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Preparation Overview Trip Changes Broken Bits Vehicle Mechanical Electrical Security Protection Storage Recovery Paint Work Equipment Camping Kitchen Medical Navigation Kit List Documentation Carnet Driving Permits Shipping Handy Hints and Tips Finance Insurance Training Courses Information Embassies Country Information The Home left Behind Islam Camp Life Visa's Trip Changes - Broken Bits No adventure would be a challenge if things didn’t go wrong, however big or small. Well since our journey began a number of things have broken or been lost that have involved annoyance and a replacement having to be sought. Below is a list and description that no doubt will continue to expand the further to the finish line we get. Fuse Shortage Our first issue came as early as Croatia during some morning fog. Basically whilst using the rear fog light, a short circuit occurred and caused the fuse to catch fire! This stopped as soon as the engine was turned off, and forever since the fuse has been removed and the switch disconnected so it can not be used. Not ideal but not a requirement of travelling. Lost Fork Not a major issue but during one camp on sand we managed to lose one of our forks. Thankfully we had prepared for this and packed a fifth as a spare! Tent Cover The location of the ladder and the cover on the EasyAwn tent means that they sit against each other and rub. This with the constant opening and closing, especially once we reached the hotter climates as the cover gets very soft, has meant that a hole has appeared. Thankfully the hole has only been against one section of the ladder and we now use a towel in between the ladder and cover, along with some rubber to be glued across the hole in order to make it water tight again. I would suggest attaching something strong in this spot before departure or as a minimum always use some carpet or lino when packing the tent away. Front Diff The biggest problem and the issue that has had the most impact on the trip so far. The short story is that the front differential broke causing no forward momentum and locking the back wheels whilst near Dongala in Sudan. Without knowing the actual cause the following 400km was travelled without the propshafts attached, through the help of friends towing us. The initial symptoms were shown before the locking wheels. We had been driving across sand so the diff-lock was engaged. When we cleared the sandy area and the diff-lock was disengaged the engine simply revved and no forward momentum was given from the vehicle. Putting the diff-lock back on meant momentum was again obtained. A quick check underneath showed that the front propshaft could be easily turned round by hand, something that should not happen. Next we jacked each front wheel and turned them to see if either would turn the propshaft (if one did and the other didn’t then it would be an issue with the half shaft or CV Joint), however in our case neither turned the propshaft. The next step should have been to remove the front propshaft, keep the diff-lock engaged and then driven to Khartoum in simple rear wheel drive. Instead we progressed a bit further to try and reach the next town to resolve when the rear locked up causing a long scary skid. This then put doubt in our minds at the problem so both propshafts were removed and we were towed. However it later came to light that the front propshaft and front diff must have jammed, causing a domino effect to the rear wheels. The resolution was to replace the front differential in Khartoum as the pinion shaft (small piece of metal that goes through the middle of the diff keeping the cogs in place) had broken into three pieces. It also meant that when it all jammed some large chunks were taken out of the metal casing! Thankfully all half-shafts and other components were okay. Window Chip Whilst on a simple test drive to Meroe in Sudan to check the new work, a mini sand storm decided to launch a stone at our window. No other vehicles were near and when we thought all was ago we get a good 1cm sized chip. Still not major and we will continue without replacing as there is no crack. Combination Lock Whilst frantically packing up camp in order to race to the hospital, Katie managed to yank the rear door open with the combination lock closed. This meant that her phenomenal strength also pulled the combination part of the lock straight out, rivets and all. Easily fixed by some new rivets, but it secures in an area that isn’t that strong due to the thickness of metal and limited surface for the rivets to grip properly. Bent Awning During a lovely lunch break in Sudan the wind suddenly changed direction and gave a mighty gust that flipped the awning up and over the Land Rover. Unfortunately this ended up causing the horizontal pole, which links from the vehicle to the upright poles, to bend. This made the awning useless as the bent bar could no longer house the other bar that gets pushed into it. Thankfully Philippe the handy Frenchman was at hand and we slowly managed to bend back the aluminium pole to be straight enough to work again. This was a tricky task as aluminium is prone to splitting when stressed. We managed by placing another pole inside the bent one to act as a strengthening piece and then slowly and surely easing the bent bar flat. We now always peg down the upright poles through the loops at the base, something that for a few seconds each time saves a lot of hassle and heartache. Chipped Transfer Another insignificant issue but never the less still frustrating but as we left the Hospital courtyard in Sudan the metal gate swung back against the moving vehicle and chipped out a small chunk of the Africa transfer on the side of Gweneveer. This was easily resolved with some black paint. Bowl During our time in Sudan one of our bowls fell of the shelf they are stored on and smashed into several pieces, most of which could not be found to be glued back together. We didn’t bring spares so have picked up a local bowl instead. Wolf Box Catch Our storage boxes have four catches on the lid that clip into the base to make it nice and secure. The boxes are supposed to be very strong and so far we would agree. However the catches didn’t realise they would have to contend with Katie and one snapped in half when it was being opened. Something else we didn’t bring spares of even though we knew it was a potential. Front Spot Light The roads of Ethiopia are very rough and full of corrugations. This seemed too much for one of the Britpart round driving spot lights that we have on the A-Bar as it fell out of the rear housing and smashed on the rocky road. Not realising what it was and thinking it was something we had driven over we continued for the remaining hour. We then noticed the missing light and cover, hopefully we can find a replacement. Admittedly this was not something we had checked to make sure they were secure, but now everything is tucked before each day! Shock Absorber Issues (All of them!) The first failure was with both front shock absorbers on the badly corrugated north Kenyan road. The simple shocks could not handle the workload of 250km of deep rutted, corrugated dirt road, even with rest/cooling down times. Instead the first one boiled over, followed quickly by the second causing them to spray hot fluid all over the wheel arch. These have been replaced by Genuine shock absorbers. We then had one of the rear remote reservoir shocks leak through a failed seal a few weeks later in Kenya. It seems that the dust covers do not protect well enough and not only have they all split, but the lower bracket seems to change shape so the cover no longer sits comfortably. This shock was replaced with a spare that we carried. In Malawi the welding of the shock absorber shaft broke from the bottom bracket. This was then re-welded back onto the bracket, at a cost equal to the actual shock absorber. This was explained by Frogs Island 4x4 as to be due to the tightness of the bottom bolt that secures the shock absorber to the axle. However they fitted the suspension for me. Vacuum Pump Broke, Several Times It seems we have had a run of bad luck with Vacuum Pumps and are on our third replacement. The first broke on the northern Kenyan road, but it was old and had been reconditioned before. This was replaced by us for it to then brake a week later. Another replacement was fitted by a garage, which stopped working after a few thousand kilometres. Luckily this was replaced by them for free but didn’t stop the annoyance as we were in another country. NOTE: Vacuum Pumps are expensive (like most parts) in Africa, Kenya was four times that of the UK. Rear Anti Rollbar Fell Off Due to the harsh condition of the northern Kenyan road the brackets for the anti-roll bar to be bolted to the chassis broke away. These brackets are welded onto the chassis and therefore it is an easy fix of simply welding them back on. However the garage messed up the refit and a week later the bolt supporting the roll-bar to the ball joints on the axle was missing. Half Shafts Worn More of a maintenance issue but both rear half shafts were worn at the diff end and were causing a knocking on take up. Effectively the teeth had been twisted. Once replaced the noise also vanished. Gear Box Leakage This continues to be an issue even towards the end of the trip. The leak comes from the seal between the gearbox and transfer box and to fix means taking both out (a costly job) so we are currently just maintaining the level and have done since Egypt! Note that the liquid is on the bottom Transfer Box, but the two fluids are different so easy to tell the difference. Front Left Wheel Bearing Collapsed Although hearing some rattling and something not right, we were travelling along a dirt road so there are always noises. As soon as we reached tarmac the noise grew. The outer bearing had collapsed and was in pieces inside the hub. Repairing on the side of the road proved successful, but damage to the stub axle meant we could not remove the inner bearing (which was still good). Knocking From Engine A loud knocking noise came from the engine causing great panic. Luckily we were in Nakuru and took it to a garage, though they never really worked out the exact problem; replacing one of the fuel injectors had the biggest change, the rest was adjusting gaps and small plays. Front Right Wheel Bearing Destroyed Unlike before when we had a warning this bearing broke instantly on tarma and melted onto the stub axle. Again we could not remove the inner bearing, though again this one was finr. However the outer bearing had heated to the point of joining onto the stub axle and eventually needed an angle grinder to smooth down so we could put on a spare. This forced us to replace both stub axles and fit new bearings. NOTE: Don’t force on a bearing as they will split, it should easily slide on. Our advice is to ensure you use genuine part bearings. Do Not use britpart as they are not up to the job. Clutch Slave Cylinder Leakage Began to have issues with the clutch, with the fluid level going down rapidly. It turned out to be the clutch slave cylinder leaking. Thankfully we carried a spare and it is an easy replacement. Note that we always lost a little bit of fluid but didn’t think much of it, now we don’t lose any. Transfer Box Leakage Due To Bearing Worn We noticed a leak from the Transfer Box through the front output shaft, where the propshaft joins. This seal is replaceable with the gearbox in place so it was renewed, however this instantly failed as it was the play caused by a worn bearing for the output shaft that was at fault. This was stripped and a replacement, along with replacement housing installed. The easiest check is that there should not be any play where the propshaft joins anything. Starting Failure Initially had intermittent issues starting which eventually got to be every time. On turning the key we had a short of the lights on the rear of the car and a delay for the oil and battery lights to come on. After testing everything and expecting it to be a starter motor issue it turned out to be the main Negative cable was not connected correctly to the gearbox after the above work was completed. Swivel Housing Leakage The front swivel housing leaks fluid out of the rear of the housing. It seems that this is due to the seal becoming faulty due to pitting in the swivel housing. Not going to replace as already in South Africa, instead we will maintain the level. Fuelling Issues The car begins to lose power and then picks up again for a while then drops power again. This occurred in Malawi but we drove through the problem as not severe. The second and much worse was in Namibia, were we think it was a clogged Fuel Filter but when we replaced it the problem persisted. We then tried to bleed the fuel system but initially not well enough. Once bled completely the system was fine (something to learn at home to do!) Rocker Bolt and Rocker Cover Bolt Thread Stripped After replacing the seal on the Rocker Cover it seemed that the bolt that both the rocker cover and the rocker uses had stripped the thread it bites onto in the cylinder head. Although a temporary solution was used as deeper thread existed it did not last long. Instead a longer bolt was threaded and this screwed deep into the remaining thread. So far this is holding but fear of meddling prevents trying to tighten the cover further to reduce an oil leakage. Transfer Box Mud Shield Loose For weeks we had a random metallic noise that would happen at random intervals regardless of speed, gear or terrain. After worrying and trying all kinds of things to identify the whereabouts of the noise (such as removing propshafts, rebuilding wheel bearings) it suddenly got more constant and even louder. What we didn’t know was it is not meant to spin, it should be fixed to the metal section the Prop Shaft bolts onto. Even going to a garage confused them until we ventured upon a gearbox specialist who knew instantly. A couple of quick welds and it was silence again. Steering Drop Arm Bolt Loose Although this was replaced and fitted by a Land Rover Dealer in the UK it became lose, to the point of almost losing it. According to the manual it is meant to be fitted with a lock washer, similar to wheel bearings. This lock washer seems to have been left out, hence the problem. It is a tricky size and only a truck mechanic seemed to have the right size socket. But even this has since come loose.