Member Since: 10 Jan 2019
Location: Kent
Posts: 114
My Office
Although not my car as such, these vehicles and what they have done for me at work is one of the reasons I brought mine
Hopefully there a couple of photo below
These car are getting a bit old now and have around 260000m on them, they don’t give us to many issues and the cars drive very well and still have the grunt they were made with despite anyways carrying 700kgs of kit and 1/2 officers and they lunches
They will be replaced by new D5 SE 3.0D’s in the next couple of months, they will be sorely missed
Sorry it’s a bit untidy but it’s been a bit busy so will get a good clean later on
If anyone want to ask any question about the car or what we do then feel free and I’ll do my best
Thanks2005 D3 SE Auto, zermatt silver
Gearbox flush by terrain vehicles
V8 brake upgrade
Will always ask silly questions
19th Jan 2019 6:25 pm
Ted Newman
Member Since: 09 Oct 2010
Location: SE London
Posts: 840
That says a lot for them!! LR Discovery 4 XS pulling an Airstream 532 Caravan also own (since new) a 1996 MGF
19th Jan 2019 6:42 pm
Iguana
Member Since: 14 Oct 2013
Location: 'Sunny' Zomerset
Posts: 9414
I think many of us would be interested in that rear raised floor/storage thing you have installed
Great if you could supply more info Iggy/Ieuan
Current LR =
2015 RR Sport Autobiography
&
1992 Land Rover Defender Camper
- Gone but not forgotten:
MY10 D4 GS
MY05 Disco 3 'S'
MY14 FL2 HSE manual in Blue
MY15 Disco 4 HSE Lux in Santorini Black
MY08 Disco 3 SE manual in Buck Blue
1960 Series 2 88" (No idea why I sold it!)
19th Jan 2019 7:15 pm
Bleeding knuckles
Member Since: 10 Jan 2019
Location: Kent
Posts: 114
The rear rack is custom built when the car is converted and is a standard fit for these,
It has 3 openings on the bottom for our signs and towing equipment/load cell
Then there are 2 slide out trays with 10 cones on each
A centre draw which houses blankets,ponchos and first aid kits and that has sequential lights on top of that.
I believe it’s mounted on marine ply using the standard mounting points
We have other equipment dotted around in whatever space we can find as every cars different
It’s all made of square steel tubing whereas the newer cars have a welded plastic type which is a lot lighter
I think wehad these cars converted through Babcock international2005 D3 SE Auto, zermatt silver
Gearbox flush by terrain vehicles
V8 brake upgrade
Will always ask silly questions
19th Jan 2019 8:43 pm
Gareth Site Moderator
Member Since: 07 Dec 2004
Location: Bramhall
Posts: 26750
It’s bound to be asked, so I’ll ask it now. How many engines have you seen blow up? 260k is a tidy mileage to get to, and it would be good to hear that most of the D4’s could get there!!
19th Jan 2019 9:14 pm
Narpy
Member Since: 18 Jul 2011
Location: Stockport
Posts: 7830
700kg of kit. Over 1500lbs, are you sure?
Is your kit made of lead?Mods:
Front Fogs + Halos
FBH Remote Control
The 1st Ever RRS Modded Grill
Garmin Nuvi + D4 Surround + Reversing Camera.
D4 Steering Wheel.
Rear Boot Spoiler.
Twin Brake Lights.
Wing Mirror Indicator Repeaters.
Long Roof Rails
Make your own Narpy grill thread
I'm not scared, I'm outta here.
19th Jan 2019 9:20 pm
nearlee
Member Since: 15 Dec 2012
Location: where the sheep are scared
Posts: 1777
I'd have thought 700kg of kit was quite light.
Op says 20 traffic cones, and them things arn't light, plus everything else.Just remember:-
Amateurs built the Ark
Professionals built the titanic
19th Jan 2019 10:42 pm
James W
Member Since: 27 Mar 2008
Location: Riyadh, KSA
Posts: 3077
What's running on the iPad? It looks like OS mapping? Is that standard issue? D4 XS, gone, much loved, never forgotten
2018 FFRR SDV8 Autobiography - Gone to someone with less sense and more time to enjoy it
2016 Toyota Hilux Invincible - Liberating experience
19th Jan 2019 11:24 pm
Moo D3 Decade
Member Since: 13 Aug 2010
Location: Wiltshire
Posts: 14188
Will you miss the split tailgate in the D5?New Defender L663 110 SE (known as Noddy!)
Sold Volvo XC90 R-Design (known as Basil)
Sold - D4 HSE (Known as Gerty)
No longer the Old Buses original owner
231,000 miles and counting
05 S manual owned from March 2005
D4 Face lifted
Still original injectors and turbo
V8 Front brakes
BAS Remap, Allisport Intercooler and deCat
EGRs blanked
T-Max split charge
Hanibal Expeedition rack
Prospeed ladder
Duratrac tyres
IID BT
BAS FBH control
20th Jan 2019 1:00 am
lynalldiscovery
Member Since: 22 Dec 2009
Location: Maidstone
Posts: 7274
I would be more interested in why they can only ever achieve 50mph
20th Jan 2019 1:30 am
Bleeding knuckles
Member Since: 10 Jan 2019
Location: Kent
Posts: 114
At my station only 1 has ever lost an engine think that was a cam belt jump.
I’ve not heard of that many we must of had several hundreds of D3 and D4 so probably less than 10 over 14 years (lost a few through accidents). They get a service every 6-8 weeks and that’s always main dealer.
In the early days of the D3 we had a lot of gearbox failures from the “hunting” but we also put them through a lot and they run for the whole shift and only stop for changeover or if they get a day off. Most of the issues now are wear and tear on the trim and switches.
I would say the D4’s have been very reliable they have so much grunt which we need for dragging cars and lorries off the carriageway that are in various states of destruction.
They are mechanically standard except for having 3 batteries and all the conversion kit and lights.
Always been told the kit was 650kgs(could be wrong), and we’ve added more since then.
If we carry a third person the vehicle can be officially overweight. We did look at getting them replated for higher GVM but decided not to. We’ll see what happens with the D5’s
Yes will miss the split tailgate it so useful. Our new D5’s won’t even have the fold down flap when they get delivered.
The tablet is a Samsung galaxy tab active which is issued to us for admin and when out dealing with incidents. I was running waze to keep an eye on my area as it sometimes update incidents before we get told.
When the D5’s arrive I get some pictures on here.
Thanks to all for your interest, my Job does get a lot of bad press but generally most people who come onto contact with us are happy with what we do and why.
2005 D3 SE Auto, zermatt silver
Gearbox flush by terrain vehicles
V8 brake upgrade
Will always ask silly questions
20th Jan 2019 1:55 am
Moo D3 Decade
Member Since: 13 Aug 2010
Location: Wiltshire
Posts: 14188
Thanks for the updates.
Personally I think you guys do a great job. I was helped on the M25 by your colleagues when my alternator went pop. Very friendly and very helpful chaps. New Defender L663 110 SE (known as Noddy!)
Sold Volvo XC90 R-Design (known as Basil)
Sold - D4 HSE (Known as Gerty)
No longer the Old Buses original owner
231,000 miles and counting
05 S manual owned from March 2005
D4 Face lifted
Still original injectors and turbo
V8 Front brakes
BAS Remap, Allisport Intercooler and deCat
EGRs blanked
T-Max split charge
Hanibal Expeedition rack
Prospeed ladder
Duratrac tyres
IID BT
BAS FBH control
20th Jan 2019 2:17 am
ruben D3 Decade
Member Since: 26 Sep 2006
Location: ASTURIAS
Posts: 2411
I have seen you on some holiday trips in the UK. I do not know what official body could be compared to you here in Spain ... I do not know if you are a policeman or not ... I liked your contribution here, it seems very interesting, thanks for the photos of details. It is always good to recognize who, in reality, is dedicated to helping others!! Congratulations for that!! and waiting for the D5 details!!lost in translation!
DISCOVERY 3 SE man. TDV6 2006, my true love!
DEFENDER 2 SE D I6 MHEV 2024, other live.
20th Jan 2019 2:22 am
Bleeding knuckles
Member Since: 10 Jan 2019
Location: Kent
Posts: 114
Traffic officer history
For those that are interested in this thread here’s a bit of history of the service.
Back in the early 2000’s there was an incident on the motorways where some people got stranded in the snow for a couple of days. The Police at the time struggled to cope as they were dealing with all sorts of problems. When this had settled the then Government told the Department for transport that they need to manage this better. They (Dft) had an executive agency called the Highways Agency who managed the motorway and trunk road network in England. They were then tasked to set up a service to manage the network on an operational basis and take over the work that did not require the specific powers of a Police Constable thus freeing police officers up to do other work.
So working with the Police and Government they devised a service to work on the network and began trials in Birmingham around June 2004.
This coincided with the Traffic Management act 2004 in which Traffic officers get their powers from parliament these included:
Power to stop and direct vehicles and people.
Power to place signs (either manually and electronically).
When using these powers they have the same authority as a Police Constable and failure to comply carries the same penalty’s.
Also it is an offence to disobey Traffic Officer and to impersonate an officer.
Later we were also granted powers under the vehicles removal act to be able to removes vehicles from the network that at either abandoned or cannot be removed by other means in a timely fashion.
We are also exempt from all motorway regulations.
However we are not an emergency service nor do we have any enforcement powers.
While we were Highways Agency all officers were civil servants
Our vehicles are fitted with the standard Dft batternburg pattern which is only used by Dft agencies (us and the then VOSA) we had amber lights front and rear and were granted permission to have rear reds as well.
Rear red flashing lights are currently only legally used by our vehicles and the emergency services. Any other use is illegal
Flashing rear reds is designed to mimic railway crossings and means do not pass they should only be used when in a live lane but they can be used on the hard shoulder to aid in being seen.
Any vehicle that copies our batternburg that has reflective yellow and black is illegal.
As said we have no enforcement powers but we have a direct link to our local RPU and will report what we see to them and the courts deem us to be an expert witness in matter of the motorway environment.
We do not have any authority to speed and must follow all mandatory signals that we encounter. We can use the hard shoulder and closed lanes (red x) to access incidents.
In 2012 we were granted by Dft to have flashing headlights fitted to enable us to split slow traffic this was also enhanced by the fitting of a bull horn to make ourselves heard when going through slow traffic.
In 2015 Highways Agency became Highways England as part of a wider drive by Dft to save money this meant the roads were funded every 5 years instead of every year.
This meant we lost our civil service status and became crown agents but were still governed by parliament (including pay caps for government staff).
There is a similar service in Wales run by the Welsh executive, but nothing in Scotland or Northern Ireland which both have limited motorways
We also are the only non enforcement agency to have access to PNC
We use the airwave system to communicate including shared channels with our police colleagues a new system is being rolled out in the next couple of years
In my region we have an excellent relationship with our Police friends we have common goals and work together for the benefit of the public.
We work out of approximately 30 stations around the country and we have 7 regional control centres (RCC) dotted around the country.
Our primary focus is on keeping traffic moving. We will attend every incident we hear about and make attempts to clear it as quickly as possible.
If there is no need for the Police (criminality, injury or fatality) then we manage the incident. If we can move vehicles we will, some can’t be moved by our cars so we call in heavy recovery.
We legally don’t have a duty of care to the public because we are a category 2 responder but we will do all have a moral obligation to assist where we can.
We have enhanced first aid to deal with traumatic injuries as statistics show we are usually first on scene to most accidents.
Since the beginning of the service there have been several accident involving traffic officers. These are always due to drivers crashing into us when they are distracted.
It has unfortunately led to officers being left in wheelchairs for life and also caused 2officers to lose their lives (one of which I knew personally)
Our fleet has been made up of the following vehicles:
Discovery 3 2005-2009
Discovery 4 2009-present
Discovery 5 2019- present
Range Rover L322 2005-2007
Toyota Land Cruiser 2005-2010
Nissan Pathfinder 2006-2008
Mitsubishi shogun 2005-present
We also have trailer we tow to scene to place screens around what needs to be covered from public view these weigh 2.2t
We can overturn and drag cars from the carriageways providing the load cell does not exceed 15.8 kilo newtons (which is the breaking load of the tow hitches fitted to the cars)
We can also drags HGV vehicles provided they have air in the braking system, there’s not much we can’t move hence the reason we have the vehicles we do.
I hope this has help some one you
Feel free to ask questions and I’ll try to answer
Sorry if there’s any mistakes it a big post2005 D3 SE Auto, zermatt silver
Gearbox flush by terrain vehicles
V8 brake upgrade
Will always ask silly questions
25th Jan 2019 12:03 pm
robpenrose
Member Since: 12 Jan 2016
Location: Surrey / SW London
Posts: 2138
How much fuel do you generally use per day? and how many miles do you average on a shift? I know it probably varies massively, but just a rough idea of how many miles the trucks can do per day?
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