| Author |
Message |
    
Joseph Fawsitt (Jfawsitt)
| | Posted on Thursday, November 21, 2002 - 12:49 am: | 
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I just purchased a 99' DII with ACE the vehicle is one owner with full LR dealer maintenance history and 60k miles. I have a couple of questions concerns:
The coolant level in the expansion tank drops from full cold to below half over a period of a couple of days and +/- 100 miles. There are no signs of leaks and the temp gauge never goes above half?
There is a growl/whine at low RPM idle and startup, someone told me that this is normal and is the ACE pump, is this correct?
Is it advisable to change to Mobil 1 synthetic 0W40? at this mileage when the engine has always been serviced with regular oil. Will oil leaks be a concern?
TIA
JF |
streak
| | Posted on Thursday, November 21, 2002 - 01:26 am: |
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We have the same vehicle.
Coolant level should not drop so much over such a short period. Check near the throttle body where there is a hose that comes from the cooling system for signs of a leak also the radiators are known to leak and ours was replaced along with the throttle body.
The ACE was known to be noisy, there was a ACE pipe modification to stop them from vibrating too much.
Check with the dealer on these issues it will not be the first time they have come across them. Go with lots of dollars!!
www.worst4x4.freeservers.com |
Jason Vance (Jason)
| | Posted on Thursday, November 21, 2002 - 03:09 am: |
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Yep, second the coolant leak.
Sad part is, it appears the dealer KNEW ABOUT IT before selling you the Disco.
The expansion tank should only be half full (up to the seam in the expansion tank) as the recommended fill level. Sounds like they topped it off for you knowing in a couple of days it would be low...and half-empty from a full tank looks somewhat better than an empty from a half-full tank.
Here's a quick test...let the engine reach operating temp (good and warm)...now put it in park, turn on the A/C full-power, and watch the engine temp for a while. During this time, check your expansion tank (do not remove the cap!!!) and determine whether the fluid is boiling/percolating within the tank (you should be able to hear it, if not see it, boil in the tank...if you don't have the black tank). If it is boiling/percolating, yes you have a leak somewhere within the system releasing pressure, and it still very much sounds like the dealer knew about it and took you for it. |
Paul Long
| | Posted on Tuesday, November 26, 2002 - 07:47 pm: |
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A slow leak (liquid drop noticeable over months) evaporates about as fast as it leaks. You should find some residue at the leak area as fast as this leak is. Pull the plastic cover off the top of the radiator. Look down the radiator on the fan side with a light. At the left (standing in front) about 3/4 the way down you may see a damp or dark looking area. My dealer went right to the spot when I told them I was smelling it, but couldn't find it. That was a year ago at 48,000 and I was put on the list for a radiator at that time. When they replaced the rad under warranty, they pressure tested the cooling system and said it still did not hold pressure. So they replaced the water pump.... After driving a few weeks, the hot antifreeze smell was still there. Didn't seem to be burning off as it should have after a few hours. Now it was time to fix it myself, warranty or no warranty. Bright light showed top of water pump etched like acid on the aluminum. They use a steel pipe affair coming off the engine to the upper radiator hose. No matter how tight the clamp, it continued to leak down over the water pump. Removed the hose, scraped the flaking metal down to solid shiney metal and reinstalled with a light coat of grease. The leakage was due to the metal flaking deep enough to become layered and leaked between the layers. Just a seep enough to smell and leave a residue. Shed plenty of light on the subject. You should find it. Paul |
Joseph Fawsitt (Jfawsitt)
| | Posted on Tuesday, November 26, 2002 - 09:20 pm: |
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Thanks for your replies, on further investigation the leak has increased to about one cup of coolant every 100 miles. I'm seeing drops of coolant seeping down the top right rear of the engine where it joins the transmission case dripping down onto the drive shaft. I can't tell exactley where it's coming from because the injection system covers that area.
I talked to my local dealer and they are thinking it is the Manifold Gasket that is leaking 6 hours of labor and $100 in parts to repair total $750.
The service manager told me that he had seen engines come from the factory that only every other head bolt was torqued and this was a common problem until recently.
Unfortunately my vehicle is out of warranty so I'll have to dig into the kid's collage fund.
I keep telling myself I love my Land Rover but this is hard to swallow on a $45k 3 year old vehicle with 60k miles on it and full service history.
JF |
Curtis N (Curtis)
| | Posted on Tuesday, November 26, 2002 - 11:33 pm: |
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Joseph,
Just an FYI: at 10K miles mine had a "leak" in the same area. It turned out to be a porous cast in the block and they had to put in a short-block. I did not have to pay because it was under warranty, but I will be it was about $5K in work. I hope you do not have the same affliction.
Curtis |
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