Meet "Oreo" - 1996 Land Rover Discovery Project

Blueboy

Well-known member
Apr 20, 2004
3,216
468
Back in the USA; Rockwood, PA
I would want to know what temps you are seeing with the belt routed correctly. Any 'new to you' vehicle should be flushed fully.

You may have dodged a bullet.

Rotella oil
Wix 1515 filter
green coolant
new fan clutch
radiator service/replace
new t-stat
new fuel filter
ngk BPR6ES plugs
8mm wires
air filter
Is Wix the OEM oil filter?

And great list - exactly what I did with new to me D1.
 

patdohere

Active member
Sep 30, 2020
34
5
San Diego, CA
Thanks, guys. Looks like I may have been very lucky. Plan for the weekend is to fix the belt routing and flush the coolant, change hoses and thermostat and see if that change the temps. If they are still high I'll plan to overhaul the entire system now.

Oil and Filter from Atlantic British Kit and Valvoline VR1 15-W40.
Changed air filter to K&N filter
Replaced Spark Plugs and Wires from Atlantic British Kit

Car idles smoothly without any issues. But won't be driving it until we finish the coolant. Any tips for coolant flush to make the job easier? I'm new to all this mechanic stuff but willing to learn and get it done. Really want this car to last a few years to take it on some adventures.

Any recommendations on coolant?
 

rover4x4

Well-known member
Apr 21, 2004
5,229
45
41
North Carolina, Raleigh
Throw that K&N filter in the trash.

Draining the coolant is messy, but must be done. Its probably worth removing the radiator and at a minimum having it cleaned/rodded out. Use regular green glycol coolant. Replacing the radiator reservoir cap and reservoir could be a good idea.
 
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discostew

Well-known member
Sep 14, 2010
7,733
1,024
Northern Illinois
Throw that K&N filter in the trash.

Draining the coolant is messy, but must be done. Its probably worth removing the radiator and at a minimum having it cleaned/rodded out. Use regular green glycol coolant. Replacing the radiator reservoir cap and reservoir could be a good idea.
Draining the coolant on a D1 is easy. Pull the plug at the top of the radiator and feed a hose down to the bottom of the radiator and syphon it off the bottom of the radiator.
 
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patdohere

Active member
Sep 30, 2020
34
5
San Diego, CA
So the plan this weekend will be

1. Fix belt routing
2. Swap hoses and thermostat
3. Flush radiator, I'll probably try to do 3 flushes to clean it out.

If that doesn't work out and drop the temps. I called Advanced Radiators in Temecula, CA for a rod and cleaning service and they quoted $300. Was wondering at that point since the car is sitting at 200K would it be wiser to just overhaul the whole cooling system with a new water pump, fan clutch, and radiator from AB?
 

_ExpeditionMan

Well-known member
Dec 11, 2017
295
34
Texas
So the plan this weekend will be

1. Fix belt routing
2. Swap hoses and thermostat
3. Flush radiator, I'll probably try to do 3 flushes to clean it out.

If that doesn't work out and drop the temps. I called Advanced Radiators in Temecula, CA for a rod and cleaning service and they quoted $300. Was wondering at that point since the car is sitting at 200K would it be wiser to just overhaul the whole cooling system with a new water pump, fan clutch, and radiator from AB?

Why not just spend 5 minutes correctly installing your serpentine belt before moving on? You're going to have a laundry list of components that could be replaced on an old D1. I'd recommend focusing on what needs to be replaced instead. Also pull the carpets and the sound insulation under them to check for floorboard rust/holes.


Congrats on the LR addiction... I mean hobby!
 
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patdohere

Active member
Sep 30, 2020
34
5
San Diego, CA
From the engine picture it looks like the fan belt is improperly routed and allowing the water pump to possibly slip as it is not getting full tension at high RPM's.
Reset the belt today and went on a drive

temps stable 215F @ idle and driving below 50 mph

temps climb to 224F @ 65 mph and
219F @ 65 mph w/ heater on full blast
 

_ExpeditionMan

Well-known member
Dec 11, 2017
295
34
Texas
Reset the belt today and went on a drive

temps stable 215F @ idle and driving below 50 mph

temps climb to 224F @ 65 mph and
219F @ 65 mph w/ heater on full blast

Your electric fans should be kicking on as soon as you get above 210. Are they working? Is your fan clutch working? Has your thermostat failed closed? Is your cooling system pressurized or leaking somewhere?

Something is definitely wrong if you're running those temps.
 
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WaltNYC

Well-known member
Mar 3, 2010
710
138
NYC
Neither of those matter at 65mph
I used to think the same. Then installed a new 'regular duty' fan clutch and on a 95 deg day running down the highway I could actually hear the clutch lock up around 198 deg and remain engaged down to 193.

Back to patdohere....
Eventually you will replace all that stuff. First order of biz is the radiator and fan clutch.

In my opinion it is worth the time and small-ish expense to replace the water pump and the bearing on the tensioner pully. But that is for later.
 
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dos531

Active member
Feb 1, 2016
27
7
Rowland Heights, CA
Reset the belt today and went on a drive

temps stable 215F @ idle and driving below 50 mph

temps climb to 224F @ 65 mph and
219F @ 65 mph w/ heater on full blast
Failure to cool properly at speed points to a bad radiator. Your fans arent going to be the issue here. If youre in the la area I have an extra radiator you can swap in and see if it cures the issue.
 

patdohere

Active member
Sep 30, 2020
34
5
San Diego, CA
Really only one option. New head gaskets are in order.

Alright, so I'll prep for new head gaskets. How do I check if the block is cracked? Oil seems fine it's still a good color. It's NOT milky. Are the temp increases due to exhaust gases leaking into the coolant system?

As for head gaskets whats the recommendations?
 

_ExpeditionMan

Well-known member
Dec 11, 2017
295
34
Texas
Thats exactly what a bad radiator does.

How does a bad radiator make a car run cool at idle and then run hot at highway speeds? If your radiator is bad you would run hot in both situations or only run cool with the least load/most airflow (highway).