Alaska and back????

[Rover from hell]

I've got a brand new Ram. It has twice the horsepower, gets twice the gas mileage, and is twice as quiet as my Disco. Which one would I drive across the country on a trip I wanted to enjoy, and have memorable experiences on? The Disco, without a moment's thought. Your choice of vehicle is half the fun of any road trip, and I can't imagine a cooler car to drive across the country in (that's a lie...C7 Vette probably trumps it). It's such an iconic vehicle, and it reeks of "adventure" when you see it, even if you don't plan on leaving the pavement. It makes you want to drive it, just because. As for maintenance? I've done all my own work, torn the motor down to the block, and put it back together again. Not only do I trust my work, and therefore my truck, but in the unlikely event of a breakdown I would frankly relish the opportunity to fix it again because it's so easy to wrench on.

Drive the Disco, make some memories.

I don't know how old some of you are but i for one don't consider driving through a remote wilderness with your family in a old unreliable Land Rover an " adventure". I had my fair share of adventure many years ago.

The Aluminum Land Rover V8 engine is a piece of SHIT ! no matter how many times you strip it down.

You can't polish a turd.

 

[best4x4]

3.8L V6 Jeep motor is a turd..... I've never had serious engine related issues on any of my 3.9, 4.0L, or 4.6L engines. All comes down to how it was treated and how you treat it. It's based on the Buick 215 from the mid 60's and that basic motor config is in so many vehicles it's un-real it's been around a long time mid 60's to 04 so if it was that bad I'm sure it would have been ditched a long long long time ago.

I think you got one of the famous German/Brit LR's where it went down the line while those guys argued and fought vs put it together or checked it before it was shipped off.

I would jump in my 98 D1 and go on a trip in a heartbeat. If I was going thru Alaska I'd certainly have some firepower in case (back to being prepared). If you don't trust something for any further than the local gas station or store then why have it???? I trust my D1 to take me wherever I drive it.

 

[Maximumwarp]

The 3.6L Pentastar that they insist on putting in everything was warping heads left and right 1-2 years ago. It seems they got that figured out, but now Fiat Multiair motors are going in. Hardly an improvement.

 

[Rover from hell]

3.8L V6 Jeep motor is a turd..... I've never had serious engine related issues on any of my 3.9, 4.0L, or 4.6L engines. All comes down to how it was treated and how you treat it. It's based on the Buick 215 from the mid 60's and that basic motor config is in so many vehicles it's un-real it's been around a long time mid 60's to 04 so if it was that bad I'm sure it would have been ditched a long long long time ago.

I think you got one of the famous German/Brit LR's where it went down the line while those guys argued and fought vs put it together or checked it before it was shipped off.

I would jump in my 98 D1 and go on a trip in a heartbeat. If I was going thru Alaska I'd certainly have some firepower in case (back to being prepared). If you don't trust something for any further than the local gas station or store then why have it???? I trust my D1 to take me wherever I drive it.

What other vehicles are using the Aluminum Land Rover V8 engine ?

When my truck was nearly 6 years old and close to 70,000 miles the head gasket decided to let go and i have been changing my coolant every year since i bought it new. When i ordered the gasket kit from Roversnorth they told me that the factory head gaskets were all steel and that was the reason why many Rovers were blowing head gaskets prematurely. He said the upgraded composite gaskets would correct that problem.

When i pulled off the heads they had the same exact composite gaskets that Roversnorth sent me. So much for the all steel gasket theory. Some years later at about 160.000 + miles the gasket blew again same spot # 8 cyl rear of the block.

 

[best4x4]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rover_V8_engine

Good info in the Buick 215/Rover V8 above and it's been in TVR's, Triumph's, anything BL, Rover cars, and many others.

When you had your heads replaced was the block and heads ever checked for being warped??

 

[Jowlz007]

Bring an extra set of headlights. Not just the bulbs. You're almost guaranteed to loose them and your windshield at some point. Research going to dead horse and prudhoe bay, you can't just drive up there and see the arctic ocean. It's mostly all private (gas and oil company owned) land up there. You cannot go to most places. There are cool things to see along the road to Dead Horse so it may or may not be worth your trouble. Above Fairbanks the roads are mostly dirt and gravel. Semi trucks drive going 70 the other way literally spray your vehicle with rocks. There will be some dicey moments. Don't drive tired or at night. Hit the shoulder when you see the big trucks coming.

Make sure you have all the gun paperwork for Canada in order before you get to the border. Or ship your gun to an FFL in alaska and pick it up there. Bring bear spray.

Plan your fuel stops. You should carry extra fuel in the rover. Travel by day. Too many animals at night.

If you can swing it, travel up there via Edmonton, Dawson Creek and McCarthy (Alaskan Highway). Return via Ferry to Vancouver BC or Seattle.

 

[Rover from hell]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rover_V8_engine

Good info in the Buick 215/Rover V8 above and it's been in TVR's, Triumph's, anything BL, Rover cars, and many others.

When you had your heads replaced was the block and heads ever checked for being warped??

Those vehicles have the same inherent unreliable overheating,cooling issues as Land Rovers do.

They were checked for warpage and were within tolerances supposedly.

 

[CRB357]

I don't know how old some of you are but i for one don't consider driving through a remote wilderness with your family in a old unreliable Land Rover an " adventure". I had my fair share of adventure many years ago.

The Aluminum Land Rover V8 engine is a piece of SHIT ! no matter how many times you strip it down.

You can't polish a turd.

Thanks for the concern, but it isn't like I'm traveling through Iran or Afghanistan where I might be captured. My family won't be with me until I come back down to Calgary and pick them up at the airport. Heading over to resorts at Lake Louise, then Glacier NP, then Jackson Hole/Yellowstone. Hardly remote wilderness. Put them back on plane arfter that, then I will make my back down after I stop in Colorado to visit some friends.

Again, if it breaks down and I can't overcome that, I'll leave it there and sell it. Ship all my shit home. Fly to Calgary and rent a SUV for the rest of the trip. The Disco was dirt cheap, and I'm putting about $1k into it. It certainly isn't going to kill me if I have to part with it. I will be sad bc I really like it, but I will just go get a Land Cruiser and move on.

 

[CRB357]

Bring an extra set of headlights. Not just the bulbs. You're almost guaranteed to loose them and your windshield at some point. Research going to dead horse and prudhoe bay, you can't just drive up there and see the arctic ocean. It's mostly all private (gas and oil company owned) land up there. You cannot go to most places. There are cool things to see along the road to Dead Horse so it may or may not be worth your trouble. Above Fairbanks the roads are mostly dirt and gravel. Semi trucks drive going 70 the other way literally spray your vehicle with rocks. There will be some dicey moments. Don't drive tired or at night. Hit the shoulder when you see the big trucks coming.

Make sure you have all the gun paperwork for Canada in order before you get to the border. Or ship your gun to an FFL in alaska and pick it up there. Bring bear spray.

Plan your fuel stops. You should carry extra fuel in the rover. Travel by day. Too many animals at night.

If you can swing it, travel up there via Edmonton, Dawson Creek and McCarthy (Alaskan Highway). Return via Ferry to Vancouver BC or Seattle.

Good info. Thanks man. Yep doing the gun registration paper work this week. I have to start over bc I'm taking different gun now. I have two 6 gal fuel jugs I'm packing.

Maybe I will just tow another donor Disco on a trailer........

 

[CRB357]

Maybe I will cover my bases and go like this......

 

[best4x4]

Rover From Hell, if your so upset/disappointed with the V8 slap in a Diesel.... 7 LR's in TX here and not a single one ever died from overheating, or engine issues. I have an 08 Hummer H3 Alpha with a 5.3L aluminum LS3 V8 in it, and it runs hot from the factory due to a small radiator, and small grill openings. It did not come from the factory with an oil cooler or efans. I added a small 10inch efan, swapped out the fan clutch, and even swapped the plastic fan blade for a metal fan blade out of a Ford (uses same OEM fan clutch), and it now runs cooler than my 07 I5 H3. I run 193-220 at the most extreme TX heat.

When I had just bought my Alpha I heard all this good stuff about a complete efan replacement. I paid the $$$ slapped it in, and on it's first trip in the TX summer I watched as the temps rose to 237F.... I pulled over several times, removed my factory skids, opened the hood while it was running to let out the hot air, and it DID NOT damage anything. Went back to the OEM config and no more 237F!!!! Thats when I modifed the OEM setup to honestly kinda match a LR lol.

My 98 D1 is running 195-205F so far with the Chevy clutch fan, fresh antifreeze, new thermostat, and both my efans working. That is darn good for a 17 year old D1 IMHO. I always replace my coolant every 2 years or earlier if I'm replacing a waterpump or doing any cooling maintenance.

My parts 98 D1 has the OEM clutch fan and at idle it barely pulls any air vs the Chevy unit I'm using. You want it pulling more air at idle or slower speeds. Once you're up to speed the clutch fan usually free spins and the air thru the radiator is enough.

On my last 03 D2 my ex g/f was extremely rough on it. I found out she didn't change the oil in 20K....... I had the typical leak at the throttle body warming plate, and I switched to green coolant vs the orange/red stuff. when I finally traded in that 03 D2 it had close to 155K on it (bought it with 6K on it) and I never had it overheat, timing cover issues, oil pump, or even a leaky radiator... The only issue I ever had with it was my g/f lol. She killed the battery, and left a sunroof open then it rained.... Only D2 issue I really had was blowing headlight bulbs until I got the long life models.

Another thing you can use is some water wetter or the Royal Purple coolant additive which does help a little.

 

[discostew]

I for one would not have said to go on this trip if he said he was going to take your 95 piece of shit that broke down during the first 5 miles of ownership . There is nothing a truck could do to redeem itself after that . But welcome back and tell us how you really feel .

 

[best4x4]

It's like me I had LR's, then went to Jeeps, and quickly got bored with the type of people driving them, and the stupid low quality on a lot of their parts. I then bought two H3's and honestly their awesome. Great on/off road, reliable, quiet, great ride, kinda rare now so it stands out, and easy to work on. But I missed having something to baby, and to tweak, modify, and make better. My brother honestly got me back into LR's after he got himself another RRC. I always loved my D1 and I didn't get to enjoy it that long before it was taken from me in a very nasty wreck. I started looking and was sad at the examples I found for sale around here. Eventually I found my 98 D1 LSE 50th Anniversary Edition, and while it was in exceptional shape for it's age it was still rough in several places from suspension, tires, and interior bits n pieces. Within 2 weeks I had 99% of the bugs out of it, and I no doubt would drive it anywhere.

I say live life, enjoy your LR, go on an awesome adventure in it, and don't worry about stuff. If it's in as good of shape as you describe you'll be fine. Like on any trip I've ever gone on just be prepared and you'll have a blast. The back door of my H3's is stuffed with spare bits, oil, misc fluids, survival stuff, and it never hurts to be prepared. Have a blast, take some pics, and post some updates along the way if you have wifi.

 

[Blue]

Do you ? I don't ! This site don't have enough bandwidth for me to list all the PM and work and the amount of parts i had replaced over the years.

Know what your talking about before you assume.

You sound like a real glutton for punishment....either that or you're an absolute idiot.

Perhaps I should revise what I said to:
Not everyone lets themselves degenerate into pieces of shit.

 

[p m]

Maybe I will cover my bases and go like this......

Been there, done that.

 

[CRB357]

I'm talking about towing it like a camper so I can sleep in it.......LOL

 

[p m]

I'm talking about towing it like a camper so I can sleep in it.......LOL

I took two of my high-mileage 96 D1s to Colorado two years ago. #1 thing I did in preparation for the trip was to buy a foldable tow bar from Harbor Freight, and to make sure both trucks had proper attachment points front and rear.
... so the idea definitely crossed my mind

 

[Rover from hell]

You sound like a real glutton for punishment....either that or you're an absolute idiot.

Perhaps I should revise what I said to:
Not everyone lets themselves degenerate into pieces of shit.

The only one who has degenerated into a piece of shit is obviously you.
Keep making assinine comments about something you know absolutely nothing about .
Keep drinking the reliable Land Rover " MYTH" Koolaid !

 

[Blue]

The only one who has degenerated into a piece of shit is obviously you.
Keep making assinine comments about something you know absolutely nothing about .
Keep drinking the reliable Land Rover " MYTH" Koolaid !

Awww, someone's feelings are hurt. Poor guy.

I know full well what the Land Rover vehicle is all about...I've owned Rovers for 17 years now. I enjoy the vehicles even with their high-maintenance personalities. There is no myth involved, no koolaid.

Just because you had and have a piece of shit truck, that doesn't mean the rest of us are in the same shit boat.

What I want to know is what kind of fucking moron bitches and moans about how big a piece of shit their vehicle is....for 20 fucking years! I'll ask again, are you a glutton for punishment or an absolute idiot?

 

[Rover from hell]

Awww, someone's feelings are hurt. Poor guy.

I know full well what the Land Rover vehicle is all about...I've owned Rovers for 17 years now. I enjoy the vehicles even with their high-maintenance personalities. There is no myth involved, no koolaid.

Just because you had and have a piece of shit truck, that doesn't mean the rest of us are in the same shit boat.

What I want to know is what kind of fucking moron bitches and moans about how big a piece of shit their vehicle is....for 20 fucking years! I'll ask again, are you a glutton for punishment or an absolute idiot?

Trust me my feelings don't get hurt.

No myth huh ! look in the mirror and keep telling yourself that. You have owned Rovers for 17 years ? you own more then one Rover and " I'm a glutten for punishment ". The fact that you owned multiple Rovers says it all.

Koolaid for sure