# Land rover



## artie (11 Oct 2020)

I've been toying with the idea of buying an old Land Rover for a while.
The idea being strong work horse solid made minimum of electrics to go wrong.
There are down sides I'm sure, comfort economy, but I don't intend to travel far, 8 - 10 000 per year.
Anybody any experience, advice tips, insurance etc


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## Droogs (11 Oct 2020)

2nd worse driving position in the world unless you have short legs. great fun to do up and play with. Land cruiser a much better money pit more reliable and better condition usually, better practicality. less kudos tho


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## artie (11 Oct 2020)

That's bad news, I'm 6' 2" with long legs.


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## Droogs (11 Oct 2020)

I spent a damn good percentage of my time living from the back of one as a signaler in the army. Just not enough adjustment in the seat for long legs.


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## akirk (11 Oct 2020)

they are brilliant, (esp. if you are happy to do your own mechanics - 2 spanners and a hammer!) however, if comfort is a concern - and while I have driven them a lot I wouldn’t do long journeys in one - then there are alternatives in the discos or range rovers... depending on age / budget

I have owned 3 x series landrovers - all uncomfortable to drive though great fun and full of character, I have also owned 3 classic rangies and still have one - air con, heated seats, air suspension, etc 

I would also look at discos 1 & 2 for cheapness, 3 & 4 for more comfort (but more electronics), or rangies - some of the L322 models are reasonably bullet proof...


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## novocaine (11 Oct 2020)

Assuming you are good with the hot metal glue gun and dont mind the smell of 15w40 or gearbox oil they can be a jolly good way to tip money in to a deep hole. 
If you want an even bigger money pit then do as above and pick up a land cruiser. Fewer issues but when you want a part its more like hens teeth. 
Late series 2 if you want super old. 90 or 110 if you want just old. 
Early discos are fun. As are early freelanders but watch out for the petrol k series. 
Anything before the td5 is easy enough to work on,after that they get a bit "Electrical".


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## Trevanion (11 Oct 2020)

Sorry to say but you've missed the boat by five years where you could pick one up for a reasonable price because they were, and still are, utter *junk*. Ever since they stopped making the original defender they've garnered cult status and a bit of popularity amongst the Chelsea Wagon lot so that they're just too stupid of a price for a practical vehicle whilst also being arguably one of the *worst* vehicles of all time to drive on any regular level.

What you need is a pre-2000 Jeep Grand Cherokee, nigh-on indestructible, doesn't rust, brilliant engine, super comfortable, cheap as dirt, and pretty reliable, all the things that any Land Rover is not.


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## Oddbod70 (11 Oct 2020)

The defender? You certainly need a sense of humour to run one, also pretty decent mechanical skills and a friendly chiropractor. AA membership helps too. TBH I think they've become a bit too fashionable and overpriced.

My first encounter with one was as a 12 or 13 year old on my godfathers farm. I have vivid memories of my left leg getting a bad case of the shakes as I tried to hold the clutch down. Gawd knows what the clutch spring was made from. A spare suspension coil probably.

for tackling the darien gap (or the Aldi carpark on a Saturday morning) yes please. Otherwise.....

Good luck!


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## Phil Pascoe (11 Oct 2020)

I had an old Series 2a. Whereas other people carried spare wheels, I carried a spare half shaft.


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## marcros (11 Oct 2020)

Landrovers are a hobby as much as a vehicle. I had an old 110 for a while, but there was always something that needed fixing on it. The parts weren't expensive, but it wouldn't have been difficult to spend half a day most weekends sorting something. 

I also had a discovery 3, and whilst it isnt what you described (minimal electrics), that was a great vehicle when it worked properly. It had one or two issues over the few years I had it, and they always seemed to be expensive to fix, but it was really comfortable to drive and a great family vehicle. Thirsty though.


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## mynamehere (12 Oct 2020)

I've got a 2010 90 with 2 seats in the back, Insurance isn't too bad but £550,- a year road tax.

It's by far the worst car I've ever bought by far, something big goes wrong almost every year and the overall build quality is just bad, I call it the clown car.

I love it though and wouldn't dream of selling it!

Cheers!

Ferenc


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## clogs (12 Oct 2020)

the saying in Ozz,
if u wanna go into the outback take a Land Rover...
if u wanna get back take a Toyota.....hahaha...

u'd prob be better with the 4x4 Lada......seriously.....

Now thats a vehicle made *DOWN* to a price.....


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## Rorschach (12 Oct 2020)

10k in a land rover is a lot of miles and a lot of spare parts. great if you live on a farm and have a good workshop but as others have said they are a hobby rather than a practical vehicle and you absolutely must have secondary reliable vehicle on hand.

EDIT: For clarity I should say I am a Land Rover fan and would have one in a heartbeat if I had the space and money but I would be under no illusion that it was anything other than a (useful) big boys toy.


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## RogerS (12 Oct 2020)

Forget Disco 3 or 4's.


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## Mark Karacsonyi (12 Oct 2020)

I’ve had Landies for the past 20 years, my final one which I still own is a TD5 Disco 2, which was prior owned by the German Forestry commission. Apart from the cosmetics it’s mechanically sound.

I have now a Ford Ranger as the workhorse. If it wasn’t for the wife I would have sold the Disco on.


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## Suffolkboy (12 Oct 2020)

I had a Defender as my first car. 

It was excellent in that it taught me about welding and mechanics because there was always something wrong with the bloody thing. 

It also taught me to always keep a ready supply of any and all of the fluids you might need to have to keep a vehicle running as it had a habit of "venting" oils onto the driveway when it felt like it. 

To be fair I'm 6'2" and I found the driving position quite comfortable but I took the original seats out and bolted in the seats from a range rover. 

I suppose it was on the road for 50-60% of the time I owned it. The rest of the time it was up on blocks with me underneath it swearing like a docker. 

It wasn't any better off road than any of the subsequent 4x4's I've had, it didn't tow any better and wasn't any better on fuel. It was less comfortable and less reliable. 

Basically a Toyota Hilux, old shape Ford Ranger, Nissan, Isuzu etc etc will do the same job better for less money overall and will keep you more comfortable while it does it. 

I have no idea what the appeal of them is if I'm honest. 

Oh and you'll be able to hear the radio over the engine and road noise too.


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## SammyQ (12 Oct 2020)

Like Droogs, I spent quite a bit of my life tearing around the remoter parts of our sceptered(sp?) isle in various marques. Thirsty, noisy, primitive,when they work, they're OK, just. I will never forget Southampton to Stranraer in the ambulance version. Going north of Liverpool with a Westerly gale was like tacking in a schooner.
Post WWII, when there was a glut of surplus, and farmers needed summat more versatile than a tractor, but equally powerful and dismissive of terrain? You can see the attraction, hence the legend, perpetuated by marketing and a fair bit of snobbery ( just as there is for say, Agas).
In real Life, they are an affectation, a pain to maintain, and undeniably a poor investment unless you are above 2000 ft with livestock to house, feed and transport.
Sam


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## johnnyb (12 Oct 2020)

for over 10 years I've had the dog of dogs....the p38 range rover. mines a v8 4.6 and you know what. i love it its so versatile. 100 on the motorway no probs...listen to the cd player....no probs
across a field...better than any defender.
5 seats....plenty of space.


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## Nelly111s (12 Oct 2020)

I have a 110. Great for putting 13ft lengths of timber on the roof rack. Have just driven from Lancashire to Islay and back with diesel being the only fluid required. Later ones are a Transit, so more reliable. You’ll sell it for what you bought it for if you ever get rid of it.


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## johnnyb (12 Oct 2020)

just don't expect everything to work all the time...it was made by land rover


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## marcros (12 Oct 2020)

And nobody has mentioned the heater. The less said about that the better.


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## robgul (12 Oct 2020)

Depends how old the vehicle is - the pre 90/110 models were much easier to maintain as the suspension/mechanics were pretty basic. I'm about 6'4" and yes it is an "acquired taste" driving position - but then what sort of journey length are you going to do? The other downside is that LR prices for anything of any vintage or condition are sky-high.

Between about 1978 and 1993 I had a succession of Series LRs and got into the off-road sport (imaging motor-bike trials in a Land Rover!) - then from 1996 - 2005 had a couple of Disco 200s as my day-to-day car. My recent regret is not buying one of the last (old) Defender models a few years ago - about £32,000 IIRC but a real investment as they are now fetching upwards of £60,000.

Some snaps




- LR Series III Station Wagon (ex Gatwick Airport) that was our second car for about 6 years.




- it's more fun that it looks - pretty sure that I was at a gravel pit in Kent for that pic




- and the sedate Disco (on the Corran ferry near Ft William)


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## Phil Pascoe (12 Oct 2020)

SammyQ said:


> Post WWII, when there was a glut of surplus, and farmers needed summat more versatile than a tractor, but equally powerful and dismissive of terrain? You can see the attraction, hence the legend, perpetuated by marketing and a fair bit of snobbery ( just as there is for say, Agas).
> Sam


They were made, apparently, not so much to suit any particular demand but because being classified as agricultural, they escaped fuel rationing.


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## Phil Pascoe (12 Oct 2020)

marcros said:


> And nobody has mentioned the heater. The less said about that the better.


Mmmmm ......... it reminds me of a road test of a mororbike I read many moons ago - lighting by Lucas, Prince of Darkness.


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## artie (12 Oct 2020)

Guys I appreciate all the info and opinions and I must say you have changed my attitude some. I'm not quite so keen now.

*Trevanion*
Mentioned a pre 2000 Grand Cherokee as a better option. I must say that having owned an AMX Javelin in the mid to late 70s in Canada my regard for AMC was not high.
Having done a quick search the cherokee might not be so bad, would sourcing parts be a problem?


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## Phil Pascoe (12 Oct 2020)

My friend had a Disco for a few years. I saw him one day in an A3 which I realised was his by the plate. I asked why he'd changed as I knew he loved the Disco, and he said he could tax and insure the A3 for what he saved on the cost of the fuel.


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## marcros (12 Oct 2020)

What do you want the vehicle for/to do? 8000 miles a year is nothing if you are a travelling sales rep, but it is a fair few. I think with commuting to work most days (7 miles each way) and using my car when we do family stuff I probably clocked up 8-10k a year before lockdown. 

I like the idea of another 4x4 or a pickup but I changed mine for an estate. It is so much nicer to drive, faster, more comfortable, way more fuel efficient, cheaper to tax, easier to park in a ln average car park. The load space inside actually feels almost as big. If space were an issue, I think that the Merc e class would be bigger than my 110 was and they have been around so long now that you could get one with any budget.


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## novocaine (12 Oct 2020)

Theres a lot of negative here, but I'd still say go for it. the attraction to me for an old one was always that I could drive it anywhere, hop out and trapes around then hope back in without a care for the interior. get home, open the doors and wash it all at once with the hose.
I also loved working on them, it was all "farm" quality work, if it's bent, hit it, if is still bent, hit it harder. 

I won't have one now, mainly because I don't want to be spending the money they are going for but also because I've gone a bit green. 

edit to add
An older one is great people will always say hello to you and the conversation is normally "I had one just like it when I was younger, mine was white though, with 6 wheels, and I didn't put my spare on the bonnet, and it was a petrol/diesel, and........." yep, just like it.


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## RGIvy (12 Oct 2020)

Having owned several Land-rover, Toyota, Nissan etc I'd say this is the main difference:
A Land Rover is something you have a relationship with (good or bad)
All other 4x4's are something you own


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## rwillett (12 Oct 2020)

All good advice here, though nobody seems to have mentioned the frame and rust. Many old LR's have a massive rust problem on the frame if it's not been treated and ignored. If you are looking for an old 'proper' LR, then you should take along an expert who knows about them and will look at things like the firewall and the frame and can advise. A new frame is around £5K and is easily available (assuming you have £5K to buy it and a lot of time to transfer the bits across). We're lucky that the local garage is very knowledgeable about LR's as we live in the Yorkshire Dales and they are as common as muck here. 

He does off roading in his Disco but actually prefers his very souped up Suzuki Jimny for hitting the muddy stuff. Now thats a phrase you don't often hear 

Rob


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## OldWood (12 Oct 2020)

I was heavily into climbing in student and post student days (1960/70's), and I read this thread with amusement as I got a 2nd hand one about 1970 - I just forwarded the link for this thread to two of my friends from those days who too had LR's then as well. 

I made this comment "It was the only 4 x 4 in our day, and was no more unreliable then as any other car.", which in reality then was true. It is just that it would seem they remained that way!


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## Phil Pascoe (12 Oct 2020)

OldWood said:


> I made this comment "It was the only 4 x 4 in our day, and was no more unreliable then as any other car.", which in reality then was true. It is just that it would seem they remained that way!


I commented to a neighbour only yesterday that when I started driving it was rare to go a month without either a breakdown or a puncture.


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## Rorschach (12 Oct 2020)

Phil Pascoe said:


> I commented to a neighbour only yesterday that when I started driving it was rare to go a month without either a breakdown or a puncture.



Land Rover or in general with cars?
What kind of things went wrong? Just curious as being a younger chap I am used to cars being fairly reliable, our current car has never broken down in almost 8 years of owning it and it wasn't a new car either.


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## akirk (12 Oct 2020)

rwillett said:


> All good advice here, though nobody seems to have mentioned the frame and rust. Many old LR's have a massive rust problem on the frame if it's not been treated and ignored. If you are looking for an old 'proper' LR, then you should take along an expert who knows about them and will look at things like the firewall and the frame and can advise. A new frame is around £5K and is easily available (assuming you have £5K to buy it and a lot of time to transfer the bits across). We're lucky that the local garage is very knowledgeable about LR's as we live in the Yorkshire Dales and they are as common as muck here.
> 
> He does off roading in his Disco but actually prefers his very souped up Suzuki Jimny for hitting the muddy stuff. Now thats a phrase you don't often hear
> 
> Rob



A Richards Chassis is only £2.5k - £3k inc. vat  not sure I would be spending £5k anywhere - even adding in a new bulkhead shouldn't take you up to £5k

My LWB Soft Dash RR has recently gone through 18 months of body off rust removal - amazingly, after 8 years in a field (prior to my ownership!) there was almost no rust on the chassis - but plenty elsewhere which is now removed... chassis was fully restored anyway, and is now in better shape than from the factory...


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## AES (12 Oct 2020)

As an acknowledged thread drift specialist, I've been very amused (and educated) about driving Land Rovers. My only experience of driving them was in the RAF in the 1960s, and then only within the "confines" of a military airfield or two - though you could have a lot of fun with them on night shift, after night flying was finished!!! But never driven a Land Rover for any distance.

But if you want to talk about REALLY "delightful" on-road driving experiences, then IME you'd need to go a L O N G way to "beat" the Morris J2 Van/Mini Busses that we had in the RAF at the same time. I've driven those over significant distances on both UK A roads and Motorways, plus on German Autobahns. WHAT an experience!!!

4 speed column-mounted gear change (was like selecting a lucky dip as to which gear you actually got after selecting something - like stirring a big wooden spoon in a bowl of marbles!); "Powered" by the, I think, BMC "B" Series 1800cc petrol engine which, after a L O N G pause (you couldn't accurately refer to it as "acceleration"!), "allowed" you to get up to about 55 to 60 mph on the flat - and as soon as you reached the slightest gradient would immediately slow down to under 45 mph, especially if you had more than one other bloke and a tool box on board; AND a "steering" system than saw you wandering drunkenly along the lane in even the slightest of cross winds, and lurching wildly to the side when passed by a heavy lorry - which was OFTEN, even back then! And the NOISE. I fully understand why the RAF did NOT select the then optional radio!

Ahhhhhhh ...... those were the days! 

OK, drift over!


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## Cabinetman (12 Oct 2020)

What went wrong? Pre-computer control, cars were pretty difficult to start if you didn’t have the knack, choke out pump the throttle as you turn the ignition then when it fired you had to nurse it and gradually ease the choke back in. There was the old joke about why the lady kept taking her car back to the garage saying it kept stopping, she thought the choke was for hanging her handbag on ha ha.
Going back even further pre-power assisted brakes and steering a lot of women didn’t learn to drive, it was just too hard. I agree, cars nowadays are so reliable, my Honda CRV has nearly done 200,000 miles and only had one thing wrong with it – the expensive clutch thingy which you get on a diesel, Starts first time every time. Punctures, not sure why but I used to get at least two or 3 a year, haven’t had one for about 10years now. Have tyres improved?


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## Oddbod70 (12 Oct 2020)

Rorschach said:


> Land Rover or in general with cars?
> What kind of things went wrong? Just curious as being a younger chap I am used to cars being fairly reliable, our current car has never broken down in almost 8 years of owning it and it wasn't a new car either.


Blimey, that's a question.

1. Rust, pre 1976'ish (my estimate, no data to confirm it up) most cars would be showing some kind of rust by their third year. The weekly wash and dash round with the rust killer and touchup paint was a ritual.

2. Tyres, at least one puncture a year. Everyone had a spare wheel and knew how to change it. (Or how to look helpless until a bloke stopped and changed it for you were female).

3. Fuel. Full of carbon. No car got anywhere near 100k miles without some top end work - a "decoke" (which had a whole different meaning) at the very least.

4. Ignition. Bits got damp. Cans of WD40 and Bradex esistart were mandatory and mini's with a marigold glove round the distributer with an HT lead through the end of each finger were normal.

5. Locks. To be frozen or filled with chewing gum by kids depending on the season.

6. Radiators. Overheating in traffic on hot days. The A303 would be lined with cars with their bonnet up and steam bellowing forth from the radiator cap.

I could go on.

But against that you could usually fix the darn things. I drove from Dorchester to Plymouth without a clutch pedal once, and from Uni in London to Plymouth with a full jerry can in the passenger foot well and a length of hose running through the bulkhead to the fuel pump. (Fuel tank rusted through - see point 1 above). It was just before Christmas, freezing cold, window wide open and Ultravox's "Vienna" playing on the jury rigged mono radio.

So maybe a defender wasn't too different then.


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## Eric The Viking (12 Oct 2020)

I too had a Defender 110, for over a decade. Whilst I loved it, I would caution that they are stupidly expensive to run.

This comes down to two issues: chassis and engine: They are built to rust The factory chassis is full of holes and crevices and things like the outriggers under the firewall/bulkhead drop off for fun (because of rust), as does the rear crossmember. Both faults are MOT failures, as is rust in the middle crossmember (found on 110s), or aluminium corrosion around that one, because it takes the middle row seatbelt strongpoints You can get aftermarket dip-galvanised chassis which ought to be better, but expensive and time-consuming to fit (and you need heavy lifting gear and a LOT of space in the workshop).

Engine: there are a variety of styles and sizes. I doubt there are any left now, but DO NOT BUY the original Turbo Diesel (TD), nor allow anybody to give you one, nor accept one in part exchange nor allow any part of one to get withing 200 yards of your vehicle (just in case). They are slow, unreliable and thirsty.

I don't know about the very recent ones, but of the British engines, the TDi (AKA TD4), is probably the best - willing, not complex, reasonable torque (0-60 without needing to re-check the calendar), and quite efficient. I had one as a donor from a Discovery - there is a fairly straightforward conversion. TD5s are common, but they are the start of the increased complexity that is the bane of modern engine designs, and although "better" spec-wise, possibly not as good a buy as a TDi. TDi will also run on chip fat and cooking oil (yup really) - later engines won't.

A few more thoughts:

Tyres: the ex-factory wheels were steel, huge, heavy and thus not fuel efficient. The corresponding "Town & country" tyres have shot up in price - in the early 2000s they were 25 quid each as farmers got through loads of them. Now probably 150-200 each wheel. If you mount the spare on the back door it will probably wreck it because of the weight. If you put it on the bonnet, (a) small people (i.e. drivers) cannot see out, (b) you risk decapitation if the bonnet stay doesn't lock properly when you are looking under it. A supplementary frame to take the spare at the back is a good idea, but it can restrict the back door opening.

Wiring and secondary systems: "Joseph Lucas, Prince of Darkness" says it all really. The best idea is to scrap the factory system and wire the vehicle properly for positive and negative, for all but stuff that must be grounded to the chassis. Most of the switches - lighting, indicator stalk, horn,etc. are rubbish. Rear light cluster faults can be hard to diagnose, beyond, "yes, I know it hasn't got 12V." There are several dozen possible points of failure in each circuit. If you have a rear door window heater, or a wiper fitted, those are reminders that through it all the factory maintained a sense of humour

The cabin heater is legendarily inefficient, although this can be fixed with some effort. Even so, best to use the middle row and rear for shopping trips to Iceland in the winter, as no human will survive travelling in those seats for more than around 2 miles.

Factory fitted "sun" roofs and the curved "alpine lights" along the top of the sides of County pack vehicles are best thought of as sources of fresh water in a crisis. I never stopped our sun roof from leaking, nor raining inside the vehicle in the winter because of condensation - gaffer taping bubble wrap to it can help, but make sure youcreate some sort of gutter along the back edge, or drive with a wide-brimmed hat on.

Aftermarket "just like the originals" parts, especially doors, are to be avoided, as they are actually made in India (I think) and don't fit. I bought some new front doors, but never got round to fitting them. When I included them with the vehicle I thought I was being helpful, until the purchaser (my specialist Landy mechanic) showed me - the actual skins didn't line up with the rest of the steel frames, so they were junk.

I loved my Landy, but therapy has worked, and the craving has now gone. My wallet is much happier too.


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## Oddbod70 (12 Oct 2020)

This thread should be a sticky, just for the entertainment value. Thanks you Artie, for inadvertently starting it.


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## Trainee neophyte (12 Oct 2020)

I was brought up on/in/under landrovers. As an aduly, I don't own one, and have never owned one. If you want it to go off-road, they are usually pretty good, but that may be more due to the tyres than the machine itself. However, you can't fit anything in the back, you can't fit in the front, put any decent weight in it and steering is more hit or miss than you may like...and I mean that in the literal sense. And then everything breaks, all the time.

I have owned a Lada Niva, which was much like driving a washing machine. It was pretty robust, and never ever got stuck, but it's a tiny toy of a car. My Mitsubishi L200 drives like a car, has acres of room in the back, and 5 seats. If I was a real farmer I wouldn't have the 5 seat version, and would put the kids, dogs and Bangladeshi workers out in the cold where they belong. I go off road every time I leave the house, and use low ratio probably 3 times a week. Fill it up with rocks, mud, sheep manure; abuse it every harvest, but it just works. It's normal to have a ton of something in the truck, and another two tons in a trailer. It does affect the performance a bit, but we always get where we are going.

If you want a toy to play with then get a land rover. If you want to do some work, get _anything_ else. Long - wheelbase pick ups are probably more useful especially when buying 4 metre lengths of timber, and try and find a Chelsea tractor rather than anything that has ever been owned by a farmer. Anything Japanese for preference - I wasn't terribly impressed by the Grand Cherokee (never had one), but people swear by Ford Rangers (also never had one). My L200 is 20 years old, rust free and pretty much indestructible. No need to replace it.


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## Eric The Viking (12 Oct 2020)

That's a bit unfair (only a bit!): I got 200 housebricks in the back of mine - gert posh Salisbury rear axle & uprated springs on them 110s, see.

Seriously, I agree: it's not the most useful load space - the rear door is narrow, and the rear wheel arch covers waste a lot of room too. But with the early Defender I had, the middle row seats would either fold right down, or come right out (two cotter pins each), which did leave a decent bit of space. And I often put longer stuff through onto the middle seat space in the front row (or on the roof rack).


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## AJB Temple (12 Oct 2020)

How interesting. I had a used 110 (bought from Landy dealer) for 5 years about 15 years ago, as a general run around. I had a proper car as well, but just wanted one. I used it a lot with my son (who was then about 7) and his friends, and it would deal with any ground conditions. It never gave me any problems at all. No leaks, always started, no rust problems. I liked it and wish I still had it. 

It was a tad uncomfortable to drive, as I am a bit over 6'2" and there was not enough leg room. I think they are quite cool if you get a good one.


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## Phil Pascoe (12 Oct 2020)

Rorschach said:


> Land Rover or in general with cars?
> What kind of things went wrong? Just curious as being a younger chap I am used to cars being fairly reliable, our current car has never broken down in almost 8 years of owning it and it wasn't a new car either.


Cars in general. Usually electrical, but often carburation, cables, locks, window winders and all sorts of paraphernalia.
I had a Mini van that I drove home from school one day in third gear for ten miles - the gear stick (which was about two feet long) came off in my hand.


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## Phil Pascoe (12 Oct 2020)

Things move on. I see in yesterday's Times (Clarkson) that BMW have just released a new Mini ............... 302horse, £35,345.


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## marcros (12 Oct 2020)

Phil Pascoe said:


> Things move on. I see in yesterday's Times (Clarkson) that BMW have just released a new Mini ............... 302horse, £35,345.



The gear stick stays attached though.


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## Rorschach (12 Oct 2020)

Phil Pascoe said:


> Cars in general. Usually electrical, but often carburation, cables, locks, window winders and all sorts of paraphernalia.
> I had a Mini van that I drove home from school one day in third gear for ten miles - the gear stick (which was about two feet long) came off in my hand.



See now that's funny because I often hear (old farts normally) decrying modern cars saying they are too full of gadgets and things to go wrong. They seem to want to go back to a time when "things were built proper". But from what I hear from seemingly more sensible people, when things were proper they kept breaking. 
I don't have an awful lot of gadgets in my car and neither do relatives but a breakdown just never seems to happen. My car is 13 years old, starts first time, runs fine and everything works. It's never broken down and has needed very little in the way of replacement parts, all just consumables (battery, brakes, bulbs, fluids etc) really apart from the wishbones I had to replace a few years ago and a rusty exhaust bracket. Seems to me we have never had it so good for cars.


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## Nigel Burden (12 Oct 2020)

Rorschach said:


> Land Rover or in general with cars?
> What kind of things went wrong? Just curious as being a younger chap I am used to cars being fairly reliable, our current car has never broken down in almost 8 years of owning it and it wasn't a new car either.


 
Morris Minor 1000, I've lost count of the times laid on my back in the freezing cold removing a gearbox.

Original Mini, the secondary hose that went between the cylinder head and the water pump was a right pig to change being only a couple of inches long but the gap it had to fit between was only about an inch. You could buy a thinner concertinad hose, but that didn't last that long.

Austin A35, the brakes were forever needing adjusting, no such thing as automatically adjusting brakes on cheap cars in those days.

Nigel


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## novocaine (12 Oct 2020)

with all vehicles of this ilk i.e. old, you should see them as more of an adventure than a car. I love my classic VW. I enjoy my mothers classic MG. 
I love when they decide where we are stopping for lunch.


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## custard (12 Oct 2020)

artie said:


> I don't intend to travel far, 8 - 10 000 per year.



8-10,000 miles a year in a Defender is an awful lot of miles, I bet fewer than one in ten privately owned Landies do anything like that. 

I've got a short wheel base TD5 Defender and do about 2-3,000 miles a year. The specialist Land Rover garage that I use says that's bang on the Defender average these days.

Incidentally, one thing that's not been mentioned in this thread is the eye watering expense of insuring a Defender. 

Because there's such a market in used components, Defenders are one of the UK's most stolen vehicles. Sadly that's reflected in sky high insurance. If you park a Landy on the road there are not many brokers that will touch them at all, and in a growing number of post codes they're now virtually uninsurable. My annual premiums on a Porsche Macan is only about 20 or 30% more than the price for my twenty year old Defender with a cap of 5k miles a year. Ouch!


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## Nigel Burden (12 Oct 2020)

Phil Pascoe said:


> Cars in general. Usually electrical, but often carburation, cables, locks, window winders and all sorts of paraphernalia.
> I had a Mini van that I drove home from school one day in third gear for ten miles - the gear stick (which was about two feet long) came off in my hand.



I replaced the gears in my Mini with straight cut gears as I'd had trouble with gear boxes on my Minor 1000 and didn't fancy pulling out the engine and all that that involved. I also used the box from a BMC 1100 as the gear lever came up through the centre tunnel and not from up by the baulkhead. The gears were quite noisy though, and coupled with the hard suspension,( I'd replaced the hydro elastic with the original hard rubber cone type as the hydro elastic was leaking), not uncommon on BMC Minis, 1100s and 1300s. It was not a comfortable car at all. Having said that, my daughters Mini Cooper S Checkmate which runs on 17inch wheels and run flats is not that comfortable. It's better now that she's changed to normal tyres though.

Nigel.


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## Spectric (12 Oct 2020)

Hi

I have owned a 90 for some time, 300TDI and slightly modified. What is really good and made the landrover what it was, is the fact they are like mechano sets. Everything is bolted together and simplistic so easy to keep running. No electronics on the earlier models and will go anywhere. They do have faults, most people think of these as characteristics and parts cheap. One big issue is corrosion of the chassis, especially the rear x member area if it has been owned by a boat owner but fixable. Driving one is like going back to a bygone era, rattles and water ingress when it rains, doors not fitting perfect, basic controls, wipers that sort of work and a heater that may or may not be that good, rather like a motor from the seventies like Leyland and Fords.


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## RGIvy (12 Oct 2020)

Rorschach said:


> See now that's funny because I often hear (old farts normally) decrying modern cars saying they are too full of gadgets and things to go wrong. They seem to want to go back to a time when "things were built proper". But from what I hear from seemingly more sensible people, when things were proper they kept breaking.


The way I see it is that essentials (power/transmission train, chassis and suspension) were unreliable in the old days whereas they are much better nowadays, but the other "stuff" like door handles and knobs were much stronger back then than they are now. Actually, modern motors are based on much thinner metal sheets and plastic which lowers the weight and price and some people don't like that. I remember when BMW first took over Land Rover they said that they needed to shave 250kg of the weight of the Defender. The Landy die-hards didn't like it one bit.
So yes, you do have a point!


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## Nigel Burden (12 Oct 2020)

Spectric said:


> wipers that sort of work



Like the old Ford vacuum wipers that stopped working when you put your foot down to get up a hill.

Nigel.


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## disco_monkey79 (12 Oct 2020)

Hahahaha, I'd forgotten how cars overheated. It wasn't a summer holiday if the the heater was going full blast in July, trying to bleed off some excess heat from the engine bay. 

My cousin has a 110 landy - he loves it, and has done loads of work (newer disco engine, comfier seats, overdrive etc etc) but is still always having to fix something.

As said by various, an old car should be bought for the overall experience (including it not working).

A family friend cut an allegro in half and made it in to a 3-wheeler, so he could enter it in to bike trials. When (inevitably) asked why he had done this, the answer they got was because it gave him half the aggro...


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## ivan (12 Oct 2020)

Been driving Series diesel LR since 1969, beginning with a 2A; diesel was cheaper than petrol then, just as well as ~27 mpg in general use. Just parted with last diesel series 3, made in 1984. The whole series design is from the 1930's rehashed after the war to make an ali vehicle as steel in short supply. 3,000 mile service was quite good for '30's motors, father's early cars needed a service every 1000 miles. Big advantage was simplicity, you could strip and rebuild anything with very few special tools, which most long term users will own.... I liked the practicality, ideal for rough camping, fishing trips, etc, driving in wellies, when dirty hose out the _interior._ Fully comp insurance never over £100 pa. that's rural living. Early Defenders still had a fair bit of galvanising like series models, better engines, and softer coil springing, but alas I have never owned one. I'm 6'1" in old money, and had no trouble driving several 100 miles in a day, but even with overdrive, ear plug noisy, anyone tried noise cancelling earphones??? Also easy to shoulder your way round Hyde Park Corner in the rush hour.
The toyota pickup (with machine gun mounted) looks idestructible - but usually in a hot dry country. Possible best alternative, now LR catering for hairdressers only.


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## artie (12 Oct 2020)

Rorschach said:


> See now that's funny because I often hear (old farts normally) decrying modern cars saying they are too full of gadgets and things to go wrong. They seem to want to go back to a time when "things were built proper". But from what I hear from seemingly more sensible people, when things were proper they kept breaking.


The way I see it. Waaay back before I was driving, car bodies were solid. Engines, gearboxs, brakes etc were not up to scratch and were outlasted by the bodies. By the 60' when I got a car the bodies had deteriorated and the mechanics had improved. Now engines are fantastic, bodies are brilliant and the electrics are less than reliable. That's in my opinion.
MY LAST CAR A bmw x3 @ 14 years old was a joy to drive, looked fantastic but alas developed an intermittent fault which couldn't be fixed and it had to be retired. My present car, a 2011 Kuga, is a great car engine great body fantastic, but has lights blinking and beepers beeping for no apparent reason.
I long for the old days when you could weld a bit to the exhaust or rewire a tail light or trailer plug without much drama.


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## Spectric (12 Oct 2020)

Hi all

We have gone to far in the wrong direction, modern cars are too complex and mainly because of the ever demanding Euro emision standards, euro 6 when I last worked in powertrain development. Ok so old diesels were 0 to 60 in half hour but would just keep on going, now just a naff connection on say the FPS and it needs computer diagnostics. My old landrover may smoke and rattle but will always keep going, just a nice simple bosch VE injector pump wheras modern common rail diesels may produce as much power as a petrol but I would not want to drive one through 6ft water. The new Landrover that claims to be a defender is just a joke, it would never survive off road and would anyone take it into the extreme knowing that if it goes wrong they could not repair it, where the real defender ethos was that it should keep going and get you out of trouble come what may and with simple tools and minimal spares you could fix it. Then what about the bodywork, easy to replace a wing on my old landy but not on the new imposter.


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## marcros (12 Oct 2020)

Spectric said:


> Hi all
> 
> We have gone to far in the wrong direction, modern cars are too complex and mainly because of the ever demanding Euro emision standards, euro 6 when I last worked in powertrain development. Ok so old diesels were 0 to 60 in half hour but would just keep on going, now just a naff connection on say the FPS and it needs computer diagnostics. My old landrover may smoke and rattle but will always keep going, just a nice simple bosch VE injector pump wheras modern common rail diesels may produce as much power as a petrol but I would not want to drive one through 6ft water. The new Landrover that claims to be a defender is just a joke, it would never survive off road and would anyone take it into the extreme knowing that if it goes wrong they could not repair it, where the real defender ethos was that it should keep going and get you out of trouble come what may and with simple tools and minimal spares you could fix it. Then what about the bodywork, easy to replace a wing on my old landy but not on the new imposter.



horses for courses though. There are several posts on here about enjoying the experience of old cars, and that fixing them is part of it. I do almost get it, my dad is into vintage farm machinery. The advantage that an old 35 has, or whatever he has at the moment is that their limitation is that they are only a few HP, and that is all he needs for a bit of playing around with a plough, a drag, pulling a trailer, haymaking. whatever. The rest of it is as good or better as the modern garden tractors (maybe in a slightly bigger size). Cars are a bit different, where starting, stopping and going in the right direction are fundamental.

The thing with old cars is that they are all horrible to drive. It is like getting a rental car in the USA. An E Type may be beautiful to look at and sound nice, but the steering, brakes, suspension is not comparable to modern day cars. I have never been fortunate enough to drive one but I would think that many normal cars would beat it around the track- say a mid range focus, or the vauxhall equivalent- just because they handle better. You would put up with the lack of creature comforts but you wouldn't choose to not have them given the chance. Things from the 70s, 80s and early 90s weren't much better but were starting to improve. My first car, a base fiesta was truly awful. 

In defence of the old landie, although it has the faults of all old cars, at least it doesn't pretend to be anything else. That is why it is cool. For all its faults, I would happily have one for doing 1000 miles a year but the cost of buying a decent one alone, and the tax/insurance on another vehicle each year makes it a flight of fantasy.


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## Trevanion (12 Oct 2020)

The whole hobby aspect of constantly having to tinker with it is fine _so long _as you're not absolutely depending on it to be reliable every time you hop into it.



artie said:


> *Trevanion*
> Mentioned a pre 2000 Grand Cherokee as a better option. I must say that having owned an AMX Javelin in the mid to late 70s in Canada my regard for AMC was not high.
> Having done a quick search the cherokee might not be so bad, would sourcing parts be a problem?



The Grand Cherokee hasn't been totally maintenance-free admittedly but near enough for a vehicle of its age, parts don't grow on trees but they're not super rare in the UK either and there are plenty over in the states! It's worth having one that's completely busted sat somewhere so you can cannibalise it if needed as with any vehicle you never know what may go wrong but that has been a very rare occurrance. The regular Cherokee is also pretty decent, if you pick one up that's from before 2006, I think the road tax is *massively* less than ones that are later. An automatic Cherokee can tow 3 tonne on paper which is kind of ridiculous for its fairly compact size.

Apparently the Ssangyong Musso Saracens are a pretty no-frills workhorse for a fair price, plus a seven-year, 150,000-mile warranty from new. I actually know someone who bought a double cab Defender at pretty much the end of the production, used it for four years daily as a very heavy work vehicle and took it to a dealer, swapped it for a Saracen, *and* left the dealership with a cheque in the back pocket... That's how silly the prices of the Landys have got, essentially sold it for more than they had bought it for initially.


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## TFrench (12 Oct 2020)

My dad runs a V8 petrol 90. It's a very early one - C reg. He got it as a basket case and had the fun of rebuilding it and getting it going again - previous owner had taken it all apart, blasted and painted everything and then lost interest. We always laughed about landies and the unreliability thing, but its only been towed home once (unimog to the rescue). 
Negatives: It drinks fuel faster than an alcoholic at a free bar, there's no elbow room, its slow and the steering is vague
Positives: Sounds like God is angry when you start it. You can't not like a V8. Doesn't matter how dirty the inside gets, it just washes off. It's towed home a lot of broken down cars, trailer loads of machinery and an L200 that had beached itself trying to offroad. Most important - it's got SOUL! 

All that said, if I wanted a 4x4 daily driver I'd have my old Jeep cherokee back in a heartbeat!


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## Jester129 (13 Oct 2020)

Have you lot forgotten about bleeding brakes? No, not bleedin' brakes! Bleeding _the_ brakes every couple of weeks, because the brake pedal got spongy?
Such fun in the middle of winter with snow on the ground (and the schools were still open). Them were the days! Not!
Now I drive a Skoda Octavia and it is absolute luxury, after driving the Skoda my sister owned in the 90's. what a piece of carp that was. Now you open the bonnet and it's all VAG labelled. Quality.


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## Antho (13 Oct 2020)

Ive had a disk herniation and strangely the Defender is the most comfortable position on any car ive driven as it has a good lumbar support.... still bumpy as hell, rattles all over the place, lets dust and water in all the time but its the best car ive ever had... ive pulled all sorts of cars and 4x4s out of the sand on our local beach. Its a great work horse best suited to a low millage rural location. Totally cool, amazing fun and you could be anyone rich or poor.


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## Phil Pascoe (13 Oct 2020)

marcros said:


> ... The thing with old cars is that they are all horrible to drive. It is like getting a rental car in the USA. An E Type may be beautiful to look at and sound nice, but the steering, brakes, suspension is not comparable to modern day cars.


I used to drive my uncle's V12 E Type occasionally. It was bloody treacherous anywhere near a corner.


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## Phil Pascoe (13 Oct 2020)

My friend went bankrupt and bought an old three cylinder (iirc) Skoda for fifty quid. He used it for eighteen months and sold it for fifty quid. A bit of a come down from the Roller, but he said it was the best car he ever owned, financially.


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## AJB Temple (13 Oct 2020)

Phil Pascoe said:


> I used to drive my uncle's V12 E Type occasionally. It was bloody treacherous anywhere near a corner.


They still look nice though. Especially the convertible E types.


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## robgul (13 Oct 2020)

Jester129 said:


> Have you lot forgotten about bleeding brakes? No, not bleedin' brakes! Bleeding _the_ brakes every couple of weeks, because the brake pedal got spongy?
> Such fun in the middle of winter with snow on the ground (and the schools were still open). Them were the days! Not!
> Now I drive a Skoda Octavia and it is absolute luxury, after driving the Skoda my sister owned in the 90's. what a piece of carp that was. Now you open the bonnet and it's all VAG labelled. Quality.



I went from 10 years owning a couple of Discos to a Skoda Octavia estate that I kept for 12 years, brilliant car and really just a VW in different clothes - and then got scrappage on a new Dacia Duster (2wd sort) in Nov 17 (that's really pretty much a Qashqai in different clothes) - that Duster was sold at a BIG discount to one of my daughters and I bought another new Duster in May 19 ..... excellent, in some ways better than the Disco.


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## Oddbod70 (13 Oct 2020)

Jester129 said:


> Have you lot forgotten about bleeding brakes? No, not bleedin' brakes! Bleeding _the_ brakes every couple of weeks, because the brake pedal got spongy?
> Such fun in the middle of winter with snow on the ground (and the schools were still open). Them were the days! Not!
> Now I drive a Skoda Octavia and it is absolute luxury, after driving the Skoda my sister owned in the 90's. what a piece of carp that was. Now you open the bonnet and it's all VAG labelled. Quality.


Lordy, how could I have forgotten about the brakes!

I never had to bleed them, but for some weird reason the front left brake shoe adjuster on my mini kept slackening right off (It was probably obvious why, but not to an inexperienced me at the time).

The effect was somewhat alarming. Especially braking into right hand bends in the wet. Mind you, with all of 30hp on tap, going fast enough to come to any real harm was somewhat unlikely. (Did get it up to 84mph coming down Haldon hill, Dartmoor, once ... only).


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## Shavings (13 Oct 2020)

Have owned three ladies, one as a recovery vehicle, have worked on most 4x4s and my choice would be a....Daihatsu Fourtrak but getting someone to part with one might be difficult.


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## Shavings (13 Oct 2020)

Sorry predictive text changed landies to ladies, could be interesting though!


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## Eric The Viking (13 Oct 2020)

Spectric said:


> My old landrover may smoke and rattle but will always keep going, just a nice simple bosch VE injector pump wheras modern common rail diesels may produce as much power as a petrol but I would not want to drive one through 6ft water.


I wrote off our VAG people carrier by (I think) causing hydraulic lock by driving it on a flooded road (only about 9" of water). Common-rail diesel.

In contrast we were standing on Tarr Steps a few years ago when a 110 went through - nearly got knocked off the bridge by the bow wave


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## BillK (13 Oct 2020)

I've got a 110 Defender, 300tdi motor, so its got simple fuel & electrics. Touch wood nothing big's gone wrong so far, just had a lot of leaks to deal with - used it every day before going solo and couldn't have it dripping in the works car park. I'm 6 foot 3, I did the Mud seat rail conversion where you chop out some of the bulkhead behind the seats. The new rails give loads more room to slide back and more height, it's perfectly comfy now. I love driving it, going a distance you just settle into cruising at 60-65mph and relax.
The heater's great (after a rebuild) if moving along, but trickling in icy winter traffic it's not much cop. I don't face subzero commutes anymore so that's OK. On the flipside all the glass and ally makes it really hot on a warm day. Although it's now getting insulated so might be a bit better, it was a bare-bones ex-RAF one.
Insurance is cheap, a bit over 200 quid. Obviously area matters and this isn't the priciest Landy out there.

Before that I rebuilt an ex-mil Series 2a Lightweight, it was also my daily car and nothing went wrong although it did get a going-over in the rebuilding. Bumpy roads gave the kidneys a good old rattle, and joining a fast-moving motorway could be hairy cos acceleration was non-existent. It was good while it was here but the Defender's a lot better for daily driving.


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## Nigel Burden (13 Oct 2020)

Oddbod70 said:


> Lordy, how could I have forgotten about the brakes!
> 
> I never had to bleed them, but for some weird reason the front left brake shoe adjuster on my mini kept slackening right off (It was probably obvious why, but not to an inexperienced me at the time).
> 
> The effect was somewhat alarming. Especially braking into right hand bends in the wet. Mind you, with all of 30hp on tap, going fast enough to come to any real harm was somewhat unlikely. (Did get it up to 84mph coming down Haldon hill, Dartmoor, once ... only).



Converting understeer to dramatic oversteer.

Nigel.


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## Ollie78 (13 Oct 2020)

If you like fixing things buy a Land Rover. If you need to go anywhere buy a Toyota.
I miss my mk 3 Hilux. 
Also defenders are silly money. Ooh what about a Unimog for full on awesomeness.


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## TFrench (14 Oct 2020)

Ollie78 said:


> what about a Unimog for full on awesomeness.


My dad's one. It's awesome. Life size Tonka toy.


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## marcros (14 Oct 2020)

I imagine that it makes the land river fairly fuel efficient in comparison!!


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## lurker (14 Oct 2020)

I gave away my series two this summer.
Was a daily work vehicle when I was hedge laying and dry stone walling.
Did 5mpg on farmland.
Then it sat in the garage for 10 years and I had no inclination to sort it out.
Current owner is enthusiastically rebuilding it.


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## lurker (14 Oct 2020)

Four pages about landies and no mention of Ice Cold in Alex


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## Oddbod70 (14 Oct 2020)

Ah yes, wasn't that the one where they had to hand crank the wretched thing up the sand dune backwards with the starter handle?


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## lurker (14 Oct 2020)

Oddbod70 said:


> Ah yes, wasn't that the one where they had to hand crank the wretched thing up the sand dune backwards with the starter handle?


Nope. They got back to Alex and there was one in the street scene.
This was supposed to be during the war but the first Landy was built several (about ten IIRC) years post war.


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## Oddbod70 (14 Oct 2020)

I unreservedly apologise to land rover then! (I'm sure something was hand cranked backwards up a sand dune in some film - That's going to be bugging me for the rest of the day now!)


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## lurker (14 Oct 2020)

Oddbod70 said:


> I unreservedly apologise to land rover then! (I'm sure something was hand cranked backwards up a sand dune in some film - That's going to be bugging me for the rest of the day now!)


You are correct, it was the ambulance they were traveling in. Assume a Bedford lorry or some such.
It's her majesty's favourite film she will watch is several times a year and it's always on the telly!


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## Eric The Viking (14 Oct 2020)

I really hate the way Russian bad guys in American spy movies always have Land Rovers rather than Jeeps or, er, Russian vehicles.

I think someone did a portal axle conversion for the 110. You can certainly still get track conversions for them* where the axles get sprockets instead of wheels. Not sure if that can be done with earlier series - obviously you need 4WD (and probably diff lock) permanently on, too. Amd a step ladder to get in or out.

E.

(*but it does slow them to around 100 MPH on the Autobahn, obviously)


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## Oddbod70 (14 Oct 2020)

Jebus! 







Wild horses would not get me on a autobahn in that!


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## novocaine (14 Oct 2020)

Oddbod70 said:


> Jebus!
> 
> View attachment 94202
> 
> ...


horses aren't allowed on the autobahn. 
I got a run round an off road course in one of these. the noise was comparable to being hit repeatedly over the head with an anvil. 
Same guy invited me for a spin round the place in a new defender a few weeks ago, not taken him up on it yet but he is claiming they are very capable considering.


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## Droogs (14 Oct 2020)

It was an Austin K2 ambulance that they used in the film and it was sent up the dune backwards


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## Trainee neophyte (14 Oct 2020)

Possibly the best car I have owned would be the 10 year old Toyota hilux surf - they were imported from Japan after after hard life ferrying kids to karate classes but luckily I got mine before the tsunami - I understand there were lots of radioactive cars exported afterwards, to the extent that Russia banned second hand imports from Japan. Possibly, if I remember rightly.

Anyway, someone drove into the back of my hilux and the engine fell out of his car. I had to bend the bumper back into place. I would love another of those. Automatic gears are a revelation off road - so much better control, but less fun, obviously.

I never did this to my Lada - pitty.


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## Eric The Viking (14 Oct 2020)

Someone in a Nissan Micra drove into the offside rear corner of my landy when it was parked. I had to bend the light protector back into shape, and the corner needed a few pop rivets. The Micra was written off.

I felt a bit sorry for the Micra owner, but on the other hand, the landy was properly (and reasonably considerately) parked, and rather hard not to spot...


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## lurker (14 Oct 2020)

Eric The Viking said:


> Someone in a Nissan Micra drove into the offside rear corner of my landy when it was parked. I had to bend the light protector back into shape, and the corner needed a few pop rivets. The Micra was written off.
> 
> I felt a bit sorry for the Micra owner, but on the other hand, the landy was properly (and reasonably considerately) parked, and rather hard not to spot...



I stopped at a traffic light and the bloke behind didn’t.
I felt a minor jolt, got out and his car was in bits all over the road, his air bag saved him from any serious injury.
he actually thanked me for preventing him driving into the crossing traffic, said he was miles away and speeding.
Not a mark on the landie , well no new ones anyway


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## AES (14 Oct 2020)

Oddbod70 said:


> I unreservedly apologise to land rover then! (I'm sure something was hand cranked backwards up a sand dune in some film - That's going to be bugging me for the rest of the day now!)




You're dead right Oddbod70, there was a vehicle hand cranked backwards up a sand dune in "Ice Cold in Alex" (they did take the plugs out first!). And I think it was "the baddie" who "accidentally" let go of the starting handle when they were three quarters of the way up the dune, so it ran all the way back down to the bottom, so they had to start all over again. The vehicle wasn't a Land Rover but was a lightish (three quarter ton?) army vehicle with a canvas top. Perhaps a Bedford, an Austin, or a Ford???

It starred - I think - John Mills and a bloke with a "square face" and a S. African accent (can't remember his name, sorry) and the (blond) love interest was someone like Shirley Eaton, etc, etc, etc.

I MUST have been quite young when I saw that because I remember more about the vehicle than the girl!


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## lurker (14 Oct 2020)

AES said:


> You're dead right Oddbod70, there was a vehicle hand cranked backwards up a sand dune in "Ice Cold in Alex" (they did take the plugs out first!). And I think it was "the baddie" who "accidentally" let go of the starting handle when they were three quarters of the way up the dune, so it ran all the way back down to the bottom, so they had to start all over again. The vehicle wasn't a Land Rover but was a lightish (three quarter ton?) army vehicle with a canvas top. Perhaps a Bedford, an Austin, or a Ford???
> 
> It starred - I think - John Mills and a bloke with a "square face" and a S. African accent (can't remember his name, sorry) and the (blond) love interest was someone like Shirley Eaton, etc, etc, etc.
> 
> I MUST have been quite young when I saw that because I remember more about the vehicle than the girl!



Nope!
the baddie actually did most of the grunt work.
it was the nurse who thought she could help.
Was Sylvia Simms by the way 

baddie was Anthony quail 

I only know about all of this because her majesty watches it several times a year.


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## AES (14 Oct 2020)

Antony Quail! That's the bloke, thanks lurker. And Oh, Sylvia Simms eh (another Ealing Studios "great")! OK then, you got "the starter for 10", so now, what make was the truck????? (Ask her majesty)? 

Me? I haven't seen that film in yonks, 'onest (we don't get so many UK film repeats here).


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## Oddbod70 (14 Oct 2020)

Classic! From buying a Landy to Silvia Syms in a nurses outfit via a variety of classic cars, moggies and Lada's dressed up as tanks!


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## Droogs (14 Oct 2020)

As I stated previously, the truck is an Austin K2 ambulance, same chassis as used forthe Matador 25pdr gun carriage


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## Phil Pascoe (14 Oct 2020)

I had an Austin Gypsy. Awesome thing, rusty as an anchor. It had a throttle on the dash, so I could drive it standing up, screen down, flat out at 48mph.


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## AES (14 Oct 2020)

Droogs said:


> As I stated previously, the truck is an Austin K2 ambulance, same chassis as used forthe Matador 25pdr gun carriage



Ah, OK Alan, thanks. I must have missed that in the thread previously


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## lurker (14 Oct 2020)

Phil Pascoe said:


> I had an Austin Gypsy. Awesome thing, rusty as an anchor. It had a throttle on the dash, so I could drive it standing up, screen down, flat out at 48mph.


If you put the series two in low box ,first gear it would drive itself along at walking pace, with nobody in the drivers seat. Rumour has it that this was a requirement for the British army.


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## Eric The Viking (14 Oct 2020)

A dashboard throttle was available for Series Landys, too. Not sure if it made it into the Defender era. Intended for when the power take-off was in use.

BTW, I think you mean Anthony Quayle...


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## Ollie78 (14 Oct 2020)

TFrench said:


> My dad's one. It's awesome. Life size Tonka toy.


Awesome, good colour too. 
I have always wanted a Unimog though have so far not found an excuse good enough.

Ollie


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## Beanwood (14 Oct 2020)

Phil Pascoe said:


> I had an Austin Gypsy. Awesome thing, rusty as an anchor. It had a throttle on the dash, so I could drive it standing up, screen down, flat out at 48mph.


An S2 I used to own had a hand throttle underneath the dash - great for using the PTO I suppose....

To be fair everything bad that has been written - and more - about old Landies is correct. (NEVER buy a 90 with a NA Diesel engine - trust me they are slow and loud). 

Mind you - despite the cold, the lack of power, the lack of heating, the lack of braking, the lack of dryness (Leaking from the door top seals) I ALWAYS used to smile driving my S2a. I do miss it. (But it wouldn't be good for a 100 mile round trip)


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## Droogs (14 Oct 2020)

Worst about military 110 etc was the whine of of the mil spec tyres. God that drone was awful. Tread pattern first introduce in the 30s and never changed.


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## TFrench (14 Oct 2020)

Droogs said:


> Worst about military 110 etc was the whine of of the mil spec tyres. God that drone was awful. Tread pattern first introduce in the 30s and never changed.


Ahhh, the hi-miler. I quite like the roar they make. But then it's not like I've driven a long way with them! This was my wedding car a couple of years ago. Austin Champ, forerunner to Phil's Austin gypsy. Completely mental in it's complexity but it's been in the family for a very long time and me and the old chap have sunk a lot of time into it. 3 litre Rolls Royce engine, 5 forward and reverse gears, wading to however wet you want to get, torsion bar suspension - way ahead of its time!


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## TFrench (14 Oct 2020)

marcros said:


> I imagine that it makes the land river fairly fuel efficient in comparison!!


Somewhat! Technically its agri spec so you can run it on red diesel. VOSA take a dim view of that though if you aren't actually using it for tractor-y purposes. It was Dad's lockdown project - it looked a total nail when he got it at the end of last year. Still a couple of issues to work through but its a long term project. Eventually it will have a hiab crane which should be fun!


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## Craywater (15 Oct 2020)

lurker said:


> Nope. They got back to Alex and there was one in the street scene.
> This was supposed to be during the war but the first Landy was built several (about ten IIRC) years post war.


Austin K 2 ambulance. Anthony Quail and John Mills


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## Phil Pascoe (15 Oct 2020)

I had a Champ, but sold it on after a few years as I never got around to restoring it. 24v electrics, iirc?

Yes, the reverse was on the axle (so you had the same gear choice in forward or reverse) wasn't it?


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## Gingerbloke (15 Oct 2020)

Oddbod70 said:


> I unreservedly apologise to land rover then! (I'm sure something was hand cranked backwards up a sand dune in some film - That's going to be bugging me for the rest of the day now!)


They hand cranked the ambulance up the hill. Landrovers didn’t go into production until 1948. The first being the 80”, the figure coming from the wheel base


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