My introduction to LR - a RHD 300Tdi D1

discomeans

Well-known member
Apr 13, 2021
154
58
Florida, USA
Hi all,

I've posted a couple times on here with questions and everyone's been super helpful. Figured I'd share a thread to show what I'm working with.

In April I purchased a D1, 300Tdi, RHD over eBay from a guy in Michigan who imports Defenders. I knew I was taking a bit of a risk but what the hell, YOLO and all that. Plus he included a 7-8min video with the post which included looking underneath. At time of purchase, had about 136k miles (being able to retrieve maintenance records from MOT is nice!)

Took delivery a week later and I was pleasantly surprised. I am new to Land Rovers and 4x4s in general, although my history of cars is mainly M-B & BMW so I'm used to dealing with Euro parts.

resize-IMG_2099.png
resize-IMG_2096.png
No sunroofs to worry about here!

resize-IMG_2100.png

I took it to Adventure Motor-Werks here in NE FL and had it given a full, thorough inspection - chassis is good, just some surface rust in spots, it needed a new front swivel seal and a couple minor things. Ended up doing some extras "while we're in there" kind of stuff along with getting BFG All-Terrain KO2's installed. I am super happy with the results.

Turns out the Tdi already had the EGR and electronic diesel control deleted. At 50-60mph speeds I am averaging 40mpg.

The biggest complaint I have right now is no A/C was installed from the factory... we are working on sourcing the necessary parts to do a retrofit. Living in FL having the windows open is tolerable if you don't mind sweating, but longer trips really necessitate it. I've already gotten ceramic tint done which helps somewhat.

I'm planning on keeping this relatively stock. It is leaning to the right a little as it's on 26 (25?) year old springs, so I will do more of a suspension refresh but I am not planning a lift and I might even go genuine LR replacements. I've also ordered a Bajarack roof rack for some additional storage capacity.

Edit: to do items listed out…
  • Small leak in the left/passenger side footwell. Not sure where from
  • Transfer case won’t shift into diff lock. I’ve been able to work it into 4 Lo and back so hopefully I can work it loose
  • A/C install
  • Suspension refresh
  • Fourby clock thermo probe in thermowell
  • Seals on rear windows and rear door window need replacement
  • Small bit of rust near alpine windows, some corners near gutter
  • Radio antenna replaced
Things already done:
  • Stereo head unit updated
  • Speakers updated
  • Fourby D1 clock installed (except I couldn’t figure out how to get the prob through the firewall easily)
  • Complete fluid/filter replacement
  • Front swivel seals replaced
  • Timing belt changed in 2019
 
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teledan

Well-known member
May 7, 2010
325
4
Utah
Awesome! Do you mind me asking who the eBay seller was? I have been mulling over the idea of importing one. I also had wondered about the AC, it seems some (or all?) of those euro spec trucks didn’t come with AC from the factory. Does anyone know if there were any euro/UK Discos that did come with AC? Great looking truck!
 

terryjm1

Well-known member
Jan 23, 2011
1,486
375
Awesome! Do you mind me asking who the eBay seller was? I have been mulling over the idea of importing one. I also had wondered about the AC, it seems some (or all?) of those euro spec trucks didn’t come with AC from the factory. Does anyone know if there were any euro/UK Discos that did come with AC? Great looking truck!
Some did, just not as common. I bought parts from a UK seller to add AC to mine.
 

mgreenspan

Well-known member
Feb 28, 2005
4,723
130
Briggs's Back Yard
Awesome! Do you mind me asking who the eBay seller was? I have been mulling over the idea of importing one. I also had wondered about the AC, it seems some (or all?) of those euro spec trucks didn’t come with AC from the factory. Does anyone know if there were any euro/UK Discos that did come with AC? Great looking truck!
There are some that you can find with air con as an added option. Most don’t from that era. I was so confused when I was stationed over there and saw an early 2000s Audi A6 without air con. Wasn’t even aware that was possible.
 
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discomeans

Well-known member
Apr 13, 2021
154
58
Florida, USA
@teledan here is the original listing: https://www.ebay.com/itm/1994-Land-...502820?hash=item4dc0586ee4:g:x1IAAOSwFERgE1sx
And his Youtube channel with this and other cars he's sold: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBB08dI99CXgD3HWidTi_7g
I can't vouch for him beyond this vehicle, but he seemed to know his stuff and our transaction went super smoothly. This was the first Disco he imported supposedly; he usually does Defenders.

@terryjm1 any tips on how you got those parts or is there a particular seller you could recommend?
 
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Eliot

Well-known member
Feb 4, 2008
736
47
Bozeman, MT
Hi all,

I've posted a couple times on here with questions and everyone's been super helpful. Figured I'd share a thread to show what I'm working with.

In April I purchased a D1, 300Tdi, RHD over eBay from a guy in Michigan who imports Defenders. I knew I was taking a bit of a risk but what the hell, YOLO and all that. Plus he included a 7-8min video with the post which included looking underneath. At time of purchase, had about 136k miles (being able to retrieve maintenance records from MOT is nice!)

Took delivery a week later and I was pleasantly surprised. I am new to Land Rovers and 4x4s in general, although my history of cars is mainly M-B & BMW so I'm used to dealing with Euro parts.

View attachment 61269
View attachment 61270
No sunroofs to worry about here!

View attachment 61271

I took it to Adventure Motor-Werks here in NE FL and had it given a full, thorough inspection - chassis is good, just some surface rust in spots, it needed a new front swivel seal and a couple minor things. Ended up doing some extras "while we're in there" kind of stuff along with getting BFG All-Terrain KO2's installed. I am super happy with the results.

Turns out the Tdi already had the EGR and electronic diesel control deleted. At 50-60mph speeds I am averaging 40mpg.

The biggest complaint I have right now is no A/C was installed from the factory... we are working on sourcing the necessary parts to do a retrofit. Living in FL having the windows open is tolerable if you don't mind sweating, but longer trips really necessitate it. I've already gotten ceramic tint done which helps somewhat.

I'm planning on keeping this relatively stock. It is leaning to the right a little as it's on 26 (25?) year old springs, so I will do more of a suspension refresh but I am not planning a lift and I might even go genuine LR replacements. I've also ordered a Bajarack roof rack for some additional storage capacity.

That's a great looking truck
 
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terryjm1

Well-known member
Jan 23, 2011
1,486
375
@teledan here is the original listing: https://www.ebay.com/itm/1994-Land-...502820?hash=item4dc0586ee4:g:x1IAAOSwFERgE1sx
And his Youtube channel with this and other cars he's sold: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBB08dI99CXgD3HWidTi_7g
I can't vouch for him beyond this vehicle, but he seemed to know his stuff and our transaction went super smoothly. This was the first Disco he imported supposedly; he usually does Defenders.

@terryjm1 any tips on how you got those parts or is there a particular seller you could recommend?
I just searched ebay.co.uk for a few months. I was installing in a converted NAS to 300TDI. So, all I really needed was the compressor, hoses, and the tensioner assembly for the the belt. I don’t know if the non-ac models came with the in dash stuff. I would imagine the NAS in dash stuff is the same.

When I installed mine I used specific parts from a used compressor sourced from the UK and installed them on a new one I found on ebay that by application was for a BMW. The manifold and pulley was all I used from the UK used one. I also picked up used hoses on eBay UK. I then sent them to an AC shop to get new hoses installed on the fittings.

Oh, you also need the base bracket, which is the same as a Defender. If I did it again I would use the Defender compressor as it uses standard line fittings. You can take NAS V8 D1 hoses and install the standard compressor side fittings on one end reusing the other ends.

It is probably a lot easier to find the Defender parts as well, but at a typical Defender premium price.
 
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terryjm1

Well-known member
Jan 23, 2011
1,486
375
Here is the post I did on it.

 

terryjm1

Well-known member
Jan 23, 2011
1,486
375
This bracket, the dust cover, and tensioner pulley are the primary ingredients, so to speak.


This compressor will give you the needed manifold and pulley you could swap onto the BMW one shown in my other post. Or, I think the compressor shown for the Jaguar just might be an all in one compressor solution for you.


I would ask both sellers if they have the dust cover and hoses. That is how I found mine.

This one has the dust cover and bracket. If you don’t buy it i just might. Let me know. I bet he has the hoses and tensioner assembly, too. Looks like he is parting one out.


This is the tensioner missing the pulley and bearing. However, you can buy those new, I believe.


Here is the tensioner pulley with bolt and bearing. The bearing is very common and cheap, easily found on Amazon and eBay.


Another option for the tensioner “arm”

 
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discomeans

Well-known member
Apr 13, 2021
154
58
Florida, USA
@terryjm1 WOW, thank you for the links! I've been letting my mechanic source the parts, but he even told me getting that mounting bracket was going to be a pain! (That and a big part that goes behind the dash, apparently).
 
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terryjm1

Well-known member
Jan 23, 2011
1,486
375
@terryjm1 WOW, thank you for the links! I've been letting my mechanic source the parts, but he even told me getting that mounting bracket was going to be a pain! (That and a big part that goes behind the dash, apparently).
The behind the dash parts and front of the radiator parts should all be the same as NAS D1s which are not hard to find. It’s just a lot of work.
 

discomeans

Well-known member
Apr 13, 2021
154
58
Florida, USA
Spent a few minutes looking into the leak in the passenger footwell as we've had a lot of rain lately. One thing I noticed is rolling down the passenger side window and then rolling it back up gives me water streaks on the window, meaning there's water getting trapped inside the door. Also, the floor appears wettest right by the door sill rather than deeper in the footwell.
I guess I'll need to pull the door card off... trying to figure out which seal(s) to replace first. I'm thinking #14 at least - BTR9255. But it appears to be NLA. Thoughts?

Edit: Maybe it's #22 I need instead.
C01125.png
 
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nickhand

Well-known member
Jan 18, 2018
47
14
Oklahoma
Spent a few minutes looking into the leak in the passenger footwell as we've had a lot of rain lately. One thing I noticed is rolling down the passenger side window and then rolling it back up gives me water streaks on the window, meaning there's water getting trapped inside the door. Also, the floor appears wettest right by the door sill rather than deeper in the footwell.
I guess I'll need to pull the door card off... trying to figure out which seal(s) to replace first. I'm thinking #14 at least - BTR9255. But it appears to be NLA. Thoughts?

Edit: Maybe it's #22 I need instead.
View attachment 61312
Make sure the drain holes in bottom of door are clear
 

4Runner

Well-known member
May 24, 2007
660
110
Boise Idaho
#14 is the outer seal, 22 holds the bottom of the glass and the window mechanism. Doesn’t do anything to keep water out. Nick hand is right about checking all your drains on all the doors. I would also pull the door panel on the side with the leak and look at the condition of the plastic liner. Close the door with you inside and have someone hit the door and glass with a hose. You will see if it’s flowing to the inside of the door and then down into the footwell. It’s also a great time to spray a quality lubricant on all the window and lock hardware in there. I replaced my plastic liners all the way around using a thicker shower curtain ( the one with the map of the world on it. Seemed appropriate even though you can’t see it. Lol) and you can get the tar like glue from a body supply shop for cheap as well. If it’s still wet after you fix that then I would pull your A pillar trim and hit the windshield with a hose to see if it’s around there. Good luck.
 

discomeans

Well-known member
Apr 13, 2021
154
58
Florida, USA
It's been raining too much and my garage is temporarily full right now, so tearing into that door hasn't happened yet.

However, inspired by @Tugela I received an order from EZ Tube for a shelf in the rear. I made the dimensions equal just about 50" across and 26" deep, so it'll be a little more work to fit the shelf itself, but it's very snug. The legs are 8" high.
resize-IMG_0190.png
 
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discomeans

Well-known member
Apr 13, 2021
154
58
Florida, USA
After a few weeks of hemming and hawing, the following are going to be installed over the next few weeks:
  • Stainless steel exhaust (the original is so rusted, the muffler fell off one day)
  • A full suspension refresh with genuine LR shocks, HD springs, and HD steering link kit. I don't want a lift, but the 26 year old suspension has developed some serious lean on the driver's side, and it's a mishmash of britpart and old OE stuff under there right now
  • Stainless steel brake lines
  • ARB front and rear bumpers, plus winch (going with the Terrafirma winch + bumper package from Lucky8)
  • Southdown snorkel
Plus, the transfer case appears to be pretty much permanently stuck. We tried about everything we could to loosen it up and it really needs to come off to see what's up. Jake at Adventure Motor Werks here in Saint Augustine has been doing most of the work on this and I look forward to seeing what we can do getting these installed.

Yeah, I kinda YOLO'ed this. Doing some back of the envelope math, I'll be about $25k into this after purchase, some initial repairs that it needed, and then this work and parts here. But after these items get done, there's nothing more it'll need aside from the eventual A/C conversion and a roof rack at some point.
 
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Tugela

Well-known member
May 21, 2007
4,754
562
Seattle
Can you be more specific on the springs you're considering? About 15 years ago I put Land Rover uprated springs on my RRC, I think they were a law enforcement spec - heavier load capacity but not much in the way of lift, perhaps in the neighborhood of a medium duty OME in terms of spring rate. If these are still around I wouldn't mind another set. Otherwise it's OME MD. Just curious what you're looking at since it sounds like our needs are similar.
 

discomeans

Well-known member
Apr 13, 2021
154
58
Florida, USA
I'm not totally sure. Looking here and not knowing any better, I'm wondering if he spec'ed out Defender HD springs (is that possible?). I know when it comes to the suspension we're staying with all genuine LR parts, and we're going with something a little stiffer than stock because of the aftermarket bumpers. I'll ask him the next time we talk.
 

discomeans

Well-known member
Apr 13, 2021
154
58
Florida, USA
Pulled the carpet up on the left side front today to try to get a sense of rust and figure out where the leak is coming from. I think it’s coming from the windshield area.
I think the rust looks worse than it is I plan to wire brush it and POR-15 over it.
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(Sun was on the seat so the contrast is all blown out)
43DB241E-38FA-4991-A579-83A8D2E21997.jpeg
 
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