Novice day Tallarook 14th December family friendly

[mudski]

Well gave the troll a blast with the high pressure washer at the local car wash about 3 mins up the road from my place on Tuesday night. Didn't do the engine bay, but did the under carriage. Now it's making a sound like I've done a bearing in the turbo. It doesn't make sense that it would happen after washing it? The car was not hot when I washed it. Any clues? Sounds like a dry bearing

I reckon its going to be one of two things Paule. Both I have just replaced in the last two days.

1. Fan belt idler pulley bearing
2. Air Cond idler bearing.

Take the belt off and spin both of these pulleys. The a/c bearing takes around three hours to replace. You need a three jaw gear puller to remove the pulley from the pump, and a press to remove and refit the bearing from the pulley. The replacement bearing is around $40 from a reputable bearing shop. The a/c pump on these motors is in a terrible spot, down low and it cops everything. This is the second bearing I have replaced in the 2.5years I have owned the car. I now keep one spare in my tool box.
If the a/c idler is dry, squirt a shit load of CRC or Inox behind the front cover over the pump to clean the crap out. It may help but if the bearing is fubar, it will need to be replaced. I would say I could do the a/c bearing for you as I have the tools to do it and I have done it twice before, but I have been told there is two different pumps used, so the bearing will be different and I haven't worked out how to identify the differences. any a/c mob could replace it for you though.
The idler pulley bearing, you can use a 62032RS bearing but its 2mm narrower than the OEM bearing. A WC85703 bearing is .3mm wider than OEM but is still good. You need a vice or a press to remove and refit too. One eBay there is the cheap aftermarket ider pulley assemblies. Around $80 they are. Good to replace if you are stuck but shithouse to rely on. The little dampener lasted around 6months I think on mine before it blew up and spewed oil all over a good belt. Now the bearing has shat itself in a big way.

Cheers.
Mark

[MEGOMONSTER]

My damage report. Dinged the sub tank in the corner where the sump plug is and is leaking diesel.

Fix it report and cost.
Cost $0.00
It was a loose sump bung, got tightened, now no leaks.
But have no found the fog light out on the bull bar and the trailer socket has the flapping lid break off.

[mudski]

Fix it report and cost.
Cost $0.00
It was a loose sump bung, got tightened, now no leaks.
But have no found the fog light out on the bull bar and the trailer socket has the flapping lid break off.

Still going with my repairs. Lol.

My Damage Report.

• Smashed belt idler bearing - Fixed
• Just about to let go a/c idler bearing - Fixed
• A now very jumpy clutch - Shudders - Bled the clutch fluid, tis' a little better but the thrust bearing is noisy a hell. Still jumpy too.
• Water logged headlights and indicators - See pic, doing this now
• All brake calipers need to be removed and properly cleaned. - Yet to do...
• Radiator fins blocked. - Yet to do
• Effing mud in every bloody place in and under the car! - Got most of it...
• Suspect alternator too! I get wierd noises under the hood whilst revving the motor, sound like the alternator brushes are fubar! Dunno though. Will get to it though.

I have also put new gearbox oil in, I will be doing the LSD, transfer case and front diff too. Plus remove the front hubs and check for water.

[Drewboyaus]

To the guys who went on this trip, I've been carefully considering whether to post but feel I should set the record straight as it has been bothering me.

It was a good effort by everyone to run the trip with the last minute withdrawal of Jonathan however I'm very concerned about people turning around on a steep hill climb and I believe I should point out the danger involved. I'm not having a go at anyone here by the way, just feel I should point out to the novices on that trip that there is a correct way to approach that situation.

Steep and challenging hill climbs should only be approached and attempted one car at a time and either straight up or straight back and that particular hill is probably on the "significantly challenging" side of things for a novice 4WDer because of how loose it is together with the steep gradient. Those cars that were stuck on the hill should have winched to the top (if it couldn't be driven) as one or two did or reversed the entire way back to the beginning. The opportunity for a roll-over on that hill was huge particularly with a number of inexperienced (relatively) people there. Being on such a slope particularly one with such an unstable base means it takes such a small amount to put a vehicle out of balance. Many people here commented on the Range Rover roll over video that is posted in another thread and if you haven't seen it you should check it out as it really shows how little it takes to totally shift the balance of a vehicle and send it back down a hill in a hurry. The (significantly) lesser risk was to proceed forward to the top.
It was a great opportunity to set up a vehicle to winch or snatch those who needed help up that hill for some good old fashioned recovery technique practise.

Anyway, like I said before I'm not having a go at anyone, I really just wanted to highlight just how dangerous turning around on a steep climb is and perhaps what an appropriate alternative course of action could have been.
Cheers,
Drew

Sent from my iPhone using Forum Runner

[mudski]

Yes I hear you Drew. Having said that, too me in the car it felt worse than what it was actually standing on the ground. The other guys were no way as near concerned as I was. We had a sectioned that leveled off more than the track wre we used as the turning point. If it wasnt safe to do so I would not have done it I tell you. It just that feeling you have of the car leaning in a direction your not used too.

[Winnie]

To the guys who went on this trip, I've been carefully considering whether to post but feel I should set the record straight as it has been bothering me.

It was a good effort by everyone to run the trip with the last minute withdrawal of Jonathan however I'm very concerned about people turning around on a steep hill climb and I believe I should point out the danger involved. I'm not having a go at anyone here by the way, just feel I should point out to the novices on that trip that there is a correct way to approach that situation.

Steep and challenging hill climbs should only be approached and attempted one car at a time and either straight up or straight back and that particular hill is probably on the "significantly challenging" side of things for a novice 4WDer because of how loose it is together with the steep gradient. Those cars that were stuck on the hill should have winched to the top (if it couldn't be driven) as one or two did or reversed the entire way back to the beginning. The opportunity for a roll-over on that hill was huge particularly with a number of inexperienced (relatively) people there. Being on such a slope particularly one with such an unstable base means it takes such a small amount to put a vehicle out of balance. Many people here commented on the Range Rover roll over video that is posted in another thread and if you haven't seen it you should check it out as it really shows how little it takes to totally shift the balance of a vehicle and send it back down a hill in a hurry. The (significantly) lesser risk was to proceed forward to the top.
It was a great opportunity to set up a vehicle to winch or snatch those who needed help up that hill for some good old fashioned recovery technique practise.

Anyway, like I said before I'm not having a go at anyone, I really just wanted to highlight just how dangerous turning around on a steep climb is and perhaps what an appropriate alternative course of action could have been.
Cheers,
Drew

Sent from my iPhone using Forum Runner

Great post Drew.

[Drewboyaus]

Yes I hear you Drew. Having said that, too me in the car it felt worse than what it was actually standing on the ground. The other guys were no way as near concerned as I was. We had a sectioned that leveled off more than the track wre we used as the turning point. If it wasnt safe to do so I would not have done it I tell you. It just that feeling you have of the car leaning in a direction your not used too.

That may be but its not a good technique to be teaching the novices that were there. It's the first thing you get taught in the beginner driver training courses accredited by 4WD Vic.
I don't want to get into an argument about it because I wasn't there (unfortunately) but there are better ways to deal with the situation.

Sent from my iPhone using Forum Runner

[cgm]

It's hard to comment on the specifics as we were at the bottom and I never saw the hill, but all of what you've said Drew is really good advice. No one should be offended by what you've said. Even for the guys that were obviously experienced enough to do it and get away with it (they did come back down without incident), it is probably good to think about for next time. I think an additional issue for the trip was that the group was too big for a single convoy (12 vehicles I think) in that hilly area. This put pressure on those up front to try and keep things moving. I don't know, but am guessing this added to the decision to avoid the winching if it wasn't necessary. Next time with such a big group we probably should bite the bullet and split in two, just to take that pressure off.

Most of my hill climb stuff has been in the dunes. It is the same golden rule there that in any hill situation to keep the pointy end pointing up. I've seen a few videos on youtube recently where they have rolled on a hill and you would not have thought it was going to happen. It's a good reminder that it obviously doesn't take much, so thanks for posting.

[Winnie]

The title of the trip was "novice trip", sorry but you guys should not have been anywhere near that track. It's full on and not for novices

[Hodge]

Drew has a very good point, and I'm glad he has brought this up again, as that moment has popped up in my head a few times everytime I watch 4x4 vids or talk about it.
It may or may not have been my idea initially to reverse down a bit and turn around. I honestly cannot remember how it ended up being decided..
From my personal point of view, and I think I've mentioned it before, I've never been in such a scenario so, inexperience and lack of judgement kicked in. I looked up, and saw the hill ahead and went "oh s#it". Then I looked down and saw all the cars still coming up, and again, "oh s#it".

I think at that point I was talking to Bacho86 about turning around, as there was a kind of a flat spot just there. There was no point attempting to drive up as, up the top was a dead end. Mego, fletch and sean smashed and winched their way to the top.
3 cars turned around, and 1 reversed down further from memory. Cars were never gonna roll I don't think, it just felt "wrong". Still doesn't make it right though. In the end I walked to the car to reverse down my self, and Big mego and fletch were just ahead and in the end i decided ferk it, and drove it.
No blame game, purely just in-experience. My 5 cents.