1999 Disco 1 project input

[jmcdevitt]

Well, this is my first ever online forum entry so bear with me.
I just bought a 1999 Disco 1 from craigslist for $500. It had been sitting at least 6 months because the previous owner could not solve a coolant leak. It also had a dead battery so we couldn't replicate the problem. When I picked it up I brought a battery from another car I own and the Disco fired right up, I drove it out of his driveway and onto the car carrier. There were no issues that I could find or replicate. I plan to do a full coolant flush before driving it again.
So, I am assuming no maintenance has been done on this thing. It has 139,000 miles. There has been a leaking sunroof or window because the interior is a bit moldy from sitting. I have also noticed corrosion in exposed metal areas. I plan to change all the fluids, plugs, wires... transmission fluid and filter, diff oil.. What else should I be concerned with? I am planning to use this for light off roading and camping. Not a daily driver but I do need reliability. I have been reading through the forums and trying to build a list of all the things I should address. Any insight would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

 

[joey]

Welcome to the forum. First thing would be to change all the hoses and probably replace the water pump.... then see if your water problem has been solved. No since in spending lots of time and money to find you have a serious engine issue.

Keep in mind this is an aluminum block engine so if you overheat it it will not be good at all.

Sunroofs, check to make sure all the screws holding the glass are tight, remove the fuse so you never try to open them (they will have other issues) check the sun roof drains to make sure they are not clogged, check the A/C drains to make sure they are not clogged. We will help from there.

 

[jmcdevitt]

Thanks for the input

Thanks Joey for the response. This is my first Land Rover. I'm more of a Ford guy but I couldn't pass up the deal. I'm sure I will have a million questions. I downloaded the RAVE manual you have in your signature and I am sure that will be a great help too. This seems like a great community and I'm glad I get to take part.

 

[jmcdevitt]

Ignition to Starter disconnect

Well I finally had some time to work on my Discovery and have found another fault. I changed all the fluids - oil, differentials, transfer case... The oil out of the rear diff was horrendous. I believe there is moisture getting in there because it was a milky caramel. I believe there is a breather on top that may be leaking water into it? Still waiting on the transmission filter and fluid from Roverparts.com. I also flushed the cooling system and have not been able to replicate the overflowing issue. I may just replace the water pump as suggested in previous post.

So, my question is that it was running fine, I replaced the battery and now it won't initiate the starter now. I know knee **** reaction is that the alarm thing went off but the red light isn't flashing, I tried the lock unlock trick to no avail. All lights work when key is turned on, checked all fuses and relays. I jumped the small wire from the starter directly to batter and it fires right up. No warning lights or anything. What else should I check? I am super tempted to just wire in a push button starter for the ignition signal wire to the starter. (I only paid $500 for the sweet ride anyway) Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

Next up is to unstick the locking differential lever. Seems like a common problem on these? I manually locked and unlocked it last weekend so I know the transfer case operational. I believe the alternator is dying too because the tachometer seemed to only intermittently work. I read somewhere that is a sign the alternator is on its way out or not functioning properly.

What else should I be looking for? I'd like to address as much as I can in my driveway instead of in the woods. Thanks!

 

[joey]

After a battery change it is normal for the alarm issue, but if the lock unlock didn't work and I presume you did this with the remote as well as the key or just the key? Of course the radio will require the code as well now.

Locking diff lever is always fun. Took about 3 to 4 hours to fix mine.

Tachometer may just be a loose wire on the back of the alternator, check the wires first.

 

[jmcdevitt]

No key FOB

Car didn't come with a key fob unfortunately. Just one key haha. I tried with the key only. The radio is aftermarket so it was fine thankfully.
So, sounds like the wiring in a push button starter is the way to go....? I mean what could it hurt, right?

 

[joey]

Well it could cause some very odd electrical or alarm issues... but since you don't have a remote. Not sure you have much choice since even to program a remote to your vehicle requires the land rover computer (not many places have it)

 

[jmcdevitt]

Epic Failure

Well that was an epic failure.
I made things even worse in my attempt to rig up a push button starter. Now the power to the fuel pump and coil has been cut out by what I can only guess is the alarm. I spent the holiday weekend under the dash of the Discovery. I have read probably every post pertaining to alarm issues. I am at a loss.
I don't really want to hack up the wiring in this thing, but since I do not have a key fob and the power door locks no longer work I am not sure what I can do. Is it possible to independently wire the fuel pump, coil and starter around the alarm and ECU? Like an off road application but still keep the ECU inline for engine management? I read you can replace the ECU and alarm ECU at the same time as long as they are synced? I'm lost in this. I'm a mechanical engineer, not electrical. After this weekend I am contemplating selling it for parts. Shame it has to be so complicated.
Some good news though, I got the differential lock lever freed. Not that it'll do much good sitting in my driveway.

 

[jmcdevitt]

Arm Chair Wiring

So, Doing some arm chair engineering from my desk today.
According to the electrical troubleshooting manual...
If I jump the black/orange wires... it should in effect bypass the starter killing? Is that a correct assumption?

I also read that you can do a cold reset by touching the battery cables off the battery? I will try anything.

 

[jmcdevitt]

Updates if anyone is listening...

Well it's been a while and I've managed to sort out all the issues with a sweet $500 land rover. I figured out my alarm issues by what I believe was bypassing the alarm unit. Since I do not have a key fob to reset the alarm and there is no way in hell I will be taking my rig to the dealer. By researching the wiring diagram, by connecting the 4 black/orange wires in line, this effectively supplies ground to the fuel pump and coils thus removing the alarms ability to disable them. This worked for me and my rover now runs perfectly with the key, no push buttons. I no longer have power door locks though which is a small price to pay for a fully functioning vehicle.
I solved the overheating problem with a new fan clutch. The existing valve on the fan clutch was completely seized up providing little to no air movement.
I have taken it on several long easy to moderate trails with complete success. The fuel pump did fail on me driving home one time after a day of adventure. After some research I used the AIRTEX pump from ebay with success. Cost was $18 and I've puts about 300 miles on it so far without any issues. I will probably buy an extra to have in my "just in case" box.

I guess I would ask the forum what should I do now? I don't plan on doing any rock crawling level off roading... more overland type travel. What upgrades should I be researching? I was thinking of getting a winch and bumper, maybe a roof rack ( I know the stock rack can't hold anything really)... Should I invest in lifting the rig? I don't want to invest a ton of money considering it's a $500 car.
Thoughts, advise?