My FIRST problem withmy Disco 2 TD5

[brianb]

Well it had to happen and its took 2 whole months to break down...who said disco 2's were unrealable  :lol:

Not used the Disco for a few days and went to use it this evening and noticed a pool of something under the rear of the car near the diff, My first thought was that it was transmission fluid but it smelt different.  On checking under the bonet i noticed the ACE fluid resevoir was almost empty SO logic suggests it was ACE fluid

My question is, are there any common areas where the ACE system leaks?? I've had a quick check but its starting to get dark and i can't find my torch BUT there seems to be fluid coiming from somewhere above the diff, sort of off centre towards the offside of the car.  Anyone any idea as to what i should be looking at.

Also read somewhere that if the Ace system needs bled i need to take it to a Landrover dealer as it needs connecting to a testbook?? is that correct??  I have a Nanocom does anyone know if they are capable of that feature?

Many thanks for any help.

Brian

[ginge]

Hi brian, i have a friend who recently had to change the ace pipes due to corrosion that was on a 2000 model. He got a set of good second hand ones very cheaply and sorted the problem.
Have a look under in the light maybe the problem !!

Good luck

Tony.

[disco2 td5]

sounds in the area of the rear ace ram to me just to the front of the rear diff im sure its on the drivers side is the ram

[brianb]

Hi All
Thanks for the replys, Found the fault.  It's the pipe that goes from the ACE block on the drivers side of the car to the Actual ACE arm near the diff.  It's leaking fluid where it goes from metal to the rubber bit of pipe.  The other pipe looks a bit corroded as well so may have to replace them as a pair.

Does anyone know how much these pipes are, I beleive that they are a dealer only part GULP!! so could be dear me thinks.

Thanks for all the help.

Brian

[gary4sybaris]

Hi Brian as a first time disco owner myself and having just recently bought an 03 TD5 XS Manual I found that I have exactly the same problem, Fluid dripping from the ACE pipes at the Back covering the diff in ACE fluid...Now luckily my dealer has agreed to replace both pipes for me as they both look horribly corroded...cant believe the car looks amazing on top and is so scabby underneath especially as it only has 65000 miles on it...maybe driven through the sea on a daily basis LOL.
I did look at the repair cost and spare pipes can be got from beamends...link below

 http://www.beamends-lrspares.co.uk/BeamEnds/DiscoveryII/Suspension/index.html

about £75 quid each...hope you get it sorted as its a pain in the neck having the orange light all the time.

Just an aside...didnt notice how scabby the car was underneath due to having been recently undersealed...(By a blind man on a galloping horse I think!!!) but a blast with the pressure washer soon removed all that as it had been undersealed over mud and sand!!!...just goes to show you can never check too much when buying a car.
Gary

[brianb]

Well spent a few hours this morning removing both the rear ace pipes, it originally was just the one but the other was so scabby i thought WHY NOT! 

Well they were a b**ch to get out.  The nuts on the banjo end was no problem as was the block end but the pipe bracket in the middle of the car was almost impossible to get the bolt out, that alone took an hour.  The other bracket was equally as difficult but at least i managed to get a small hacksaw in and cut that one off.

Went to a local place called Automotive pipes that specialise in making all sorts of car pipes like air con etc and appently they can make the ace pipes as well.  Shame they were SHUT by the time i got there. :oops: :oops: So will have to wait till Monday now

Does anyone know what the part number is for the 2 seals that are at the block end? its a sort of sleave thats in 2 parts that goes round the pipes then goes through the retaining flange.  Also the part numbers of  rubber o rings at the banjo end.
As i dont think they will have those parts at the car place.

Brian

[gary4sybaris]

Hi Brian hope you got it sorted...on a further note and having just picked mine back up from the dealer after he did the repair, on collection my foot went to the floor on the brake pedal having a brake pipe burst...worth having a look at the brake pipes too as if thye ace pipes are corroded..the brake pipes wiull no doubt be the same...might as well get dirty just the once!!!!

[bigfatsi]

IIRC you'll need to plug it in to diagnostics to bleed the system through once you've refitted the pipes. Mine did anyway. They make it dance and wiggle it's ass to get the fluid around. Funny until you get the bill  :lol:

HTH

Simon

[brianb]

Well mines all done, worst bit was routing the pipes over the chassis and down the side without breaking them, wouldnt be so bad but at nearly £200 for the pair it makes you kinda nervous  :lol:

I didnt bleed mine, i do have a nanocomm but decided to just take the car for a drive round a bendy bumpy road and this seems to have done the same thing as the computer.  I had to keep stopping just to check the ace fluid level and top up as needed.  I may have just been lucky in not having to use the nanocom to bleed it.  In total i had to use 1.5l of ace fluid so the system must have been just about dry and full of air.

Looking back at the hassle i think if it was to happen again i would remove the ace and replace the roll bars and drop links for non ace types, ive tried another TD5 since doing this that had the ace removed and to be honest i could not feel any difference.

Brian