How to clean the main earthing points on a Land Rover
The Land Rover has been suffering from some slow starts in the mornings recently.
It has been bloody cold, and the I have been running some vegetable oil mixed with diesel, but it still seemed to struggle a little.
My old Discovery had the same problem, and it was cured by cleaning the earthing points on the battery and engine, so for peace of mind I decided to check they were weren't too corroded and that they were making good contact with the chassis.
Well it turned out they were a bit manky, so this is how I cleaned them up.
Cleaning the battery and engine earth points on a Land Rover
This is a simple little job that will only take 10 minutes.
For the job you will need:
- Socket set (Usually a 13mm socket or spanner will do)
- 240 grit sandpaper
- Wirebrush
- Copper grease
The main engine earthing point on the Land Rover Defender is on the nearside chassis leg, just behind the engine mount. It ensures the engine has a good earth - if it doesn't have a good connection, it may struggle to start (amongst other things).
1: In the photo above you will see the main engine earthing point onto the chassis. Undo the nut and remove the earthing strap.
2: Take the wire brush and clean the earth point on the chassis thoroughly.
3: Use the sandpaper to clean the earthing strap. Make sure you have some new shiny metal showing to ensure a good earth.
4: Add some copper grease around the chassis earth point and the earth strap. (see pic on right) The copper grease helps stop any further corrosion and helps make a good electrical connection.
5: Place the earthing strap back onto the chassis and tighten the nut.
You then need to locate the main earthing point for the battery, which in a Land Rover Defender is on the chassis just behind the battery box under the passenger seat.
6: Repeat steps 1 - 5 for the battery earthing point.
The photos below show the battery earth point before and after.
Did it work? Yeah it did - the engine is a lot easier to start and it turns over a lot quicker. If you are having trouble starting your car, it's well worth spending 10 minutes of your time doing this job before forking out for a new battery.
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