[Esha]

Living here in Alaska, we do lots of silly things such as adding all kinds of things to our cars to keep them toasty warm in the winter. With my IIa, I am a bit worried about it starting when it get's cold. I don't plan on driving it daily but don't want to worry about the battery not getting enough juice due to having a generator rather than an alternator?

Can you get alternators for the IIa? In British Pacific, I have only seen them offered for III.

Esha

 

[Bogatyr]

Esha,
Sure, you can fit an alternator into a IIa, you'll have to do away with the voltage regulator as the alternators are internally regulated. There are a number of writeups on the web about using a Delco 10si alternator in there, which produces something like 80 amps as opposed to the 37 or so the Lucas alternator replaces, compare that to what the genny creates...what is it 22? 17?

In any case, if your generator is operating properly and you're not draining the battery you should be fine with the generator. However, if you run the lights, a radio, the fan and maybe an accessory or two you might use more than the genny is putting out...

Also, if you have the luxury of a heated garage...it's much easier on starting the vehicle...

Bogatyr

 

[Greg S]

A lot of the "hard starting" problem with Land Rovers in the winter (read "COLD" weather) is not lack of power in the battery so much as trying to suck air through almost frozen oil in the air cleaner. Swap to a paper element or something like a K&N. I left the stock intake hose in place and mounted a big round K&N in place of the oil bath and zap strap it to the bracket for the original cleaner. --Presto--- easier winter starting!

Generator or Alternator? An alternator NEEDS some juice to start charging. A generator doesn't even need a battery hooked up to start or charge and run your vehicle. No battery or dead battery and you can still push start your generator equiped Land Rover. In the same situation with an alternator you are dead in the water till you get a charge to excite it to begin the charge cycle.

 

[Esha]

Series IIa Generator

I found out that the worst problem I am having with the generator out here in the cold is letting it spend a few minutes warming up before I go anywhere. I was told that the generator doesn't charge up the battery at idle and so I should make sure that the lights and fan is off when I start it in the mornings. Which would be fine, but sure does make for cold snowy mornings.

It was also suggested that I add a trickle charger to the battery so when I plug in all the accessories to keep the beastie warm, I will be sure to have a fully charged battery in the morning.

 

[Bogatyr]

Esha,
Yeah, where you are a trickle charger isn't a bad idea.

Do you have a block heater? I know WiseOwl sells one that screws into the port on the left side of the block towards the back. It would be fiddly to install with the manifolds in place, but if I lived in Fairbanks I think I'd go through the trouble.

Say, what oil are you running in that thing for the winter?

Bogatyr

 

[Esha]

There is a block heater installed. I haven't taken the time yet to see if it works. Oddly enough, the one vehicle I bought as a project car is my least worry. I also have a Subaru and an old Ford F-150 and both of them went down at the same time.

I've read a couple of posts around here dealing with oil, and don't really recognize them. I don't know what's in my IIa. Still trying to figure out if I need to replace those parts on the starter drive shaft before I put it back together. Was planning on draining all the fluids and topping off with fresh when I get a chance. I also want to replace all the fluid hoses at the same time. Since it's been sitting for so long, I worry about the condition of the rubber.

Any suggestions on oil or other fluids?

 

[Bogatyr]

Esha,
Oh, the starter...forgot about that thread. There was something wiggling around right? I have a few spares on the shelf here and they both wiggle around a little...not a whole bunch...but I'm not sure how much of a reference point that should be as these were pulled from trucks that weren't running...

As far as oil, I'm running Shell Rotella 15w40 in my truck. If I end up running the thing when it gets really cold, I'll prolly put one of the synth diesel oils in it, 5w40, like Delo or Rotella synth...I don't have a diesel engine, but the detergent package in these oils is really good, especially for an engine like mine that had been sitting for a number of years and is still in a bit of a cleanup phase...

Bogatyr

 

[Esha]

Why a 5W40? Commonly up here, most everyone goes from a 10W30 in summer to a 5W30 in the winter. Just curious if landys like their oils a bit thicker or if it's older engines....

I was also wondering about the synthetic... For now, I thought the synthetic would be less likely to buildup and more likely to leak out if possible.


And do you recommend the a 5w40 for both the engine and tranny oils? I would say that my s2a has definitely sat for a quite a while and is in need of at least inspection. Before the starter went out, it was running better than my truck.

Melanie

 

[Bogatyr]

Esha,
Yeah, I think the tolerances on the Rover engines were such that thicker oils aren't a big deal. IIRC 10w40 was specified in my original owner's manual.

There are a lot of old wives tales about synthetic oil, most of which come from the early 70s when the stuff was hitting the market in large numbers. There were instances of leaks etc due to the formulation, which has since changed.

Now, your tranny, tcase and diffs should all take 90wt. For the winter, you might want to try something synthetic as well. I currently have RedLine MT90 in the tranny and tcase...makes shifting a little easier at cooler temps.

Bogatyr