RGK

Thanks for the offer, a test drive and pearls of wisdom would be greatly appreciated (maybe over a pie & a pint). Which part of the country are you in?

i've read that the RR2 has a wheelbase of 108". Great point about 'cut'n'shunt' and family, hate to say it may be 'not-seeing-the-wood-for the trees'. Do you have any advice regarding the +'s of 110 & 130?

Thanks, looks like i've had some duff advice (as previous quoted in my conversation with Keir)! What would you say are the pron's & con's between 110 and 130? to be honest the cost vs the benefit of a V8 vs diesel, i am now considering diesel

It was suggested to me and I thought made sense (at the time) that by buying and using a Range Rover I could use the engine (V8?, dreaming about a supercharged HSE, dreaming mind, but nice), air suspension, ABS, brakes, ac, interior (some, but more comfy for the wifey), etc and cut down on cost and time in modifying a 110 or 130. Upon investigating Rangy’s do not seem to retain their value in comparison to the trusty defender, and defender body parts seem to be cheaper than Range Rover. Thanks for your comments, as I really need guidance from ‘people-in-the-know’ before I start shelling £’s.

Since a young age working in a local garage and helping to build the bosses defender v8 conversion, Robinhood and Cobra replica, my ambition to do my own project one day has never waned...and now older with a family I have decided to plan & make my ambition come true (boys and their toys, just get bigger when they get older). Now with a family in toe a two seater sporty number isn't practical and now in civil engineer an all round machine would suit me better. Hence a defender ticks all the boxes (work, home, modifiable, and great fun in the mud) I'm looking for some advise if anyone can help it would be greatly appreciated...the initial plans are to build my own defender 110 or 130 hybrid based on a Range Rover chassis... 1) Apart from the obvious (ie 20" longer and extending the chassis) what are the pron's and con's of a 110 compared to the 130? 2) There are a number of specifications of Range Rover’s on the market with various additions, are there any models, year, etc I should avoid or must haves? 3) I have searched for chassis technical drawing of the 110's, 130's and Range Rover to compare, unfortunately with out success. Does anyone know where I can find copy's off? Thanks,