Member Since: 15 Dec 2012
Location: where the sheep are scared
Posts: 1777
You won't be disappointed with the duratraxs absolutely fantastic tyre.Just remember:-
Amateurs built the Ark
Professionals built the titanic
30th Sep 2016 5:05 pm
PaulJC
Member Since: 07 Mar 2015
Location: Herts / Essex
Posts: 192
Thanks for the comments...
A couple more bits done today...
I now have a full set of working door locks... Made easy Iain G's guide in this thread HERE
Took an hour and a half, not a difficult job just fiddly in places...
Also fitted one of rays finest, which i couldn't have timed better as my trim piece got 'removed' on the way in to a ford the other night...
3rd Oct 2016 6:11 pm
PaulJC
Member Since: 07 Mar 2015
Location: Herts / Essex
Posts: 192
CB Radio Fitting...
Finally found the time to finish fitting my CB radio...
One of Ray's mounts up top...
Click image to enlarge
I fitted it with one of THESE which is listed as a "Mag Mount Repair Kit" it has the cable that comes out the side making clearance under the mount a non issue...
And added some 'Nut & Bolt Dome Cover Caps" - HERE - Just to finish it off any tidy up the look...
I earthed the base of the mount to the boot hinge...
Click image to enlarge
And ran the aerial cable down the inside of the boot hatch and into the grommet behind the rear left light, behind the rear left boot side panel and then down under the left sill trim...
Originally i went for a small midland CB unit down the side of the seat, but decided I wanted to do something a bit different so bought an Albrecht AE6110 which is a tiny little unit, the plan being to mount it in the glovebox... I'm hoping heat won't be an issue...
I tapped in to the fuse box for Live and Ignition feeds, the plan being that at a later date if i add an aux battery i can use the ignition feed to switch it on via a relay and just swap out the permanent live for one from the aux battery...
While in there i also added a 4 way fuse box and 2 cigarette lighter sockets which led to a jumble of cables, however i now have 4 x USB sockets in the glovebox, i have a USB cable running up the left A pillar to power/charge a GoPro/DashCam, a lightening cable which runs down to by the ashtray to charge my iPod, another one that pops out by the sat nav screen to power/charge my tablet and keep tom-tom/Viewranger alive, i then had one spare USB plug so just have a USB cable loose within the glovebox to charge a phone or other USB accessory...
I then had to do something with the mess of wires which had taken over the upper glovebox, i'm 100% going to change this setup in the future so i've gone for a temporary measure for now...
I made a blanking panel from some foam board, which i then covered in stick back felt...
This then slides in to place covering the cables and recovering a small amount of glovebox space, i'm quite happy with how it has turned out
Future plans are to loose the 4 way fuse box and replace it with some inline fuses, this will recover a lot of space, and to maybe loose the 2 x cigarette lighter chargers for a small USB hub, my tablet does use LOADS of power though so i'll have to think about that one...
3rd Oct 2016 6:47 pm
PaulJC
Member Since: 07 Mar 2015
Location: Herts / Essex
Posts: 192
Well, took the Disco on its first little adventure, Camping in October up in Norfolk with a few mates, we must be nuts but to be fair it wasn't too cold, camp fire, food and tea kept us all nice and warm and a good time way had by all, I bought a large tarp and some awning poles off of eBay and some bits to make up some guy ropes, total cost was about £50 and it done us a massive favour giving us somewhere to hide from the rain and cook food etc...
We didn't use electric so the camping was a basic site which cost £12 for the night and had toilets and showers, we were the only people there and had the place to ourselves and the beach was 5 minutes away the next day...
Tarp canopy between my discovery and my mates VW camper conversion...
Split rear makes for a useful cooking platform...
21st Oct 2016 3:09 pm
PaulJC
Member Since: 07 Mar 2015
Location: Herts / Essex
Posts: 192
I removed the sidesteps a little while back and have been debating since whether to replace with standard trips, rock sliders, or rock and tree sliders... Well, continual complaints from the shorter people in my life (my daughter) made the decision for me, so it was tree sliders to give her something to climb on to get in the car... Oh and the added protection etc...
21st Oct 2016 3:22 pm
PaulJC
Member Since: 07 Mar 2015
Location: Herts / Essex
Posts: 192
Next little job on the list was to add a split charging system... I don't really NEED it right now but future plans will need it so thought i'd get it done while i have some time...
I ordered up a T-Maxx split charge kit.
An Enduroline EXV70.
Some 16mm2 cable.
A couple of Midi Fuse Holders.
Convoluted Tubing.
Battery Crimp Terminals.
And a Hydraulic crimper tool.
I also ordered up some USB sockets and cigarette lighter sockets and voltage gauges to make up a rear panel in the boot but these have yet to arrive...
I don't have pictures of all the install unfortunately but there are some good guides and ideas on here already if you do a search...
The Enduroline EXV70 is a perfect fit in the AUX battery box...
And the LR battery clamp fits it perfectly as well... At a total cost of just under £13 might as well use the right bracket... (YJF500100 Battery Hold Down Bracket LHD, XYG000051 Battery Clamp Bolt M6x180mm, XYG500061 Battery Clamp Bolt M6x147mm)
Fitting the split charging kit is straight forwards, the instructions are basic but then so is the install although i was surprised to see (or not) that there were no fuses to go between the main battery and AUX battery, i'll order some more and get these put in place for peace of mind...
I then ran the controller wires over to the glovebox and the 16mm2 down the drivers side sill trim to the boot ready for the boot install when the parts arrive...
Imagine my horror when i pulled the lower dash trim to find this mess though... No idea what it was there for, a cigarette lighter socket, with a cigarette power plug of some kind that was taped off and not attached to anything, and then a Phono plug that was also attached to nothing... As i had the trims off to run the 16mm2 cable i pulled the cables this was attached to back, one pink cable which disappeared into the rear C pillar, and purple/black twisted which seemed to disappear in the direction of the roof/GPS antenna behind the rear light trim panel, no idea what they are actually for, i'll have to investigate further... But for now it's all removed and the Pink/Purple&Black wires are tied up behind the O/S Rear panel for now...
I wanted my CB Radio which is in the glovebox to also be powered by the AUX battery, so i decided the Split Charge controller/Display can go in there too, i also added a cigarette lighter socket and switch to turn them on and off, i originally had 2 cigarette sockets hidden behind the panel but now only have one linked to a 5 way USB hub... which is hidden, this runs power to a camera feed at the top of the windscreen, a feed to my phone/tablet holder on the windscreen and a feed to the bottom of the 'H' to charge my iPod, i will at a later date add a couple of relays so the glovebox can be ignition switched in normal operation or switched on permanently using the switch but i'm going away in a couple of days and have run out of time for now but am happy with what i have got so far and now have a built in jump start option...
21st Oct 2016 3:49 pm
Beanwood
Member Since: 16 Oct 2016
Location: Nr Bristol
Posts: 58
You've made some nice repairs/mods there. Gives me loads more to think about whilst perusing ads looking for one myself. I particularly like the clear indicators - small change, but what a difference. 8)
23rd Oct 2016 1:12 pm
PaulJC
Member Since: 07 Mar 2015
Location: Herts / Essex
Posts: 192
Well, finally the time came to get my rear power panel made up...
I decided i was going to add the sockets to the rear RH boot panel like many others, with the plan being 2 volt guages to show main and aux battery voltages in the rear... 4 x USB charger sockets for things like phones/tablets etc and 4 x cigarette lighter sockets, my car gets used for photography, drone work, and as a first aid base station for events so plenty of sockets in the back is no bad thing...
So to start i planned the layout in a CAD program and printed it out...
I then pulled the RH panel and removed the foam backing...
To hold the layout in place, i trimmed it down to fit it where i wanted the sockets etc to be then just stuck it in place with a bit of pritt-stick so i could drill some pilot holes...
Pilot holes done i grabbed a 28mm holesaw, this is just a smidge too small but the holes opened up easily enough after with a couple of minutes with a hand file...
Then it was a case of putting all the required sockets/gauges in place where i wanted them...
Next up came the wiring and fusing of the above, i had already ran 16mm2 +ve and -ve cables to the rear when fitting the split charge system and also ran a smaller +ve fused cable from the main battery to power the second gauge... I built up a wooden stand off to hold the fuse box on the back of this panel then wired everything up...
The panel was then placed back where it came from, it leaves a nice almost factory looking setup...
At the moment i am running it permanently powered as i didn't want switches on the panel, the current draw is low so it doesn't really matter, but i have just ordered a 100A solonoid to fit in the -ve return line which will be used to turn the panel on and off and i plan to have some kind of low voltage cut out, i've still got a few empty fuse slots if i decide to add any other rear accessories, at the very least i'll be adding an LED strip light in the boot in the not too distant future so i'll probably end up with a switch or two after all, we will see...
8th Nov 2016 2:05 pm
PaulJC
Member Since: 07 Mar 2015
Location: Herts / Essex
Posts: 192
Done my first ever off road event in the car and only won my class, you can read about it HERE, just wish i had got some video from outside, next time...
I do love the look of the car covered in mud and looking 'purposeful' though...
6th Dec 2016 6:31 am
PaulJC
Member Since: 07 Mar 2015
Location: Herts / Essex
Posts: 192
It's been a while since i have posted anything up here, I still have the D3, and I have some bits that need doing when time allows now that winter is started to disappear and some warmer days are coming...
Jobs that need doing:
It now needs a service.
I have an LED strip light to go in the boot.
I have red LED bulbs to go in the boot side lamps for camping or when out doing photography/shooting.
I still want to detango.
I have a fire extinguisher and 'life hammer' to fit.
I want to fit a 240v Inverter and am considering options for solar or wind power for longer camping trips.
I recently took it to Snowdonia National Park for 4 nights, 1000+ miles in one trip and problem free, I still love the car as much as the day I got it, if not more now it's getting slowly modded to be how i want it...
Here is a little film i made shot entirely by drone...
23rd Mar 2017 2:43 pm
sdkay
Member Since: 11 Nov 2017
Location: lancashire
Posts: 35
Re: New Nuts...
PaulJC wrote:
Well as mentioned somewhere above, a few of the wheel nuts on my car had deformed/expanded so i have spent the morning hammering a socket on them and getting them off, they are now replaced with shiny new ones
Click image to enlarge
And i had ordered some LED Bulbs for the interior, not sure what I was thinking when i did because i didn't get enough... 7 done on the interior, all on the roof bar the boot sides, and put a couple in the rear number plate lights, now just waiting for some more to turn up so I can do footwells, puddles, the remaining 2 in the roof and front sidelights... Nice white light
Click image to enlarge
what led bulbs did you order and from where? thanks 👍🏼
13th Nov 2017 10:07 pm
gstuart
Member Since: 21 Oct 2016
Location: kent
Posts: 14177
PaulJC wrote:
Next little job on the list was to add a split charging system... I don't really NEED it right now but future plans will need it so thought i'd get it done while i have some time...
I ordered up a T-Maxx split charge kit.
An Enduroline EXV70.
Some 16mm2 cable.
A couple of Midi Fuse Holders.
Convoluted Tubing.
Battery Crimp Terminals.
And a Hydraulic crimper tool.
I also ordered up some USB sockets and cigarette lighter sockets and voltage gauges to make up a rear panel in the boot but these have yet to arrive...
I don't have pictures of all the install unfortunately but there are some good guides and ideas on here already if you do a search...
The Enduroline EXV70 is a perfect fit in the AUX battery box...
And the LR battery clamp fits it perfectly as well... At a total cost of just under £13 might as well use the right bracket... (YJF500100 Battery Hold Down Bracket LHD, XYG000051 Battery Clamp Bolt M6x180mm, XYG500061 Battery Clamp Bolt M6x147mm)
Fitting the split charging kit is straight forwards, the instructions are basic but then so is the install although i was surprised to see (or not) that there were no fuses to go between the main battery and AUX battery, i'll order some more and get these put in place for peace of mind...
I then ran the controller wires over to the glovebox and the 16mm2 down the drivers side sill trim to the boot ready for the boot install when the parts arrive...
Imagine my horror when i pulled the lower dash trim to find this mess though... No idea what it was there for, a cigarette lighter socket, with a cigarette power plug of some kind that was taped off and not attached to anything, and then a Phono plug that was also attached to nothing... As i had the trims off to run the 16mm2 cable i pulled the cables this was attached to back, one pink cable which disappeared into the rear C pillar, and purple/black twisted which seemed to disappear in the direction of the roof/GPS antenna behind the rear light trim panel, no idea what they are actually for, i'll have to investigate further... But for now it's all removed and the Pink/Purple&Black wires are tied up behind the O/S Rear panel for now...
I wanted my CB Radio which is in the glovebox to also be powered by the AUX battery, so i decided the Split Charge controller/Display can go in there too, i also added a cigarette lighter socket and switch to turn them on and off, i originally had 2 cigarette sockets hidden behind the panel but now only have one linked to a 5 way USB hub... which is hidden, this runs power to a camera feed at the top of the windscreen, a feed to my phone/tablet holder on the windscreen and a feed to the bottom of the 'H' to charge my iPod, i will at a later date add a couple of relays so the glovebox can be ignition switched in normal operation or switched on permanently using the switch but i'm going away in a couple of days and have run out of time for now but am happy with what i have got so far and now have a built in jump start option...
hi paul
wished to say some great work there
also bought the same t max and battery as u for the split charge system , just got to fit it now
took me a while to hunt down the battery clamp and bolts, as one bolt has now become obsolete , managed to find that on ebay
also noticed there were no fuses between the main and aux battery , bought some of the mega fuses, may i ask what rating did u use plse, see some use 60 or 70 amp fuses
just got to work out the route , haven’t got the satnav so think i may mount the T max controller there and work the route from there then through the bulkhead where the servo is
also bought the hydralic crimper, how have u got on with it , reminds me i must get some heatshrink
thks
gary
21st Nov 2017 1:38 pm
PaulJC
Member Since: 07 Mar 2015
Location: Herts / Essex
Posts: 192
I apologise for the delay in replying...
LED bulbs, just cheap crap from eBay, all still going strong...
Fuses, i have 60 Amp all along
12th Dec 2017 11:44 am
gstuart
Member Since: 21 Oct 2016
Location: kent
Posts: 14177
hi paul
no need to apologise in the least
thks for the info and very helpful
most appreciated
12th Dec 2017 11:54 am
PaulJC
Member Since: 07 Mar 2015
Location: Herts / Essex
Posts: 192
Not really done much to the car this year, replaced the front wheel bearings and added an LED strip light in the boot and thats about it... Although i do have a bit of a to-do list building up...
Replacement Windscreen Needed - Again...
It needs another replacement door lock - i've just disconnected it for now and left that door permanently locked...
The boot struts are getting a bit tired so will replace them....
It needs a service...
I need a replacement wheel after taking a chunk out of one of mine...
Nothing major really considering, will get the expense of Christmas out of the way then get on it...
Priority job is working out why it refused to start this morning! thinking knackered glow plugs and cold temperature (was minus 4 degrees C), have stuck it on the CTEK to top the battery off and will give it another go in a bit... Fingers crossed...
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