Car Fix DIY Videos

Hi Ben here from APT. Folks, today I want to talk to you about protecting the rear diff of your Land Rover Discovery 2. For those that have had the unfortunate experience of sliding backward down a climb or dropping off an edge and crunching their rear diff, they know that damage can bring your day to an entire halt. The APT Discovery 2 rear diff guard design provides you with hard core protection for both you front and rear diffs. As with all APT products, the fixings provided are all high quality so all you need are a couple of basic hand tools and you are on your way.

What do you get?
• 6mm 350 MPa steel slider to encapsulate the rear diff
• 3mm 350 MPa connection plate to tie the guard in at the top of the diff for better strength
• New 8.8 high tensile BSF bolts and washers for mounting underneath the diff
• New 8mm high tensile bolt for the connection plate to the slider diff guard at the top
• Laser cut for precision and avoid steel warping
• CNC folded for accuracy
• Zinc primed and powder coated satin black

The APT Discovery 2 slider diff guard uses all existing factory fitment points so no drilling or welding is required. Firstly before we can start the install we need to remove some of the existing furniture. For this we are going to need a 13mm socket and a 24mm socket. Take the 24mm one off first. Now change to the 13mm socket and we will attack the underside – keep this one guys this 13mm tread as it is hard to rare, it’s hard to find. With this underside we will need to be careful toward the end as this lump of metal is quite weighty and we don’t want to drop it on ourselves. Now that the tread is nearly out, make sure that you have a hold of everything; down it comes – nice and safe.

Now to start the install we will start by putting the top connecting plate on first, so you know where it goes on the top you have located the two bolts that you need to undo – with the use of a 13mm socket again we will get these two undone, one down and one to go. Now that we have them removed we put them back in but this time with the top connecting plate. And remember guys with all assemblies – bolts are attached loosely (until the fit off stage). So get a couple of threads in to get both bolts started and then that is enough for now. Give the top plate a jiggle and make sure that is held in place loosely. So now it is time for the slider.
Now it is time to offer the actual slider up into place. We just slide it over the diff like so and with the BSF bolts provided in the kit get those bolts started with a couple of turns each so that it cannot fall off but the slider is still loose. Now it is time to turn our attention to the connecting place at the top.
Now it’s time to start the final bolt in the assembly, this one is a bit fiddley. So what we need to do is get the 8mm bolt through the connecting plate into the slider itself – let give it a go. Now to put this little bolt in we go in through the top and once we have the bolt through we get the nut on the underside into place, put a bit of pressure on the nut and get the bolt started. Because we have left off the bolts lose in the installation stage we have been able to get all of the bolts started and the assembly is nice and jiggly.
Now for the tightening sequence we will start with the BSF bolts underneath, for that we are going to need a 5/8 socket. Because we are working with protective gear in an impact zone make sure that these are done up nice and tight. Check them once again to make sure that they are nice and tight.

The next on the list is the tightening of the two top bolts that we took out and reattached with the retaining plate on. Get that 13mm socket back into action and we will do these two bolts up nice and tight as well. Just check them a second time and make sure that they are nice and tight.

Now with the use of the 13mm socket (bottom) and the 13mm socket at the top we tighten the final bolt of the connecting plate. Once it’s nice and tight we are all done.

So right now it should look like this, nice and tight with no clearance issues. Job done, rock solid rear diff protection on your Land Rover Discovery 2 done in your driveway at home. Guys I’m ben from APT Fabrications thanks for watching. If you have any question feel free to email (sales @aptfabrications.com.au) or call me (Mon-Fri 07 3162 0690). I look forward to seeing you out on the tracks. To find out more visit the Land Rover Diff Guard page on our website http://www.aptfabrications.com.au/land-rover-differential-guards