LDV Pilot - smashed mirror... and temporary fix

Someone's done that to the mirror of my van and ran away.

The cast alloy is smashed. The mirror itself is fine though.

Lucky I.

Looks like a dodgy fix?

It's holding on pretty well so far.

(Rope, metal wire, cable ties and inner tube cuts)

LDV Pilot - logbook

Apparently having a speed restricter on the engine makes it last longer.

LDV PIlot - logbook

The left rear bumper need to be fixed to the body.
The left rear light needs to be fixed to its support.

LDV Pilot Van - logbook

I offered to help carry a friend's giant puppets for a Latin American festival with the van last sunday. All went well until on the way back, my (only) key got stuck in the side door's lock. I managed to get it out but the lock is not functioning with the key anymore. I need to open it from the inside.
Not a big deal. It's more worrying that I only have one key for this van.

LDV Pilot Break down number 1- logbook

About a week ago, there was a heavy load in the back and the alternator belt and water pump belt snapped as I was driving.
The engine kept running and pulling the van so I could drive to a parking place.
Luckily it wasn't the timing belt but without those belts the cam/timing belt could get damages too.
With friends' help the belts were replaced. I was sold the wrong alternator belt but although it is too short it did the job (It doesn't fit the diagram and misses going around one of the tensioner but the tension is good). I'm not totally sure the water pump belt is the correct one either but it works.

I still have to find the right alternator belt, replace it with the right tension and I need to check the timing belt before any long distance trip.

LDV Pilot disel 1.9 DW8 engine manual

Link to forum

and to downloadable manual in a zip file

LDV Pilot Alternator belt diagram

Kingpins on LDV Pilot van

Don't forget to look after the kingpins on your LDV Pilot van.
They need regular greasing.

A thread on replacing kinpins from the Total -ldv-sherpa forum

(exert: "I bought a pair of new king pin kits off of Ebay for £47.80 delivered - don't try to do them on the van it's not worth wasting your time - Remove the front axle - an easy job, think of it like a meccano set!! this was the procedure I used.

Jack the van under the centre of the front axle
Support the body on both sides using the chassis rail under the doors and lower the weight of the van onto the supports. - Leave the jack in place for now.
Remove both front road wheels
Remove both front caliper to hub bolts and tie the calipers up out of the way - dont let them 'dangle' on their hydralic pipes.
Undo the hubnuts and remove the discs and bearings.
Disconnect the steering joints on the hubs - 2 on the drivers side and one on the Passenger.
Withdraw the steering bar that connects the two wheels together.
Remove the U Bolts which hold the axle to the springs (2 each side)
Lower the Jack and the axle will drop with it.

Now you have the axle off you can either find a friendly engineering firm or garage that has a press or as I did invest in a press that I had always promised myself (SHOP PRESS 20 TON NEW £141.99 inc delivery)

Or just buy an exchange 'off the shelf' reconditoned unit

The only 'minor' difficulty is setting the shims when reassembling - but I can advise on that if you need it. ")

Engine as it was

"With fuirther investigation I read today that THERE IS some differences between the 2001 and prior years to the LDV pilot 2002. Apparently LDV put DW8's in the last few Pilots made instead of the XUD9A, and you can tell the difference because the oil filter is on the back of the engine on the Pilot's XUD, and on a DW8 it's between the manifolds on the top of the engine. A friend of mine beleives that LDV probably did this because of the shift to EURO III emissions standards, but would have had to have fitted any 2002 LDV pilots with an EGR valve and probably would comply to the LEZ regulations also. " source

Description

• Red
• 6 seats
• 2003
• MOT til february 2013
• Taxed til

to be continued...

Test drive and Checklist - Buying (and selling)

Here is a compiled checklist for the used car buyer.
These are more like notes than a practical checklist but you could make one up for yourself from the notes and take it with you as you go see a vehicle.

USED CAR BUYER CHECKLIST

Questions to a private seller:

1. How many miles on the odometer?
2. Why are you selling?
3. How would you describe the condition of the car?
4. Who was the previous owner?
5. What kind of oil do you use in the car?
6. Where was this vehicle bought from?
7. What are you willing to sell the car for?
8. How long a test drive can I take?
9. Are you willing to let me get this inspected independently?
10. What's the last used car you sold?
11. Any accidents?
12. Do you have the log book?

CHECKLIST

• Oil leak where van is parked? (= possible clutch problem)
• Check oil + fuel measure on dashboard
• Exhaust (Must be in good condition, properly and securely attached)
• Brakes (Feel clutch whe parked and during test-driving)
• Tyres (3mm minimum thread + Should be evenly worn. If not = worn steering/suspension components/frame damage/road shock)
• Steering wheel, steer fully in both ways and feel ( + must be correctly aligned)
• Handbrake (must be fully operational)
• Cambelt (when was it replaced? Standard for: V-belt= every 4 years/36000kms; Serpentine-belt=50000kms) - note there can be 2 to 3 belts on certain engines (Timing belt/cambelt, alternator belt, fan belt. waterpump belt)

• Kingpins (must have been greased regularly on LDV Pilot vans!)

LIGHTS, SWITCHES,etc:

• Seatbelts
• Horn
• Mirrors
• Lights
• Hazard (must be bright)
• Headlights (must be bright)
• Rearlights (must be bright)
• Indicators (must be bright)
• Test all switches of dashboard
• Heater
• Wipers

BODY WORK:

• Dents
• Scratches
• Chips (windscreen)
• Outside panels in line + fully sealed
• Try locks + keys for rust issues (inside/out)
• Doors check + edges + hinges
• Check for rust everywhere
• Suspensions (push down on each wheel > it should bounce once only and feel sturdy)

UNDER HOOD:

Open Hood with engine running and listen for knocks, ticks, hisses (anything too obvious is not a good sign)

• Hoses, Belts > must have no cracks
• Radiator hoses > must not be soft
• On engine block, any dark brown oil stain = leak in gasket (costly)
• Check break fluid+ reservoir > must have no leak
• Check timing belt (if possible by eye/else ask about when it was replaced)
• Remove oil filter cap, if foam residue inside = leaking head gasket (costly)
• Check coolant condition in overflow, if filthy brown coolant = leaking head gasket (costly)
• Brake fluid, if dark = old + if low = brakes could be worn out
• Air filter check > paper filter, make sure there is no oil in it
• Check air intake on engine side of filter for oil > can be a sign of worn piston rings (=lots of miles + abuse)
• Open radiator cap > must hane no oil in antifreeze

WHILE PARKED with engine running,

Turn the steering wheel fully in both direction

• A squealing noise = slipping power steering pump drive belt = can be fixed by adjustment/overheating by friction may habe damaged the belated may need replacing.

• A growling noise = low power steering fluid = check/inspect reservoir/ likely caused by leaking power steering system > could be simply a hose or clamp/easily accessible seal OR a damaged steering rack = expensive

TEST DRIVE

• Accelerate/Brake/Ride/Corner/Park/Steer + sound& feel odd vibrations
• Does the vehicle pull to one side?
• Try the reverse gear

• Are there Jack and Tools?

• Ask for a BILL OF SALE: Party A (name/address/phone) sold this vehicle (details) to party B (name/address/phone)

Meanwhile watch this video

Driving in UK

Speed limits

UK road signs

New owner (4th)

Got the van on the 9th of august 2012 off an interesting car dealer from Mauritius in London UK.

It's a 2003 ex-Royal Mail red van.
It had 2 short-term owners (a DJ and a car dealer) after doing its time with the posties.

Ford banana engine 1900 cc in good running state:

• valve or rocket cover gasket is worn but oil is not leaking badly
• need checking of the cambelt (V-belt or serpentine belt?) as I hear a squeaky noise when the engine is running (should have been done when buying)
• fitted with a speed-limiter so the clutch needs to be pushed far in

Body is in good general condition

• rear bumper left side is going off (repairable or cheaply replaceable) as the rear left light is (cheaply replaceable) - this could mean that there had been a shock on the van but it doesn't look bad.

Had this been tempered with? Hard to tell. An advert on the web mentioned 60 000.... (??)

gaffotaped left rear light and notice the rear bumper has a different colour than the right one (sign of 'repair' = shock/accident)

Doors are generally well used

Interesting exhaust pipe which will need looking into...

the side sliding door works well but the lock doesn't always give the key back willingly

Not the actual engine on this van (which is very clean and looks almost new) but a DW8b euro 3 peugeot engine .