Disco 1 300 swap.

35xj

Well-known member
Dec 8, 2014
68
13
Asheville nc
Info on this swap has been a bit hard to find, so I thought I’d do a bit of a write up as I progress on it. Always wanted a 300/r 380 disco 1. Last year I pulled a great running 300 out of my 130 and dropped in an LS3. I did the work in california and drove the 130 home, leaving the drivetrain out there. Luckily I also had a couple of cars sitting out there. Had my buddy drop the drivetrain into a 110 I had sitting out there, and shipped it and my disco home to NC 72772215056__1CB15BBA-8F3C-44F7-A40F-743E7800C8A1.jpeg
 
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35xj

Well-known member
Dec 8, 2014
68
13
Asheville nc
Job 1. Yank the drivetrain out of the 110. The r380 in the 130 died on the trip to sacramento ( we drove from NC through mainland Mexico, over to Baja and up to Sacramento for a month. Lost 5th and reverse in la Paz. Made for a long drive to sac)
Ashcroft sent me a new disco r380 with the taller 5th to help offset the 1:4 t case.

and yes. I have a land rover problem
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35xj

Well-known member
Dec 8, 2014
68
13
Asheville nc
Next step. Pedals. Ended up ordering a RHD pedal box from the UK. In my mind, it would just drop right in. And it did not!
So.…. Turns out the 2 pedal setup has most of the mounts required to run the 3rd pedal. Requires a bit of fab though. Clutch and brake have to be cut and bent to clear the kick panel and put the pedals in the right place. The final product IMG_9947.jpeg
 
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35xj

Well-known member
Dec 8, 2014
68
13
Asheville nc
new rear main seal installed, and brandy new r380! bolted it all up with the 1:4 case. man. that’s a long heavy setup to try to get up over the grill and down into place solo.
ended up with the cherry picker and ratchet straps. (including a 3” strap over a shop rafter to the t case).

using the us spec r 380 crossmember (same as defender) i got the t case position sorted out, essentially locating the drivetrain. next up was motor mounts.

the biggest issue is setting the height of the motor. luckily i have a friend with a camel trophy disco in town, so a bunch of measurements were pulled.
using the takeout defender allisport radiator/intercooler/shroud turned out to be pretty simple. need to weld some new 1” kegs onto the bottom of the rad to compensate for the height difference and had to weld up some new mounts for the disco style upper mounts. but it drops right into place.
with the rad and shroud set it was pretty easy to center up the fan in the shroud and weld in the motor mounts.
got the shifter area opened up and all the shifters mounted. going to need some sheet metal work to close this back in a bit.
new clutch slave and master ordered, then i’ll have my local hydraulics shop build a braided steel clutch line next week.
progress.IMG_0037.jpegIMG_0014.jpegIMG_0013.jpeg
 
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11b4v

Well-known member
May 5, 2009
257
17
N. Alabama
following.

I dream of a either a 300, 4BTS (rovingbeetle) or 2.8 Cummings swap in my 00DII.

Good luck OP, and thanks for sharing.
 

boxster

Well-known member
Jun 1, 2009
479
96
Fallbrook Ca.
35xj has got the means, that month trip into Mexico and back, LS engine swap, 300TDI swap that’s impressive. Also helps to have a friend with a suitable work shop on the west coast and have the mechanical ability as well.
 
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35xj

Well-known member
Dec 8, 2014
68
13
Asheville nc
more progress.
modified the in tank pump to remove the fuel pump.
made the existing disco fuel lines mate up to the lift and injection pumps
cleaned up the hole on the tranny tunnel using some scrap steel and a left over shift gaiter from a donor d1

took a chance and attacked the filler neck with a 1” hole saw in an rfortbto
make a diesel pump nozzle fit. little die grinder cleanup and it’s gonna work awesome!

and….. wiring. i’m an idiot in that department!

pretty handy having a shop full of bits from past projects!
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35xj

Well-known member
Dec 8, 2014
68
13
Asheville nc
new clutch line made, battery cables, throttle cable run, oil cooler lines run. driveshafts installed. new power steering hoses, intercooler lines and radiat hoses ordered from Lucky 8. wiring is the next hurdle, but i’m getting some help with that.
got my best helper/fiance To help with bleeding everything
hope to drive this thing onto the trailer next week. then it’s muffler shop time!

for now it’s time to close up for the weekend and go camping.
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35xj

Well-known member
Dec 8, 2014
68
13
Asheville nc
Next up is wiring. One of the things I truly suck at! Scouring the internet gave me a few ideas on what I needed to keep from the v8 harness, pondering the minuscule harness on my tdi defender, and the help of a friend who’s gone the swap already, I began.
The V8 engine harness is massive, all the injectors, sensors, emissions, and sending devices are pretty overwhelming at first.
The reality is, the tdi needs about 4 wires to run, fuel solenoid, ignition and starter being the primary things. These were fairly easy to pull from the harness, and a few ignition wires were repurposed. Factory temp sensor, oil pressure sensor, and tach sendor was reused, which should give me full gauges in the truck.
On the d1 the elm is under the hood, and all major wiring connections too, essentially unplug the Ecuador, throw it away, label the wires required, and start hacking away! Once the loom has been paired down , extend what’s needed to its new spot, route everything cleanly, wrap everything in wire loom.
I have not yet figured the wiring for the A/C. That will come later
The other harness is the tranny. You need reverse lights, xyz switch, and VSS for the speedo, The xyz switch needs to,be bypassed to power up the starter circuit. Several methods have been done, i chose to ground the black red wire in the passenger kick panel. It works!
 

35xj

Well-known member
Dec 8, 2014
68
13
Asheville nc
winch and bumper, new radiator installed and first interstate drive completed! 68 mph at 2400 rpm. steering feels a bit vague, but. she’s pretty damn good!IMG_0300.jpegIMG_0298.jpegIMG_0302.jpeg
 
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terryjm1

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Jan 23, 2011
1,490
376
When I did mine I used the 1.2 t-case. I wish I would have tried harder to find a 1.4. I have one now and your 68mph at 2400 rpm has convinced me to move that project higher up the list. With the 1.2 it never seems HP and torque are right for whatever gear it is in. Starts from a stop on a hill are terrible.

Nice job!
 
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robertf

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Jan 22, 2006
4,792
363
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was 68 the top speed? if not do you think it could hold 75-80 on a flat highway?