Land Rover SAR diesel

SuperBuickGuy

SuperBuickGuy

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I've been asked to mirror - so here it is
So here it goes, project time. I have a 2000 LR DII, SE2 Rover I paid $1500 for. The guy I bought it from was told by a "reputable" mechanic that the motor was garbage.... it wasn't, just an intake leak and the normal "marking its territory" oil leaks.

as bought


backstory
My wife and I bought do Search and Rescue, I'm the one you see marching up the trail or driving one of (yeah, there's more than 2) my 4x4s on rescue missions. My wife has a bloodhound, a silly one by the name of Stella. Say "hi Stella"


P1270002_zpsa27104dc.jpg

she is now a retired SAR K9, but we're getting another one very soon (it's a week old).

My wife HATES SUVs, and I'm safe when I say that HATE doesn't cover it. Did I mention I have a Hummer? anyway, there has been this on-going discussion about what to use for her SAR activities. She started with her Prius, and did okay with it (my favorite story - SAR Pierce county refused her dog in their 4x4s, so she followed them up to the search area in her Prius).... however, she got stuck in more places and needed a 4x4. She still hates SUVs, but at least now she's saying "she hates the mpg" not the SUV. So she got a BMW 325xi wagon, 5 speed - yes, boys and girls, my wonderful wife likes manual transmissions (no, you can't have her)
Problem continues - she's knocked all the belly pans off the BMW at least twice, with once she lost one forever... so she needs ground clearance. I suggested the Hummer, she said, and I paraphrase for the children, "no."

But she likes Land Rovers.... starting to see where this is headed? So I started looking for a LR that I could make get better mpgs.... they've never imported diesel LRs D2s, however, I'm kind of handy so I suggested we put a diesel in the LR.

She said yes, but it needs to be a manual transmission (good girl!)

This project will be several things:
1) install a 300 TDI and R380 transmission
2) make the LR more dog-friendly (started this by removing the rear seats) by adding cages, etc
3) make the LR more capable off-road (this is a mostly 1" lift and mud tires)
4) install A/C and heat that works when the motor is off
5) fix the stereo so the HK stereo is hooked up correctly
6) fix the heated seats - after all, it's a Land Rover, not some psuedo military vehicle driving by wanna-be cops (hmmm, I said that out-loud).

#1
I've now ordered the motors/transmission from a breaker's yard in N. Wales and it is to be shipped to the US. This will be a long month.

During this time, I've got a few other, non LR projects, that I'll be working on. If you're interested in those, I go by SuperBuickGuy on all forums - google it.
 
A freakin Rover for 1500$, best deal EVAR!!!
Ok, spill it now, the ""reputable" mechanic" is your BIL, right? :amused:
 
Many people are using the VW TDI with good results. I am one that could not deal with the mounds of wiring that needs to be done lol. Sounds like a worthwhile project though.

I am in the process of starting to put a Kubota V2203 Diesel in my little work truck a 91 Mazda B2200 Ext Cab. The little industrial Kubota from a carrier reefer unit when adding a Turbo from a 1.8 VW Passet made 98 HP and 287 LBS TQ. And the curve was almost flat from 1810 to 3000 RPM. According to another person I know that put his on a Dyno. And he put his in a 1999 Ford Ranger 4x4 and gets 40+ MPG.
 
there are several threads on other forums about my thought process for going with the Rover diesel. Most of it comes down to this - I'm getting the diesel from a 2000 Land Rover d2 with 55k miles... the hope is that it will basically be a bolt together deal.

with that said, my second choice was the Isuzu 4JJ1, 4JG1 or the 4bt2d (I think those are the right alphabet soup.... 2 came from troopers, one is what they put in the foreign Colorado/Canyon type trucks.

I like the Cummins 4BT, however, it weights A LOT and I paid less, including shipping for the motor and transmission that I would have paid for just the motor - for no better reliability, hp, tunability, or potential for power increases (those mad English have done some pretty amazing things with the 300 tdi) on top of that, I'd have had to figure out how to mount everything - there are guys who've done the swap, but there's no worn-path to making the swap.... lots of creativity
 
So I've been getting pictures of the motor and transmission. Apparently, England is having some weather so it's slowed things down... ah well, I've plenty of projects to keep me occupied





such a cute turbo, it will take some restraint not to, well, go bigger


and the 5 speed transmission....
 
Have you looked into an Intercooler yet? If not it may be worth your time to look for a MITSUBISHI Evolution Intercooler. You should be able to pick one up pretty cheap used and they are all aluminum unlike many of the Volvo units which have plastic tanks. But then again it depends on how much boost you can run. If you plan to stay say 20LBS or under I am sure the Volvo units available will work. But I have read that if you go above that by much the plastic tanks can crack. If you choose another type of Intercooler do not go to big or it may cause turbo lag.

Also yes I would stay with the factory Turbo or do a bunch of research on a bigger Turbo that will work. As at times just a little jump in turbo size can decrease performance and increase turbo lag. But you may get away with a TDO4 Turbo from a Subaru. They should not be to expensive to find a good used one to try as people remove them to go with a larger Turbo. And if you decide to try and go that rout I may just have a good one laying around. :)

You may already know this but if you go changing things around for more performance you may have to delve into the computer to compensate.
 
TimAT said:
That turbo is cute. My wife has a hair dryer that's bigger than that.
Click to expand...

Maybe I should bolt a leaf-blower to it :amused:

it's booked to leave England (going by sea) on the 26th... I wonder how it's going, whether to the East coast and across the US or through Panama... it's certainly not instant gratification; but saves a bunch of money. I suspect it'll take 6 weeks - when I went to school in France, several of my friends shipped their stuff to school to save money and hassle against flying it (I should have done that)... and that's what it took to get their stuff to the school.
 
SHAKERATTLEROLL said:
Have you looked into an Intercooler yet? If not it may be worth your time to look for a MITSUBISHI Evolution Intercooler. You should be able to pick one up pretty cheap used and they are all aluminum unlike many of the Volvo units which have plastic tanks. But then again it depends on how much boost you can run. If you plan to stay say 20LBS or under I am sure the Volvo units available will work. But I have read that if you go above that by much the plastic tanks can crack. If you choose another type of Intercooler do not go to big or it may cause turbo lag.

Also yes I would stay with the factory Turbo or do a bunch of research on a bigger Turbo that will work. As at times just a little jump in turbo size can decrease performance and increase turbo lag. But you may get away with a TDO4 Turbo from a Subaru. They should not be to expensive to find a good used one to try as people remove them to go with a larger Turbo. And if you decide to try and go that rout I may just have a good one laying around. :)

You may already know this but if you go changing things around for more performance you may have to delve into the computer to compensate.
Click to expand...

I have several turbos and intercoolers on my shelf - so odds are, I have something that would work. The site I use to size turbos is Borg Warner's - it has charts and graphs for 99.999% of all turbo sizes...

As for computer issues, he's sending the computer, but I'm not sure what the computer controls - the 300 TDI isn't computer controlled - I did do a bit of googling (and I have a couple books on the subject) about how to turn up the fuel and "hot rodding" stuff for the diesel; but ultimately, I'm doing this for the best fuel economy I can get, so anything I do will be geared towards efficiency; such as, new turbo with better materials, intercooler, etc.
 
uh, no it's not.... more story

UGH!!!!

So it wasn't on that ship, and is still sitting on a dock in Wales. I had asked a couple pointed questions about why my "tracking number" didn't resolve into an actual shipment - and the answer was "well, because it's still sitting on a dock in England until you get a broker in Seattle for us to ship it to"

dagnabit

So I called around to brokers, and the cost was running between 350 and 700 to pay duties, brokerage fees, and a bond.

ouch

so I emailed the seller and said "ummm, our deal was for me to pick it up on the outside of customs in Seattle" He was chagrined because he'd paid about 700 (of which I paid 350) to have it shipped. So we both were kind of screwed. So I said "let's reset and see if there's a better way" - if we go with FedEx they can deal with customs. He did some checking and found a reasonable deal on air shipping it here (to be here Monday-ish) for another 500. At this point, that's fine, I need the motor here and as it actually costs less than the $700; it's a $500 lesson in how to import crap... errr Land Rover stuff.... err... same thing.

so hopefully tomorrow I'll have tracking and a date certain to get my parcel.... which is kind of funny, since I'm having a electric locker shipped from Virginia.... that should arrive the same day
 
You're sure the shipping price includes the brokerage fees and import taxes?
Just sayin' because in Canada, with fedex and ups, it's not the case.
They ask for them upon delivery, and they're just unsane.
 
denpo said:
You're sure the shipping price includes the brokerage fees and import taxes?
Just sayin' because in Canada, with fedex and ups, it's not the case.
They ask for them upon delivery, and they're just unsane.
Click to expand...

I'm supposed to get the invoice tomorrow - we'll see then.
 
it has landed in the US - of course, the question is, now, when customs will approve it (crossing fingers) ... and yes, I spent a lot more to have it flown here....

Tracking history
3/18/14 1:01 AM MEMPHIS, TN 38118, US Clearance delay - Import
3/17/14 11:45 PM MEMPHIS, TN 38194, US In transit
3/17/14 10:46 PM MEMPHIS, TN 38118, US Arrived at FedEx location
3/17/14 2:10 PM STANSTED, ES CM24, GB In transit
3/17/14 1:36 PM STANSTED, ES CM24, GB In transit
3/14/14 6:50 AM MANCHESTER, LA M90, GB In transit
3/13/14 2:06 PM MANCHESTER, LA M90, GB At local FedEx facility
3/13/14 2:06 PM MANCHESTER, LA M90, GB Clearance in progress
3/13/14 12:36 PM MANCHESTER, LA M90, GB Clearance in progress
3/12/14 9:30 AM Shipment information sent to FedEx
 
it has cleared customs.... I should have the motor on Tuesday

for those who are thinking of doing these things there are two forms - one of which you need to use a 3520-1 or a 3520-21. The 21 is more geared towards commercial activities. The thing you need to know for either form, though, is the year, make and VIN of the vehicle the motor came from. The nice part about the form is it tells you where to look to find out if what you're doing is going to fly.
 
:clap: thats good news!
Ive been tempted to gut the drivetrain on my truck for something a bit stronger but then I realize I dont need another project. Interested to watch this one come together
 
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