Hi there, Im Scaffold [its a height thing Im 611]
Long time lurker, short time poster so I thought that I ought to finally introduce myself and my truck.
Having written off my mx5 through an unexpected altercation with an unsecured load on the M1, it became apparent that a slightly more practical car may well be required. So of course, I ignored my head and bought a Freelander!
Due to the fact that Im human [height regardless] my desire for a Defender was outweighed by my complete inability to sit in one and drive it with even a modicum of comfort. That and the fact that I needed a vehicle to cover a few miles for work as well as pleasure and the agricultural nature of the Defender was just a little too much for that purpose. So it was either a Discovery or a Freelander.
Now the head started to play a part in the decision making process as the old man is after one, so assuming I can keep this one in one piece I might even have a captive audience for a resale later on!!
Had a look at a couple to get a feel for them. The girlfriends sister was looking to pass on hers but with the 1.8 petrol engine even the promise of cowhide to sit on and a black cabin couldnt sway me. Thats before we get onto the part where she bought it completely oblivious of the fact that it was missing everything needed to make it 4wd. Whats that coming over the hill? Is it a monster [money pit]? Probably! Yet still she wanted very strong money for it. Walk away time.
So driving about for work I came across what would become my TD4 parked on the side of the road in Glastonbury. One family owned, Full[ish] service history, 80,000miles and an owner flexible on the numbers saw me pick up my truck and so the saga began!
Obvious points to note were a VCU that had seen better days, drivers door lock not operating from the key fob, window wipers that dont park, a clutch that bites somewhere near the front bumper and the overriding smell of wet dog. However, it is in good overall nick and in the month that Ive owned it hasnt [touch every bit of wood close by] skipped a beat.
Photos are a little thin on the ground at the minute as oily hands and cameras dont mix but needless to say theres already been some expenditure put down!
The second weekend of ownership saw me take it back up to Lincolnshire [stopping off at Bell Engineering en route] and a full weekend of servicing with the old man.
Jobs undertaken so far:
Full Service including draining and replacement of all oils [engine, ird, g/box, rear diff]
Full intake manifold clean out/new seals
Replacement BMW cyclone filter
New air, fuel and turbo vent filters
Rad flush and refill
Bled clutch out and now have a pedal that bites this side of the bulkhead
Dropped and replaced the front prop [split rubber boot]
Replacement Bell Engineering VCU
Cleaned up and repainted both props in hammerite black
Stripped, cleaned up and repainted tow bar in hammerite black
Had a friend make up a tow bar adapter to take my bike rack out past the spare wheel. Painted up and fitted
Replaced all speakers with uprated items due to popped nsf speaker [made speaker panels for the fronts and rears and modified tweeter mounts]
Painted all teal interior plastics matte black [apart from the sunglass holder how the hell does that come out?]
Dylond all seat covers from teal to charcoal grey [more comfortable with the grey and black interior now]
Plasti dipped the front and rear silver badges as well as the rear clam side windows [no parcel shelf].
Does anyone think that the rear window could be plasti dipped or would it need to be tinted? A job possible at home or worth getting in a pro? Would it affect the de misting element?
Jobs still to do:
Nsr wheel bearing needs looking at [rumbling]
Manifold off again, new silicon pipes fitted and get some diesel rhino down her
Clean up egr and fit the cheap egr removal mod until I can afford something a little more permanent
Pick up a Ronbox and Pierburg maf and fit them
New central locking motors to get around door lock issue
New front wiper motor [had the switch apart/cleaned up and refitted but I think its the park track in the motor]
Steering wheel audio controls not playing ball. May need new rotary coupling or a fiddle with the wiring. Had the switch apart and all seems ok there. Thread to follow in Freelander section.
Sunglass holder to paint black to match other plastics
Seat tilt surround paint to black to match other plastics [how does this come out?]
Roof rack mounted rear work light
Refinish wheels [looking a bit shabby]
Strip and refinish rear high level brake light mounting and wing mirrors [looking very shabby]
A damn good clean and continue to use it
Unfortunately the truck looks a little like Ive nicked it at the moment [steering shroud off due to fiddling about with the rotary coupling etc. but Ill get some photos up and Id happily receive comments on what Ive done/what I plan to do.
Looking forwards to getting to know some of you over the coming months, and hopefully a good auto electrician as I dont mind wielding a spanner but wiring is my kryptonite.
Scaffold [Morgs]
Oh, and I almost forgot the issues I had when first filling up the truck in anticipation of heading up to Lincolnshire.
Of course, the new scavenger pump in the tank was a plus point when it came to selling, however, the lack of a neck seal when the garage undertaking the work had fitted it meant that the torrent of diesel coming from under the truck saw me severely ****ed off.
A trip down to Chris White in Glastonbury, a tenner for a new seal and an hour and a half fiddling had me with a freshly sealed tank and slightly happier with life in general! Only slightly because the long time needed for fiddling came as a result of the left hand rear seat not folding on the squab release. A bit of jiggery pokery and some choice words later and everything was connected back where it should have been and the seat folded as intended.
:beer2:
Long time lurker, short time poster so I thought that I ought to finally introduce myself and my truck.
Having written off my mx5 through an unexpected altercation with an unsecured load on the M1, it became apparent that a slightly more practical car may well be required. So of course, I ignored my head and bought a Freelander!
Due to the fact that Im human [height regardless] my desire for a Defender was outweighed by my complete inability to sit in one and drive it with even a modicum of comfort. That and the fact that I needed a vehicle to cover a few miles for work as well as pleasure and the agricultural nature of the Defender was just a little too much for that purpose. So it was either a Discovery or a Freelander.
Now the head started to play a part in the decision making process as the old man is after one, so assuming I can keep this one in one piece I might even have a captive audience for a resale later on!!
Had a look at a couple to get a feel for them. The girlfriends sister was looking to pass on hers but with the 1.8 petrol engine even the promise of cowhide to sit on and a black cabin couldnt sway me. Thats before we get onto the part where she bought it completely oblivious of the fact that it was missing everything needed to make it 4wd. Whats that coming over the hill? Is it a monster [money pit]? Probably! Yet still she wanted very strong money for it. Walk away time.
So driving about for work I came across what would become my TD4 parked on the side of the road in Glastonbury. One family owned, Full[ish] service history, 80,000miles and an owner flexible on the numbers saw me pick up my truck and so the saga began!
Obvious points to note were a VCU that had seen better days, drivers door lock not operating from the key fob, window wipers that dont park, a clutch that bites somewhere near the front bumper and the overriding smell of wet dog. However, it is in good overall nick and in the month that Ive owned it hasnt [touch every bit of wood close by] skipped a beat.
Photos are a little thin on the ground at the minute as oily hands and cameras dont mix but needless to say theres already been some expenditure put down!
The second weekend of ownership saw me take it back up to Lincolnshire [stopping off at Bell Engineering en route] and a full weekend of servicing with the old man.
Jobs undertaken so far:
Full Service including draining and replacement of all oils [engine, ird, g/box, rear diff]
Full intake manifold clean out/new seals
Replacement BMW cyclone filter
New air, fuel and turbo vent filters
Rad flush and refill
Bled clutch out and now have a pedal that bites this side of the bulkhead
Dropped and replaced the front prop [split rubber boot]
Replacement Bell Engineering VCU
Cleaned up and repainted both props in hammerite black
Stripped, cleaned up and repainted tow bar in hammerite black
Had a friend make up a tow bar adapter to take my bike rack out past the spare wheel. Painted up and fitted
Replaced all speakers with uprated items due to popped nsf speaker [made speaker panels for the fronts and rears and modified tweeter mounts]
Painted all teal interior plastics matte black [apart from the sunglass holder how the hell does that come out?]
Dylond all seat covers from teal to charcoal grey [more comfortable with the grey and black interior now]
Plasti dipped the front and rear silver badges as well as the rear clam side windows [no parcel shelf].
Does anyone think that the rear window could be plasti dipped or would it need to be tinted? A job possible at home or worth getting in a pro? Would it affect the de misting element?
Jobs still to do:
Nsr wheel bearing needs looking at [rumbling]
Manifold off again, new silicon pipes fitted and get some diesel rhino down her
Clean up egr and fit the cheap egr removal mod until I can afford something a little more permanent
Pick up a Ronbox and Pierburg maf and fit them
New central locking motors to get around door lock issue
New front wiper motor [had the switch apart/cleaned up and refitted but I think its the park track in the motor]
Steering wheel audio controls not playing ball. May need new rotary coupling or a fiddle with the wiring. Had the switch apart and all seems ok there. Thread to follow in Freelander section.
Sunglass holder to paint black to match other plastics
Seat tilt surround paint to black to match other plastics [how does this come out?]
Roof rack mounted rear work light
Refinish wheels [looking a bit shabby]
Strip and refinish rear high level brake light mounting and wing mirrors [looking very shabby]
A damn good clean and continue to use it
Unfortunately the truck looks a little like Ive nicked it at the moment [steering shroud off due to fiddling about with the rotary coupling etc. but Ill get some photos up and Id happily receive comments on what Ive done/what I plan to do.
Looking forwards to getting to know some of you over the coming months, and hopefully a good auto electrician as I dont mind wielding a spanner but wiring is my kryptonite.
Scaffold [Morgs]
Oh, and I almost forgot the issues I had when first filling up the truck in anticipation of heading up to Lincolnshire.
Of course, the new scavenger pump in the tank was a plus point when it came to selling, however, the lack of a neck seal when the garage undertaking the work had fitted it meant that the torrent of diesel coming from under the truck saw me severely ****ed off.
A trip down to Chris White in Glastonbury, a tenner for a new seal and an hour and a half fiddling had me with a freshly sealed tank and slightly happier with life in general! Only slightly because the long time needed for fiddling came as a result of the left hand rear seat not folding on the squab release. A bit of jiggery pokery and some choice words later and everything was connected back where it should have been and the seat folded as intended.
:beer2:
