I bought this vehicle at auction for $2,500 a couple months ago. No service history, but it was in reasonably good condition. Exterior and interior are in great shape for its age. 106k on the ODO when I bought it. I'm up to 111k now, problem free, other than a few annoyances such as leaking valve cover gaskets and leaking differential pinion seals. They say on a Land Rover, if there's no fluid underneath it, there's none IN it.
This British made engine is an old dinosaur based on the 50-60's era aluminum Buick 215 V8. Not much has changed other than an overbore and modern fuel metering, emissions, etc. fitted to it. They're not known to be the cleanest engines, especially when maintained at manufacturer recommended intervals. Knowing this, I was still surprised at the amount of gunk that has accumulated in only 100k! I've seen engines at 200k look much cleaner than this.
I changed the oil when I first bought it to Blain's Farm and Fleet brand (Citgo rebrand?) of 5w-40 Synthetic Blend diesel oil (CI-4+ rated) and have run it for about 5k before I pulled the covers. Once I do the gaskets and a bunch of other maintenance (including oil change), I'm switching to Castrol Edge 5w-50 for the summer months. Winter will probably see either a high-zinc (flat tappet lifters) high-mileage type motor, or a 10w-30 diesel CJ-4 oil. Filters will be AC Delco Ultraguard Gold for the foreseeable future.
Let me know what you think. I invite any suggestions / tips / etc. on how to clean this beast up. I hope with a little TLC I can coax it to 200k. It really is a joy to drive, and the all-weather / off-road performance is like nothing I've ever been in.
This British made engine is an old dinosaur based on the 50-60's era aluminum Buick 215 V8. Not much has changed other than an overbore and modern fuel metering, emissions, etc. fitted to it. They're not known to be the cleanest engines, especially when maintained at manufacturer recommended intervals. Knowing this, I was still surprised at the amount of gunk that has accumulated in only 100k! I've seen engines at 200k look much cleaner than this.
I changed the oil when I first bought it to Blain's Farm and Fleet brand (Citgo rebrand?) of 5w-40 Synthetic Blend diesel oil (CI-4+ rated) and have run it for about 5k before I pulled the covers. Once I do the gaskets and a bunch of other maintenance (including oil change), I'm switching to Castrol Edge 5w-50 for the summer months. Winter will probably see either a high-zinc (flat tappet lifters) high-mileage type motor, or a 10w-30 diesel CJ-4 oil. Filters will be AC Delco Ultraguard Gold for the foreseeable future.
Let me know what you think. I invite any suggestions / tips / etc. on how to clean this beast up. I hope with a little TLC I can coax it to 200k. It really is a joy to drive, and the all-weather / off-road performance is like nothing I've ever been in.