Discovery 2 300 tdi engine swap.

bobkitten

Well-known member
Oct 19, 2010
53
0
I have a 2000 Disco 2 with the 4.0 v8 engine. Really want to get rid of that engine. A little too thirsty for me.

I am considering the 300 tdi engine swap because of the simplicity of the engine. The TD5 is just too much work and it is a bit unstable.

Anyone on here done this swap? What challenges do i have to look out for? What electronic gizmos am I likely to loose?


A by the way question. I want to change my headlights to the facelift ones from the 2004 model. Do they make those with angel eyes in them? I think they would look rather nice that way but i cannot find any with them installed. If not, can those headlights open so i can install them myself? Did this before with my bimmer headlights.
 

helievacpilot

Well-known member
Mar 29, 2007
960
0
Denver CO
Do a search on the diesel swap. Can be done but WAY complicated and expensive to do the job right. Plenty of info on the headlight swap as well.
- Bill
 

bobkitten

Well-known member
Oct 19, 2010
53
0
I have been searching. I am only finding info on guys discussing and hypothesizing of what to do. Anybody out there did the swap or was involved in it? I am thinking of gutting the v8 electronics and hooking her up as a 300tdi.

Will i lose anything valuable from the v8 setup? I don't care for warming seats, or dimming mirrors or whatever over the top luxuries their might be. My biggest concern would be things like ABS, and my guages reading right, and setting up my A/C as i live in the tropics.
 

bobkitten

Well-known member
Oct 19, 2010
53
0
Concerning the headlights. The swap is no problem. I found info on that. It is the Angel Eyes i am inquiring about. Just a lil something that I personally like.
 

whatroad

Banned
Mar 8, 2007
631
0
Union, ME
bobkitten said:
I have been searching. I am only finding info on guys discussing and hypothesizing of what to do. Anybody out there did the swap or was involved in it? I am thinking of gutting the v8 electronics and hooking her up as a 300tdi.

Will i lose anything valuable from the v8 setup? I don't care for warming seats, or dimming mirrors or whatever over the top luxuries their might be. My biggest concern would be things like ABS, and my guages reading right, and setting up my A/C as i live in the tropics.[/QUOTE

Gutting the electronics eh?..... sell the truck and start with a D1, seriously. Pre '95, it's a far easier swap. You are way over your head on this one, and incorrectly informed. Think of how many gallons of fuel you could buy for the cost of the swap. Keep doing your homework.
 

bobkitten

Well-known member
Oct 19, 2010
53
0
I live in Barbados. So the swap is much more economical here. 300tdi engines are a dime a dozen. The v8 engine is shunned like the plague.

Diesel is also very cheap compared to gasoline here. So i will see returns on it very soon. Coupled with the fact that i can source an engine and transmission for about US$2grand, and everyone here knows how to work on the diesels and parts are abundant, it makes the diesel swap an easy decision.
 

whatroad

Banned
Mar 8, 2007
631
0
Union, ME
bobkitten said:
I live in Barbados. So the swap is much more economical here. 300tdi engines are a dime a dozen. The v8 engine is shunned like the plague.

Diesel is also very cheap compared to gasoline here. So i will see returns on it very soon. Coupled with the fact that i can source an engine and transmission for about US$2grand, and everyone here knows how to work on the diesels and parts are abundant, it makes the diesel swap an easy decision.


OK, that makes a little more sense. Still, you would be better of with a D1. It's a lot of work to fit a diesel into a D2 and have everything work as it should..... by any chance, is your D2 a manual or automatic?
 

bobkitten

Well-known member
Oct 19, 2010
53
0
D1's are here but they are pricey because they are in demand. Sadly we only really have 3 door D1's. Want a 4 door as i am a family man. I got this D2 at a steal because of the v8 engine. Absolutely no one wants it. Been sitting in a shed for months. It is a real beauty.

It allowed me to purchase it for next to nothing with plenty of money for a swap. Labor here for these sorts of jobs is not expensive. If i lived in the U.S i would not even bother. Over here however it is not so bad to do the swap.

My main concern is not costs or difficulty, it is doing it right. That is where hopefully u guys will come in handy.

Fear not. Once it begins i will take plenty photos and drop plenty of info here.
 

bobkitten

Well-known member
Oct 19, 2010
53
0
Thanks none the less for the assistance so far. And i understand your concerns. Just that many of them don't exactly apply to my situation.
 

bobkitten

Well-known member
Oct 19, 2010
53
0
Anybody.... Somebody.... hit me with the accountable list lol. I hope I don't seem rude. It is just that i keep getting general statements like that. Just need it a bit more specific and itemized information.
 

bobkitten

Well-known member
Oct 19, 2010
53
0
From the Factory they come with the TD5 yes. But swapping for the TD5 is very very difficult. Lots of electronics to account for. ECU not the same, throttle is electronically controlled, so as transmission, and just about every thign on the TD5 is electronically controlled.

The 300 tdi is a very simple engine. Can run with 1 wire I am told. The TD5 engine and gearbox is also very very pricey still. And just about the same fabricating for the 300tdi is required to put it in the v8 D2 as it does for the 300tdi, because gasoline engines mount very differenty because of the vibration pattern is much different than diesel engines.
 

aliastel

Well-known member
Sep 27, 2009
942
0
Champaign, IL
bobkitten said:
From the Factory they come with the TD5 yes. But swapping for the TD5 is very very difficult. Lots of electronics to account for. ECU not the same, throttle is electronically controlled, so as transmission, and just about every thign on the TD5 is electronically controlled.

The 300 tdi is a very simple engine. Can run with 1 wire I am told. The TD5 engine and gearbox is also very very pricey still. And just about the same fabricating for the 300tdi is required to put it in the v8 D2 as it does for the 300tdi, because gasoline engines mount very differenty because of the vibration pattern is much different than diesel engines.

The fabrication/installation of the mounts is the least of your worries on a swap like this. That's easy. It's integrating the electronics that's going to require a lot of creativity. For example, your tranny is controlled electronically on a D2, so you are going to need a stand alone controller, such as Ashcroft sells. This is in addition to the fact that the tranny/torque converter are tuned for a V8, so it's going to have to have to be retuned/modded, or an HP22 swapped in. Then things like the ABS and pretty much everything else is integrated with the V8 ECU, so that means that if you want to keep these working, you're going to have to somehow retain the ECU with the 300 Tdi (which doesn't require one), just to run everything else. However, the ECU isn't going to like being there without being attached to the engine, so custom reprogramming will be necessary. The only way around this I can see is to somehow rewire the entire vehicle so that everything can work without the computers. You'd have to lose the ABS in this case, I think. Like someone said above, you'd be much better off just getting a D1, if you aren't dead set on the D2. In my opinion there are a lot more good reasons to go with the D1 besides the ease of swapping in a 300 Tdi. Member Roving Beetle could probably give you a good idea of how to go about all of this, since he had to deal with a lot of the same problems when he swapped an Isuzu 4BD1t into his D2.
 
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Levi

Well-known member
Jul 27, 2004
559
26
Cheyenne, WY
Here is a very generic starting list copied from http://www.landroverimport.com/products.html

Tdi conversions generally involve;
-unless you have a 4cylinder engine you will need to move and fabricate engine mounts on chassis
-replace auto transmission with diesel one.
-remove fuel pump in fuel tank
-remove plastic insert in fuel filler neck
-remove in line fuel filter
-custom clutch lines if a manual transmission
-custom power steering lines (both cheap at your local hydraulics shop.)
-wiring loom can be tapped into to connect temp sender, oil warning light, alternator warning light, tacho, starter wiring stays the same, coil power goes to the injection pump.
-diesel fuel filter mounted to firewall
-radiator/intercooler drops in to replace V8 unit
-exhaust system is best taken care of by your local muffler shop
 

teledan

Well-known member
May 7, 2010
325
4
Utah
I don't believe I have ever heard of someone doing this swap in a D2. I think Roving Beetle put an isuzu 4bd1t in a D2. I don't know if that would help at all.
 

bobkitten

Well-known member
Oct 19, 2010
53
0
Well i am open to other options. Lots of Isuzu's here as well. To aliastel. As i am taking out the transmission all together that is no issue. Will use the gearbox meant to work with the 300tdi. Will make my life simpler.
 

bobkitten

Well-known member
Oct 19, 2010
53
0
And completly gutting the D2 is an option i am considering. Though losing the Abs sucks once it works otherwise i will be happy.