Is this worth the effort and expense

[lyndon]

I have just purchased a 1990 200TDI. The vehicle has 142,000. the engine was reconditioned at 116,000. it has just gone through an MOT with a small weld near the chassis connection point under the front nearside wing. The mechanic that looks after it for me says there is some corrosion coming at certain points underneath, but for the age its sound. The areas he has shown me are not that bad.
I have just paid out for a full service , cam belt and tyres. The paint work is a little tatty but nothing a coat of paint won't sort out (thinking of painting it army green with a roller as I intend to use it for my Fishing alot). The gear box seems fine, an small issue of the reversing light sitch on the shift column isn't working and the sprung gate between first and reverse doesn't seem to exist as it is easy to put it into reverse instead of first. Third is a little notchy but livable with.

The point of all this is I absolutly love it and really would like to spend some time and money on her. I am thinking of getting the underneath steam cleaned and coated, get her lifted and big wheels fitted and a winch and snorkel fitted along with the usual under body protection. Is it worth it or should I just run her as is until she expires?

What do you guys ands gals think?

[Skibum346]

Only one answer... do it!

Land rovers are long lived beasties and by the sounds of it yours is ok so far.

Even if there is corrosion, ther are plenty of aviailable spares and bolt ons to suit.

Money well spent in my opinion.

[Range Rover Blues]

Absolutely, with a LR it's condition, not age so look after it now and if need be get the welding done.  Besides, better the devil you know.

The gearbox will be a LT77, the reversing spring thingy is bolted to the side of the selector housing and can be accessed by dismantling the centre console, whilst it's in peices you can also sort out the reversing light switch which bolts to the spring unit.  Details in the haynes book of confusion.

[disco maniac]

I'm with skibum

go for it, it will give you years of enjoyment.

[Tyke]

Yeah . . . go for it fella.


A few of us on here use them as fishin' trucks as well . . . can virtually live out of mine, perfect for the long stay carp fishing trips where you can get the vehicle up the banks . . . .   8)


Just be ready for the cost if you start up the road of doing mods . . . . can get to be an obsession . . . or so swmbo says :lol:


I'm a bailiff on a number of local carp waters and the Land Rover is out and about practically every day doing the lakeside rounds  :)


Earns a few bob pulling out stuck cars as well at this time of year  :lol:

[lyndon]

Its still me I have changed my username as Barrett was a mistake. Doh!

Hi Tyke thanks for introducing me to this forum.

Thanks for the comments gents. Guess I will be putting my hand in my pocket then.

Cheers

Lyndon

[lyndon]

Thanks for the tips. Console will be coming off this weekend. I have absolutley no mechanical background. So I guess its time to start learning. Any hints on where to look for good easy instructions on how to do things. My biggest problem is I can't even find half the stuff that people suggest might need looking at. I've never heard of haf of it. All over my head I am afraid. Replaced the thermostat last weekend after I got a mechanic to point it out to me and give me an idiots guide. Sorted out my temp gauge problem though.

[Range Rover Blues]

This might sound a bit c**p but the Haynes manual for the RRC is actualy more use than the Disco one, I know because I borrowed Tim's 'book of confusion' for a job that wasn't covered by the RRC manual and the Disco one was even worse.  Downright awful.

Anyway, if you get really stuck then once the console is off, post us some pics or something and we can help you.

[burgerman]

If ya get stuck , im not a million miles away from you,   Not saying that i know all, but been dabbling in landrovers for a few years now,, and was on the spanners in the past,   Must admit  that the jobs i have done have been quite ok,(usually heavy/awkward) but ok

[Skibum346]

I have absolutley no mechanical background. So I guess its time to start learning.

as the other guys have said, just ask, that's what mud club is about.

However, I'd highly recomend getting the Land Rover Classic Parts CD for your vehicle/year. On it you not only get the vehicle owners handbook, but also the service manual that goes into far more detail than Haynes, as well as the illustrated parts list (fantastic for those times when you've taken something apart and can't remember the way it goes back together.... Not that that's EVER been a problem... honest...:oops:)

Good luck!

[lyndon]

Where can I get the parts CD from and how much. I have ordered a new Bias plate, springs and reversing light switch today. The bloke at Craddocks said to have a look and see if its just bent first. To my mind why go to all that effort to strip it all down to find I need a new bit and have to wait a few days for it. For the sake of £10 for the lot I can replace it all and then know its all puka and sorted in a one're.

I now have a nice leak from the front sunroof. I have a new seal on its way. Are these easy to replace?.

[Tyke]

I now have a nice leak from the front sunroof

More commonly known as the Land Rover fitted shower . . . .   :lol:


Welcome aboard btw Lyndon  

[Skibum346]

Where can I get the parts CD from and how much.

A Land Rover Stealership is really the only place I know of to get them but they're only about £15.

 :lol:

[lyndon]

landrover wanted £60 plus vat for the seal. Managed to get the same one from a dealer on line for £30 next day delivery. Also had to get the Bias plate springs from them at an extremley inflated price. 2 springs were the same price as the plate.

Oh well it is a landrover !!lol

[defuzz]

my gear box has the same missing gate, I ought to replace it but after two years, I just got used to going into 2nd then straight into first without releasing the clutch inbetween.  It never goes into reverse by accident like that!!

[lyndon]

So having decided that this is something I want to do, how much will I be looking to pay to modify the vehicle in the ways I suggested I want to ?

[Range Rover Blues]

Depends what you want to do.

The best advice, and we all give it (or something similar) is get along to your pub meet and go greenlaning with the guys & girls of Mud CLub.

Ask the stupid questions, we all had to ask them once you know

Why have you got one of those then?

What does that do?

Would that fit MY car?

get the idea? don't just go into a 4x4 shop with your wallet open and decide you don't want your car to look like anyone elses.

Bide your time and wait for second hand bargains

Only buy a winch when you've really regretted not having one (mine hasn't been used in anger yet even though I took my own advice on it).

Read through the forums, you'll get some ideas, see the pitfalls and the bills.  Mostly, make use of the club 'cos that's what we're about.

Once you've made your mind up on a mod then come in here and ask, we'll all gladly give you the advice we wish we'd had, often it's contradictory but that goes to prove there is more than one answer to a problem.

Our typical list of suggested first time mods goes something like this (and it's really time it went in the articles section)

Recovery points
Recovery rope, not a Halfords' tow rope but proper gear
Wellies and shovel
All terrain tyres or mud terrains, depends on choice
Diff guards
CB

You may wish to add
steering guard
sill guards AKA rock sliders
Fuel tank guard/removable tow bar
suspension lilft, sometimes goes before bigger mud tyres
snorkel
many many extra lights, just watch the regs on them

and so the list goes on.

By far the biggest expense will be a full on suspension lift, now I don't list all my mods in my signature but have a look at my profile, I recon it's cost about £850 to do a fully sorted 2" lift, plus tyres, but my car handles well and can embarass a badly driven hot-hatch.

I'm sure others will have things to add, that's what is great about Mud Club.

Finally when you start to buy stuff for your car there are one or two usefull contacts within Mud Club, I'll get you started, ask for a guy who sells yellow strops

[Tyke]

Can't fault the advice there from RRB. Many of the things we fit are not essentials and number one on any list really should be recovery gear and a decent set of tyres. Then get out and use it till you either get stuck or break something.

If you want bigger tyres then you must think about fitting a lift and in most cases be prepared to start cutting chunks out of the bodywork to get the necessary clearances. Also consider if you are you going to hang other bits on the chassis like heavy duty bumpers, winches, underbody protection etc. It all adds to the weight and the spring rating has to selected to suit. Think I'm on my third set of springs now to compensate for the mods I've done. My avatar is quite old now and the truck is considerably different to when that was taken  :twisted:

Once you get the bigger tyres in then you may find that the gearing is too tall and you need to swap the Transfer box or diff ring and pinions. Consider the size of tyres you may want to fit then go for the lift to suit. Go over 2" and you may need to consider a lot more other expense. Prop uj's will fail, the steering could wander, the whole plot could become unstable. I feel any lift should always be countered with a wider track by fitting wheel spacers, larger offsets on wheels etc.

My own truck has evolved on an as needs basis. Like I said earlier, get out and use it and you will soon find what is really needed. If you break something, find out why and take measures to reduce the chance of it happening again.



Most of all, have fun with motor . . . . that's what it's all about  

[lyndon]

Cheers gents wise words in deed. I think I am going to sit on it and wait. See how I fair around the local lakes etc this winter. Might even be worth looking for a vehicle already modified if I decide to go down that route.

[Littledan]

i say go for it mate u wont regret it one bit!!