trafman

Its great to have the info passed as at the least folk are aware and can decide if cat C or d etc bothers them. I viewed a cat C Landy today loved it and not an issue. I wont comment on this particular sale but what would be a concern to me in any potential sale is if the info is not disclosed or denied, that's when I would likely walk away. I spent 20 mins looking at a particular Landy today and loved it, I did spend over an hour in general chat with its restorer and owner now that's what told me more about the vehicle and just how well it was likely to have been restored. Cheers Trafman

Thanks, saved me looking and yes a few too many pennies. ta Trafman

2.8TGV ? , I keep getting info to check out but my knowledge is growing by the day, Ta trafman

Not wanting to get this off topic so lets just accept its 60mph of grief in one vehicle and 60mph of grief in the other that makes 120 mph worth of grief which what I was trying to get across( not impact speed) but I accept where the debate on what the impact speed works out at. Far far too many variables the masses are rarely exactly equal and they dont hit exactly at the same point height angle etc. Trafman

IT may be I look out for vehicle with a rebuilt 200Tdi engine or are there any good rebuild companies out there ? maybe my next bit of homework. Also get sensible feedback that a 300Tdi is fine as long as you look after the cooling side of things. Plenty advice to chew over so many thanks to all who have given such valuable thoughts. Trafman

Glad my input was taken exactly as it was meant and it sort of answers the question, is it legal, well yes it can be just needs to be appropriate use. I am def not for the nanny state and as always its about common sense and a balance. The use of the MOTUK link will help get the definitive of when a seat belt needs to be fitted and basically if its fitted it should be worn, now its time to enjoy the sunshine and using the LRs to explore and have some fun. Cheers Trafman

Hi It may be worth having a read through the info that the good folk on here have passed to me in the topic re " A Defender for use on Ascension Island" some pretty useful thoughts on 200tdi v 300tdi etc also good tips on what to check for etc. happy hunting and good luck on finding the right Landy Trafman

Continues to be great info and now my Lad is following the topic so its definitely well received and well appreciated Trafman

Initially I did not respond to this one as have spent too much time dealing with this sort of question professionally as a Traffic Police sgt and have wanted a break from such thoughts but will add my comments, considerations and suggestions as so many on here have been so giving with their excellent advice re a suitable Land rover to use on Ascension Island. This is where I come from: 21 yrs as a Traffic cop most of its as a Sgt and for a lot of that time working in a small team that dealt with a Fatal Collision every 13 days. Divide 21yrs by 13 and that's a ton of grief and a ton of experience but the following is just my personal take and thankfully have started to enjoy my retirement 10 months ago. The question was what does the law say so as to not avoid the question, it all depends on age of vehicle, position of seats ie side facing ( does not require seat belts ) forward facing, is there any thing that divides the passenger space fron drivers area and plenty more variables. It is all the variables that causes us all to have sketchy knowledge understanding so gues what we need a flow chart or a guide. Mr Google is great for that but in addition try WWW.MOTUK.CO.UK look at testers manual section 5.1 that will help and offers flow charts etc. Now the important thing: Common sense and the what when it goes wrong, you can guess that having had the occupation that I have have have been to far too many scenes involving double and triple fatalities and sadly far too many involving kids. Thought Did Mr Landrover initially design his vehicle to transport your nearest and dearest and little ones 100 mile down a motorway at 70 mph left lying about insecure or was he trying to make the worlds best utility vehicle to take the odd SAS over desert terrain or farm hand a mile or so across a field on a temporary use side facing seat at 15mph ? Now its that sort of question that I would ask as a Police officer will likely ignore the odd sighting of someone sat insecure in the back of a landy as most wont actually know the seatbelt law to the enth degree and most police are not dealing with a fatal collision every other week. When the law does know what its talking about is after it has all gone horribly wrong it then ends up interviewing Dad for death by Dangerous driving, ( you may want to look it up as dangerous includes the manner in which you carry passengers or the load in or on the vehicle). What is a real horror is at the scene of a fatal or even life changing injury RTC is a potentially culpable driver finding themselves being arrested there and then if they are fit to be so. Imagine the scene of the Collision and then being arrested effectively you are now going to be asked was it really bright to leave a child or an adult insecure in a space which is really only fit to carry tools or the odd sheep. You may be thinking it would be very insensitive and wrong to arrest someone who has just been involved in the loss of their family but for reasons that are not connected to this topic its can and does happen. As a caring human being I have hated having to arrest a father or partner at the scene of a fatality but it does happen and for sound evidential reasons, its the country holding you to account for making the decision to carry say a child unsecured, who is not expected to make the same conscious decisions that we would expect of an adult, they relied on Dad ? There is an offence of putting a vehicle to unsuitable purposes, think Ford transit builders van and bob the builder sticking a few of his mates in the back to take them to the building site, plod stops them obviously no seats and belts in the back and Bob walks away with 3 more points on his licence and a £100 less well off. It might be seen that taking a farm hand or you family down a country road between farms or in a village and for a short duration or distance is suitable as obviously this risk is relatively low and much reduced. MR plod may consider that is a suitable purpose, its when its gone wrong and Plod suggests that a day out halfway across the country motorways B roads at 60mph (think 120mph when its head on) is not suitable purpose that you may struggle to convince Plod, the CPS and find yourself at Crown court looking at potentially custodial sentence that you would then reflect and think was it really a good idea to exercise my freedom to make that decision ? with freedom comes responsibilities . Now you will realise why I did not initially respond, its just not a healthy topic, please don't take this as an invite to question the reasoning behind all of the above or expect me to get into justifications etc as I wont. I just want to give some food for thought from one who has dealt with the outcome of kids and plenty of adults not secured in vehicles, I can count at least a 100 people who I have seen that did not make it home because they or Dad ? decided they did not need securing, when that vehicle rolls or is hit the worlds strongest man is not holding on its a tumble drier spinning you outwards. If you read above and you know if it did go wrong that you could cope with the scene, cope with the outcome then you nearly have the right to decide to carry Kids and adults unsecured in or on your vehicle . I said nearly as I doubt you would ever get the willing permission from those that attend and deal with the scenes or at hospitals or mortuaries later. Anyway now I have cheared everyone up I can see a few more Defender 90s with side facing seats coming on the market, now I am looking for a good one to export out to Ascension Island but it will be used front seat only or on a rare occasion very short distance and slow with anyone in the rear. There is my answer it is should you not can you. Trafman

Is there any real probs or issues with the 300tdi engine and it not being very efficient as far as cooling is concerned ? So how does the TD5 fair as a potential in that environment ? There is such a wide range of vehicles used, that was one of my first line of enquiry as thought go for what is most used and there should be some spares available. Sadly there is no joined up thinking on that one and its just a real jumble of different makes inc a lot of 2wd vehicles which just have to stick to the relatively level tracks and no going off road etc. Cant go into it on here but there is no real access to military spares any spares come via ship from UK think 6 weeks from ordering and you would not be far out.

Getting a few negatives re the spares situ for the 200tdi ? so how does the 300Tdi cope as far as cooling is concerned or is there a mod that you would do to a 300 used in a hotter climate. Ascension average daily temp is about 80F and note today is 86F. Or in old money well warm. Trafman

Lewis Ascension island is a small volcanic Island about 7miles across and right in the equatorial waters of the South Atlantic about 1,000 miles of the coast of Africa and about 1400 miles off South America or in other words a bl***y long way to the shops if your Defender breaks down.

Hi Fridge Well thanks for the balanced view as well and hope the witness protection looks after you. No one allowed to have a pop at Fridge he is providing what I am asking for and that's as many and as broad and cross section of ideas and suggestions. Certainly the views and suggestions received so far reflect very well on this group in general and its a credit that folk can feel able to be honest and realistic in their assessment of what the pros and cons are of the Landy fleet. I have driven Police Discos in some interesting snows and never been over worried and never let me down. The only time I got a Police Defender stuck (for a while) was in a heavy snow drift , I was literally flying down the road bouncing on top of the rut of snow between the tyre tracks on a rural B road. It was one of those times when you really needed a plough but just had to keep the momentum going and press on and enjoy the ride. We then came head to head at 2am with a muppet who had taken his 2wd Astra out and was well and truly stuck. I remember saying to my passenger colleague, he must be ********* to be out in this . He was and loaned us his licence for 12 months, have to say it was amazing just how far he had managed to get in a 2wd vehicle. Really appreciate these considerations and more than happy for them to keep coming. Regards Trafman

I will have to look up what oil bath hubs are but guess it means good constant lubrication. dependant on what initial purchase cost is, then will look at possibility of changing such as alt, starter and radiator and then send the replaced items as spares, that way there is no doubt they are the right ones and working. may be a little wasteful but better chance of trouble free time in Ascension which is main aim. trafman

Discomikey Wow wow and thank you, a real load of time and effort put into that reply and a lot of info and considerations. Its always great that if you ask folk with a common interest for a little help, then its given in bucket loads to a complete stranger. many thanks. As always all considerations etc keep them coming, thought the idea of using it here for a few K very sensible and thanks for the tip re OEM/genuine parts trafman

Well in the spirit that I wrote my request for help I hope to get a reasoned response but am sure if I went on " Turkeys forum" and asked them if they want to vote to keep Christmas, their response would also be a bit predicatable. On serious note really will appreciate the advice and sure members will be keen to assist knowing that we are looking to source a Defender to work in an environment that will test it. I am sure if my Lad Daniel gets his hands on his own landy then he will use it and get it off the tracks that 2wd vehicles can use. trafman

I am considering buying my 26 year old lad a Defender 90 to use as his everyday vehicle on Ascension Island and its generally hot there. I have a budget of approx. £6k so its going to have age but am looking at those vehicles which have had a few bob spent on them ideally clutch ,cam belts and look tidy and a little less than military. I personally have never owned a Defender or any 4x4 but driven many inc old ones in my RAF days more recently Police ones in snow and floods but am really undecided if a Defender is the right vehicle of choice considering the below info . As my lad will be working on Ascension for 2 to 4 yrs he needs something which can cope with a tough environment but little if any real off road use. 95% of the time it just for pleasure and driven on volcanic cinder tracks. When my lad finishes on Ascension the vehicle is very likely to stay there and be sold as it has a bit of a premium as no cost of shipping export etc, its likely to be worth more there than back in the UK and certainly after another 2-4yrs service. Ascension is only about 7 miles across modest hills in places but it is hot most of the year so have to think about an engine and a vehicles ability to keep itself cool. I would guess his mileage will be around 50 miles a week no more than 100. Diesel is cheaper than UK and the vehicle he imports has to be a diesel as soon that will be the only road vehicle fuel available. Thankfully the cost to get the vehicle out there is covered in his contract but I don't want to be sending a liability and my lad whilst very bright would not know how to change such as an injector or alternator and certainly no idea on diagnosis etc. There is a repair garage there but so many different makes of vehicle on the island that spares are the real issue and you could easily have a 6 week wait for spares from the UK via ship. A Landrover may just have the edge on the other makes as the government use a few Defenders and a few spares are kept available but very very limited and obviously plenty of variations on engines and spares across the Defender fleet. So being a newbie to Defenders a few questions that I would really appreciate help with from those that know these vehicles. Considerations really have to keep in focus that this is not really a vehicle for fun although I have loved driving them and having fun and its not a case if it breaks that he can fix it or has access to much in the way of spares. Is a Defender the right vehicle ? does not need it to be 110 but wants a hard top vehicle and 90 size is fine. What model would best suit, thinking reliability ease of getting spares in UK to send out if required, actually we are talking Landrover when required. what engine, I am thinking 200 does that keep its self cooler than 300 ? or is there a solution to improve either of these engines, any particular fan set up to use or avoid ? What modifications would you suggest are essential or desirable What wheels and tyres, need to be hard wearing the volcanic cinder tracks and surface eat shoes as its effectively pumice volcanic cinder so sure tyres will get eaten up if the wrong compound. appreciate driving style will dictate that one more but obviously tyres wont be cheap to get to Ascension and over 4 yrs don't want to be changing too often, mind 50-100 miles a week am I over considering that one ? Any other considerations you would be making ? Even at 26 Insurance is not an issue for him everyone seems to pay a fee to the Island government or something like that. No rush to provide the vehicle its getting the right one that matters. I have to think long and hard about the vehicle, he does want a little 4x4 ability but its a tough call buying a vehicle when 90% of the time its not going to be used to its potential or even basic 4x4 capability. I am lucky to be going out there next month for 2 weeks so may be able to do some homework and see what vehicles seem to work and stand up to the environment, I will look to see what engines and set up are in any Landys out there, sadly I asked my lad to seek advice of the garage there but local mechanic was not overly forthcoming with advice. I am hiring a Ford Fiesta when I am out there £25 a day and will be putting it through its paces and seeing what a basic 2wd can deal with. I will be enjoying some fishing there as even off the beach 16ft sharks or 50-100lb tuna are possible, I will also be diving. I have to behave though as my lad is setting up the Fisheries research and is in charge of diving. I keep reminding him I beat him to Ascension as spent a day there transiting to the Falklands in 1982 and spent half my 21st birthday on the island on the way back. Buggers made me do it again in 1990 so I left afterwards lol Thanks in advance Trafman alias Martin