1998-2007 Land Rover Defender Td5 4x4 Review - Land Rover Owner International Magazine
Cylinder heads crack around the injectors on vehicles with engine number prefix 10P. A symptom is diesel in the sump. the oil level rises and the dipstick smells dieselly. The engine might run-on after switching off, which can be very serious. Engines with a number starting 15P don’t have problems, and vehicles with ’52 registrations or newer will be ok. Check the paperwork to see if early vehicles have been rectified. The heads were originally positioned with plastic dowels, which meant the casting could move fractionally. Steel dowels were used from VIN 2A622424. Check the service paperwork to see if earlier engines have been fixed. A bolt retaining the oil pump sprocket can come loose – sprocket comes off, no oil, goodbye engine. Fuel pressure regulators are a typical Td5 issue, they leak – there’ll be a smell of diesel, and wetness down the back of the engine. Crank position sensors sometimes go faulty, causing bad running, but they’re cheap to replace. Check where the pipes clamp, under the water pump, for wetness and colour from antifreeze stains. Some replacement radiators were suspect quality and developed joint leaks, so check the radiator. Finally the old favourite: injector-harness, which goes right under the engine’s cam cover, connecting to electronic injectors. Source: www.lro.com
