Discovery 300Tdi Off Roader

Hey there!

This is my project thread for my 1995 300Tdi Discovery ES. Grew up around Land Rover's pretty much my entire childhood and have been itching to get one for years. Learned to drive in my Dad's 300Tdi Discovery also. Since then he has owned multiple land rovers and currently owns a fair few...
3 TD5 disco 2's
2 Disco 300tdi's
Series IIA LWB
and his most recent pride and joy a 109 FC which he is attempting to restore. Will get some pictures up of that in the future if anyone is interested!

Anyway! Back to my project...

Short term plans
2" Springs, +5" shocks, dislocation cones and shortened turrets (Bought, awaiting fitment)
Ideally 15x10 modular steels with 33x12.50R15 mud tyres but this is proving expensive.. Looking at getting some Insa Turbo Special Tracks for now.
Extended brake lines
Steering guard
Diff guards
Wind deflectors (on order)
Dare I say sort the rust?

Get muddy!

Long term plans
Winch bumper and winch
Rear HD bumper
Tank guard
Light bar
rear light bar

Some pictures of it currently:



Hopefully soon...

Sounds like a good plan you've got there, I'll be keeping an eye seeing how you get on

Look forward to seeing the progress on this

If you need a hand I'm only down the road in Rainham.

Foz

If yours is anything like mine, the first five lines of your short-term list and the top three of your long-term list need to read "sort the rust"! If you draw a line around the vehicle about 4" above the rear footwell, and assume everything below it, plus the front wheelarches, needs replacing, then anything less will be a bonus

Thanks everyone! It'll get there eventually, even if at the weekend I got so frustrated with it so decided to give up for the weekend haha

Went to change the track rod ends but the are seized into the track rod, not even heat and ramming a screwdriver down the slit on the rod helps free it with a ton of WD40 so probably going to just buy a track rod new and go from there

went to change the discs and I'm not even going to get into the troubles with that as everything is basically just so seized it's unreal.

As for the rust, the sills seem to be fine, front arches are shot and the boot floor needs replacing plus the drivers side passenger door arch has gone too but I knew this when I bought it. The chassis is solid no rust at all which is lucky!

Tom

Just spent the last of my pay day money on car parts

Winch bumper
9000lb winch
265/75R16 insa turbo special tracks on steel modulars which will do nicely until i can afford some big 33" ones

Also bought various new parts from paddocks - wheel bearings, rear door arch panel and some +4" Goodridge braided brake lines

So a few pictures for the goodies that I bought!

Wheels and tyres - nearly new!




Winch bumper - the guy had it welded to the front of his chassis so just cut it off the front, I've since cut the chassis out from the mounting points and cleaned it up ready for mounting. Will get some pictures later as it got dark


Winch - comes with a wireless dongle which is pretty cool It's a champion 9000lb winch so pretty decent enough for the moment. Can always upgrade later!


Got fed up with changing the track rod ends, they are seized onto the rod and not even heating them up until they are red hot works so I'm just going to buy some Heavy Duty ones from Island 4x4 as it's taking up more time than it's worth.


Unfortunately my wheel bearing kit didn't arrive in time which isn't a problem as I had to clean up the caliper as it was covered in mud and other crap so it made it very hard to remove. So spent a little time cleaning it up ready for my completely new disc and pad setup. The pads that came out were comical, about 0.001mm away from using the brake pad metal as the pad! Good job I decided to renew it all

Once all of these odd small jobs are done the landy will be as good as new!

...until something else breaks

Also forgot to mention - the winch came with the winch cable and an 8 ton hook which is also pretty decent

Well then... finally had a productive day and done some bits that I wanted to get done.

Got fed up of trying to get the old track rod end out so just bought some brand new heavy duty ones and fitted them within 5 mins. Wish I done it to start with!!!




Only fitted one of the steering bars as the other can be done at a later date. Only really fitted it to make it drivable to turn it around.

Also took the old crappy front bumper off plus the lights etc and cleaned it up a tiny bit as it was thick with mud everywhere


Also changed the wheel bearings whilst I was there doing the brakes




With with the much better Timken bearings rather than the shoddy Britpart ones


All greased up


Also note finally got the winch bumper on Will spray it up to make it a little nicer (it's mainly just dirty)


All fitted


Turning it around to do the other side on the drive


Old wheels are still on for now just to move it about until I get the lift kit on! Then the new wheels and tyres will go on

Last night got the trusty head torch out and continued to work on the car

Got the hub and disc and caliper off pretty easy as I knew what I was doing this time

There was green CV grease everywhere, something that wasn't on the other side plus it was leaking out from the stub hub seal. The other side had all the proper Lithium EP grease which I have also used again to replace after cleaning.


I'm guessing that where it was leaking all sorts of contaminants got inside and it may be the cause of the clicking/crunching sound i get when turning. So hopefully it's just worn out bearings rather than the CV!

I haven't had the hub apart to assess for wear as of yet as I only wanted to get it all off and ready for the weekend as it's an easy enough job getting it all apart ready. Plus I had a few hours spare after work.

Brakes all back together at the front. Going to drive it a bit for the fronts to bed in before doing the rears as the rears are not actually that bad. Plus I want to actually get some use out of it!!

Tracking is slightly out after doing the steering bar, wheel is slightly down to the right when going straight but will sort that after the suspension is done, probably get it taken in to get the geometry set properly.

The sunroof was stuck open and the motor doesn't work along with the center light as per a post I made on here a while back. Had a look around the motor and there is water sitting on the top above the motor so the sunroof is leaking from somewhere probably causing all manner of electrics to not work around the top center of the car. Still cant work out the problem but managed to get the roof closed by taking the motor out and hammering a torx bit into the rounded off allen key hole to shut it.

Found a bunch of wasps in the drivers door, safe to say they were not there for long after I noticed them!!


Finally off the drive


This morning, started up no trouble just needed a battery boost as it was sitting for so long!


Parked at work

Congrats Tomushh . Glad to see you're rolling at last .
Mine was for the first week of ownership . Now i'm in the middle of front diff/axle/swivel cup rebuild woes .
Those front diff bearings are real %$£"! to remove LOL
Refitting them ?????

Fattrucker

Nearly everything will be either new or reconditioned by time I am finished. I tend to do that with all the cars I own.. Build them up the way I like it and when I am finished use for a bit and move on to another project! I'm a bit all or nothing haha

Fitted the Insa Turbos and modular steels - makes it look beasty!!


Ordered new boot floor as mine is a tad rusty round the edges. A lot better than some others I have seen in the past though! The main bad point was the drive side passengers door. The arch there was rusted in the common place so I replaced that (didn't get any pictures as of yet) then I traced the rust back to the seat belt mounting point which is very corroded so I've also ordered the repair part for that too. So this Sunday looks like a bit of welding is in order!

Can anyone give me any advice on what rust protection to use on the inside? The bottom will be covered in underseal as I have a tub of that left over from when I done the MR2 a while back. I don't want to use it on the inside as it leaves it sticky for ages. I'm not likely to refit the carpet also as that just harbors moisture. Was thinking of buying either a few cans of Hammerite metal paint or getting a tin and painting it on but it is quite expensive at 12 quid a can or 20 for a tin at my local. What have you used? and how much did you use for the boot floor plus extras at the rear of the disco? Cheers!

Whilst I am there doing the boot I will probably also grind down the front bumper on the rusty parts and respray that too along with the steering guard as that only has a little surface corrosion.

I've also noticed that when pulling away in first gear I get a bit of a clunk that either comes from the gearbox area or the diff? My Dad seems to think the diff could have some play in it.. should I be worried? Still drives fine the clunk is like a little concerning.

Hi mate.

Hammerite is a bit crap now, very soft. I used Johnstones Smooth metal paint to paint my replacement boot floor - loads better in my opinion. Bit cheaper, too. I can't remember how much I bought, if you remind me (text me) i will check the tin in the garage tomorrow.

How loud is the clunk? Could you film it? Mine has always made some kind of noise when pulling away, which improved slightly when i replaced the rear diff (after it exploded, caused by offroad use though).

Foz

Yeah no worries will drop you a text!

Umm, kinda loud? I will get a video Sunday when I'm working on it. It'll probably be fine for a while but got me worried, don't want it to crap it's self lol!

Well then been a while since I last posted and thought I'd post an update. Things have been rather slow in terms of working on it as i have been rather stripped for time lately with work etc so haven't been able to do much. In about 2 months i've had about 4 days to work on the poor landy but it's finally taking shape and almost ready for it's MOT! Just a few bits to go. (MOT ran out couple weeks ago)

Thought I'd get started doing the boot floor and a few other rotten bits (I say a few but most of it I am trying to ignore.. lol). As you can see it's pretty buggered, but I'm going to save this landy from the scrapheap!





Old floor out


Pretty muddy under there so decided to clean it and paint with a but of underseal on the chassis. Surprisingly the chassis is absolutely rust free! It's just the body that has a few *gulp* issues.





new vs old


new in


also tackling a rusty seat belt mount that i wanted to sort before the MOT so I cut the old one out and rebuilding part of the arch. Also have a brand new outer arch that sits under the door as you can see in black on the left.


Sizing up the new repair panel


Partially welded in and put some black paint over it just to protect the welds in between days working on it


Also got the girlfriend to paint the front bumper for me as it was looking a little tired and battered. Painted it with POR15 rust preventative paint, just needs a top coat now.
Before

After


Rebuilt arch area done and also paint over with POR15




Also sorted out an area on the rear cross member (only cut a small area out and welded a panel in place where the door seal sits. Need a new crossmember really but this will do for now. It's mostly solid..)



Door seal back in and looking the area looking nice and new! Just need to clean the door seal (not that there is much point)



As it started raining on this day and i had a spare amount of POR15 paint left over in a separate pot I thought I may as well use it and not let it go to waste so decided to paint my steering guard up a bit
Before

After


What it was looking like at the end of that day (also using this as a before picture before the lift kit was fitted)


The lift kit I have is in my eyes pretty decent for what i paid for it haha, +5 terrafirma extreme long travel shocks plus shock mounts to offset them out, +2 springs and dislocation cones and -2 front turrets.
Rear fitted




The front was a f****** pain in the arse to fit but got there in the end






Looks enormous at the moment!! Obviously may need a bit of time to settle so will expect it to go down a little bit over a time but not much as I did buy it used but in good condition.











Got a bit of dislocation on the back already which is nice to see!




and finally for all the people who don't wanna read through that massive update (although you'll miss out on the other bits I've done! ) a nice before and after photo of the height difference


All in all, very happy with how it sits at the moment and finally getting some work done on it over time. Very few bits left to go (mainly bits of rust sorting, I want to get it done now rather than later)

I've also got some TD5 headlights to fit, a few stickers (nothing stupid), braided brake lines to fit, a brake line to replace and to sort out the drivers door lock and some other electrical issues.




Thanks for reading!
Tom

Got a funny grinding noise coming from the front area since I done the lift. 90% sure that it's the front prop making the vibration noise as I was fully expecting to have to upgrade to a wide angle prop after the lift as it works out at about 4 inches lift in total lol!

Does anyone know of the best/better wide angle props to get? Plus the best place to get them from.. Cheapest I can find them is about 150 for the rear and there is one on eBay for the front which is 67 quid (new) but unsure on the quality. www.ebay.co.uk/itm/400417959695

Also ordered some anti roll bar spacers as mine is sitting quite close to the front prop, not touching just far too close for my liking when standing still. Any kind of off road use will likely make them rub/hit. Does anyone know the standard size bolts for the anti roll bar links? Just want to order some but of course some that are at least 25mm longer. Cheers!

Also ordered a new rear Bearmach brake caliper as mine was leaking (entire disc covered in brake fluid lol). Going to try and find some time this week to fit that, along with the rest of the extended braided brake lines and a new copper line on the drivers side rear as that split a while back.

Went up to do a few bits after work and to check a few things over to order some parts for the weekend so I can get it ready for the MOT next week.

Front tyre was flat, had a slow puncture on it for a while so that's being sent off to be resealed/seated/repaired today. It's only a slow one, takes about 3 weeks to go down half way.


Haven't got any pictures but also made up the rear copper brake line last night using my flaring tool etc, so that's ready to fit at the weekend.

Was inspecting the propshafts to see how they are doing angle wise and notice the front one had a lot of play on the transferbox side, not that it matters as I am replacing anyway.

Anyone else have an issue where the front prop sits very close to the anti roll bar? mentioned it in a previous post but got a picture of it last night to explain.


Whilst taking the front wheel off for the tyre to be sorted, noticed my front springs don't exactly sit straight. I am guessing this is because of the caster angle and my lift kit. So it's looking like I'm going to have to order (when i can afford) some radius arms, likely 6 degrees judging by the spring seat angle. Going to get all sorts of issues with steering if I don't do it. So that's another few hundred quid added to the total cost of the lift haha

You can also see the propshaft really close to the anti roll bar in the background of the photo



Tom

Remove the anti rollbar, will give you better articulation too. Will drive like a boat regardless with a 4" lift

Have thought about it, have removed the rear one but wasn't overly keen on removing the front one as it didn't seem like a safe idea