The 90 is on 110,000 miles and the clutch is starting to judder, also lots of noise from the release bearing. It’s never let me down in 15 years, so I’m prepared to spend a bit.

Parts:
- Valeo clutch kit? I’d rather stick with a DMF so happy to replace that, unless someone strongly recommends a solid flywheel, or not to bother.
- Spigot bearing
- New release fork, bush, clips?
- Anything else while I’m in there?

Engine hoist through the door? Any how-to tips appreciated.

Ta

I've had the centre boss come loose from the friction plate on a Valeo brand clutch, yielding an embarrassing loss of motion. As a result I try to find ones that are all one piece. Most recently, I've fitted a clutch from these people, where the friction plate is a single piece
https://lofclutches.com/store/clutches/defender/?orderby=price-desc
They also do some rather nice spring clips to hold the release bearing against the fork and hold the pushrod in place; better than the crap that Land Rover gives you.

I've tried several times to get the spigot bush out by filling the recess with grease and hammering a cylindrical object in, in the hope that the hydraulic pressure will force it out. It never seems to work, so I've always had to butcher it in the end anyway. I weaken it by making an internal groove with a burr and then collapse it with a chisel, trying not to scratch the recess in the crank. I sparked a riot on here once upon a time by posting a picture of my new bush soaking in oil overnight - strong views are obviously held on this subject.

Yes, it's probably about time to change the dual mass flywheel. I've stuck with this design on mine and not really found a need to go for a solid one. They get a bit loose and rattly over time and it may be the source of some of your odd noises.

The TD5 engine mounts are pretty near the centre of gravity so it'll sit there quite happily once the gearbox is off without any additional support. You can even put a small jack under the front end to tilt the rear downwards to give you a bit more adjustment for lining up the engine and gearbox on reassembly.

Perhaps I should add the fork itself doesn't really wear out on these, unlike the 300 TDi. It's a substantial casting. The release bearing is worth replacing of course, but they usually come in the kit. Again, the LOF ones are nicely made with an all metal body rather than the plastic ones you get as standard.
As well as the dual mass flywheel, it's worth getting new bolts to hold it on. Like a lot of fasteners on the TD5 engine they're supposed to be stretched when you do them up so it may not be a good idea to re-use old ones.

Thanks. Looks like the LOF ones are well regarded.

Can I get away with pulling the gearbox/transfer box back on the cross member, as a whole unit?

It's probably easier to take the cross member off and get it out of the way altogether. If it's not been off for a while, it's worth having a look at the places where it touches the chassis anyway, as these tend to trap water and road dirt and make rust holes the chassis. I usually put Dinitrol on mine at moments like this.

Whenever I've had the gearbox out I've used a transmission scissor lift. A bit like this but mine's a blue one https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/35122475...D%3D|ampid:PL_CLK|clp:2047675&epid=2305807447
So I've found it easier to separate the transfer case and primary gearbox. It gives you a chance to have a look at the seals between the two and replace if needed. Maybe if you have a large flat surface and an engine crane you can keep the two together, but the transmission as a whole is a heavy, awkward item and tends to want to rotate because of the weight of the centre diff mechanism pulling it down on one side. When we had the Series 2 Forward Control we used to take it out all in one big piece, but that was because it was accessible through a hatch in the load bed. But with the normal control cab I've always found it easier to separate the two.

Also on the shopping list it might be a good idea to include a couple of transmission mounting rubber blocks, because I've found these tend to separate from their metal plates, which is hard to see until you've taken the old ones off. Oh, and probably a new handbrake cable too. The centre diff lock warning light switch generally needs replacing, as do the plastic washers on the centre diff lock selector mechanism, especially as they are apt to vanish between dismantling and reassembly, even though I'm sure I put them somewhere where they wouldn't get lost. The screws holding the transmission tunnel in are generally rusted solid into the square plastic captive nuts they're supposed to screw into, so a few more of these help in achieving a neat reassembly. And don't forget the earth wires that come out of the chassis loom and go to a bolt on the driver's side of the transfer case.

Thanks for your advice @Brown - I fitted the LOF single mass bundle and all went fairly well. I didn’t find the engine crane through the passenger door all that easy, since the crane lifts from too far forward, meaning the transmission is rear-heavy, and the legs mean you can’t get a jack on the back to level it up.

In the end, I lifted the whole transmission, tilted up at the bellhousing end, and went behind and lifted it level by hand and shoved it back in place. As you said, it would have been easier to take off the tbox, but I don’t have a transmission jack.

Final thought: whoever decided to put a coolant pipe bracket in front of the top two bellhousing bolts should be beaten with a sh!tty stick.

Good, I'm glad it's all back together.

I tend to bend up the tabs on the coolant pipe so as to let the gearbox come off and go back on again reasonably straight. Sooner or later, the more I do this, they'll snap off. I don't like the arrangement with the wiring where the conduits go between the pipe and the bellhousing, because it's very easy to pinch them on reassembly, no matter how careful you are to get them out of the way. So I've put mine round the outside and attached them with cable ties.

Brown said:

Good, I'm glad it's all back together.

I tend to bend up the tabs on the coolant pipe so as to let the gearbox come off and go back on again reasonably straight. Sooner or later, the more I do this, they'll snap off. I don't like the arrangement with the wiring where the conduits go between the pipe and the bellhousing, because it's very easy to pinch them on reassembly, no matter how careful you are to get them out of the way. So I've put mine round the outside and attached them with cable ties.

Click to expand...

I did bend them up, but one of them bent back down in the struggle to get the box on, and got trapped. There was no way I was pulling the box back again, so it got cut off and chucked across the workshop