Old Rovers Too Feeble?

Antichrist

Expedition Leader
I'd never take a series to the arctic. The heaters are too feeble....
You haven't lived until you've lived with one of these, the epitome of feeble heaters. I guess they figure in a Lightweight you don't need a heater anyway.
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You have to put your hand down by the outlet on the end to see if it's on.
When I lived in VT, for winter trips more than 30-45 min I wore Air Force arctic survival bib overalls, a down parka and Sorels.

When I installed my diesel I just removed it. The engine compartment pipes were in the way of the throttle linkage cross shaft and it served no real use anyway. Although with the half cab on it would warm up the interior slightly.
 

I Leak Oil

Expedition Leader
Friend of mine hadan old school bus heater in his 109. Now that wasn't feeble! He'd drive around with the windows open in winter.

Got to wonder why they bothered putting that heater in a lightweight...
 

LR Max

Local Oaf
I removed my Kodiak heater and had a radiator shop boil it out. Apparently it was so clogged that he had to let it sit overnight!

Works a lot better, however all the ducting is leaky as crap and I have giant gaps in my doors. Still it is A LOT better than it was before. I think the big thing was being able to keep the windows defrosted when we had snowpocalypse. However it was really cold that week, even with the radiator muff fully blocking off the radiator it still had trouble reaching normal operating temp.

Read somewhere about how a guy re-sealed his entire heating system. Made a HUGE difference in performance. Probably with my now flowing heater core and that nonsense, my heater would actually do something! Then again mounting an aftermarket unit in the passenger floorboard is extremely appealing.

Oh and I did get one of those electric ceramic heaters. When I was off road, worked great! However the truck was too drafty for it to work. Also needed to hook it up to an ignition relay. I accidentally left it on once and it killed the battery in no time!
 

1leglance

2007 Expedition Trophy Champion, Overland Certifie
I love how the Land Ops guys had to call in a flat bed tow truck due to failed sensors that turned this modern rig into imobile trail art.
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The most advanced part of my rig is the radio :)
 

David Harris

Expedition Leader
I love how the Land Ops guys had to call in a flat bed tow truck due to failed sensors that turned this modern rig into imobile trail art.
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The most advanced part of my rig is the radio :)

That's the thing that worries me the most on the newer trucks. As reliable as they seem to be, a simple electronic failure and you're done. And there are so many different ones that can happen, from engine management to the security system locking the starter out. At least with mechanical stuff you have a chance of rigging it up to get home. Old Rovers were made with this in mind, the newer ones not.
 
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Antichrist

Expedition Leader
or maybe a bit of trolling ?
This.

That'a the thing that worries me the most on the newer trucks. As reliable as they seem to be, a simple electronic failure and you're done. And there are so many different ones that can happen, from engine management to the security system locking the starter out. At least with mechanical stuff you have a chance of rigging it up to get home. Old Rovers were made with this in mind, the newer ones not.
I wouldn't say they were made with it in mind, since most of the stuff didn't exist in any sort of usable form. The issue, as I see it, is designers using things on vehicles designed for city/highway use and not realizing the risks of using them on vehicles meant to go where the tow trucks can't. Not that most modern 4WD are seriously meant to go those places, not even Discovery 4's. Land Rover knows a very small percentage will ever be taken even on gravel roads.
 

alaskantinbender

Adventurer
That'a the thing that worries me the most on the newer trucks. As reliable as they seem to be, a simple electronic failure and you're done. And there are so many different ones that can happen, from engine management to the security system locking the starter out. At least with mechanical stuff you have a chance of rigging it up to get home. Old Rovers were made with this in mind, the newer ones not.

My son had a dead battery in his 2009 jeep key fob. Caused the truck to turn off after starting. Good thing he was in a store parking lot and could purchase a new one. What if he was out off road 50 miles or so?:Wow1:
 

LR Max

Local Oaf
I think the key here is carrying the required parts and tools to fix your vehicle. With an old series truck, you need a 1/2" and a 7/16" wrench, some pliers, and screwdrivers. With an LR3, you need a scantool and a tool to change out sensors.

With my 2.25 gasser engine, I need to carry a spare fuel pump. With an LR3, I need to carry spare sensors. Just because its newer doesn't mean it ain't gonna break.
 

David Harris

Expedition Leader
I think the key here is carrying the required parts and tools to fix your vehicle. With an old series truck, you need a 1/2" and a 7/16" wrench, some pliers, and screwdrivers. With an LR3, you need a scantool and a tool to change out sensors.

With my 2.25 gasser engine, I need to carry a spare fuel pump. With an LR3, I need to carry spare sensors. Just because its newer doesn't mean it ain't gonna break.

Agreed, but the old trucks are so much simpler in every way that you don't really have to carry much to cover possible trouble, and are much more straightforward to field repair. WIth the newer ones, it would be difficult to carry enough spares to cover all the complexity waiting to fail, especially as they get older.
 

Mack73

Adventurer
Agreed, but the old trucks are so much simpler in every way that you don't really have to carry much to cover possible trouble, and are much more straightforward to field repair. WIth the newer ones, it would be difficult to carry enough spares to cover all the complexity waiting to fail, especially as they get older.

However, with newer vehicles the basic mechanical parts that are REQUIRED to function to get you home are more reliable.

While vehicles like the LR3 have fancy air suspension, computer controlled diff locks, etc that can have issues at times. The drivetrain and engine management rarely have issues that require fixing on the trail. They can be limped home with failing fancy accessories and repaired later.
 

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