Advice on head gasket

[Flyfish]

The engine is a 4.0 from an RRC.

No, a P38. RRC’s never had a 4.0.

But you may not have a HG issue. Test compression and rent a coolant gas test kit if needed. That will give you the answer.

 

[discostew]

No, a P38. RRC’s never had a 4.0.

But you may not have a HG issue. Test compression and rent a coolant gas test kit if needed. That will give you the answer.

P38 used a 4.0. In the late 90’s we used to call them out by the displacement. I don’t recall us saying new Range Rover vs Classic.
Back then it was simple. If you had a Range Rover it was a Classic or a Four O or Four Six

 

[Flyfish]

P38 used a 4.0. In the late 90’s we used to call them out by the displacement. I don’t recall us saying new Range Rover vs Classic.
Back then it was simple. If you had a Range Rover it was a Classic or a Four O or Four Six

Yes, we know that and why I corrected him the 4.0 was from a P38, not a RRC.

 

[discostew]

Yes, we know that and why I corrected him the 4.0 was from a P38, not a RRC.

Sorry, I missed your comma. I thought you said a P38 never used a 4.0.

carry on

 

[terryjm1]

The engine was allegedly "re-gasketed" about 2-3 years ago, right before the previous owner bought it. Flyfish and Lunchbox worked on the truck and then the vehicle was sold to me this summer.

I emailed the shop that did the engine work and they said they don't remember what they did and had no records. To me, that says it was a crap job or they didn't actually do anything. When I redid the cooling system, there was no thermostat in the engine and a couple of the lines were 13+ years old. So, if they did any sort of engine refresh, they cut a lot of corners...

The engine is a 4.0 from a RRC P38. Im not sure if there are minute differences...

I lived most of my life in St. Louis. also, decades ago, I became very familiar with many of the shops in the area. I think I know which one yours had its work done. If you don’t want to “out“ them here, PM me and maybe I can offer some feedback.

 

[lunchbox]

The head gasket job was done outside of Atlanta GA, where the truck was originally purchased. The engine was overheating when traded in on a D2. The shop used a 4.0 from a P38.

 

[outono]

This is the listing for the vehicle prior to Lunchbox's friend acquiring it: https://www.atlantaonwheels.com/details/used-1998-land-rover-discovery/64421218

They were totally useless when I inquired for more info on the vehicle.

 

[1of40]

My son when he was about 16 bought an engine from a mechanic that worked at City Garage in Boston(?). He said he resealed everything, HG, Front Cover, and Pan. He said the engine had 80K miles, taken out of his wife's rusted-out D1. The engine arrived and it took him a year to get to it. Eventually, he did, and it made it 15 miles. This guy went to the trouble of resealing a POS and lie to a teenager about the condition of the engine. There are all types out there. Taught my son a valuable lesson too.

 

[Blueboy]

My son when he was about 16 bought an engine from a mechanic that worked at City Garage in Boston(?). He said he resealed everything, HG, Front Cover, and Pan. He said the engine had 80K miles, taken out of his wife's rusted-out D1. The engine arrived and it took him a year to get to it. Eventually, he did, and it made it 15 miles. This guy went to the trouble of resealing a POS and lie to a teenager about the condition of the engine. There are all types out there. Taught my son a valuable lesson too.

Yes CitySide Garage is in Boston. Sorry to hear about your experience. Sucks. Copley Motors always “brags” they had work on Defenders, etc. performed by them. On a D90 currently listed for sale:
“fresh major servicing at Defender specialist, CitySide Garage”

Finding a reliable / honest shop is like finding a needle in a haystack. Very fortunate I have an actual mechanic locally that works on all my vehicles.

 

[outono]

Just a quick follow up that it was the head gasket. It's shot. Doing a top end rebuild this week.

 

[terryjm1]

Just a quick follow up that it was the head gasket. It's shot. Doing a top end rebuild this week.

Discostew just posted about some rebuilt heads available. Glad you figured it out and it wasn’t worse.

 

[outono]

Figured I’d share some progress. We cracked her opened and found that the block had been heli-coiled, along with some damage to one of the holes.

We’re going to stud the engine, replace the worn cam with a Crower 229, and potentially take on a valve job depending on how things look once the front is off.

The head bolts were loose and so the leak was due to a lack of clamping force. Heads require machining which appears to never have been done before (despite this being a refreshed engine).

 

[terryjm1]

That sucks but I think studs and surfacing should square it up. ARP revised their torque number down. Be sure to check you use the lower number as the higher torque was pulling threads out of the block.