2002 110 Defender 2.5TD5 - cracked cylinder head?

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@V8Eddie,
Sod the wine and the curry!
You've upset her by calling her a him!
All Landies are female because they can be tempramental, stubborn and a complete pain in the nether regions!
However, given love, affection and many caresses she will give unlimited loyalty and performance!
But, whatever you do, NEVER refer to her as a 'him'!! :p:p
Sorry to upset you Oldseadog! But he is definitely a HE - he is big, brutish, brawny - well perhaps I could call him a HE/SHE:D
But saying that you are right as IT is a pain in the nether regions at the moment (albeit me being of the female persuasion!)
I always ask Dirty Dog to bring me home safely and he did today with a few coughs and splutters on the way!:)
 
You missed one other similarity....they cost a fortune to maintain...lol
Hi again Shippers,
Over 2017 have been flinging money at the Defender and we could probably have bought a good 2nd hand car! I have never owned a brand new car; always preferred the classics and my RRC V8 3.9 1990 (named Eddie after Absolutely Fabulous) is one of my loves. She has problems too but has been sitting in a garage - feeling very unloved at the moment.
 
Please let us know your findings, then we may be able to either talk you through, or talk your 'friend with spanners' through the procedures.
There is nothing complicated about a Land Rover, as they are all just big boys Meccano sets!

Hi Guys, Have just been listing all the comments on this thread and basically the below is the list I shall give to Ian the Mechanic on Monday to check:

  1. Check injector seals and washers
  2. Check injector harness
  3. Check diesel return valve in Fuel filter
  4. Check fuel filter and fuel filter housing

Is there anything else that needs adding?
Cheers.
 


Just watched the above video on You Tube and it helped me understand the fuel system a little bit more.

A couple of things I noted in watching was:
  1. check fuel hoses
  2. check pressure regulator - as rough running when engine idle - could be a cause.
  3. Fuel coolant - I think one of you mentioned the coolant leaking into the fuel.
 
Your two lists should make a good start on the dignoses.
However, there should be no rational way that coolant can get into and contaminate the fuel.
You have already checked and found no trace of yellow gunge in either the sump oil or traces in the coolant, so they can probably be discounted..
Ask him to do a coolant system pressure test, which will let you know if there is any form of leak on your cooling system (it should hold steady at 21psi (1.4Bar) on a td5)
 
Your two lists should make a good start on the dignoses.
However, there should be no rational way that coolant can get into and contaminate the fuel.
You have already checked and found no trace of yellow gunge in either the sump oil or traces in the coolant, so they can probably be discounted..
Ask him to do a coolant system pressure test, which will let you know if there is any form of leak on your cooling system (it should hold steady at 21psi (1.4Bar) on a td5)

Thank you so much Oldseadog! Will fill you in when I have heard back from Ian next week sometime. :)
 
The only thing I see missing from your list that caused mine to stop every 4 miles when it was hot was the crank sensor.

But that should show up on diagnostics as an alarm .

Cheers
 
Well after a long time - injector seals and new head gasket with metal dowels replaced but still billowing white smoke.
Next step is new cylinder head unless you guys have any more ideas? How much more money do I have to throw at it - aaaaaagh!
Mechanic mentioned that we could potentially replace cylinder head and it has a cracked block! God this makes me feel depressed!
 
Mine billowed white smoke under power, when it was overfuelling after a bad remap.
I thought the head had gone, but it was just unburnt diesel being blown out of the exhaust in a smoke screen. It would obscure the vehicle behind!
I am sure it is not that with yours, but it was just a thought.
 
Hi all and especially to the members that replied on this thread, big thank you for all the advice.
The mechanic has found the problem - not a cracked cylinder head but a faulty Heat exchanger - whereby the coolant and the exhaust gases were mixing in the exhaust and creating a rather lot of white smoke!
Might be worth anyone checking this before you go looking for a cracked cylinder head - much cheaper!
So happy bunny now (fingers crossed!). Here are a couple of pics of the Heat exchanger and the head off and nicely cleaned.
Heat exchanger.jpg
Head1.jpg
head2.jpg
 
Thanks for the update, this info will be very handy in future.
Hi Scooby22, Well we have been scratching our heads for so long and just about to order a new head but at least my mechanic continued as he was not convinced it was a cracked! OK I have had to pay his labour but at least I have saved the cost of the head. Plus for all you landy peeps it may be of use in your check list.
Have a good day!
 
Mine billowed white smoke under power, when it was overfuelling after a bad remap.
I thought the head had gone, but it was just unburnt diesel being blown out of the exhaust in a smoke screen. It would obscure the vehicle behind!
I am sure it is not that with yours, but it was just a thought.
Hi Lightning, Thanks for the advice but as you can see it was a faulty Heat exchanger - much cheaper! Took the mechanic a long time to find it though - most perplexing and frustrating!.
 
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