I'll need an MOT test sometime soon so I've started looking at all the things that might make an MOT tester say something. I put new windscreen wiper blades on it, checked that the lights and the horn worked, jacked it up and attempted to wobble the wheel bearings, steering and suspension linkages and checked nuts and bolts for tightness. The only thing that seemed to be awry was the top end of the front nearside shock absorber, which I could rattle. Right, I'll just take the nut off and add another washer to squeeze the bush down a little more. Not so simple of course. The nut undid a couple of turns and then seized onto the shaft. The shock absorber itself still has some life left so I didn't want to butcher it, so I ended up cutting the nut off carefully to minimise collateral damage. It turned out to be some sort of weird metric fine thread so I don't have a replacement. However, the rubbers were fine - they just needed squashing down a little more. I've ordered some 12mm by 1.5mm and 1.25mm nuts in the hope of finding something to fit.

Anyway, everything else looks OK. Tyres have some tread on, and what's more, it's wearing evenly. Brake pipes don't look corroded or chafed, there's some meat on the brake pads, and the discs seem to be wearing evenly too. I have a new driver's side seat belt to put on because I keep slamming the existing one in the door. I won't swap them over 'til the day of the test because the likelihood is I'll slam the new one in the door too. Also on the day of the test I shall discharge a whole can of brake cleaner over the underside of the engine and gearbox and wipe it with paper towels so it doesn't look too oil-leaky. Oh, and I've tightened the handbrake too.
 
More MOT preparations. I've discovered that the thread on the end of the shock absorber is not M12 x 1.5 or M12 x 1.25. Surely it can't be UNF? I ran a 1/2" UNF tap down one of the nuts and it screwed straight on. So I've got some 1/2" UNF nuts ordered from Ebay, because my improvised nut probably isn't a very strong fix, having been tapped out to two different thread patterns. I took the wheels off and did a bit more pressure washing underneath. It's not mission critical, but I think it creates a better impression if it's not too filthy. I'll pop some injector cleaner in the tank and take it for a bit of a drive tomorrow so as to get it through the injectors. Snake oil perhaps, but I don't want it getting too smoky because fixing that on a TD5 could end up being expensive.
 
Brown said:
More MOT preparations. I've discovered that the thread on the end of the shock absorber is not M12 x 1.5 or M12 x 1.25. Surely it can't be UNF? I ran a 1/2" UNF tap down one of the nuts and it screwed straight on. So I've got some 1/2" UNF nuts ordered from Ebay, because my improvised nut probably isn't a very strong fix, having been tapped out to two different thread patterns. I took the wheels off and did a bit more pressure washing underneath. It's not mission critical, but I think it creates a better impression if it's not too filthy. I'll pop some injector cleaner in the tank and take it for a bit of a drive tomorrow so as to get it through the injectors. Snake oil perhaps, but I don't want it getting too smoky because fixing that on a TD5 could end up being expensive.
Click to expand...
Good luck, Brown. Have you got it booked in yet? Mine's due on the 12th December, so I'll have to take your lead and do some prep.
 
Al2O3 said:
Good luck, Brown. Have you got it booked in yet? Mine's due on the 12th December, so I'll have to take your lead and do some prep.
Click to expand...
Yup, it's going to the garage on Monday. I thought I'd better do it now, because all the bits they check seem to be working and I want to get it out of the way before anything else breaks.
 
Brown said:
Yup, it's going to the garage on Monday. I thought I'd better do it now, because all the bits they check seem to be working and I want to get it out of the way before anything else breaks.
Click to expand...
Fingers crossed then mate, I'm sure it will be fine :)
 
Managed to Program A watch to fully open lock start My 5.0 V8 new toy
 

Attachments

  • 20211119_085001.jpg
    20211119_085001.jpg
    234.3 KB · Views: 146
MOT passed this morning. So that's all OK for another year. I like to look at the smoke test report because that's one thing that could be a problem but I can't do very much about. There's not much you can adjust on a TD5 and new injectors would be expensive. However, there's no smoke test report in the paperwork. It must have been OK because they would have said something.
 
Goodness me - all those 'likes' for an MOT pass! Feels like some sort of celebration is in order.
 
Popped the M8 threads out of the head for the inlet manifold .... DoH!!
Moment of carelessness, rushing to get the new turbo in, all excited read the torque setting as 35NM (not the 25NM it should have been), got upto the 30 mark and thought "this seems tight" - BANG - bowl arks unt buggeration (I exclaimed)...

Nearly-in.JPG
 
miktdish said:
Popped the M8 threads out of the head for the inlet manifold .... DoH!!
Moment of carelessness, rushing to get the new turbo in, all excited read the torque setting as 35NM (not the 25NM it should have been), got upto the 30 mark and thought "this seems tight" - BANG - bowl arks unt buggeration (I exclaimed)...

View attachment 253203
Click to expand...

Well, if it's simply overstretched (rather than being forced against the bottom of the hole), the remaining stump may come out OK. Maybe it'll even come out with a stud extractor without it snapping.
 
Looks like mine needs a little more investigation. Despite the MOT pass yesterday it seems to be developing some electrical problems. I came back from visiting a friend in the Market Harborough area in the dark just now and the headlights were flickering. So I'll have to do a bit of fiddling about before I next attempt a long journey in the dark. Maybe it's the switch on the steering column deteriorating. This happened on a friend's TD5 and I've seen it written about on Landyzone too. The switch gets hot and the plastic distorts. I have a spare switch so I might put that on and see if it's any different.
 
I may have solved the flickering light problem. I put a new switch in, and the beam seems much steadier. I went to Wales on Saturday and had the lights on through the various squalls of rain and sleet along the way, and came back this evening in the dark and they seemed OK. The headlights are looking quite bright at the moment - almost the same colour as my LED sidelights.
 
Brown said:
I may have solved the flickering light problem. I put a new switch in, and the beam seems much steadier. I went to Wales on Saturday and had the lights on through the various squalls of rain and sleet along the way, and came back this evening in the dark and they seemed OK. The headlights are looking quite bright at the moment - almost the same colour as my LED sidelights.
Click to expand...
Well done, mate. :cool:
Mine is in for the MOT tomorrow (fingers crossed emoji)
 
Al2O3 said:
Well done, mate. :cool:
Mine is in for the MOT tomorrow (fingers crossed emoji)
Click to expand...

Hope it all goes well. It doesn't seem that long since you rebuilt it so a lot of the bits and pieces are virtually new. At least it's unlikely to fail on chassis rust!
 
Brown said:
Hope it all goes well. It doesn't seem that long since you rebuilt it so a lot of the bits and pieces are virtually new. At least it's unlikely to fail on chassis rust!
Click to expand...
Seven years, but chassis is as new :D
 
Brown said:
Time's going a lot faster now that I'm getting older. Christmases are flicking past like Sundays.
Click to expand...
Me too. I struggle to look back and say how long ago something happened. The Mrs is still spot on though, it's really annoying :rolleyes:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

B
defender 2.4 puma reverse light switch
Replies
4
Views
549
BEASTIE 90
B
Padda.116
300tdi disco 1, new head gasket oil leak!!
Replies
10
Views
646
Padda.116
Padda.116
Knappster
Shot-blasting steel wheels
Replies
9
Views
925
Knappster
Knappster
Mooky
Replacing thermostat
Replies
14
Views
591
Mooky
Mooky
I
Re-coding of ABS Module after repacement
Replies
10
Views
1K
invisible999
I