Rover Build - Rolling Chassis ?s

[Jase]

Looking for some thoughts.

If I was to build or partially build a Defender why would I not want to start with a TD5 rolling chassis? I'm mostly curious to hear what people think about the TD5. (I'm sure many have seen the TD5 110 roller on the Rovers Down South page)

Thanks in advance.
Jason

[wicks]

Build a 110 Crew Cab! Nice.

If I were to build I'd use a new Interceptor V8 motor or something, but that's just my hot rod Defender dream. That's a great platform though, and you can tweak that engine a lot more than a V8.

[Rovertracks]

I think It's a cool way to start! But I'm not afraid of Electronics on engines either..


But If I was to build a truck for cruising across the deepest parts of Africa.....







I'd build a Toyota...

Did I say that?
:)

[tbmcneill]

i guess i would ask why you want a Td5. it has more electronics than a Tdi (read: a lot harder to fix in this country). A Tdi can be worked on my any competent diesel mechanic ... or even yourself. There's not much to them.

The Td5 has a bit more power, but (& this is hearsay) it appears you can retrofit the variable turbo from the 2.8L powerstroke onto the Tdi which will give you a lot more workable power.

just my $.02

[javelinadave]

If a person built up a 110 from a rolling chassis from Rovers Down South, how hard do you think it would be to register it?

[Doug]

Boy, don'cha just love George? I saw that TD5 and started asking myself the same questions.... Sooo temping to just slap my 110 body and interior on that rig. But then, I couldn't really paint a diesel 110 Ferrari red....

What's the Horsepower spec on the TD5 vs. the 300TDi?

DW

[wicks]

The usual registration thing is to buy a scrapped truck title and put it on the build up. An old series truck can do, but working through some of the inspections is risky.

I once registered a gray market grand prix motorcycle as a special construction, and had to have a CHP inspect it. He seemed to be well duped by the paperwork I handed him, after he signed the form (if you have a friend...) I rolled it out of their garage, pulled out the kickstarter and fired up her whining, smoke-spitting 2 stroke engine, and another CHP came out of the office into the garage just then and said "Hey, that thing ain't legal!"

I put her in gear, got out of there quick, and enjoyed the bike for a summer. Then she was stolen on Christmas and I thanked the insurance company for a more than fair settlement.

[Angocat]

Hi Doug

TD5: 136bhp and 315Nm Torque
300TDI: 111bhp and 265Nm Torque

You can get much more out of those engines with a bigger intercooler and a new ECU.....But why a diesel engine,the only reason there are so many diesel LR's here in Scandinavian the fuel price for 1 gallon is $5½-6.

The V8 is superior to the diesel engines in all off-road conditions except in deep water:grin
And a defender V8 is just much smoother:cool:

Anders.

[Jase]

Thanks all,

I like the idea of a diesel, I think its better offroad in most environments. I'm not into mud bogging or running dunes, just NE trails. I'd like to get away from all the electronics on the 4.0 thats why the TD5 is not as attractive to me, but I wanted to hear what others thought about its operation. Guess I'll keep an eye out for a TDI.

Jason

[TDI Guy]

Jason, call RDS. He might have a setup

[Doug]

Anders,

Diesel is relatively cheap here, and the range of the vehicle is greatly enhanced. Just thinking about it, is all....

Doug

[Berty]

I would not touch a Td5 with a barge pole if you're thinking of building a 110 youreself. They have a much lower secondhand value in the UK compared to the 200/300 Tdi's because they are so difficult to get running.

The Td5 loom is a nightmare, plus you have to match the engine to the correct ECU or it'll never run. There are various ecu options & it is not easy to match them up

Check out this link.web rover (http://www.web-rover.co.uk/)

Look in the Td5 knowledge base.

This chap has succesfully installed a Td5, but I dont' think he'd try it again.

Cheers
Brett

[Doug]

Thanks, Brett. My interest is sufficiently chilled.

DW

[Rovertracks]

The key to a successful TD5 install is definately to get EVERYTHING including the ECU that came with the motor... Otherwise you are in a mess...

Electronics aren't that big of a deal... Every car we have today has 'em it's just understanding them that's the problem... A TD5 has no more sensors that a 2003 Dodge, GM or Ford Deisel...

If my Powerstroke (Ford) gives me grief... I won't go to the shop, I'll plug my code reader and address the problem myself...

As the TD5 is a pretty new engine it may be challenging but the new design and the way the motor is built is really nice... It's got all the right stuff... While the 300 is a nice motor as is the 2.8 both are designs dating back to the 80's with subtle mods that have helped them stay sorta current.... But engine designs are getting better and while it takes a bit of time to get used to them they do, in the end, end up as better products than those of the past... By "design"

I rememer having this same coversation about that new fangled EFI stuff, how horrible it was and how it really would cause all sorts of trouble for the home mechanic... Back in the 80's.

Just enough of my $.02 to cause something...

:)

[Berty]

There seems to be another issue with Td5's in the UK that has come to light in the past couple of weeks. this time mechanical.

Apparently there is a bolt in the oil pump that works loose. The result being total loss of oil pressure & catastrophic engine failure. There are a couple of fellows dealing with this on the LRE Discovery Forum at the moment.

Allegedgely Customer Services deny it's a known fault, although the service departments seem familiar with it.

Having driven the Td5 (Defender) on & offroad, personally it is not my cup of tea. The fly by wire throttle makes slow speed use feel very peculiar. I would imagine for the type of offroading done in the states (rockcrawling in particular) it would be a bit of a liability.
Road work (stop/start in traffic) is awfull. They felt like they were constantly on the verge of stalling.

Having slated them in the Defender, they do seem better suited to the Discovery, & they can be chipped up to about 180bhp easily.