P38 V8 Green laning Advice

kermit_rr said:

Id love to get it fixed, but have too much on.. is inactively for sale as it stands

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Arrr sorry mate... On a positive note, if you do sell the 38' you'll have some funds for the 2A

The fan advice is really valuable - the fan can deform in water and damage the radiator causing your rad' to fail - which will happen in the remotest, least accessible lane possible leaving you stranded in a queue of cars none of which can get past you and leaving you reliant on the one in front for a tow out. Especially in Wales - Dunlop Hill is a good one to get stranded on!

Cheery.

Also, as mentioned on another similar thread, your p38 is a bloody great green laning vehicle. I love mine for that purpose. However, it has terrible clearance, so when the Disco’s trundle through deep ruts, you are more likely to find yourself stuck with your diff’ either banging on some rock and preventing progress or balancing on it with your traction lost. So, beware muddy ruts. Also, if you are on a standard set up keep a close eye on rocks, your sills are delicate and Wales has some wonderfully rocky lanes, some are like driving down steps. Ask for, or look for an alternative route to, or sit out, anything that looks particularly bouldery!

Also - pay close attention to the running order of your party. Obviously you don’t want to be at the front - however, you do want to be behind the best towing vehicle!

And, although i’m sure you know this, but just in case, follow convoy rules which means every car is watching the one behind them so the whole party goes at the pace of the slowest and no one gets left behind if they get into difficulty.

also - now I’m getting into my stride, and this is essential for every P38 owner so you probably already have it - good breakdown recovery memberships. Mine has come home on a recovery truck more times than i can count!

If your following defenders in a group, remember the diffs on the P38 are on the opposite side to them.

Sorry to crash and point me to where this may have been already covered - what about L322? Any wading engine and diffs considerations?

Thank you.

Salisbury Nick said:

The fan advice is really valuable - the fan can deform in water and damage the radiator causing your rad' to fail - which will happen in the remotest, least accessible lane possible leaving you stranded in a queue of cars none of which can get past you and leaving you reliant on the one in front for a tow out. Especially in Wales - Dunlop Hill is a good one to get stranded on!

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Dunlop Hill? I just Google it and it looks pretty easy. No idea why you'd get stranded on it.

Unless there is more than one Dunlop Hill the ones showing up on the Google search look very familiar. As we drove it this year and a couple of years ago in the other direction. It's a nice lane, but not a lot of a challenge off road wise.

newb said:

Sorry to crash and point me to where this may have been already covered - what about L322? Any wading engine and diffs considerations?

Thank you.

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I'm guessing wade limits are in the owners manual? Otherwise try and dind where the air-intake comes out.

It has bigger wheels so probably copes better, although don't be lulled by the comfort into going too fast as mud / grass has a low coefficient of friction and you start taking out gateposts like dominoes. @Saint.V8 might know more.

300bhp/ton said:

Dunlop Hill? I just Google it and it looks pretty easy. No idea why you'd get stranded on it.

Unless there is more than one Dunlop Hill the ones showing up on the Google search look very familiar. As we drove it this year and a couple of years ago in the other direction. It's a nice lane, but not a lot of a challenge off road wise.

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It looks easy, and in the right vehicle/tyres/weather conditions I am sure it is. However, when wet it can have some difficult sections for the wrong wheel base. Easy enough down, but slippery when wet. But I would not describe it as particularly challenging either, just steep which is a problem if your radiator is not working!

newb said:

Sorry to crash and point me to where this may have been already covered - what about L322? Any wading engine and diffs considerations?

Thank you.

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Yes. You have a higher wading depth with the L322 than say a p38, so unless you are really going for it you should do well in the water. However, the Diffs have breathers and if you wade in them without protecting them then you may have to service the diff’s afterwards.

Also, as @Grrrrrr said, take it easy if you are on standard rims. If you have 20” rims and low profile tyres then be really careful when wading, in muddy ruts and in any rocky environment because you don’t have much rubber to absorb the impact of a sticky up bit. You can break a rim or just shred tyres really easily. If you don’t have Brembo’s then you can get away with smaller steel rims18” or maybe even 17” and put some fatter tyres on it.

Grrrrrr said:

I'm guessing wade limits are in the owners manual? Otherwise try and dind where the air-intake comes out.

It has bigger wheels so probably copes better, although don't be lulled by the comfort into going too fast as mud / grass has a low coefficient of friction and you start taking out gateposts like dominoes. @Saint.V8 might know more.

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You just love to bring up my mistakes don't you?....

The point at wwhich contact is made....



Such fun!

Yeah... Been there mate

Saint.V8 said:

You just love to bring up my mistakes don't you?....

The point at wwhich contact is made....



Such fun!

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Pah, schoolboy stuff. I've made WAY bigger mistakes than that!

Salisbury Nick said:

Also, as @Grrrrrr said, take it easy if you are on standard rims. If you have 20” rims and low profile tyres then be really careful when wading, in muddy ruts and in any rocky environment because you don’t have much rubber to absorb the impact of a sticky up bit. You can break a rim or just shred tyres really easily. If you don’t have Brembo’s then you can get away with smaller steel rims18” or maybe even 17” and put some fatter tyres on it.

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+1 on that. For rough stuff I prefer 16" with a bigger profile tyre.

Grrrrrr said:

Pah, schoolboy stuff. I've made WAY bigger mistakes than that!

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Come on, spill the beans

Saint.V8 said:

You just love to bring up my mistakes don't you?....

The point at wwhich contact is made....



Such fun!

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Now that is an awesome demonstration of why I don’t take my L322 green laning anymore, after a similar incident I decided it was far too nice and far too expensive to incur the bills. Not that buying and running a P38 has been cheap either - but at least i don’t worry about the paint work!

Mark Piercy said:

Come on, spill the beans

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The worst one was when I went too close to the edge of a bank after heavy rain and the bank collapsed sending the car rolling down the bank with me like a hamster running round the cab - no rollcage either. Landed on its side in a stream. I had to wait until a troop of boy-scouts came by and then we managed to lever it level using fallen trees. Started first time and drove out, somewhat dented and the door handle had pushed into the door and lost the passenger wing-mirror but otherwise not bad. That was in the Defender, a real bruiser of a car for just carrying on.