My disco makes me want to dance

[astateofmike]

The club looks like an awesome amount of fun and I'm definitely looking forward to joining. I live in the east bay, but really wanted this particular LR3, so I was happy to make the drive. I'll attend an outing soon

East Bay huh? where abouts? I am in the TriValley and the NCLR is having their annual Meeting of the Members...food, and tire kicking....Sat at Mexxi's Resturant in San Ramon. Come on by!

There are at least four NCLR members in an around the Tri Valley with a couple LR3's among them. Hope to connect. Me? 1988 RRC, with Gold Star license plates. If you see it, honk!

 

[phobucket]

East Bay huh? where abouts? I am in the TriValley and the NCLR is having their annual Meeting of the Members...food, and tire kicking....Sat at Mexxi's Resturant in San Ramon. Come on by!

There are at least four NCLR members in an around the Tri Valley with a couple LR3's among them. Hope to connect. Me? 1988 RRC, with Gold Star license plates. If you see it, honk!

Thanks for the invitations everyone. I really appreciate the warm welcome and look forward to meeting you. Is anybody around Friday or Saturday night in the Bay Area?

We live in Alameda. One fun thing about living in Alameda is there are a ton of friendly people in our neighborhood that are into off-roading. There's a version of punch-buggy we play with the kids that involves calling out off-road vehicles There's even a lifted older Range Rover with a roof rack and a weld kit in the back a few blocks from us.

This Saturday I am taking the LR3 back to Rocklin getting the transmission leak repaired by the dealer (part of my purchase agreement). While I'm there I'm planning on picking up a few more items to do my 90K service. I'm a bit nervous about that as I haven't worked on cars since high school and my experience was pretty limited even then. The good news is that I won't have to worry about the transmission flush because the dealer will have to do that when they fix the leak.

The game plan is to change the oil, flush the brakes, rotate the tires and top up other fluids on Sunday, then wrap up with the spark plugs and remaining inspection points on another day. We're trying to leave plenty of time for things to go wrong. A pair of 6 ton jack stands should arrive tomorrow, but I still need to pick up a few more tools and parts. Time to get back to compiling that shopping list.

 

[Ray_G]

Congrats on the great looking truck, of course I'm biased about green D3's and green rovers in particular. Also very cool that you are in Alameda, my grandparents lived there for years and I spent a lot of time there growing up over summers.

If you are looking for a solution for jumping solo, consider something like the micro start. I grabbed an XP-10, haven't had to use it yet but figure it was worth the investment given the minimal cost.
(http://antigravitybatteries.com/microstart/)
r-
Ray

 

[phobucket]

Thanks for the tip on the micro start. That looks like a good solution that won't take up too much room.

I am building up a basic tool set to work on the car and made my first trip to Harbor Freight.

New tools this week:
Screw drivers
Torque wrench
HW 6 ton jack stands
6 ton bottle jack
Wood blocks for height
Harbor Freight 3 ton floor jack
Wrench set (SAE and Metric)
Socket set u joints and adapters
Metric socket set
Deep SAE socket set. (A service tech at LR Rocklin told me he uses a 7/8 6pt socket to break the lug nuts)
Wheel chocks
Breaker bar

It felt like a lot to drop on tools, but I <think> I'm better prepared to work on the truck now.

 

[zelatore]

I second the 6 pt 7/8 deep well for lug nuts. I carry one on a breaker bar as my lug wrench - the stock piece is junk and will probably break the first time you use it.
.
Alameda huh? I actually live closer to Sacramento but work in the bay. I keep my boat on the estuary near Jack London and stay on it during the week. Unfortunately, I rarely bring the LR3 down as I need my van for work.
.
The bill might have seemed high at Harbor Freight, but just imagine what it would have been at the Snap On truck!
(nothing against HF tools - I've bought plenty of them over the years and some of them are good value for money)
.
It's not exactly close for you, but the club has a MORG (Monthly Off Road Gathering) that's open to non-members who want to dip their toe in the water so to speak this Saturday. *oops* I see you will be at the Rocklin dealership taking care of some things on Saturday. Not to worry, we're out there a lot so there will be plenty of opportunities. The next gathering will be on the peninsula on the 3rd Thursday. Not sure where that will be yet as we move it around each month.

 

[zelatore]

One more thing you will want too-wise for the LR3 - a good set of Torx bits. On these I would go better than Harbor Freight, but you don't have to spend a fortune. I carry this set in the truck when on the trail:
http://www.amazon.com/Lisle-27200-T...&qid=1430290407&sr=1-31&keywords=torx+bit+set

 

[phobucket]

Thanks for the recommendation, Zelatore. I worked at a Ford dealership during high school and I remember how coveted the Snap-On tools were.

We dropped the LR3 off at Land Rover Rocklin on Saturday morning for the transmission service and took the puppy for a hike around Folsom lake (beautiful and serene), then to lunch, and then tool shopping. All-in-all, we had a great day. Unfortunately, the transmission pan was still leaking when the service tech took it for a spin after the job was finished. This was a bummer, because it was 4pm at that point and I had driven +100 miles to the dealership. Brad and service crew at Land Rover Rocklin really took care of us. They sent us home in the rental Jag and performed the 90K service for just the cost of parts, and replaced the TPMS module when they noticed intermittent flashing on the dash. Then they delivered the car back to me yesterday. In this case, I'm really happy that I bought the car from LR Rocklin and I'm impressed with their efforts to make sure I was satisfied. ::thumbs up::

 

[cannonball55]

if you didnt pick up 20mm+ sized sockets id recommend doing so too.

 

[phobucket]

Thanks. My metric set has a 20, but it not deep socket. Should I get a deep socket version too?

 

[Ray_G]

For sizes about 20mm you may just want to grab impact sockets, that's what I do. You won't need may (I think the only size I have larger than 20mm is the one to get lug nuts off).

 

[spikemd]

Thanks for the recommendation, Zelatore. I worked at a Ford dealership during high school and I remember how coveted the Snap-On tools were.

We dropped the LR3 off at Land Rover Rocklin on Saturday morning for the transmission service and took the puppy for a hike around Folsom lake (beautiful and serene), then to lunch, and then tool shopping. All-in-all, we had a great day. Unfortunately, the transmission pan was still leaking when the service tech took it for a spin after the job was finished. This was a bummer, because it was 4pm at that point and I had driven +100 miles to the dealership. Brad and service crew at Land Rover Rocklin really took care of us. They sent us home in the rental Jag and performed the 90K service for just the cost of parts, and replaced the TPMS module when they noticed intermittent flashing on the dash. Then they delivered the car back to me yesterday. In this case, I'm really happy that I bought the car from LR Rocklin and I'm impressed with their efforts to make sure I was satisfied. ::thumbs up::

Nice LR3! Looks close to mine in Tonga Green. Previous owner lopped off the top of the rack.

LR Rocklin is by far the best dealer in NorCal. Great guys and fair service who are involved with the Rover club.

 

[phobucket]

Looks great, Spike. I was about to ask you how you removed the top of your rack before I saw it was done by the previous owner. Does anyone know if I need to remove the whole rack first or can I just remove the top portion?

 

[phobucket]

Took our first trip to Hollister Hills last weekend. Stuck to the green lanes but had a lot of fun watching an old Land Cruiser and a couple of Jeeps tackle the obstacle course. Can't wait to head back down this weekend!

 

[Ray_G]

Looks great, Spike. I was about to ask you how you removed the top of your rack before I saw it was done by the previous owner. Does anyone know if I need to remove the whole rack first or can I just remove the top portion?

Pretty sure it all unbolts in various stages, a buddy of mine has his stripped down in a similiar way and I am 99% sure it was just unbolting elements.

 

[zelatore]

Took our first trip to Hollister Hills last weekend. Stuck to the green lanes but had a lot of fun watching an old Land Cruiser and a couple of Jeeps tackle the obstacle course. Can't wait to head back down this weekend!

If you want to test her out a bit more, or maybe just watch some other Rover tackle obstacles, the NCLR will be at Hollister again Saturday. Meet-up is at 10 at the Ranger station.