SeaRubi
Explorer
The first thing many newcomers seem to do upon purchase of their Rover is to immediately join the snorkel safari club and begin harboring the notion that suddenly their truck is a submarine. I think that a snorkel should be the last step to protecting your vehicle from water damage, but am having difficulty thinking through the necessary steps to take care of everything on my new-to-me D1. Below is a brain dump of what I have planned on my own, and also an invitation to the better prepared to fill gaps in the information and suggest corrections and additions. As the comments roll through I'll add them to this first post, categorized by system in the mind dump / list o' questions.
While this list is meant to be definitive for protecting against water, I want to point out that most of these items equally apply to dry, dusty climates, and at the very least make for smart, preventative maintenance. The difference between a sorted truck that's ready to provide thousands of miles of hard-use service and a daily driver that looks the part but breaks down after 500 miles could well have been a $20 preparation.
Beginning at bottom of the truck and moving up -
* Hubs and wheel bearings: It's important that the hub seals be in good shape to keep water out of the wheel bearings. A simple creek crossing at hub level and 500 mile highway jaunt can equate to being stranded. I'll be removing all four corners, repacking the bearings, and fitting new drive flange gaskets. At the same time I'll be fitting the improved double-lipped hub seals - p/n RTC3511.
* Swivel ball seals and lubrication: I'm of the opinion that if you live in a wet climate and your vehicle will be seeing a lot of creek crossings, 90wt is a better choice for the CV's since it's easier to drain the fluids and inspect for water and debris ingress. Since I'm in a relatively dry climate here in California, I'll be sticking with one-shot corn grease and regular CV inspections. It's critical that the swivel ball seals and swivel ball surface are in like-new condition. If they leak, they leak water and dirt inside! Countless popped CV's probably would have lasted longer had they not been neglected.
* tie rod ends and ujoints should all be replaced with serviceable items. water ingress to the caps and under the TRE boot lead to corrosion and failure. Part numbers? My TRE's are shot. U-Joints look old. Will try to chase down p/n's in some of the older threads and update this one.
* Differential breather tubes: some folks tap the axle housing for larger diameter hose. I feel this is unnecessary, but do not think less of others for doing it. I'll be running new breather tubes. Up front, just up to the height of the cowl. In the rear, I might run it a bit higher inside of the aft most pillar, as the ******** end of the truck is often in deeper than the front trying to climb out at an angle.
* Automatic transmission breather tube: need recommendations here - does the D1 have a tube routed to the firewall already? Is there a breather valve?
* Door seals. Inspect and replace as necessary. There's really no way to keep the truck from flooding if you submarine it, but having missing or damaged seals can lead to water ingress to the cab during crossings that might not have otherwise occurred.
* ECU. This is an often overlooked preparation. Swamp your truck in a big water hole, then burn up the ECU after flooding the cab. Makes for a bad day. I enclosed my last rover's ECU in a tupperware container. It's out of sight, cheap, and it works. The biggest issue I had not addressed was securing it back to the floor. Drill the container for the wiring loom, fit a properly sized rubber grommet and then apply silicone from the inside of the container around the grommet.
** question: I believe the ECU for the windows is located underneath the drivers side side, correct? burnt up windows would suck. I'll probably encase it as well.
* Fan cut-off switch. This seems to be a very popular modification in Australia, where often they are faced with deep water crossings with not much choice but to go through. I intend to inline a simple toggle switch to the two auxiliary cooling fans and place it up high on the firewall. I don't see any need to clutter up the cab with it.
* Distributor equipped 3.9's: Not an issue for me as I have a GEMS truck, but it's worth pointing out that some folks tap the distributor cap for a small tube and then rig it to their air-pumps to pressurize the distributor while going through the drink. This was on my list for the rangie before I got rid of it.
* Basic electrical prep: If there's a pigtail on anything electric below the hood, it's vulnerable to water damage. The factory has been good to us by mounting the alternator nice and high. It's noticeably higher on the GEMS engines compared to the 3.9L.
a) inspect the wiring looms for abrasion on the wires. repair or replace as necessary
b) liberally apply dialectric grease to the fittings. If the connection does get wet the grease will protect the small metal bits from corroding as they dry back out.
My standard loop applies to all head lamp, signal lamp, and tail lamp plugs. O2 sensor plugs, and then the other EFI sensor stuff like the MAF, coolant temp, etc.
Don't forget about your fuel pump harness and connector. These are *notorious* for corroding at the pig tail or on the wiring itself. It might be limping along to work and back just fine - but the first time that gets water on it you'll be stuck. Make sure it's clean and dab it with the grease.
Final note: I've heard stories of some folks going through and applying heat shrink tubing over the pigtail connections. I personally think this is a bad idea because if water gets in, it can't get back out and will lead to corrosion. It's also important to err on the side of easy visual inspection and quick maintenance than trying to make something 100% maintenance free. All of the electrical connections fit into this category, in my opinion.
* Ignition: your plug wires should be in good shape, anway, but if they aren't they'll be even worse when wet, making for a grumpy motor sans water event. I also dab the plug boots on both ends with dialectric grease
* flex hose to MAF and intake - inspect for dry rot and holes. there's no point in sealing up the airbox with a snorkel if there are holes downstream.
* airbox. The air box has holes in the bottom to allow for drainage in the event that water enters the horn. DO NOT PLUG THE HOLES unless you fit a snorkel. The horn is already pretty high in the corner. Deep wading is possible with a watchful eye of the water level. Also, I would not bother with a K&N type filter. It's easier to inspect the paper filter. It's also a good idea to pop the top to the airbox and look at the filter after a deep crossing to develop a sense of how wet the crossing actually was.
* snorkel. I'm loathe to join the snorkel safari look. There's a deep sense of bitterness and hatred that wells up inside of me for people with huge lifts, snorkels, and roof racks. It's just not how I roll. Those of you that are sold on them can keep the religion to yourself and go to bed at night comfortable in the belief that your truck is a submarine. I won't be losing any sleep over it. The one improvement of a snorkel setup that might push me into buying one is to gain the pre-cleaner for desert driving.
Any other suggestions? What I have a left-out or suggested incorrectly? Please add to the thread with the things you've done and feel free to point out mistakes or improvements, and specifics with part numbers, including preparations to other models. I'll try to keep the first post organized as well as possible as updates come through.
cheers,
-ike
While this list is meant to be definitive for protecting against water, I want to point out that most of these items equally apply to dry, dusty climates, and at the very least make for smart, preventative maintenance. The difference between a sorted truck that's ready to provide thousands of miles of hard-use service and a daily driver that looks the part but breaks down after 500 miles could well have been a $20 preparation.
Beginning at bottom of the truck and moving up -
* Hubs and wheel bearings: It's important that the hub seals be in good shape to keep water out of the wheel bearings. A simple creek crossing at hub level and 500 mile highway jaunt can equate to being stranded. I'll be removing all four corners, repacking the bearings, and fitting new drive flange gaskets. At the same time I'll be fitting the improved double-lipped hub seals - p/n RTC3511.
* Swivel ball seals and lubrication: I'm of the opinion that if you live in a wet climate and your vehicle will be seeing a lot of creek crossings, 90wt is a better choice for the CV's since it's easier to drain the fluids and inspect for water and debris ingress. Since I'm in a relatively dry climate here in California, I'll be sticking with one-shot corn grease and regular CV inspections. It's critical that the swivel ball seals and swivel ball surface are in like-new condition. If they leak, they leak water and dirt inside! Countless popped CV's probably would have lasted longer had they not been neglected.
* tie rod ends and ujoints should all be replaced with serviceable items. water ingress to the caps and under the TRE boot lead to corrosion and failure. Part numbers? My TRE's are shot. U-Joints look old. Will try to chase down p/n's in some of the older threads and update this one.
* Differential breather tubes: some folks tap the axle housing for larger diameter hose. I feel this is unnecessary, but do not think less of others for doing it. I'll be running new breather tubes. Up front, just up to the height of the cowl. In the rear, I might run it a bit higher inside of the aft most pillar, as the ******** end of the truck is often in deeper than the front trying to climb out at an angle.
* Automatic transmission breather tube: need recommendations here - does the D1 have a tube routed to the firewall already? Is there a breather valve?
* Door seals. Inspect and replace as necessary. There's really no way to keep the truck from flooding if you submarine it, but having missing or damaged seals can lead to water ingress to the cab during crossings that might not have otherwise occurred.
* ECU. This is an often overlooked preparation. Swamp your truck in a big water hole, then burn up the ECU after flooding the cab. Makes for a bad day. I enclosed my last rover's ECU in a tupperware container. It's out of sight, cheap, and it works. The biggest issue I had not addressed was securing it back to the floor. Drill the container for the wiring loom, fit a properly sized rubber grommet and then apply silicone from the inside of the container around the grommet.
** question: I believe the ECU for the windows is located underneath the drivers side side, correct? burnt up windows would suck. I'll probably encase it as well.
* Fan cut-off switch. This seems to be a very popular modification in Australia, where often they are faced with deep water crossings with not much choice but to go through. I intend to inline a simple toggle switch to the two auxiliary cooling fans and place it up high on the firewall. I don't see any need to clutter up the cab with it.
* Distributor equipped 3.9's: Not an issue for me as I have a GEMS truck, but it's worth pointing out that some folks tap the distributor cap for a small tube and then rig it to their air-pumps to pressurize the distributor while going through the drink. This was on my list for the rangie before I got rid of it.
* Basic electrical prep: If there's a pigtail on anything electric below the hood, it's vulnerable to water damage. The factory has been good to us by mounting the alternator nice and high. It's noticeably higher on the GEMS engines compared to the 3.9L.
a) inspect the wiring looms for abrasion on the wires. repair or replace as necessary
b) liberally apply dialectric grease to the fittings. If the connection does get wet the grease will protect the small metal bits from corroding as they dry back out.
My standard loop applies to all head lamp, signal lamp, and tail lamp plugs. O2 sensor plugs, and then the other EFI sensor stuff like the MAF, coolant temp, etc.
Don't forget about your fuel pump harness and connector. These are *notorious* for corroding at the pig tail or on the wiring itself. It might be limping along to work and back just fine - but the first time that gets water on it you'll be stuck. Make sure it's clean and dab it with the grease.
Final note: I've heard stories of some folks going through and applying heat shrink tubing over the pigtail connections. I personally think this is a bad idea because if water gets in, it can't get back out and will lead to corrosion. It's also important to err on the side of easy visual inspection and quick maintenance than trying to make something 100% maintenance free. All of the electrical connections fit into this category, in my opinion.
* Ignition: your plug wires should be in good shape, anway, but if they aren't they'll be even worse when wet, making for a grumpy motor sans water event. I also dab the plug boots on both ends with dialectric grease
* flex hose to MAF and intake - inspect for dry rot and holes. there's no point in sealing up the airbox with a snorkel if there are holes downstream.
* airbox. The air box has holes in the bottom to allow for drainage in the event that water enters the horn. DO NOT PLUG THE HOLES unless you fit a snorkel. The horn is already pretty high in the corner. Deep wading is possible with a watchful eye of the water level. Also, I would not bother with a K&N type filter. It's easier to inspect the paper filter. It's also a good idea to pop the top to the airbox and look at the filter after a deep crossing to develop a sense of how wet the crossing actually was.
* snorkel. I'm loathe to join the snorkel safari look. There's a deep sense of bitterness and hatred that wells up inside of me for people with huge lifts, snorkels, and roof racks. It's just not how I roll. Those of you that are sold on them can keep the religion to yourself and go to bed at night comfortable in the belief that your truck is a submarine. I won't be losing any sleep over it. The one improvement of a snorkel setup that might push me into buying one is to gain the pre-cleaner for desert driving.
Any other suggestions? What I have a left-out or suggested incorrectly? Please add to the thread with the things you've done and feel free to point out mistakes or improvements, and specifics with part numbers, including preparations to other models. I'll try to keep the first post organized as well as possible as updates come through.
cheers,
-ike
