Retroanaconda

An air fed mask, and separate/extra compressor if necessary, is the only proper way to do it.

It cost me about £2.5k to get the 90 panels done in 2021, individually as the vehicle was stripped down. They could have done a better job as there are runs in a few places and some cracking/crazing in places. They also only did the outside of the panels as I was doing the inside myself. I’d expect to pay £4-5k for a proper high quality respray. And in reality you could buy the proper kit and have a go yourself for a hell of a lot less, which leaves a lot of spare for a few tries while you learn. But you’ll need the luxury of space and time.

Yes, change the brush pack first. They’re cheap enough and it’s worth a go. I swapped the one on mine recently and it solved a problem with low charge voltage - the brushes were just worn down.

@ThreePointFive did you make any more progress with this?

Mine goes up over the top of the brake pedal box/servo and then just straight down to the hole in the footwell. Most of it is visible here

Euro 2 standard is the minimum for the French stickers, and even then you’ll only get a class 5 which is pretty much banned anywhere there is an emissions zone. Sadly it means much routing faff when trying to get through parts of France in an older vehicle.

Doesn’t the column slide within the mounts a bit?

You need to look harder.

They still make the Disco Sport - it’s a very popular model and acts as the entry point to the range same as the freelander used to.

Sadly once you have involved the DVLA it’s very hard to un-involve them. The best approach is to tell them as little as possible, as their ability to misunderstand things and create a world of pain is legendary.

Simple thing to check - are all your induction hoses okay and not collapsing internally?

They are the air vents for the heater.

Yes, I have several of those which I use for phones/tablets etc. but it seems untidy and a waste of a nice device to wire it in behind the dash or something and then leave it hidden away. I will if I need to, but I’m keen to see if anyone has any other solutions. I’m aware that cheap and nasty power adaptors present a risk, but they are all made in China anyway - hence looking for others experience.

Okay, I upped my Google game and found this. Seems suitable? https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ytesky-Inventor-Converter-Transformer-Adapter/

I am using an old phone as a basic tracker in the car, and I want to tuck away a permanent power source for it to keep it topped up. I can easily wire up a cigarette lighter socket and then use a USB adaptor but it strikes me as an untidy way of doing it for a permanent and hidden installation. Is there anything available off the shelf that I can more simply provide with a permanent 12v supply from the vehicle battery and which has a USB to plug the phone into? Doesn’t need to be very powerful as it’ll just be keeping it topped up, and I don’t want it draining the battery too much.

Was out all day in a colleagues new Grenadier yesterday, his is a fairly well-specced diesel station wagon. The much-awaited software update obviously hasn’t reached him yet as the dash was lit up like a Christmas tree all day even though everything was working. However the door open and seatbelt warning bongs were going off randomly for most of the day - quite annoying! The above notwithstanding it is a really nice place to be, and I think it’s going to be a great vehicle once the niggles are sorted. There is certainly a lot to like and so with my interest buoyed once more, I looked at the configurator again but it seems there has been a big price hike across all models as they launched the pickup version. The fairly basic vehicle I specified after my test drive (diesel utility wagon with smooth and rough packs, plus a towbar) has gone up from £63k to £70k. For me it’s sadly now just too expensive, and I am going to rebuild my 110 with a modern engine instead. It will never be as good as a Grenadier, and obviously won’t be new, but I can probably get a vehicle that is 75%+ as good for around 25% of the cost.

Standard 8.8 grade bolts will be fine.

Shims to adjust the rake of the bulkhead as required. I made mine out of HDPE plastic sheet rather than sandwiching some aluminium between two pieces of steel (bad idea).

Hi Ed. I’d suggest starting a new topic for your project, and people will be very happy to weigh in with opinion on different engines. There are a few options along the line of what you are thinking. The Mercedes OM606 is a popular one.

Just fit them dry. There’s no reason to use silicone - and many reasons not to! Some fresh paint is a good idea though.

I know the calipers got wider so they could fit thicker pads, but I’m not sure if the discs changed too. If you post up a photo of the discs/calipers someone may be able to identify them.

The Salisbury was discontinued around 2004/2005 so it will date from anywhere between 1999 when the Td5 came in (and ABS with it) and then.

They’ll be too small if it’s the original clutch pipe. Brake pipes are 3/16” and the clutch pipe is 1/4”.

An early 110SW with a working Boge strut is the best ride you’ll get out of a defender - soft and compliant but able to stiffen up when loaded. Later models use progressive springs which are okay but they're a bit of a compromise in my opinion. My plan was (is?) to use the earlier soft springs but with air bags inside to pump up if loaded or towing, to basically replace the function of the strut.

I’m not sure where you are getting that from but it’s wrong for most Defenders. From 1991 all 90/110/130 have the same size front discs. 110/130 got vented as standard, whereas it was an option on 90, but all same diameter and calipers. Rear brakes on the 110/130 are the same diameter as the fronts, just with smaller two-piston calipers rather than bigger four-pots on the front. The 90 uses a smaller diameter disc, same as the Disco/RRC. Obviously all had rear drums until 1993/1994 and the sizes were different same as the discs. Before 1991 90s had smaller front discs than 110s as well. The brake bias valve (‘G’ valve) is simple to fit and is all that’s required on a 90. For a 110 you don’t need any valves at all, just the reservoir cap as above. There is good info on the different braking systems in the workshop manual.