tomcat59alan said:

Have you thought of a p38 diesel? my chipped 2.5 DSE returns 29.9 on a run and I am not the slowest of drivers. It pulls like a train by the way

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+1 on that Amazing for a 2.2 tonne tank with a low tech engine

as far as i know the factory 300tdi were soft dash, 200tdi had the old style dash. i must say the soft dash is alot better imo. they do fetch a premium over 200tdi though.
mine does around 25mpg around town,30-35 motorway. recently did a 190mile round trip with a heavy trailer and it returned 27mpg. pretty good for a 2 ton auto.

Brilliant, thanks guys! That helps loads. I'm not bad on the spanners so working on things with nuts and bolts is no problem I've had a disco and a 110 so I'm used to landrover quirks but ecu's and sensors I only have a basic understanding and am concerned that I won't be able to diagnose and fix the problems with a p38 and heard that the earlier ones suffers with head/ overheating problems which were a costly fix. What's the cost of diagnostic equipment? I do like p38 just very wary of the unknown

My work run is a 12 mile stretch which is the shortest run I do so happy with a v8 on lpg so which classic efi is better on multi point 3.5 or 3.9 I'm guessing that the 3.9 is an improvement on the 3.5?

Sorry of all the boring questions but I will reward with pics and details when I finally choose something

mozz smith said:

Lyndon , give andy a ring at avon breakers on 01761479012 tell him MOZZ at Manchester told you to ring and see what hes got in stock he gets a good few reposessions in and may have something interesting and reasonably priced ...cheers mozz

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Cheers mozz, will do!

Having had both, I found the 3.9 a little livelier of the mark and a tad more efficient....but the 3.5 never ever let me down whereas the 3.9 hiccupped and then wouldn't start for a few weeks...turned out to be an intermitent dicky ignition amp in the end, but had me scratching my head a few times...

If I had to have a RRC again - a post 1992 3.9 on EAS would be donning my drive!

Cheers saint! You seem to know your salts and maybe able to help me sort through the misinformation available on the net. If I run a 3.9 on lpg fulltime is there any detrimental effects on the engine? It seem many people believe the lpg runs hotter causing premature head gasket failures and a host of other problems?

Saint.V8 said:

as above - Classics are starting to appreciate in value and decent ones are now north of £3k....

Sub £2k and you'll spend more time under it than in it....

as for a P38...they can be had for relatively cheap money...and sometimes (if you know what to look for) the owner is selling cos it has a fault he doesn't know how to fix or thinks it could be expensive to fix...but is actually a simple fix...but you do need to know your mustard to spot those ones!

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This is almost what I'm after, I'm loath to call it a project but I'm happy to buy something thatneeds work to get it rrunning with an mot, ie welding sills, innerwings,bodymounts, rear arches on a rrc or a box out Job to replace a clutch fork which has pushed through.

What are the usuall culprits on the p38? From what I can tell the heads are prone to warping on early 2.5d and the 4.0 petrol is less reliable than the 4.6, air bags seem to be a pita on allodels and. Sure someone mentioned a particular problem with the gearboxs.

Is there a p38 buyers guide/ common problems/fixes off or thread? I've searched but to no avail.

Sorry for the essay of questions

Yes LPG burns a tad hotter due to its dry nature, Petrol burns fiercer gving more bang for your buck but as it is 'wet' it cools the cylinder on ijection before it is burnt whereas LPG is injected 'dry' and doesn't have this minor cooling action...

Having said that, aslong as you are meticulous in maintaining your cooling system and keep on top of any leaks/blockages etc it should do fine in the typical UK weather.

HGF can occur equally as freqnetly on a poorly looked after or maintained engine/cooling system regardless of fuel media.

Some say the slightly higher combustion temperature loosens the liners (yes the 3.9 Classics can suffer liner issues as much as the P38) but I personally am not convinced that LPG alone can accelerate or instigate liners slipping....aslong as your cooling system is up to snuff, it should still run within the 'normal' range Land Rover designed the engine to run in.

Trouble with internet research is - most will only post on the internet forums or blog posts when or if they get a problem.....very rarely will you read or hear about someone who isn't having any problems.....it is human nature to scream and shout when we are having a problem or have a moan about something...rarely do we congratulate or sign praises as readily or as often...

The Rover V8's convert well to LPG due to there hardened Valve Seats, but the fitting of a Flashlube system wouldn't hurt or go a miss on these engines either...the Flashlube introduces a small amount of oil into the induction air to lube, cool and lcean the valves and seats to prevent them regressing...

Aslong as it is a good LPG install on a well maintained engine I should think you will be fine!

I'm getting exactly 15mpg out of my 3.5 v8 and lpg here is 68ppl. So equivalent to near as damn it 30mpg which I can live with. If your interested, mine will be sub 2k when I sell it. let me know.