Disco 2 2004 Dead! Electrical

Ok, can’t be 100% certain of actual facts as my wife was driving and the details are as she described them! But here goes: As she was about to leave for home, (a 15 mile journey), she tried to wash windscreen but neither wipers nor washers would work! So started journey and after about 10 miles smelt something, (obviously electrical burning), and then a short time after all the warning lights on dash went haywire and smoke started coming from engine bay. At this point she stopped the Discovery and got out quickly, phoned me and some 20 mins later I arrived at where she had stopped. Nothing obvious to the eye but sure enough you could smell that electrical burning smell. I turned the ignition to position 1 where everything lights up and you can hear the ‘little pump’ whining under the bonnet. Next position to start and nothing! The engine does not even attempt to start. In fact it stops the ‘little pump’ but then restarts the pump again when releasing the key. Towed her home and now scratching my head - and ideas?

Hi, No electic expert but it does sound like a major short somewhere. You'll need to methodically trace all wires/looms. Start with the fuses boxes (inside and out) to see if any have blown to give you a start point for the circuit.
Our electric gurus will be along soon.
Griff

Landmark2 said:

Hi, No electic expert but it does sound like a major short somewhere. You'll need to methodically trace all wires/looms. Start with the fuses boxes (inside and out) to see if any have blown to give you a start point for the circuit.
Our electric gurus will be along soon.
Griff

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Thanks for your reply. I’m now beginning to think it might be starter motor related. Electrical burning smell seems to be coming from that direction.

If the starter motor started the car when your wife drove it, then I doubt it is the motor itself, or even the contacts activated by the solenoid as they would show themselves to be faulty by not allowing the starter to spin except after several goes of taking the key back to the unlock column position then forward to "start".
You could try looking at the wiring connectors to the starter to see there are no shorts there, or loose connections.
After checking the fuses, I'd take the steering column shroud off and look at the wiring from the ignition switch.
Looking for melted plastic, smelling for burnt stuff etc.

I'm no guru but I have rebuilt the starter solenoid/contacts and i have removed and mended the barrel of the ignition switch so I know that getting to all this stuff is relatively easy.
Best of luck

Update!
After much head scratching and talking to people I decided to check the starter motor, my word that was a pig to remove! Once it was off I checked it and sure enough it wasn’t working. So £112 later and I was the owner of a replacement starter motor. The top nut was a right pain to remove and equally so to replace, but eventually I managed it. Pleased with myself I sat in the vehicle and turned the key …….. nothing! Still as dead as a dodo!! By taking a wire from the starter terminal to the battery I was able to establish that the SM was fine, but there must be a problem because it still failed to start. Not being an electrician the prospect of finding an issue was fast becoming a concern. So I wired in a new, separate, starting switch - result)

have you checked Fused link 12 and relay R2

lenb said:

Update!
After much head scratching and talking to people I decided to check the starter motor, my word that was a pig to remove! Once it was off I checked it and sure enough it wasn’t working. So £112 later and I was the owner of a replacement starter motor. The top nut was a right pain to remove and equally so to replace, but eventually I managed it. Pleased with myself I sat in the vehicle and turned the key …….. nothing! Still as dead as a dodo!! By taking a wire from the starter terminal to the battery I was able to establish that the SM was fine, but there must be a problem because it still failed to start. Not being an electrician the prospect of finding an issue was fast becoming a concern. So I wired in a new, separate, starting switch - result)

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Glad you managed to do it.
The top nut is famous for being difficult. some call it the most difficult nut on the car.
When my starter went U/S I replaced the contacts and put a thread up on here to help other people do it.
https://www.landyzone.co.uk/land-ro...or-on-td5-auto-replacing-contacts-etc.357169/
I am wondering if the problem with your starter was simply the contacts. In which case, if you have kept the old starter you could now replace the contacts and have a spare. They are cheap enough and just to check it you could simply clean up the old ones.
So it looks as if the switch is also a problem, best of luck with it.
There are plenty of threads about how to get this off and fix it as well.

Stanleysteamer said:

Glad you managed to do it.
The top nut is famous for being difficult. some call it the most difficult nut on the car.
When my starter went U/S I replaced the contacts and put a thread up on here to help other people do it.
https://www.landyzone.co.uk/land-ro...or-on-td5-auto-replacing-contacts-etc.357169/
I am wondering if the problem with your starter was simply the contacts. In which case, if you have kept the old starter you could now replace the contacts and have a spare. They are cheap enough and just to check it you could simply clean up the old ones.
So it looks as if the switch is also a problem, best of luck with it.
There are plenty of threads about how to get this off and fix it as well.

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Thanks for your comments I don’t have the old starter as there was a refund of £33 for it, so can’t try what you suggest. My only slight concern with the ‘button start switch’ that I’ve installed is that it’s very easy to hold too long and cause a ‘squeal’ - but probably just a matter of getting used to it.

lenb said:

Thanks for your comments I don’t have the old starter as there was a refund of £33 for it, so can’t try what you suggest. My only slight concern with the ‘button start switch’ that I’ve installed is that it’s very easy to hold too long and cause a ‘squeal’ - but probably just a matter of getting used to it.

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I don't know how old you are, but my first few cars all had separate starter buttons, floor mounted on the Minis, and dash on others.
You get used to it, no different really than to holding the key in "start" position for the correct amount of time!

Stanleysteamer said:

I don't know how old you are, but my first few cars all had separate starter buttons, floor mounted on the Minis, and dash on others.
You get used to it, no different really than to holding the key in "start" position for the correct amount of time!

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I’m 62, 1st car was a Marina, (laugh but don’t judge me), so never used anything other than a key - even my 1969 6 cyl 109.

lenb said:

I’m 62, 1st car was a Marina, (laugh but don’t judge me), so never used anything other than a key - even my 1969 6 cyl 109.

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I'm 66 but have a kit car based on a Marina, (well partly based, wouldn't want t whole one!)
But I did own cars older than me! Like a Wolseley 1500!