G
Guest
Guest
Its mostly been said I think, except I would agree that a manual is
preferable if you are going into rough country regularly. You want to have
control over everything especially if you have to manoeuvre in tight and
dangerous places and not have to cope with a torque converter pulling at
you all the time, forcing you to have a foot on the brake when inching and
negotiating tricky tracks etc. In this place you rarely see auto boxes on
aid agency 4WD's. But I admit we do drive in different circumstances over
here. And naturally an auto box is cheaper on fuel too.
When checking the 80 look at the rear bump stops. If they have lost their
rubber then get the vendor to replace them. The bolts holding the brackets
seize badly and they are a swine to extract. Let someone else have the
pleasure if they have the tools to do it. Drilling a broken bolt stub out
involves dropping the axle to get a drill into position. Otherwise you have
to weld a piece of 3mm strip onto it and spanner it out - given that the
heat has eased to threads along with plenty of WD40.
Check the anti-roll bar bushes front and back, they do wear quickly but are
easy to replace at about 11 quid a set of polybushes, but again, the
horseshoe bolts on the back need gentle easing after a week's soaking in WD40.
Check the hoses under the car that go to the rear heater, they can seep and
you would never know about them until they let-go bigtime !
If it has the separate front flashers above the bumper make sure they are
working. If not, then it can often not be a bulb but the cable at the back
of the bulb socket shorting on the panel behind, its a very tight fit in there.
Check for water leaks under the rear cargo area windows, a common problem
only sorted by removing them and re-sealing. Look at the jack first, if it
looks a tad rusty in its transport socket, then you have a leak. And its
not the air vent above leaking either.
Its rare, but if it has troopie rear doors and not a tailgate, see if it
squeaks when running. If they do then you have the infamous 'budgie catch'.
Toy used a poor plastic in the assembly and it all has to be replaced with
a new type, WD40 will not fix it. Yes, its only a squeak you think, but
wait till you hear it over a 50 mile drive !!
Look on top of the roof for scratches from car park height planks and
barriers hitting it. As a Disco owner you will be aware of that of course !
Check the front calipers are tight with no loose mounting bolts. Its a
foible of the 80 especially on the long shaft side where vibration loosens
them. Often they have to be drilled out and re-threaded, mine are now 14mm
bolts. If you look into the wheel rim you should see if the caliper has
ever dropped and marked it. It usually throws the bottom bolt first. If you
hear a 'tingg' when you brake then its the first sign.
If you hear a 'tingg' when you let the clutch out its a driveshaft UJ,
often wear you will not see from underneath with a lever in the
conventional manner. A cheap fix though.
Avoid alloy wheels if you can - if you are serious about going off-road,
they will not stand up to it day-in day-out - its a lot heavier than a
Disco and in Oz they even run wheel centres made from 8mm steel !
Turn on the aircon with the heater fan running to see if the engine speed
rises 200 rpm. If it doesn't then it needs re-gassing and leak checking.
Check axle breathers. If they have been extended up to the engine bay then
its been used by an enthusiast. If not, then any leaking from pinion seals
may be due to blocked breather valves. They are small tin cans at the end
of the hoses with lightly spring rubber flap valves inside. Freeing them
can help but often once the pinion seals are gone overhaul of the valves
will not cure the problem.
Remember that Milner are not the only spares suppliers, also try Phil of
Japanese 4X4 at Brum Auto Parts. He often has parts made by the OEM
suppliers to Toy at much lower cost of course.
Enjoy
Jon
'92 HZJ80 ex UN surplus in Bosnia - how about a Toy fun day on Anthony's
tracks ?
preferable if you are going into rough country regularly. You want to have
control over everything especially if you have to manoeuvre in tight and
dangerous places and not have to cope with a torque converter pulling at
you all the time, forcing you to have a foot on the brake when inching and
negotiating tricky tracks etc. In this place you rarely see auto boxes on
aid agency 4WD's. But I admit we do drive in different circumstances over
here. And naturally an auto box is cheaper on fuel too.
When checking the 80 look at the rear bump stops. If they have lost their
rubber then get the vendor to replace them. The bolts holding the brackets
seize badly and they are a swine to extract. Let someone else have the
pleasure if they have the tools to do it. Drilling a broken bolt stub out
involves dropping the axle to get a drill into position. Otherwise you have
to weld a piece of 3mm strip onto it and spanner it out - given that the
heat has eased to threads along with plenty of WD40.
Check the anti-roll bar bushes front and back, they do wear quickly but are
easy to replace at about 11 quid a set of polybushes, but again, the
horseshoe bolts on the back need gentle easing after a week's soaking in WD40.
Check the hoses under the car that go to the rear heater, they can seep and
you would never know about them until they let-go bigtime !
If it has the separate front flashers above the bumper make sure they are
working. If not, then it can often not be a bulb but the cable at the back
of the bulb socket shorting on the panel behind, its a very tight fit in there.
Check for water leaks under the rear cargo area windows, a common problem
only sorted by removing them and re-sealing. Look at the jack first, if it
looks a tad rusty in its transport socket, then you have a leak. And its
not the air vent above leaking either.
Its rare, but if it has troopie rear doors and not a tailgate, see if it
squeaks when running. If they do then you have the infamous 'budgie catch'.
Toy used a poor plastic in the assembly and it all has to be replaced with
a new type, WD40 will not fix it. Yes, its only a squeak you think, but
wait till you hear it over a 50 mile drive !!
Look on top of the roof for scratches from car park height planks and
barriers hitting it. As a Disco owner you will be aware of that of course !
Check the front calipers are tight with no loose mounting bolts. Its a
foible of the 80 especially on the long shaft side where vibration loosens
them. Often they have to be drilled out and re-threaded, mine are now 14mm
bolts. If you look into the wheel rim you should see if the caliper has
ever dropped and marked it. It usually throws the bottom bolt first. If you
hear a 'tingg' when you brake then its the first sign.
If you hear a 'tingg' when you let the clutch out its a driveshaft UJ,
often wear you will not see from underneath with a lever in the
conventional manner. A cheap fix though.
Avoid alloy wheels if you can - if you are serious about going off-road,
they will not stand up to it day-in day-out - its a lot heavier than a
Disco and in Oz they even run wheel centres made from 8mm steel !
Turn on the aircon with the heater fan running to see if the engine speed
rises 200 rpm. If it doesn't then it needs re-gassing and leak checking.
Check axle breathers. If they have been extended up to the engine bay then
its been used by an enthusiast. If not, then any leaking from pinion seals
may be due to blocked breather valves. They are small tin cans at the end
of the hoses with lightly spring rubber flap valves inside. Freeing them
can help but often once the pinion seals are gone overhaul of the valves
will not cure the problem.
Remember that Milner are not the only spares suppliers, also try Phil of
Japanese 4X4 at Brum Auto Parts. He often has parts made by the OEM
suppliers to Toy at much lower cost of course.
Enjoy
Jon
'92 HZJ80 ex UN surplus in Bosnia - how about a Toy fun day on Anthony's
tracks ?