The official TRIARII build

[TRIARII]

I've been absent from the forums for quit awhile now but my dedication to my Discovery II has endured and I'm proud to share this amazing build with the community. I hope to learn from fellow members as well as inspire others. My primary objective with this build is to create a reliable platform, and make only the necessary modifications and improvements needed for the overland by vehicle lifestyle I desire. My secondary objective is to retain the authentic Land Rover cosmetic cues and mechanical capabilities. In other words no extreme modifications that would ruin the original look and appeal of the vehicle or dramatically change the original function and capabilities of the vehicle. So no after market lockers, no axle swaps, no engine conversions, no extreme suspension kits, no racing seats etc. The only exception to this rule I will break is in regards to storage and any must have additions needed for overland travel - within reason of course.

I found this Discovery II for sale on Craigslist. It had around 130,000 miles on the odometer and an occasional engine ticking. I purchased the truck for $5,500. Service records indicate the following work was done prior to my purchase in late 2012:

- Passport to service recommended servicing completed at Land Rover dealership up to the first 90,000 miles, everything thereafter was serviced by an independent shop.
- water pump replaced
- Ignition coil replaced
- Stop leak used in the cooling system

Humble beginnings:

November 2013: Let the build begin! The first thing I had to address were the factory tie rods. Replaced them with the Britpart zinc coated HD tie rod kit. The factory 18" Hurricane wheels were to big for my needs and there are less tire options for that size wheel. Furthermore the finish on the wheels was peeling off. The suspension was factory installed back in 2004 sooo it was time for a upgrade. 2" is a reasonable lift for this vehicle, nothing to extreme but still functional over the stock height.

 

[TRIARII]

Before:

After:

 

[I Leak Oil]

Stop leak is bad. You should find out why before it finds you. Britpart isn't generally held in high regard. Sometime refered to as ****part.

 

[TRIARII]

The upper rear tail lights were cracked and the inside of the assemblies were discolored and filled with some water. Swapped them out for new units and added G4 light guards:

Next was the brake system. Calipers, rotors and pads front and back. Disregard the date stamp, never updated the date on the camera.

Still was not happy with the braking so I replaced the brake master cylinder and brake servo booster. The servo booster is not cheap and it took the vendor 3 tries to send me the correct direct fit booster... so at one point I had 3 boosters but still not the right booster for my truck. Sigh

 

[TRIARII]

Next I wanted to inspect the transmission sump pan, change the fluid and add a new filter and gasket.

Time for an Ultra-Gauge:

Took a trip to Manchester, Vermont to acquire some used 16" tires for my new 16" style 2 wheels. Met up with some enthusiasts and met some of the folks at the Land Rover Experience Driving School.

My understanding is that the Style 2 16" wheels were not optional on US models. Fortunately I found a vendor and purchased 5.

I traded my 18" wheels and tires for 5 used 16" tires thus enabling me to get my new wheels mounted. Was not in the market for new beefy tires at the time so this was a means to an end.

 

[TRIARII]

My supervisor had a old Series!

Lets fast forward to 2014.

Relocated the Ultra-Gauge:

Still was not happy with the braking so I upgraded the system again. This time with extended stainless steel brake lines, slotted/drilled rotors and ceramic brake pads. Seeing how I did the brakes the first time back in 2013 I decided to let someone else do the job and this is when I met Don of Anarchy Fabworx in Hampton NH. Some of you may have seen his truck at past Winter Romp events.

Futile efforts to save a rusty bumper...

April 2014 I had an exhaust leak. Tried to patch it up to get a quick inspection sticker but that was a no go:

Yet again the same vendor sent me the wrong part... but this time they got it right the second time around:

The rear most muffler must have been replaced by previous owner not long before I purchased the truck:

 

[TRIARII]

Interior lighting was dim and old so I fitted some cheap LED's to brighten up the interior:

USS Albacore Experimental Submarine. Constructed in Portsmouth NH in 1952, this sub was used to test the new teardrop hull design that would be later become the standard for future subs. She was constructed using a new form of high strength steel called low-carbon steel which again would be used on future submarines. She helped pioneer many new submarine technologies, some of which are still used today. She was retired in 1972 and today's sits on display in Portsmouth NH:

Next up some differential guards:

Spare tire mount is an issue if you plan on mounting larger aggressive tires.

Lucky8 LLC has just the solution. A spare tire relocator that bolts directly onto the factory spare tire carrier. Easy install and no need to remove the carrier or drill any holes.

The rear door license plate lighting was a problem:

Next up on the list was the front drive shaft. Never had any issues but did not want to wait until the shaft failed to replace it. No pictures of the aftermarket Proline driveshaft but rest assured its fully serviceable. I still keep the original shaft as a spare.

At long last its time to address the tires. I dislike the trend of fitting over-sized fat tires. Looking back at classic Land Rovers and military vehicles I noted how they had thin tall beefy tires. After careful consideration alot of research I opted to go with 235/85R16 Crawler MT Retread tires from TreadWright:

Ive been looking for a high profile SD roof rack for months. Every blue moon one pops up on Craigslist and afew days later its GONE. Finally though my patience was rewarded. Drove all the way down to Connecticut to pick this up. Had a few dings and dents and some chipped paint but I was not in the market to be picky.

 

[TRIARII]

Next the light bar.

Fast forward to 2015:

Front passenger wheel hub and the power steering pump were on their way out and had to be addressed. I prefer to replace parts in pairs so decided to order 2 new wheel hubs fro the front axle. While everything was apart I also decided to replace some leaking axle shaft seals. Also time for an oil change:

 

[TRIARII]

During the oil change I decided to drop the oil sump pan to inspect inside:

Next up some decals:

The roof rack needed flooring so I ordered some chicken coop flooring from FarmTek:

Maine Winter Romp 2015:

Giant cookies, brownies and whoopee pies at Big G's Deli in Waterville Maine.

Good times

 

[TRIARII]

Zack Griswold of Rovers North's truck:

 

[TRIARII]

Lets fast forward to January 2016. My truck has 155,000k. She has been my daily driver since late 2012 and she handled herself fine during our first offroad event at Maine Winter Romp 2015. Up to this point Ive had no major issues with the engine. The engine ticking comes and goes and at most can be annoying while your sitting in the drive thru. Average temps were 197 city and 188 highway. No overheating and no major coolant leaks. However as mentioned at the beginning of this thread, the previous owner replaced the water pump and used stop leak in the cooling system. This is a red flag. The engine may have overheated and driven for to long but Ill never know for sure. Stop leak is only a temp patch fix and is something I prefer not to use. I had a choice to make. My primary objective with this build is to create a reliable platform. Although the service records indicate good treatment over the years by the previous owners, the stop leak and engine ticking on a block that does not have top hat liners is a problem and a risk. So while I had the extra $$$$ should I invest in a head gasket job and 3 point valve job? Or invest in a professionally remanufactured block all together? After over a year of research, reading tons of forum posts from other members who invested in remanufactured engines and after many in depth discussions with afew different vendors I decided to invest in Turner Engineering of the UK. Their reputation, warranty, price and longstanding customer reviews are unmatched. Plus I figure who better knows these engines than the Brits?

My investment included a professionally remanufactured 4.6 short block with remanufactured crankshaft & conrods and includes new original equipment pistons, bearings, camshaft, timing equipment with Darton Sleeves ductile iron flanged liners, H180 Sports Torque Kent camshaft, hydraulic lifters, shim kit, head gasket kit, head bolts, oil pump assembly, new oil pump front cover, and new water pump.

My block has secondary air injection and unfortunately Turner was out of stock of SAI heads so I had to get my old heads machined and a 3 point valve job done locally. The valve covers were polished and painted and the intake manifold was equally polished locally. I will not mention the exact price I paid for the order with Turner as the price will vary depending on your specific needs and location. Obviously I live in the USA so shipping a block with all the extra parts from the UK was pricey but I will say that it was considerably cheaper than JE Robinson remanufactured blocks which sell for around $10,000-$15,000. The team at Turner is very professional and very knowledge about Rovers and these engines. Excellent customer service and I have yet to find one single bad review. Cannot say the same thing for Cannibal V8. So if a remanufactured engine is in your future I recommend you check out Turner Engineering: http://turner-engineering.co.uk/

During the engine swap I had the following new parts installed: radiator, cooling fan, vicious clutch, cooling hoses, coolant expansion tank, coolant tank cap, throttle body heat plate kit, 180 TD5 thermostat, alternator, genuine spark plugs, magnecor ignition wires, Blacklisted Engineering heavy duty engine mounts and Peak coolant.

 

[TRIARII]

My efforts to save the front bumper and A-frame brush bar were futile. Chipped paint and rust did a number on the bar and had to be addressed. I also needed to relocate the air flow into the new block. Im still not happy with the braking so my quest for maximum braking continues with these EBC ceramic brake pads. Once the slotted rotors wear down Ill upgrade those to EBC as well:

ARB Sahara winch bumper:

February 2016:

Mantec raised air intake

 

[TRIARII]

I will be taking a break from the build for awhile so I can figure out other things in my life. I have some big decisions coming up regarding my career and living and even family so I need to reconfigure my priorities. Nevertheless there is still so much more work to do. The frame has afew small rust holes so the short term plan is to have small sections replaced with rail steel. Long term plan is a frame swap. Most likely I will source a perfect condition used 2004 frame, clean it up, paint it and add several coats of Waxoyl. A list below to shed some light of the future:

- Replace the rear wing window glass with aluminum paneling
- Professional exterior paint job
- Add 1-1.5 inches of additional lift to make up for the added weight of accessories and fully loaded truck
- Update/improve security system
- Replace door and window seals
- Replace rear axle hubs (already have 2 new rear hubs in box)
- Install dual battery system and power management
- Install durable solar paneling
- Install quality air compressor system
- Install Warn winch
- Install either led light bar or Warn driving lamps on bumper
- Replace existing fuel tank with extended range fuel tank
- Replace all bushings with genuine rubber bushings
- Replace Proline front drive shaft with top of the line heavy duty drive shaft
- Replace rear drive shaft with top of the line heavy duty drive shaft
- Install Magnaflow performance exhaust system
- Replace rear bumper with RTE heavy duty bumper
- Install rock sliders
- Install skid plate and fuel tank armor
- raise air breather lines
- Machine transfer case cover and install new bolts
- Install ARB refrigerator
- "Might" Install storage drawer system
- Install kitchen system and propane tank
- "Might" invest in a performance chip for engine management system to maximize power and or fuel economy
- Increase airflow and overall performance of the secondary air injection cylinder heads
- Replace AC compressor
- Invest in spare power steering gearbox
- Replace headlights with UK spec headlight assemblies
- Protection bars for front wheel arch panels
- Custom interior center console update for my needs
- "Might" permanently remove back seats for maximum space and reduction of weight
- Address any other issues as needed

etc

 

[jonny.jpg]

Great build, and the most pictures I've seen in a single thread! My Xterra has been built over the eight years I've had it, and it's still in progress. I'm somewhat in the same predicament, with my wife and I wanting to buy a house, and whatnot.

Take all the time you need. I would say that we've all been there.


"Adventure is out there."
-Russell, Pixar's Up

 

[TRIARII]

Great build, and the most pictures I've seen in a single thread! My Xterra has been built over the eight years I've had it, and it's still in progress. I'm somewhat in the same predicament, with my wife and I wanting to buy a house, and whatnot.

Take all the time you need. I would say that we've all been there.



"Adventure is out there."
-Russell, Pixar's Up

Thanks mate. Your build looks great as well! What is a build thread without tons of pics and before/after comparison pics? I always enjoyed reading thru fellow member build threads, enjoy looking at all the pics and I enjoy learning about them. Felt it was time to contribute my own build as well. I cannot wait for the day that this build is complete so I can start work on a second expedition vehicle build. I like things in pairs But family and other responsibilities come first.