the top radiator hose and see if you get bubbles of air coming out with fluid. If you do bleed it until fluid alone comes out. Nip it up and drive around the block again. Come back and repeat the proceedure. Do this for a couple of days and then check it once a week until no air bubbles are present. TD5,s can trap air in the back of the motor hence pointing it up hill when doing it. this encourages the air to come out.

There nice and easy for you.

Justin

[stevo68]

Oiiii, you were meant to let me know when you were going under the bonnet again, so that I could come over with a 6 pack and watch :D. Oh and its okay folks, dont be expecting to see a Magical Mechanical Moments with Stevo and Smoky the one day to be deadlier than Micks D2 anytime soon ;),

Regards

Stevo

[MickG]

Well done for having a go Mick, would be like me doing finance:D

But seriously did you bleed the system properly????. If not you can pop a head gasket etc. Drive it round the block and then park it nose up in your driveway. With the engine running, gently crack the bleeder nipple located on the top radiator hose and see if you get bubbles of air coming out with fluid. If you do bleed it until fluid alone comes out. Nip it up and drive around the block again. Come back and repeat the proceedure. Do this for a couple of days and then check it once a week until no air bubbles are present. TD5,s can trap air in the back of the motor hence pointing it up hill when doing it. this encourages the air to come out.

There nice and easy for you.

Justin

I should have known it would not be as simple as I thought.......general rule from now on, is that if I think I have completed a job successfully on the Mack Truck, fairly good odds I have either stuffed something up, or things are about to go bad:(:mad::eek:

Have driven it to work today with no alarm but will check the bleeder nipple when I get home tonight (the small black valve about the size of a 5 cent piece that I would turn with a flat head yeah:angel::))

Appreciate the help Justin and Stevo, sorry mate, but wouldn't mind getting a couple of successful forays under the bonnet out the way first before beer and mates are involved..........I'm sure you can understand why:D:D

Stay tuned, will report back this evening........unless of course she blows up before then:eek:

P.S. I know i'm bad, but I would pay lots of money to see Magical Mechanical Moments with Stevo & Smokey.........there's got to be a Discovery Channel show in there somewhere:D:D:D:D:D:cool:

[x-box]

i'd be right beside you mate, with camera in hand for sure... :D

[bolts]

Channel 9 are always looking for a good feel news item or should that be the comady channel on fox t.v with Stevo doing any mechanical work, :wasntme::p:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D

[MickG]

For those following my magical moments...I have a quick update for you. After some more advice from Rick, I changing the pressure release cap on the coolant expansion tank as it was thought this could be leaking....which would explain all the red patches around this area. Anyway, once changed the alarm still seemed to come on, so we assumed there was still a problem somewhere. However, whilst Stevo had the mack truck, he filled her to the top with the remaining coolant I had in the back once the alarm sounded again and this it would appear may have fixed the problem.
Time will tell, however I think that when I flushed and changed the coolant over and ran with the old pressure release cap, the coolant was still coming out. With the new cap fitted and a quick top up, I think it just needed a bit more once the engine was running. I have run her a round the block a few times and had her well up to temperature and she is still holding full so fingers crossed, problem solved. The tank is pretty full now though, but would assume this is no big deal........right?:eek::(:angel:

Stay tuned for more:D:D

[MickG]

Not so Magical Mechanical Moments with Mick & The Mack Truck:(:(:(:BigCry::BigCry::BigCry::BigCry::BigCry ::BigCry:

Coolant issues would indeed appear to be the dreaded head gasket. Booked in for the job 14th July so no trips for me in the mean time. Why oh why is owning a land rover so bitter sweet:(:(

[stevo68]

Not so Magical Mechanical Moments with Mick & The Mack Truck:(:(:(:BigCry::BigCry::BigCry::BigCry::BigCry ::BigCry:

Coolant issues would indeed appear to be the dreaded head gasket. Booked in for the job 14th July so no trips for me in the mean time. Why oh why is owning a land rover so bitter sweet:(:( Please, please, please tell me it had nothing to do with me and that the issue was pre existing :(,

Regards

Stevo.......possibly looking for new mates :o

[MickG]

Please, please, please tell me it had nothing to do with me and that the issue was pre existing :(,

Regards

Stevo.......possibly looking for new mates :o

Yes it's all your fault.......i'll send you the bill:mad::(:twisted::D:D

[x-box]

Please, please, please tell me it had nothing to do with me and that the issue was pre existing :(,

Regards

Stevo.......possibly looking for new mates :o



Redlining a diesel is never a good thing to do stevo :eek: :p





not that you would do that :D

[Camo]

bad stevo!

should have remembered the mac truck has another 4 gears :eek:

[DRanged]

Not so Magical Mechanical Moments with Mick & The Mack Truck:(:(:(:BigCry::BigCry::BigCry::BigCry::BigCry ::BigCry:

Coolant issues would indeed appear to be the dreaded head gasket. Booked in for the job 14th July so no trips for me in the mean time. Why oh why is owning a land rover so bitter sweet:(:(

Is it just coincidence that the low coolant problem happened after you had the alarm fitted?????.

I hope the guy that designed the TD5 gets diseases that no one has ever heard of and it ends up costing s...loads for the treatment. Also you can only get the medicine from one supplier and they sting you for it.;)

Justin

[MickG]

Yes, i'd like to meet the designer too. Although the low coolant alarm has been in the car for a couple of years now and only recently started to have problems. Thank god it was there though as the amount of coolant I have been lossing due to over pressurising was staggering. Also geting slight hydraulicing due to fluid obviously getting back the other way to the piston head (or what ever the damned thing is called).......hope I have not bent anything:eek:

Stay tuned and lets hope it magical from now on eh:(:eek::D

[harry]

Yes, i'd like to meet the designer too. Although the low coolant alarm has been in the car for a couple of years now and only recently started to have problems. Thank god it was there though as the amount of coolant I have been lossing due to over pressurising was staggering. Also geting slight hydraulicing due to fluid obviously getting back the other way to the piston head (or what ever the damned thing is called).......hope I have not bent anything:eek:

Stay tuned and lets hope it magical from now on eh:(:eek::D

o h, s h i t.

[Psimpson7]

Bloody Hell Mick, thats not good news!

Hows it progressing?

Rgds
Pete

[MickG]

Bloody Hell Mick, thats not good news!

Hows it progressing?

Rgds
Pete

Not good at all:( Bascally the car is sitting on my drive waiting until Monday 14th July when it will go to Rick's for repair. Depending on the outcome of this, I may be tranplanting the runing gear and good stuff from my car to a 90.......if I can convince my brother in law to sell me his at a reasonable price. I will then have a ceremonial burning of my cars engine:D

[jx2mad]

I too had a coolant alarm "activate" in the wilds of W.A. Scared the daylights out of us when it went off. A sudden stop and a quick check found no problem and it stopped as quickly as it started. It kept going off intermittently over the next few days and drove us mad. I disconnected the float level in the overflow rank, all to no avail. It kept going off. I disconnected the whole darn thing under the dash to shut it up. On arrival home in Sydney the defender went back to the fitters. Guess what??!! A faulty earth connection to the alarm module. Simple but annoying. Jim

[MickG]

Pray with me people pray with me:( Car went into Rick's today on the back of a flat bed for major surgery. Hoping the Mack Truck is not too badly damaged inside her belly and that the head gasket it is a relatively straight forward fix.....all things considered.

Will report back once she is out of theatre and has been moved to recovery:(:(

Aye, Mick

[Psimpson7]

good luck mate!

Pete

[FenianEel]

Pray with me people pray with me:(

Will do.
See if I can get my mate Benedict & the pilgrims to include a "prayer for Micks d2" in the program!! :D

[MickG]

Will do.
See if I can get my mate Benedict & the pilgrims to include a "prayer for Micks d2" in the program!! :D

:clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2:

[Disco2]

So Mick,

Is the truck back on the road?

I hope all is ship shape as I noticed it parked OUTSIDE Rick's workshop this arvo.

Cheers

Disco2

[MickG]

Just picked up the mack truck this morning (thanks again for lift Louis, you are a gentleman;):D) and it is good to see her running under her own steam again.....no pun intended:D
Now to take her for a decent run to familiarise myself with her again.......been so long since I drove her:eek:

Keep you posted but itching to get her on the tracks again.

Aye, Mick

[stikman]

Good News Mick :thumbsup:

[DRanged]

Mick who........................;)



Just doing my head gasket as we speak:mad:

Justin

[stevo68]

Mick who........................;)



Just doing my head gasket as we speak:angry:

Justin What and on the puter at the same time:o...........who says men can't do more than one thing at a time :D

Regards

Stevo

[MickG]

Did you wee the bed again Stevo? What are you doing up at this time with all the workers:D

[x-box]

Just glad i did'nt get the call to turn around and go fetch u again.....
Good to hear all is well again - she will sleep well tonight (so will you, with her safely back in your driveway) :cool:

[stevo68]

Did you wee the bed again Stevo? What are you doing up at this time with all the workers:D Not quite :p...daddy daycare duties...had to be up early as Sharlea left at 6am for work. Good to see you have your No.2 back ;),

Regards

Stevo...There can be only 1 :cool:

[MickG]

Good to see you have your No.2 back ;),

Regards

Stevo...There can be only 1 :cool:

You keep telling yourself that mate:D:D:cool:

[MickG]

Been a few months since I ventured under the bonnet of the mack truck but I have magical moment to report on.......which I know you all want to hear about:D:D
Yesterday, I succesfully swapped over a dodgy belt tensioner for a genuine one...........albeit under the guidance of Rick:angel: Completed the job in no time at all and at no charge for labour at all:D:D For those of you who helped me diagnose the squeak I was having, it turned out it was a badly made tensioner pulley which was binding and causing the belt to slip when the car laboured and when turning the car on and off. So, problem fixed, some new found knowledge for me and a stronger more intimate bond now exists between me and the mack truck:D:D

Stay tuned for more instalments of Magical Mechanical Moments with Mick & The Mack Truck............although hopefully that will be the end of my issues for a while now:D:D:D:eek:

Aye, Mick

[Psimpson7]

well done!!! :)

[stevo68]

My awe grows by the day ;),

Regards

Stevo

[MickG]

Well, thanks to Pete (and Louis' careful supervision) my track rod is now back perfectly straight:D Had Pete swing by last night with some tools and we successfully managed to remove, straighten and re-attach the bent rod in no time at all:D:D

Grimace also popped by with a new solenoid to replace the one I fried 30 seconds after bending said track rod:eek: So, parts list building for an in cab bank of switches to get my winch back up and running.

Until the next forray, aye, Mick

P.S. Cheers to Pete, Grimace, Justin, Philippe & Louis for your help, tools, advice since busting my winch and track rod etc. If it weren't for our club and it's very helpful members, things would be a whole lot harder and more expensive:eek::D:D

[MickG]

Well thanks again to Pete's persistance the Mack Truck now sports a working winch with some shiny in cab switches......including a bright red missile cover over one:angel::D As some of you already know, our first attempt to get my winch up and working was met with a few challenges to say the least. A dicky hand controller switch, which had us checking and rechecking our (Pete & Harry's) wiring several times over to make sure all was wired correctly. A dicky winch motor which we suspect is a post shorting on the winch casing or something (Harry has kindly taken the dodgy winch away for a closer inspection, cheers Harry;))
Luckily enough though I managed to score a replacement winch free from my father in law which is near new and looks much better than my cheapy one and it actually free spools:D:D
So after many hours of toiling with Pete, Harry and myslef, I now have a working winch set up complete with safety activation switch, isolator (positioned so that anyone can kill the system in the event of an emergency) in cab spool in and out switch and the abiity to connect up the wonder lead if I need to operate it from outside:D

Very happy with the result and must say a huge thank you to Pete for giving up so much of his time and tools to help me get it all set up. Big thanks also to Harry for his time and for simply taking my broken winch away for an inspection........a handsome reward awaits Harry if you can fire her up again:D:D

So, apart from some initial hicups, a very successful, or should I say a very magical mechanical moment with the mack truck:D:D

Next on the list is to fix the front pinion seal which looks to be leaking as does the DS CV boot..........Pete, Harry....you boys busy this week:angel::angel::o:D:D

Thanks again guys and will report back soon.

P.S. Did manage to top the front diff up myself with gear oil which made me feel all manly:cool::D

Aye, Mick

[MickG]

Had my most successful foray under the mack truck yesterday with Pete's help again - cheers Pete, owe you some more Super Dry;):D:D. Managed to replace the front pinion seal and replace the front driver side CV boot. Was surprisingly plain sailing for both jobs, other than some difficuilty getting the factory CV boot over the slightly larger dia. Maxi Drive CV. Ended up pouring a few kettles of boiling water over the boot which seemed to do the trick..........was particularly fun getting the boot over the half shaft end though:eek::eek: Cheers Pete for your persistance.....I could see in your face that it was the last attempt you had in you:D:D
Net result is I have rectified both problems saving many $ in service hours and at the same time learned tons more about how parts of my car actually work. After taking each component apart and putting them back together, I can now confidently look at the respetive parts and deternmine quickly if something is not quite right. This brings a whole new level of comfort to me knowing I can fix these parts again if I need to. Will definitely be considering doing more work as it comes up on my car (with the help of a knowledgable supervisor by my side of course;)) plus this will give me a legitimate excuse to start adding to my tool kit as well:D:D

A huge thanks again to Pete who gave up his whole day and dragged what looked like his entire tool shed over to my place to help and get his hands very dirty. Really appreciate your help and patience and for teaching me some "tricks of the trade" so to speak which will definitely help me in the future....owe you big time.

Aye, Mick

[stevo68]

Good stuff Mick and Pete.....looking forward to a Stevo Magical moment when I do my lift. Should have suspension this week....so will need to organise a time to do it...and anyone else that maybe able to assist with payment in beer and BBQ :). Was thinking maybe next weekend if it is possible, let me know if you are both free.....sorry for hijack ;),

Regards

Stevo