Pajero Owners Club of South Africa

So i'm keen to embark on this mod. Just want some more info before I go ahead and do it.

My understanding is that the standard breathers extend up to a hollow steel pipe that runs roughly at the level of the top of the wheel arch (or just under it).

Just BTW: On my vehicle (with spacers), the top of the wheel arch is at about 880mm, so that means that water would have to go above the 750mm mark for it to enter the tube (I believe...).

So in my mind, its only really needed when the vehicle exceeds standard wading depth... which would mean water starts flooding into the engine bay (e.g. water temporarily coming over the front of the bonnet).

The current suggestion I have is to extend the tubes into the engine bay. Having them extended to the back worries me, as surely this is the first part the floods (hence the reason for the air intake being at the front of the bonnet, just behind the lip). Would it be wise to extend it to the engine bay?

THEN, if extending to the engine bay, would you cover it somehow to prevent water splashing up into it??

Are there any other locations to extend to? The roof? what about rain water?

Also... isnt the main reason diff breathers will suck in water, because the diff is cooled rapidly (e.g. when entering water). Thus, if the breather are high as they currently are, and your enter the water slowly, you will probably not pull a lot of water into the diffs. (assuming the diffs are cooled and that its a closed system except for the breather, then water is unlikely to 'push' itself down the tubes...??

Maybe I'm just being optimistic - someone that actually knows something sbout diffs needs to comment

Masker

I think you are correct in your assumption. If the diff is sufficiently cooled it should not suck in any water even if submerged at the breather ends.

The rear of the engine bay should be a good place to fit as the engine should remain dry the longest. If it is under water completely diffs are going to be your last worry.

I seem to recall Kai/Bigred doing a mod to his Gen4 in this regard but cant find any link right now. I have however managed to find this link which in turn links to another site with some good info.

https://www.pajeroclub.co.za/forum/view ... 55&p=25823

I for one try and stay out of really deep water but have done my fair share of crossings. I still have the standard breathers and have never had a problem with water ingress.

Remember also that water in the diffs are not catastrophic as is the case with engines. All it does is prevent proper lubrication so it can still be driven like that for some distance and then drained and refilled with new oil. If the car is stationary for some time it will also allow the water to gather at the bottom(oil floats on water), so a lot of water can be drained off in an emergency out in the sticks by just using the normal drain plug on the diffs and gearbox to get most of the water out if you had some sucked in.

CATS

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CATS wrote:Masker
Remember also that water in the diffs are not catastrophic as is the case with engines. All it does is prevent proper lubrication so it can still be driven like that for some distance and then drained and refilled with new oil. If the car is stationary for some time it will also allow the water to gather at the bottom(oil floats on water), so a lot of water can be drained off in an emergency out in the sticks by just using the normal drain plug on the diffs and gearbox to get most of the water out if you had some sucked in.

I am not too sure if that is correct. Driving with water in the diff / gearbox will cause the oil+water to form an emulsion, whcich will not be an effective lubricant. Once the emulsion is formed AFAIK it will not "unemulsify" even if it stands for a long time.

There's another link here: Extending Pajero/Montero Front and Rear Diff Breathers

Thanks - most useful.

I like the idea of installing little filters

Any idea where I would be able to obtain the tubes / fittings / filters?

Gemaskerde Tuinvurk wrote:Thanks - most useful.

Any idea where I would be able to obtain the tubes / fittings / filters?

The pneumatic tubing and fittings are available at most pneumatic equipment suppliers - you can try you local branch of companies like Hytec (http://www.hytec.co.za/), Hyflo (http://www.hyflo.co.za/) and Festo (http://www.festo.com/cms/en-za_za/index.htm).