P38 Range Rover Discussion

Dmarchand

Adventurer
I've always thought the P38 was a good truck. Has it's quirks, just like any other LR. Plenty of software now to overcome some of the troubleshooting. I think the best part about it is the tailgate. Nothing better than a flip down gate for preparing food, etc.
 

Scott Brady

Founder
FourByLand said:
You know she really wants another Dll though...:elkgrin:

Yes :D

I think another Rover would be fun to have, and could be Steph's truck for many years as she puts on minimal mileage. More research in a few weeks.
 
S

Scenic WonderRunner

Guest
I just stumbled on this LR website today so I thought I would share the link.

I know nothing about these. But these folks might be good ones to talk to. They seem to have some good idea's and have done lots of Project Land Rovers.

http://www.eastcoastrover.com/RangeRovers.html


They have a good solution for this problem...........


***text from their website***

Speaking of rocks and roots... The main weak link for any Discovery or Range Rover off road is the rear mounted steering stabilizer and tie rod. The stabilizer and tie rod hang down as nearly the lowest points on the vehicle, so they are very easy to hit even when doing mild logging roads, let along hard core stuff. The image above shows the ECR ROX tie rod guard installed. It fully surrounds the Rover tie rod so that nothing can hurt it. The guard is so tough you can jack the vehicle up by it if you like. Our ECR ROX tie rod guard differs from the other mass produced units because we allow you the option of keeping your factory sway bar if you wish. You can see above that the factory sway bar is still in place on this 1995 LWB Range Rover. The other thing that makes or tie rod guards great is that we offer them for the later model air suspension cars as well as the earlier units.


13212.jpg




To eliminate steering stabilizer problems we relocate the stabilizer to the front, and above the axle. This keeps the stabilizer out of harms way, just like on the Defender. We also make a heavy duty drag link, shown above, that is ultra tough and will take a hit in cause you misjudge the height of the obstacle in front of you. Combine that with the upgraded steering stabilizer from Old Man Emu and you have a combination that will do what you need off road and is even ready for the larger tires you may plan to install. We've also added a front diff guard to this Range Rover LWB for those "just in case" moments where a rock might harm the differential cover.
As you can see above, the lowest thing hanging down now is the diff guard and the ECR ROX tie rod guard. That means this RR is ready to hit the trail, and if it needs to grind over a rock or stump, nothing will be harmed. If you hit a rock of stump with your stock set up you'll to out your wheels and you'll be looking for a ride home, or at the very least a long trail side repair.


13211.jpg
 
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S

Scenic WonderRunner

Guest
........and LOOK!

OH MY GOSH!

A Land Rover 101.........!

Uber Kewlness!:ylsmoke:

Who Knew!


10445.jpg
 

gjackson

FRGS
Eastcoast rovers does top notch work, and they know it. They do a lot of restorations and upgrades, all really good stuff. They quoted a built Defender 110 for our Africa trip at $110,000. Makes that JK Earthroamer seem like a good deal!!

cheers
 

Jonathan Hanson

Supporting Sponsor
Yep. Hundred-twenty-bucks-an-hour labor adds up quickly. But they do produce some stupendous work, and are helping keep NAS Land Rovers alive and running, often in much better nick than when they left the factory.
 

stevenmd

Expedition Leader
Hello everyone... stumbled onto this site today... great thread... P38's are OK but if you really want a rangie I'd go with a classic... cheaper and easier to keep running, more aftermarket parts available, and you can get a LWB (long wheel base) for when you shuttle customers around. Yes, the 3.9 and 4.2 that come in the rangie are waaaaaaaaaaaay underpowered. If you could, I would put the 4.6 power plant in there and regear to 4.10... you will have plenty of power then.

Of course... I'm partial to the disco but that's just me. For some good feedack on rangies check us out at www.lrrforums.com

Cool site,:punk03: love the expedition threads. I will definately post upcoming trail runs here!!! There is an upcoming Land Rover National Rally in August this year. I'll post a link in the right section.
 

Bergger

Explorer
expeditionswest said:
The Tacoma replacement wont be an SUV, but a larger "truck".

In the mean-time, I am looking for an SUV to replace the Trooper and the YJ Wrangler. Two schools of thought right now. Buy an older vehicle and have fun with it for a year or two and then but a new vehicle (I am really wanting diesel), or buy a new vehicle now. The replacement will need to have at least as good trail performance as the Trooper, which is no small feat.

While in Denver I am driving a 6-speed, 4-Door JK Rubicon. I REALLY am falling for it bad... :safari-rig:


My wife had a 2000 Trooper, great truck, just this past October I got her a 2006 Xterra OR Model with the 6 speed MT. She loves it, so do I. Extremely fast truck, very comfortable and while I have yet to take it off road from what I have read it is very capable with the rear locker. The interior is surprisingly roomy and well designed. We picked it up for 23K so price is not bad either. Just a thought. As far as the larger truck to replace the Tacomoa, I had the opportunity to check out the new Toyota Tundras at the National Western Stock Show the other day. Very nice indeed and yes, very large. I'm not sure if you want to go that big but you should definitely check it out.


View attachment 5341
 

SeaRubi

Explorer
Some Tech

Scott:

The transfer case cannot be swapped out for the gear driven LT230 unit found in Discovery and RRC. If you look, you'll notice that the diffs are on the wrong side - P38's are drivers side drop, and Disco I, II, RRC, Defender are all passenger side drop. WHY in the world they did this I do not know. It stinks, because the rover transfer case is something of an engineering marvel.

Lots of electronics. you can ditch the EAS for coils very easily. You can also ditch the ABS. What's hard to ditch is all the luxury and creature comforts. All that interior junk starts to go south and after a while, makes it feel like a junker when half of it isn't working. windows, windshield and mirror defrosters, power seat, dash functions, heater core - all this stuff is really complicated on the P38 and is the biggest culprit to their bad reputation.

Off-road I've been told they're a dream. Good size vehicle, and even with just the ETC and some sticky tires they'll do very well.

You definitely want the 4.6 motor. The transmissions are solid ZF units, similar to RRC and Discovery. With proper care they'll last a long time.

Honestly, I'd recommend getting an Discovery II over a P38 just to be able to get the better transfer case. If you dont' mind dropping a grand into having one rebuilt then its no big deal. The Borg-Warner case isn't up to hard wheeling, but for light-duty work they have a decent service life, and the same 3.2 low range as the other rover cases.

Aftermarket 4.10 gears will work fine as well, but you're stuck in terms of any other axle or CV upgrades in this department. They key here is small tires, and truetracks. If you keep the ETC working and up to snuff, this is a very impressive combination. A friend wheel's a DII pretty hard with TT's and the ETC, and I'm amazed at what he can get over with that thing.


fwiw.


edit: I forgot that you once owned a DII :D having been down that road, and recommending it over the P38 ... well, you can see where I stand on that issue ;)

as for getting a Discovery I or a RRC: I will not do this again, nor a defender, until I'm prepared to spend the time in a frame off restoration. Best off-road vehicle IMO bar none is the RRC. BUT! They are all getting very old, and worn out. It's not really a fault of the rover - with 150k ~ 200k and higher mileage, they're tired and need more than "maintenance".
 
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stevenmd

Expedition Leader
You can get a ton of RRC's in great condition. If you go DII... you can only get the CDL in 1999, 2000, part of 2001, and 2004. 1999, 2000, and part of 2001 have it but it's not hooked up. In the RRC, 1987 and 1988 are the only years it came with CDL. But you can acquire a CDL transfer case pretty easily and swap it out in a RRC or DII that doesn't have it.

Yeah, offroad they are a friggin' dream but anything over a 32" tire and you will need to upgrade the axle components. Anything over a 2" lift and you are looking at several more upgrades to keep her steady.

And, yeah again, they are a dream offroad. They are awesome stock and even better locked up.:victory:
 

Scott Brady

Founder
stevenmd said:
Cool site,:punk03: love the expedition threads. I will definately post upcoming trail runs here!!! There is an upcoming Land Rover National Rally in August this year. I'll post a link in the right section.

Welcome! I will be at the LRNR :) Hope to see you thee
 

Scott Brady

Founder
Thanks for the advice Steve and SeaRubi!

I might get a 4 Door JK Rubicon for Steph and a D1 for me. Best of all worlds then :)

I would love to build a 5-speed D1 to camel specs, but have it white.
 

stevenmd

Expedition Leader
expeditionswest said:
I would love to build a 5-speed D1 to camel specs, but have it white.
I remember seeing a 5 speed 1996 DI on LRX in Los Gatos... out by me... if you get ahold of the lady, I can check it out for you.
 

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