Building 10 Disco 2 vehicles for an expedition company..

[The Rover Shop]

About 90% of UK forum discussing liners and gas/water leak by are also mentioning stock LR fuel mapping and temp as one of the root causes for slipped liners. Are you going to do any ECU remaps?

Also note that the UK fellows are seeing this on any block except the 3.5. 3.9/4.0/4.6. Later years worse as emissions mapping ran them hot.

Due to some of our trips being longer and taking into account the already gas guzzling nature of the 4.6 fuel economy willl be tried to kept at a decent level, the problem with remapping for added fuel now puts excess strain and heat on the catalytic converters system and the resultant OBD2 feedback system. I will be trying to address the overheating potential with added coolant flow as mentioned in one of my recent posts. Also hoping that the better quality metal and thicker cylinder liners will allow a better and more even heat transfer to each cylinder.

 

[The Rover Shop]

I am also in the process of making our own load containment and security system for the rear of these trucks... most will be the 5 seater versions so I want to still be able to utilize the storage bins on the left and right of the rear compartments, but I want anything in the rear to be secured so that nothing comes flying forward or breaks windows.. problem is that I also would like to still be able to retain the ability to sleep inside the vehicles (it won’t be comfortable but better than setting up a roof top tent in monsoon conditions, my wife can attest to this being very difficult..lol..) I also want the ability to be able to store light stuff like pillows, jackets, rain gear etc in an overhead compartment in the rear..so a system that looks like this is in design process at the moment... will update as progress and prototypes are tested..

 

[Howski]

A factory 180 stat will warm the interior just fine. It is a must-do mod for a D2

 

[EricTyrrell]

Many good pointers there.. reason for the arp head studs is mainly due to the fact that I have numerous times gone to do the final 90degrees torque down and the threads have pulled. Causing me to have to pull the whole lot off again and redo it all with timeserts, hoping that by eliminating the movement of the bolts while torqueing will alleviate this potential.. re having another outfit do the engines, my old Shop is on successive engine install number two for problems with engines from a larger supplier of them... there are many other things I like to do to the engines such as flushing blocks, installing block heaters, smoothing rough castings, installing custom cams etc etc... plus I like to have done it myself so in the event of a problem I’m completely familiar with them... these trucks will be also driven by clients and customers so the added protection of the ARB bumpers is paramount, plus the addition of bushcables and driving lights and additional led turn signal marker lights are nice...it’s hard to beat the ARB bumper for strength and fit, I would probably say they are the most sold bumper in the world... and im. It desire how you can genuinely say the stock front bumper is a good bumper, you only have to look at it hard enough and they break...and the factory brush guard and winch mount bumper is no much better... there is a reason even Land Rover selected the arb fromt bumper for their longitude expedition vehicles...they knew their stock ones are shite...As far as the racks are concerned I am having a friend of mine who owns one of the larger rack building companies make some minor tweaks to their low profile Safari rack specially for us, since we will be using a roof top tent the rack is pretty much mandatory, and will be used for solar panels, traction mats and lightweight storage as well as additional lighting and awning support, but yes, will be wanting to keep CoG as low as possible. I prefer the steel modular wheels also for ease of hi-lift jack adapter use, it’s much easier to lift the wheel up without having to lift your suspension all the way before the wheels start to lift.. never built overland shic... google...worlds most well built defender...

If you must use ARP studs, then I'd use cometic MLS headgaskets as well. Have fun removing the valve covers on all those trucks to re-torque them though.

Aftermarket bumpers can sometimes be useful, but the Discovery 2 ARB bumper is a turd. Yes, the stock bumper is better in nearly every way. It's lighter, it doesn't rotate upward and smash the front end with bull bars, it's cheaper, and has better approach angle. The ARB is heavy, reduces approach angle, expensive, has terrible winch access, amplifies impact damage. If you hit a "bull", both are going to leave the vehicle crushed and disabled. The single advantage an ARB has is the winch mount, but again it provides poor access compared to other options. Oh yeah, it looks cool. RTE, Tactical Rovers, etc bumpers are also better in nearly every way.

The reason Land Rover used them, is for marketing. They look "expedition cool" and fit the image they need to sell vehicles.

As a former user of brush cables, they're useless. Branches weak enough to be deflected upward wont hurt the A-pillars anyways. Branches strong enough to cause mirror or A-pillar damage wont be deflected by the cables and may likely become entangled and rip the cables off, especially when reversing. But let's assume they do deflect a strong branch upward, now that strong branch is headed towards your RTT...

 

[roverpat]

There are electric water pumps available for the 215. I cant say if they could be made to work on the d2. Another question. Are you stepping up the 150amp alternator from the p38 to allow for added electrical loads?

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[The Rover Shop]

There are electric water pumps available for the 215. I cant say if they could be made to work on the d2. Another question. Are you stepping up the 150amp alternator from the p38 to allow for added electrical loads?

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Hoping to actually reduce electrical loads by switching to LED lights, using solar panel to charge secondary battery that runs the fridge... and a split charge system...

 

[The Rover Shop]

If you must use ARP studs, then I'd use cometic MLS headgaskets as well. Have fun removing the valve covers on all those trucks to re-torque them though.

You wanna make an omelette you’re gonna have to break some eggs..a drop in the bucket by comparison to the amount of time I will have into them.. not doing this because I’m looking for an easy way out..

Aftermarket bumpers can sometimes be useful, but the Discovery 2 ARB bumper is a turd. Yes, the stock bumper is better in nearly every way. It's lighter, it doesn't rotate upward and smash the front end with bull bars, it's cheaper, and has better approach angle. The ARB is heavy, reduces approach angle, expensive, has terrible winch access, amplifies impact damage. If you hit a "bull", both are going to leave the vehicle crushed and disabled. The single advantage an ARB has is the winch mount, but again it provides poor access compared to other options. Oh yeah, it looks cool. RTE, Tactical Rovers, etc bumpers are also better in nearly every way.

You CANT BE SERIOUS..????....cheaper..???..when was the last time you priced that stock soccer mum mall cruiser bumper out, yes, I guess you could say it doesn’t rotate upwards in the event of an impact, probably because it’s going to offer ZERO protection....amplifying impact damage..??. The laws of physics say different....poor access..??..guess that depends on what winch you use....yes, it does look cool, but thats just an added bonus, but im not building trucks just to loook cool. I have built many trucks and mostly used ARB bumpers due to their fit function and protection.

The reason Land Rover used them, is for marketing. They look "expedition cool" and fit the image they need to sell vehicles.

Yep, I can see Land Rover saying...let’s use an Australian aftermarket bumper to market our products...

As a former user of brush cables, they're useless. Branches weak enough to be deflected upward wont hurt the A-pillars anyways. Branches strong enough to cause mirror or A-pillar damage wont be deflected by the cables and may likely become entangled and rip the cables off, especially when reversing. But let's assume they do deflect a strong branch upward, now that strong branch is headed towards your RTT...

As a past and present user of bush cables on 6 of my vehicles I definitely disagree with this..they aren’t there to protect the flimsy piece of plastic on the A pillar ...that is probably already broken anyway, it’s to protect that big bit of glass in. Front of your eyes, and they work great on all 4 of my camel trophy trucks, branches are going to be deflected up to the roof top tents with or without bushcables....difference is does it take out your windscreen, wiper arms, snorkel, upper lights, Antenna and roof rack before the tent or not....

 

[madtom]

Nice looking project. I have both Defender 130 and Disco 2, both with TD5 engines, and there is nothing really bad with them. But I'm in Europe. Also they need bigger torque converter for proper work with auto gearbox.
ARB bumper - terrible thing, protruding so far in front of the car. I have seen 2 Disco2 with breaks of frame, after some long runs over corrugation in Africa. Both had this bumper. Other, with more decent one, but still made of steel and with winch, didn't have this problem. The use of this by LR is probably because this was the only one approved for road use.
Sleeping in D2 is possible - I have sleeping platform 195*130 cm. Some pictures are here: https://ok2mtm.rajce.idnes.cz/2015_06_01_Discovery_2_-_nove_supliky_a_spani/
Electronics - BCU ECU is not protected against water/humidity inside, some conformal coating is good start. The same with fuse box placed below the steering wheel. With TD5 I have moved the engine ECU inside to the cabin - next to the ACE ECU. Much better place, than next to battery and engine.
Differentials - look on ATB core for central diff, very nice upgrade.
Roof tent - I have big James Baroud Grand Raid XXL but no roof rack. I have only the original extended roof rails and it is enough. And with rear ladder, I don't use the original one. It is much lighter, than big roof rack. Just check for cracks between roof and A and B pillars.

We use D2 for travelling in 4 people, and it is small, so next step is Defender 130. But for travelling in 2, with removed second row of seats, it is perfect, also with only sleeping inside, and no roof tent. We have TD5 engine, with some remap to get more power and manual gearbox. With 235/85/R16 tires I had to change gearing in diffs from stock 1:3.54 for KAM 1:3.8. But our car is quite heavy - fully loaded it is like 3200kg, so definitely some overweight. So try to keep the weight as low as possible.
Compared to Defender, D2 is much more comfortable (I have SLS and ACE), and the size is just the right one for use in Europe.

 

[Roverchef]

Sounds like a fun project. Good luck

 

[The Rover Shop]

Hers a bit of a teaser as to what it’s going to look like....looks like we might be leaning towards the orange instead of the sandglow....

 

[The Rover Shop]

Went over to check on the status of the engine resleeving..done with the necessary machining to install the sleeves..

 

[rlynch356]

Hoping to actually reduce electrical loads by switching to LED lights, using solar panel to charge secondary battery that runs the fridge... and a split charge system...

If you use a Tecomotive controller for the CWA200 Pierburg coolant pump (BMW. Merc, etc) you have a very efficient modern pulse pump with a wholly separate control ECU that draws a max of 16.5 amp - this will also drive Electric fans and continue to pump after shutdown to prevent heat soak.

I'm going this route now that it has been guinea pigged on another truck - the side benefit is that this ultimately will eliminate 2 belts on the D90 when combined with the 2 Spal fans.

 

[The Rover Shop]

Unfortunately the discovery2 is a single serpentine belt, I will be eliminating the engine fan and running an electric 3600 cfm cooling fan with adjustable temperature control, and a supplemental smaller fan on the a/c condenser, as well as adding an engine oil cooler, this way I can put at least one of the fans on a switched timer relay that after the engine shuts off when in hot conditions the fan continues to run and reduces heat soak which reaches its peak at 8 minutes after shutdown if I recall correctly...so a 5-10 minute timer relay should work wonders utilizing one of the smaller supplemental fans so as to not drain excessive battery power. I will be running the gulf states soft spring thermostat which allows fully open at 10degrees cooler and has better flow rates than the original. With this setup it lets the radiator get a head start on the cooling and should minimize the activity of the fans thereby keeping loads at a minimum, also the electric fans are less prone to coming apart like the engine ones are known for, electric fans also eliminate the problems with mechanical fans when in water crossings. This combination should allow me to keep engine temps below the 200 degree mark at all times..

 

[spikemd]

Sounds like a great project Shayne! You know your way around the rovers. As someone mentioned, a true-trac will also work with the existing traction control greatly increasing your capabilities. Are you going to add long range gas tanks or stick to jerry cans? Range is always an issue with the 4.6 petrol.

 

[polksfinest]

You should do the inline chevy thermostat I have 3 D2 that I use for off road rentals and I have done top hat liners arp studs and electric fans off a mark8 I go trail riding in the summer months in Moab where temperatures are over 100 and the temp never gets above 190