P38 wobble

Hi
Just wondered if you could shed any light on a little problem I have encountered? I have a 2.5 DHSE P38 year 2000 range rover that has developed a wobble at slow speeds or when you are braking and coming to a stop. The wobble is not through the steering wheel it is through the car but it seems to be coming more from the front of the car.It also happens when you set off and take your foot off the gas and coast to a stop. I have changed the wheels twice and changed the tyres twice. I have had one of the track rod ends changed all to no avail. I booked it in at the main Landrover dealers in my area and when they test drove it the gentleman that drove it said it is what is known as the 900 wobble! When I asked what that was he said that when the revs came down to 900 it wobbles. It is a fault with the diesel P38 and unfortunately there is no cure for the problem and there was no point in leaving the car with them. I find this really hard to believe and accept. Can anyone help me shed some light on this problem.

Many Thanks
Stuart Macphee.

Hi Stuart,
Ours does it too. It isn't an un-common problem with some diesel engines. I have had it in some Scania trucks in the past too. It doesn't seem to cause any problems. I wouldn't worry about it too much.
Phil

I'vehad my P38 for about 4 months now and although it has an occasional elusive intermittent lumpy tick-over it certainly does not wobble! Check dampers and any rubber bushes for play with the wheels off the ground. I think there is a steering damper (without looking!) so that could be a culprit. Even if the wobble seems to from from the front end it could stillbe caused by a problem on the back.

Hi, Think i've had the same problem and it is fairly common!! I've had my RR p38 2.5 diesel auto for a couple of years now, it appears to happen when you slow down and the gearbox doesn't select 1st but stays in 2nd, then when you go to pull away again it thinks it can pull away in 2nd and pulls away with a slow shudder.. until the engine revs rise high enough to run smoothly. I've got a few RR friends the ones that own the auto's seem to have the same problem. Is Yours an auto? I think it must be the under powered diesel engine that they've used because it does it a lot more when you're towing. you just have to treat it a bit harder and put your foot down. You do get used to it and you can influence the gear box by altering the pressure on the accelerator, ie put your foot down hard for a split second to make to box change down to first etc. Hope that helps.

My P38 is a manual! Perhaps manual ones don't wobble? Regarding the lack of power, I entirely agree. I fitted the power upgrade box (took 15 minutes) from http://www.rimmerbros.co.uk/cgi-bin/rimmer?findpart&PartID=RA1456&BMK=STORE[/url] which boosts the power from the 136 bhp to about 167 bhp and it makes the P38 a totally different vehicle. Well worth fitting! There is a road test of thepower upgrade unit on Rimmer Bros web-site, which was conducted by one of the magazines.