What to do with my new D2

[Publix_Deli]

I recently acquired a 2003 Discovery that belonged to my cousin. He unexpectedly died at the age of 31, and the truck has just been sitting in my uncle's driveway for the past 4 years. I recently got a promotion at work and wanted a 4WD vehicle, so I asked him about buying it. To my surprise, he just gave it to me.

https://imgur.com/gallery/kv5wT

It's covered in 4 years of Alabama pollen, but the paint is actually in pretty good shape underneath that. It also has some issues:

• It has the 3 amigo lights + plus the BRAKE light.
  
  
• The brakes also require you to pump them to build up good pressure when you're trying to stop, and the handbrake doesn't appear to do anything at all.
  
  
• It also has an electrical short somewhere that slowly drains the battery when the truck isn't running.
  
  
• The only code the OBDII reader gave me was P1590.
  
  
• The snake belt appears new, but the pulleys are clearly original and they make a bit of clicking noise while the engine is running.
  

I'll be retrieiving the truck in 2 weeks, at which point I can start working on it. Here's my plan of action:

1) Change the engine, differential, and gearbox oil

2) Use a multimeter to try and figure out which circuit is drawing power. If it's something unimportant like the cigarette lighter, I'll just pull the fuse and call it a day. I suspect it's something in the ABS module.

3) Inspect the ABS modulator for corrosion and faulty wiring.

4) Replace the ABS shuttle valve switch (and possibly the entire modulator unit if necessary), replace the rubber brake hoses, and fully bleed/refill the brake system. (I'd probably just pay a mechanic to do this part, and have him check the handbrake cable while he's at it.)

Beyond that, it could use lots of little things, like a new passenger side mirror, Disco I wiper arms, a rear wiper arm, steel bumpers, etc. I'm new to this whole Land Rover thing, so is there anything obvious that I'm missing?

 

[joey]

Welcome to the forum. I would start with your current thoughts. Brakes first as that may fix a lot of the issues. If the battery is old, replace it as well.

 

[washburn1919]

the p1590 is the code associated with the 3 amigos (and the brake light). really REALLY common. maybe even universal. the brake light isn't always there with the 3 amigos, but it is frequently. the shuttle thing may or may not fix it. not too bad a job, but no guarantee that's what it is. they'll tell you all kinds of stuff about wheel bearings etc, but i HAVE had to replace wheel bearings and they've never lit the amigos when they were going. my own experience has been all about corrosion on the wheel sensors.

brakes - i assume you've checked the cylinders. especially the master cylinder. no leaks?

hand brake - be aware that it doesn't work on the brakes at all. it stops the transmission. not the wheels. so it might SEEM like it's not working.

clicking - welcome to roverland. you'll also find sporadic puddles underneath the car in this land

i'm a fanatic for old land rovers. i love them. working on them isn't even too bad because they're so large. the big parts are easy to get. connectors and stuff more difficult.

things you'll want to know about - the cooling system is a nightmare because there are a million little connections to leak. the rigid plastic hose(s) that goes to the expansion tank is EXTREMELY brittle when it gets old. just disintegrates with barely a touch. replace it with fuel line. the bleed plug in the T of the upper radiator hose assembly is crap. plastic and prone to failure. replace it with a brass one. you'll eventually start smelling coolant cooking but not seeing the leak. it's under the throttle body dripping onto the valve cover. they have a throttle body heater. don't bother replacing it, even though it's just ten bucks. just cut a new gasket for it. it's easy and is the only part of it that goes. and - some people will condemn me for this - that throttle body heater is completely un-needed except in the coldest weather. you can unplug the hoses from it and plug them into each other, ie bypass it and recirculate the coolant.

they're also prone to leaking coolant from under the expansion tank. it drips down onto the u-joint on the front prop shaft. the prop shafts are sealed and not greasable. leaking coolant WILL eventually cause that u-joint to fail. when you replace it, get one that can be greased.

 

[washburn1919]

oh and btw, to replace the gasket on the throttle body heater, you're gonna need a 5.5mm wrench. yeah. 5.5

 

[InsertAliasHere]

Ha, yeah welcome to rovers. What washburn1919 said is pretty spot on. I just bypassed my throttle body heater as a temporary fix which inadvertently became permanent. They all leak. But yeah, that seems to be a touchy subject for some people. Just be sure the throttle cable can move freely.

If your shuttle valve is what is causing your 3 amigos, look into the "option B" fix. Might be something you would be interested in.

Have your front drive shaft rebuilt or replaced with serviceable UJ's soon for some peace of mind. The cats cook the grease out of them and when they go, they have a tendency to put holes in transmission pans.

Also for peace of mind get something to monitor water temps in real time. The factory gauge is more of a dummy light and it's too late by the time it tells you anything.

Everything leaks because Land Rover, but really stay on top of any coolant leaks, which if yours is anything like mine was, will be plentiful.

Take care of them brakes, check/replace fluids, then get started on the fun stuff! This D2 will test your patience so be ready for that but it will also force you to know everything about it which is a good thing I think. A scanner that can also read ABS codes is worth it's weight in gold.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[BeemerNut]

Congrats on having a 4.6 powered Disco vs 4.0's, a stem in the right direction. LR should of installed them from day one (94) for the US market.
On your heated throttle intake depending on where you live and the smog inspection requirements, bypassing the hoses is a instant failure here in Kalifornia.
Remove the hose at the heat plate, machine out a brass plug fitting snug inside the hose then reconnect.
No heat to the throttle plate but still looking legal.
You didn't mention the mileage on your D2.
Nylon cam gear with link plate timing chain is garbage as well LR cams and lifters eating themselves up.
Double row roller timing chain with sprockets plus a Piper cam and lifter set will wake that 4.6 up.
Factory stock they wear down so slowly you wouldn't notice the power loss until replaced.
Every morning dry starts or after an oil change is another slow death flaw screaming (rods rattling) for a Pre-Oiler system for a long life engine.
Piper chip another engine wakeup item which still passes smog with flying colors.
Talking a torque cam with low end torque for normal driving not a high rpm max horsepower cam to move these heavy lumps for everyday normal driving.
Uncorking the exhaust system (CAT back) another wakeup as well installing Magnaflow high flow CATS as example plus a Borla CAT back ehaust system.
Stock exhaust system must be a engine rev limiter along with the stock lean to death computer chip.
I bet your ABS is the same failing ABS system as on my 95 D1 with pulsing pedal with brake pedal sinking to the floor. This a safety hazard.
Remove the pump fuse and dash lights as Joey always mentioned then drive it like a normal vehicle without ABS. It will stop.
With still keeping it looking stock outside for smog tests, gasket port matching the intake manifold to heads, exhaust manifolds to heads including the down pipe after the exhaust manifolds all adds up to more free power and engine efficiency.
Not talking massive porting to the max just cleaning up fast production factory flaws.
Question I have Joey and others, LR in 03 still us the old Lucas single squirt injectors as was found in my 95 D1?
Reason asking I installed (matched flow set) later Bosch 4 hole injectors, another big improvement over OEM Lucas injectors.
Many small item upgrades all adding up to more power, better fuel mileage as well the fun factor.
Sorry can't help you with that automatic tranny vs 5 speed which also increased my fun factor.

 

[binch]

We had a throttle body heater leak problem on our Disco 11 as well....very poor design that!!! I think I've replaced it at least 3 times now. I figured it was a necessary piece or they wouldn't have put it on there. But the material is so thin at the front (between the inlet and outlet tubes) that it's guaranteed to warp and fail. But I found a shop in Edmonton, Canada that makes a very beefy, heavy duty replacement throttle body heater plate. It's twice as thick and longer too so the material at the front just can't warp. Been in the truck now for two years or so and there are no issues at all there now.

If you want to know more you can check them out at:

https://www.sportscarcentre.ca/MGM000010K?mid=948

I'm sure this piece will out last the truck now

 

[BeemerNut]

These throttle body heaters will burn your had after only a minute or less idling from a stone cold engine start. Sadly it also overheats the intake air charge, not the best thing for making power vs a cooler denser intake air charge plus places the engine closer to detonation when under higher engine loading on hot days. Yeah I know detonation sensors retarding timing until detonation goes away.
Even up in Canada in cold weather you should be able to run with a brass slug pressed into the rubber hose near the throttle body plate. Drill the slug with 1/16" or slightly larger drill bit restricting the flow and the excessive amount of heat at the throttle body.
Sounds like the emergency brake was being used while driving as the two brake shoes will be overloaded and overheated if activated for stopping the vehicle. Strange as I adjusted the E brake once a slight adjustment by the way now at 142K miles. Wear isn't an issue.
Check the front output bearing at the transfer case, they can get worn with a loose bearing as well cause a vibration and oil leak. Damage like a broken U joint taking out the transfer case. That thing still have the rubber (fake) U joint at the rear diff? Another source of vibration and trouble if worn out and cracking.....~~=o&o>......

 

[BeemerNut]

oh and btw, to replace the gasket on the throttle body heater, you're gonna need a 5.5mm wrench. yeah. 5.5

That's all?
Look on the bright side as I have several wrenches for British iron like 37/64" or 21/32" for several odd ball sized nuts and bolts. Transition year vehicles having a mix mash between English and Metric must of been a real hoot to work on.....~~=o&o>.....