Calling all Range Rover knowledge... please!

Submitted: Tuesday, Jan 09, 2007 at 23:03

ThreadID: 41048 Views:3116 Replies:7 FollowUps:4

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tomjones83

Hi all,

A mate has an '85 rangie (3.5l v8) with some problems we need to address. All aside it is an awesome truck that just needs some TLC.

There seems to be a fuel related issue with it at the moment. the consumption has gone right down (which isnt the problem), there seems to be a lack of power, it stalls occasionally and sporatically wont start.

It has been suggested to me that we should source a fuel pressure gauge & tap into the fuel lines after the pump to see what the pressure is and after the regulator to tell what the return pressure is. testing both of these mesures should indicate if the fuel pump or regulator has problems. is this true or urban myth?

If this is a true means to test fuel pressure, what pressue (or at least min pressure) should i be reading when the gauge is connected? the rangie has an aftermarket drop tank with external pump (i believe standard pumps for this model was inside the tank).

once fuel has been confirmed working we will go from there. she has a new airflow metre etc so air shouldnt be an issue.

she also has a terrible oil leak which appears to be rear mains seal. it is coming from the back of the motor. need to degrease it first and see exactly where it is leaking from. if it is the rear mains seal, how difficult would that be to do? is it a case of motor out? that is starting to head out of my league but we both have a no harm in trying to fix it ourselves attitude. all else fails call in the pros ;-) can changing this seal be done by obtaining and following a workshop manual?

thanks in advance,
Tom

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Reply By: disco driver - Wednesday, Jan 10, 2007 at 00:13

Wednesday, Jan 10, 2007 at 00:13

Hi Tom,
Used to have a Rangie or two, second was fuel injected though.
My first had stromberg carbs and I had no end of trouble with it.
Same symptoms as your mates
There are rubber/synthetic diaphragms in those Stromberg carbies, if they are not 100% you will have strife in getting it to perform like it should.
Some Rangies were fitted with SU's and many have been converted to take a Holley
Find a good rover mechanic and pay to have the Carbies serviced properly.
Different vehicle then.

In regard to the oil leak it's probably easier to lift the motor out rather than the gearbox (Gearbox is a heavy chunk of metal and requires removing seats and floorto get at it.

Good Luck

Disco
99 TD5 Auto now

AnswerID: 214344

Follow Up By: Bilbo - Wednesday, Jan 10, 2007 at 00:24

Wednesday, Jan 10, 2007 at 00:24

Disco Driver,

",,,,,,,,,,,,(Gearbox is a heavy chunk of metal and requires removing seats and floorto get at it),,,,,,,,,,

Don't tell me that even after all these years we still have to take the floor out of Landys to get the gearbox out. This was a standing joke amongst mechanics in the UK back in the 70s!!

See? Landrovers - nothing ever changes.

BTW - I beleive I may have been the first to fit a new clutch in short wheel base Landrover WITHOUT taking the floor out,,,,,,,,,,Well they shouldn't have said it couldn't be done should they :)

Bilbo

FollowupID: 474575

Follow Up By: disco driver - Wednesday, Jan 10, 2007 at 00:48

Wednesday, Jan 10, 2007 at 00:48

Hi Bilbo
We are talking here of 21 year old rangie, not a late model. It might have changed when the "classic" shape changed in the early/mid nineties.

You're right, nothing ever changes with landrovers.

They got it right first time, Lots of LOL

Cheers

Disco

FollowupID: 474577

Follow Up By: Bilbo - Wednesday, Jan 10, 2007 at 01:10

Wednesday, Jan 10, 2007 at 01:10

Nice one Disco - eleventeen out of ten.

I'm not gonna argue with ya. Every one on this forum knows my feelings about Landrovers.

take care,

Bilbo

FollowupID: 474578

Follow Up By: Member - JohnR (Vic)&Moses - Wednesday, Jan 10, 2007 at 10:38

Wednesday, Jan 10, 2007 at 10:38

Bilbo, Bonz had a good line the other day about a Disco being in it's natural environment. It was on a hoist. You aren't confirming that jibe from a 3 litre Nissan driver you?

Disco Driver, I noticed Baz aka Redback seemed to have changed tune on a TD5 just recently. Neve did get to the bottom of that but then he drowned his Exploder trying to teach it to swim........ Sorry, such sarchasm. It may happen to me one day, but it is explained above about the cost of the gear box work on my 1986 RR that dropped a bearing off the input shaft.

FollowupID: 474605

Reply By: Ozrover - Wednesday, Jan 10, 2007 at 09:05

Wednesday, Jan 10, 2007 at 09:05

Hi Tom.

You said that the airflow meter has been changed so I'll assume that it is a fuel injected model, but if it has an external fuel pump it may have originally been carbied!

It definitely sounds like a fuel delivery problem so I'd be looking it the pump first.

Lifting the motor out for the rear seal is the way to go, have fun!! 8 )>

It's a Land Rover Thing.

AnswerID: 214364

Reply By: Alan H - Wednesday, Jan 10, 2007 at 10:00

Wednesday, Jan 10, 2007 at 10:00

Hi TomJones.
For all things Land Rover try this address. They've got technical section for posting this type of question and they'll know exactly what to do.
Alan.

www.aulro.com

AnswerID: 214375

Reply By: Martyn (WA) - Wednesday, Jan 10, 2007 at 14:01

Wednesday, Jan 10, 2007 at 14:01

Tom,
As mentioned before this could be a conversion job, the 85 model originally had carbies either SU or Stromberg, in my 85 the carbies were brilliant after a bit of TLC, much better than the 89 I have right now, the Lucas system isn't the best if it has one of them. The problems with mine were related to the fuel pump which is inside the fuel tank, the person before me had cut a hole in the floor above the fuel tank to get access, under normal circumstances the fuel tank will have to be dropped or taken out. The other problem could be the black box under the drivers seat, also check the wiring and the fuel pump relay which are also under the front seat. If this is a conversion this black box and relays could be anywhere.

Oil leak, welcome to the club, you get used to it. I had a similar oil leak, my first approach was to take the sump off and replace the sump gasket, this can be done in situ with the vehicle jacked up and supported on the chassis with the wheels removed, I used the Toyota silicon sealant (black stuff) this is by far the best sealant I've used, so far all is well, someone before had replaced the gasket and not done a very good job, the leak was right at the back right up against the gearbox.

My opinions as usual

Keep the shiny side up

Lifetime Member
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AnswerID: 214419

Reply By: RussellV - Wednesday, Jan 10, 2007 at 14:26

Wednesday, Jan 10, 2007 at 14:26

Hi Tom

I owned an 83 Rangie for a while and they are fantastic things! When I was in the Kimberley mine performed similar issues to what you're describing and on inspection found that mine had really fine micro-pore type in-line fuel filters pre & post fuel pump. We removed them and rejoined the fuel line (temporarily) and that solved our problem. Of course once we could replace the filters we re-inserted them in-line. So I would check it out and see if yours has a similar setup and that is all it may be.... Hope this helps!

Cheers

Russ

AnswerID: 214427

Reply By: Member - Ian H (NSW) - Wednesday, Jan 10, 2007 at 21:51

Wednesday, Jan 10, 2007 at 21:51

Before you pull the donk out check the PCV valve for clogging. I had the same problem on a motor some years ago and by cleaning the valve the crankcase pressure returned to normal and stopped pushing oil out passed the rear crankshaft seal. Good luck with it.

AnswerID: 214544

Reply By: Philip A - Thursday, Jan 11, 2007 at 09:57

Thursday, Jan 11, 2007 at 09:57

If the fuel consumption has gone down ie worse, then it suggests the engine is rich.
If the fuel pump is bad the mixture will be lean, although a bad pressure regulator may cause an increase in rail pressure.Usually fuel pumps either work or they don't. You can tell by the silence and the engine stopping.
The first thing I would look at is the water temp sensor, as this tells the injection to put the choke on.
I suggest your mate gets a manual, and goes through the troubleshooting guide. Its not very wise to attack injection piecemeal. It needs a thorough and step by step approach.
Regards Philip A

AnswerID: 214618