demonwolf444 Posted February 6, 2019 Report Share Posted February 6, 2019 (edited) Just thought i would put this on here, problem solved so to speak but don't fully understand why it presented the symptoms it presented Landy been running absolutely fine, i do give it some hammer but it just keeps on going.. i thought i had got to the point with it where my biggest concern was the half inch gap at the top of the passenger door - for a self admitted 26 year old disaster case ( car not me ) is pretty good going. Last Monday did 200 miles in it - as you can imagine untold driving pleasure. Last Tuesday did 40 miles in it. last Wednesday did a mile to the pub for dinner and back. last Thursday evening cold - struggled to start but then started - Suspected battery or alternator failing ( can cope with that its on the list of parts that haven't been replaced ) . Got a mile down the road in second due to steep hill ( 1 in 5 ) and serious ice out. Decide to get up to speed and the engine revs and then dies away, just about make second gear but not enough power to sustain it. Look behind me; oh balls, I've asphyxiated the village by turning it into some parody of a Victorian mill town with my exhaust smoke. Mum and sister at the family home - neither competent, so wasn't going to ask for a tow back up the hill, the bloody thing would make it home. Which it did, at a stately and hesitant 3mph, billowing its clouds like some teenager with a vape stick as it went. Spent three days looking at it occasionally hoping it would cure its self ( landys sometimes do ) while my dad bleated that the head gasket was gone and when i asked what he thought was wrong with it his only answer was "everything" which wasn't really helping me much. Prices and advice sought, bit of head scratching under the bonnet, a test drive where it appeared to cure its self. Week goes by and id decided it was the lift pump, there seemed to be a post a week on lift pumps failing on the internet and given that mine was recently replaced it was probably due to fail. First things first just check the fuel filter.. AH, we have the culprit. £5.17p and problem solved. What i don't understand is why being starved of fuel results in loads of whitish smoke smelling of un burnt diesel? Anyway, just another adventure in the rust bucket! Edit to add - Jesus 26 years has not been kind to that rear axle - Summer project to swap that out. Edited February 6, 2019 by demonwolf444 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B391 Posted February 6, 2019 Report Share Posted February 6, 2019 As the engine could not get any fuel, or very little the engine was probably sucking in some oil via the turbo seal or vent filter hence the white smoke Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harnser Posted February 6, 2019 Report Share Posted February 6, 2019 53 minutes ago, B391 said: As the engine could not get any fuel, or very little the engine was probably sucking in some oil via the turbo seal or vent filter hence the white smoke I would have thought sucking in oil would have caused blue smoke . harnser Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
udderlyoffroad Posted February 6, 2019 Report Share Posted February 6, 2019 It's worth joining LR4x4.com and posting there - lots very knowledgeable people (and me) on there. You'll be familiar with the interface/forum software too.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B391 Posted February 6, 2019 Report Share Posted February 6, 2019 Nope, it will be white. And when a turbo goes it can be a lot of smoke. Thought I had this problem on a 300tdi thankfully it was just a hose gone Have a YouTube search. There are some examples on there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
udderlyoffroad Posted February 6, 2019 Report Share Posted February 6, 2019 Yep, inspect every hose thoroughly for cracks and splits. Doesn't take much to really kill the performance. Also, get yourself a plug-in voltmeter (lighter socket version from Ebay, aliexpress or any of the other usual sc**bags) to see your voltage whilst driving. Can help diagnose if it's the Alt or the battery (or both, given an undercharging alt will eventually take the battery with it), and sort that problem pre-emptively. Before it leaves you stranded. Ask me how I know... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
figgy Posted February 6, 2019 Report Share Posted February 6, 2019 (edited) Unburnt diesel gives off a white fog. Had it on a car when injectors were going. Looked like the red arrows had put a low flying g display on. The injector was dripping fuel into the cylinders instead of spraying it so it didn't ignite. This was on two out of six so it still ran but not very good. The diesel did make the exhaust glow as some burnt on its way out. Edited February 6, 2019 by figgy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
demonwolf444 Posted February 6, 2019 Author Report Share Posted February 6, 2019 Thanks for the interesting replies gents 👍 I could post on the 4x4 forums but this forum is home!! Its performance is back where it should be; the cars no whipper snapper it's done 168k... but it only averages out at about 3k a year. Legend has it it has done a few expeditions in its time but I've forgotten the folklaw passed down to my by its previous owner... I think it went somewhere snowy. Going to flush and clean the oil, fit new injector nozzles and new viscous fan/water pump also got a new cam belt and tensioner but that seems like a scary undertaking for some reason? and picked up a plug in thingy today, ran it today, firing up absolutely flawlessly, like as soon as the key makes contact it's running, battery light didn't come on or anything; it certainly didn't enjoy the cold weather, difficulty Is when I stop for lunch I usually **** around for Half an hour on the car just putting a new door striker on or something, so I don't know if it's just me leaving the interior lights on and such, going to bypass the heater matrix and give that a clean/replace if bunged up, would be nice to have a bit of heat. I made a dog guard thought being I could attach a series fume curtain to try and keep the heater just heating the cab and not the rear tub space also.. I'm back to the half inch gap at the top of the door really bugging me. In that respect life is good Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B391 Posted February 6, 2019 Report Share Posted February 6, 2019 Before you strip things out check the easy option. On older Defenders the linkage from the heater lever on the dash to the heater box can stretch/slip and you might not get the flaps fully closing to give you max heat. It will be worth checking the cable adjustment on top of the heater box. It worked on my 300tdi so you might have the same issue. Good luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scarecrow243 Posted February 7, 2019 Report Share Posted February 7, 2019 fuel filters when blocked can make your engine give a big bang like its just blew up and the revs die away then suddenly re appear its because its drawing in air i have had this happen and it scares the **** out of you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
figgy Posted February 8, 2019 Report Share Posted February 8, 2019 Get a heater out of a old bus and fit that on the bulkhead behind the seats, they have the fan inside and are a unit. Twin Electric fan is way to go as they use less engine power. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
defender Posted February 8, 2019 Report Share Posted February 8, 2019 I've got an Eberspacher in mine with a timer, it's a bit of a bodge but its been like that for a long time (nice and toasty) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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