Fuel all over road Disco 2 TD5

I bought my Disco 2 weeks ago and had it serviced as soon as I could on Tuesday this week.
I have been driving it every day with no problem whatsoever until last night when I noticed my fuel guauge had shot down from just under 1/2 to nearly empty and it had rained diesel all over the back screen!

After a few lies from the AA they eventually arrived 2 hours after they said they would, and he took about 10 seconds to diagnose that the thread on the bottom between fuel pump and the black bit (water sensor?) was knackered.

He also said the filter was getting hot, but after reading some threads here, that seems normal.

I'm not that mechanically minded, but I had a look today in the light and it seems the thread in the bottom of the fuel filter is crossed. I took the black bit out and inspected it and all seems fine there.

Is there supposed to be a washer on this piece? it looks to me like it should have something on there in addition to just a hand tightened thread.

I will endeavour to contact the bloke who serviced it today as he works from home, but could anyone point me in the right direction as to a quick fix?
I thought maybe trying Halfrauds for a new filter may do the trick, but I have just tried to see if I can remove the filter and it is pretty stuck on. Is this because it is empty and is vacuuming so it is stuck a lot more than if it was full?

Sorry for all the questions from a new member, and apologies for the description of the 'black bit'!

Many thanks in advance

Andy

A new filter with a drain valve will get you back on the road.

There won't be any vaccuum with the water sensor removed. It just unscrews. Make sure that the filter you buy has a water drain valve with it. Some TD5 filters don't come with anything to bung in the hole as they assume that you are using your drain valve to do the job. I keep the drain valves off my old filters when possible as they are a common failing point.

Thanks for the reply mate.

The mechanic who serviced it last week is coming over this afternoon, so hopefully it will be fixed.
I'm a bit annoyed that the drain plug (black bit!) wasn't even hand tight in the filter, causing me to lose 5 or so gallons of fuel.Not only for the cost, but for the potential hazard to bikes.
The drain plug doesn't even thread in properly, so he must have noticed it when he replaced the filter.


Will see what he says before I slate the guy though,

Thanks again

Andy

Just be aware that even genuine filters have recently had very poor threads in them so its very easy to cross thread them.The water sensors also break off really easily so its not a good idea to tighten them too much,I've even seen them fail and drop off a week after servicing.
Another "Quality" part of the TD5.....
P.S. A 10x1.5mm short set screw and a copper washer will do as a replacement.

Just an update, temporary fix done with different fuel filter, all now OK.

I think I am going to have to invest in a proper set of tools. The last time I did any work at all on a car was when I had a Mini and that was a couple of decades ago!

Many thanks for the replies, all very much appreciated.

Andy