P38 2.5 DSE FIP Problem?

peatin said:

Hi, only had this 1998 P38 diesel for 1 week and got in it and wouldn't start. Turned over but nothing else. AA man came and said battery needed replacing but then said he could see fuel leaking from somewhere..but not sure where. Had to be flat-bed trailered to local garage. They now saying the fuel injection pump needs replacing..£800 for refurb one plus fitting. I also had problems opening the driver door with key fob, had to use key although fob would open rear doors? Could all this be linked. Car didn't cost me that much so the bill looks frightening. Please, any help would be great - live near York is anyone can recommend.

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Not starting probably loss of sync due to flat battery. Fuel leak likely to be leak off pipes at the injectors. Drivers door lock motor or linkage shot. Take care garage my well be trying to screw you for a FIP that is not needed

Thanks Datatek. Do you think its worth me taking the car back from them and taking to a local landy specialist? Is it unusual for the FIP to need replacing fully, is it more likely to be the leak off pipes at the injectors / seals? There seems to be different opinions on it - I've heard its unusual for the FIP to need replacing? I'm at my wits end with worry about this.

Get it home and take the black plastic cover off the top of the engine....couple of 6mm allen bolts.....leak off pipes are under there and will be obvious if leaking.
Datetek is most prob right about needing re-synch....he usually is!!

everlatesparky said:

Get it home and take the black plastic cover off the top of the engine....couple of 6mm allen bolts.....leak off pipes are under there and will be obvious if leaking.
Datetek is most prob right about needing re-synch....he usually is!!

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AA man did this and no leak from there...much further down he said, we couldn't see anything even with torch, although he could get fuel on his fingers when he shoved them in. Garage have said only option is to take FIP off and send it for refurb and then re-fit?

If its not a landy specialist i would take what they say with a pinch if salt. Get it to an independant landy garage for a second opinon.

discomalc said:

If its not a landy specialist i would take what they say with a pinch if salt. Get it to an independant landy garage for a second opinon.

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Many thanks. Will have to get it trailered to local landy specialist then, as its auto so can't be towed. 1st P38 and probably last! Any help appreciated as I think sometimes if you're female they take the pee.

Mine did the same thing in Jan, the FIP itself is made of three parts and the seal between the top two layers and the third layer (the main pump body) has a seal in it that eventually fails and spews fuel out. I was told by Land Ranger (Land Rover specialsts) that you couldn;t get the seals for the Bosch pump. Turns out you can! The full seal kit costs about £13 from Fastline Group so as long as it starts once it has been resynced then this may solve the fuel leak. Be warned though, you need to ensure that the top half of the pump goes back on exactly in the same position as it came off, the holes for the bolts are sloted to allow the top to be adjusted. See the thread I did when the fault happened on mine and the help received from the good people from this forum.
P38 2.5DSE - BMW 325TDS, engine swap?

By the way, auto's can be towed, you just have to put them in neutral like any car but remember that it will weigh nearly 2 1/4 tonnes so it's not easy to tow them, I know, I've done it!

B16FUN said:

Mine did the same thing in Jan, the FIP itself is made of three parts and the seal between the top two layers and the third layer (the main pump body) has a seal in it that eventually fails and spews fuel out. I was told by Land Ranger (Land Rover specialsts) that you couldn;t get the seals for the Bosch pump. Turns out you can! The full seal kit costs about £13 from Fastline Group so as long as it starts once it has been resynced then this may solve the fuel leak. Be warned though, you need to ensure that the top half of the pump goes back on exactly in the same position as it came off, the holes for the bolts are sloted to allow the top to be adjusted. See the thread I did when the fault happened on mine and the help received from the good people from this forum.
P38 2.5DSE - BMW 325TDS, engine swap?

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This might sound really ignorant but was does 'resynced' mean and where do you get this done? I feel a bit like I'm stuck letting the garage carry on with what they are doing or do you think I should get the car to the local landy specialist for definite? Then get the full seal kit and ask them to try that or will they automatically do that? I guess it's not a DIY job from he diagrams posted with your old thread on the forum as you need specialist tools? Really appreciate your help on this, has made me feel bit more positive.

By the way...any recommendations for good guys to help near York or Hull?

I would really advice having a proper land rover specialist garage do the work if you cant. The p38 is a pretty complex car so Id always choose someone who works on them a lot to do the work.

tommo138 said:

I would really advice having a proper land rover specialist garage do the work if you cant. The p38 is a pretty complex car so Id always choose someone who works on them a lot to do the work.

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many thanks..will get it taken to one. Worried now that garage will actually make things worse, if they aren't used to these? Other problems on this car - key fob not working, heated seats don't work, no radio present, indicator sticks on, warning message says the windows aren't set? What does this 'synced' mean? Are some of these problems linked?

Keyfob not working.....batteries?
Windows not set.....battery been disconnected which upsets the window settings..easy fix it yourself
Heated seats....broken wire in seat base...diy fix if your good with your hands and can solder properly.
Re-synch.....car and key arn't talking to each other...basically need re-introducing to each other...how old is the car because there are different ways of re- synching
Sticking stalk...old age??Scrapyard replacement

Carl

Sparky has basically done the business.

For the moment ignore the windows, seats and indicators.

You would have to have one helluva fuel leak for the engine not to at least splutter and try to come to life.

The re-sync is your starting point. It's getting the electronics that control the locks (the BECM) to talk to the engine electronics. You need a proper fault reader and fault clearance tool that your Landy independent almost certainly has.

If it's an automatic talk to the Landy guys before you tow it. There's a procedure involving putting a fuse into a fuse box that puts the transfer box into neutral before you tow, thereby not damaging it. It might be simpler if they could show you or even ask them to tow it in for you.

Seal on pump top does leak now and again. I would not say that a three quid gasket needs a pump refurb @ £800.00. Better replaced by bosch service agent though so pump can be set up. Calibration may cost a few quid but it won't be £800.00

Definately get it to a specialist, as others have said. Although, just because you take it to a specialist they may still not want to do the seal on the pump, in which case a Bosch diesel speciaist would be the next port of call to do the seal and to make sure the pump is set up. Definately the best way forward rather than using a generic garage (no offence to any mechanics out there!) to work on the Range Rover. If you really want to keep the costs down then it's always worth getting your hands dirty and learning to do things for yourself, even if they are just the basics like servicing it. You'll save a lot of money that way.

B16FUN said:

Definately get it to a specialist, as others have said. Although, just because you take it to a specialist they may still not want to do the seal on the pump, in which case a Bosch diesel speciaist would be the next port of call to do the seal and to make sure the pump is set up. Definately the best way forward rather than using a generic garage (no offence to any mechanics out there!) to work on the Range Rover. If you really want to keep the costs down then it's always worth getting your hands dirty and learning to do things for yourself, even if they are just the basics like servicing it. You'll save a lot of money that way.

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Many thanks for this. Unfortunately when I rang the garage to say i was getting it moved to a landy specialist nearby they said they already had the engine in bits, taking the pump out. They are sending it for refurb and will then re-fit it they say. I've got no choice on this now. Think the bill will be about £1200 when they've finished. Not a lot I can do now. I'm worried, having read some postings on re-fitting this pump that they won't have the specialist skill to do it properly?

A good competent garage should be able to do it. Engine is shared with a good few cars and the procedure is pretty standard.
Just a shame about the expense!

Yeah, they shouldn't really have a problem. The engine is also found in the Vauxhall Omega, and numerous BMW 2.5 diesel cars with it being a BMW engine (I've just changed the engine in my wife's P38 with one from a BMW E36 325tds).
My main complaint about most garages now is that they no longer repair things, instead replacing them. I would suggest however that you find out what warranty is supplied for the refurbished pump and the warranty for the work carried out just incase you have any further problems. Also, did you authorise the garage to carry out the work or did you just ask them to find out what was wrong? Did they give you an estimate at the very least for the work before starting because I'd always insist on this so you can speak to a couple of garages to find out if you are being charged a fair price for the work?