I had an advisory on surface rust on suspension components. Perhaps that was a good distraction
I just cut and pulled the old one out, then made some replacement plates from alloy and shoved them in. A couple of times I used cable ties and once used home made saddle brackets held on with small bolts. I don't know if I spent more time doing it that way or saved time by not fully dropping the subframe and replacing with new. I saved a few quid though and when your doing multiple repairs, saving money on each one adds up.Thanks, Ali. Suppose I won't know how much metal is left until it's off completely. And whether welding new plates on is possible. However, I did read through your thread 'Looks like I've done it again, Doh!!!' and it looks like you did the plates without removing the bars (?). Does that mean you left the subframe on, too? Now, that would speed things up
I do like to salvage things. Particularly as a new complete cradle is almost a hundred quid!
Cheers, dude. You've been busy on yours by the sound of it.
Not sure how much help I can be with yer heater issue. Probably don't need the dash out, though. Can you clarify the actual fault? Did it used to work? Not getting heat or does it just switch off the fan in position 4? If so, could just be dirty contact in the rotary switch type thing. Some FL1 owners seem to get a similar issue with the front wiper control stalk. In many cases, it's solved simply by cleaning the contacts inside the barrel switch thingy.
I never used full speed (!), so could be that your contacts have accumalated some dust, dirt or grime that never gets cleared. I'd be checking whether the heater control box can be removed and bench tested/cleaned before the dash comes out!
If in doubt, post a question in the Freelander section and the more experienced lads and lasses will help you
Going to be eggspensive for shops to receive daily deliveries if it's a dedicated own shop brand truck. Is there a park and ride option you could use if this goes ahead?
If the diesel ban comes into force are there any letters or numbers on your number plate that could be doctored with a bit of electrical tape to show a different number?
We're still in the very early days of EV's so (in this country anyway) they are only being bought by green warriors and tech enthusiasts.
At least it eventually came out in once piece but it's put the ABS MIL on.
You can undo the two rear bolts and drop the cradle down enough to replace the support plates, it's easier to hold the fuel tank up if it's near empty.Had a proper poke at the fuel tank cradle, too. Most of the support plates are now iron oxide cornflakes in the garage bin. The tubular sections are still solid enough and, surprisingly, the bolts are near untouched by rot.
A bit of interogation with the pointy stick...
Gave as thorough wire brushing as I could and hit it with the Rust Reformer to slow the rust down. I'll be removing the support plates entirely while the cradle is still bolted into place (some small spot welds here and there). I'll make up some new panels and work on how to fix them to the tubes without welding. I'm looking to scavenge some stainless sheet but beggars can't be choosers
