“Feeling good about the Rover right now. New injectors made a big difference, it’s running smoother and making more power. Many hours of fiddling with the injection pump may have paid off, better cold start and less smoke.”

The Land Rover project is about three months behind schedule, to the extent there was ever a schedule. The 2.25 liter diesel engine simply wasn’t performing the way Mr. Wolf thought it should. Too much smoke. Just not right. Until today the working assumption was a problem with the o-rings on the injectors.

“The ones that were in there originally seemed like they weren’t big enough (not a tight fit) but everything else I could find wouldn’t allow the injector to fit in the bore. Given that the actual injector seal is accomplished by a copper sealing washer AND an aluminum crush-washer, I think the o-ring is really only there to keep debris from falling in. Therefore I’m thinking that the slightly loose fit is actually just fine, but I’m open to being proven wrong. So I reassembled it with the old o-rings.”

Whether or not I’ll be able to find someone to keep a 40 year old diesel engine running well enough to make the Land Rover an everyday truck remains to be seen. Which is why Mr. Wolf is going to such great pains to get the engine right before he send the truck my way. But this has always been more about fun than easy.

It’s been a long time since I drove a car (or truck) without power steering or brakes. The Land Rover has neither and I’ve been told it’s like learning to drive all over again. With that in mind, Mr. Wolf is giving extra attention to the brakes on my truck. Adjusting drum brakes is something of an art, I’m told.