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Maltese 88 Old but gold.


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Hi guys,

I have been holding back from buying a land rover for a while now, I come from the MINI scene but from the smallest classic car I v always wanted a big toy,

I was hunting around for a defender / 90 but the prices in Malta vary a lot and their are benefits in place in restoring near 40 plus year vehicles rather then newer ones.

I was looking as some local ads 1 day and i found the perfect starting step :

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This is a weird 1 in that is most definitely a Series 2A but for some reason it is marked as 1976 YOM i suspect it was built from remaining parts.

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This was originally a 2.5 TD but it was converted sometime in the  2000s to a 200TDI from a defender , still had the original crash-box.

The good new is that this has no rust 0. After restoring my MINI see pics below I now have a fear of rust especially to the extent i had to deal with on that project

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This 2a has no chassis rust the bulkhead has no rust or signs of oxidation . It was originally green then it was painted blue  and finally this ugly grey colour was brushed on badly:

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THE PLAN :

I love the series aesthetic and charm but i want to drive it overland and use it as a vehicle, As it stands it is to agricultural , The steering is too heavy , the brakes leave much to be desired, The gearing is to low , In Malta i need an AC or its just an oven and it needs a full restoration to get it the standard I want. So this my journey of trying to convert this Series 2a into an almost daily driver while try to keep it true as possible and on a budget

Find below the list of projects that i will be doing apart from restoring it i will update try to log as much as I can thank you and enjoy

Special Projects :

Electric Power steering ( p38 with opel pump)

DIY AC system for under 400 euro (polo condenser ,drier , caravan evaporator and no name compressor)

Convert from single line to 4 line brake system or brake booster 

Swap in LT77 from defender

Sound deaden to the max 

Electric fan install

GSM security tracker install

hidden water tank and shower install

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So I started off dismantling the 2A .

I m very happy with so far no rust spots found and wow this is easy to dismantle no haynes manual nothing find a bolt remove it and something comes off 

IMG_20200126_132847.thumb.jpg.467f6ba36847853a672c28c6db22cd15.jpgIMG_20200126_132901.thumb.jpg.66ad2cc3b53fc7f7be8b10144fde9dc9.jpgIMG_20200130_200533.thumb.jpg.fb6df9ab65f963e2cac5b676f55fc269.jpgIMG_20200130_200553.thumb.jpg.2344bb61d3e96d55d77dd38af1e04101.jpgIMG_20200130_200601.thumb.jpg.bfed381d2c3f34c8bcf2b94c63689a1a.jpg

 

I Started of mocking up and making the parts for the Power Steering install :

IMG_20200131_214047.thumb.jpg.a37b5b62514d47102dd6309886d42f10.jpg

This is VW polo electric PAS pump from a early 2k polo

IMG_20200131_202336.thumb.jpg.b3cb2ae794c184d7a319d218ca636092.jpg

This is defender rack and it will connect to the P38 Box 

IMG_20200201_133311.thumb.jpg.8e46b57f96aff49d4b2a3ddc4c830f5c.jpg

I had to shorten the range rover mid shaft at the the BREAKAGE point i basically cut most of the rod out contoured it the same and reattached it. I will be welding it in place to make sure its super safe.IMG_20200201_132927.thumb.jpg.446e105b67f37639438bc80eb4412b43.jpg

This the chassis plate to attach the P38 

IMG_20200202_132704.thumb.jpg.5a0d683043c601a67553d266c293c830.jpg

 

I modified the side connector thing and added a metal bracket to securely attach the column to it using the factory mounting

IMG_20200202_134603.thumb.jpg.9bfdef0497c261600ff0ae7c1e635c1f.jpg

 

I cut the bulkhead connector so i can fit a pearch for the PAS Pump

IMG_20200202_135416.thumb.jpg.ba4fb53331bd44e19a513f0c9c0a0afc.jpg

I found a timing gear the i can make perfectly round a bit of recycling

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I attached a male and female jubilee clips so i can take the pump out easily if needed and it should securely keep it in place. I will be adding a top strap later to make sure it doesnt move, I will be putting a soft rubber base to damped the noise

IMG_20200202_163107.thumb.jpg.8808b266e2c25fdfab3f76a1aac6e2c0.jpgIMG_20200202_163121.thumb.jpg.2abe165444dccd8adb6ee3a3567c51e5.jpg

Here it is all installed and welded up pretty happy with this banged it out in 2 days :).

The nice thing is with this setup I can technically dry stir without starting the vehicle 

and another advantages being isolated from the motor I can make all the lines hard making them leak proof for years.

I also leaved room for a bigger alternator and the AC condenser and They are dirt cheap. Electric car all have these type of PAS pumps so the spares can only get bigger.

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3 hours ago, Snagger said:

Nice work on the Mini.

Why the electric pump for the PAS?  Tdis have PAS pumps already, which can be reloaded on new brackets if needed.  Less strain on the electrical circuit that way. 

Hi snagger I have to main reasons for it.

  1. I will be using a different AC unit than the land rover ones as they impossible to buy locally and better models have been developed since
  2. Another reason it that I have available to me and 180 amp alternator and I did some calculation the pas pump draws about 40 amps at full load so i will have plenty of power for the ancillaries while also theoretically losing less horse power in the process 
  3. The last advantage is the electric pump has a Yaw and Load sensor allowing me to adjust the amount of assist i want from it something i cannot do in a normal pulley pump. So i can change the feel depending on the road or requirement . I can go full series impossible to steer to fiat 500 

They might not be reason enough but I decide to give it a try if all fails i can still convert it back to a normal pump

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On ‎2‎/‎4‎/‎2020 at 11:14 AM, FridgeFreezer said:

The EPAS pumps are an interesting thing, undoubtedly have many advantages. If my pump dies I might even consider one as I'm all for reducing the number of moving parts.

Doesn't that add an electric motor in the equation?

 

On ‎2‎/‎3‎/‎2020 at 12:14 PM, alaincam said:

Hi snagger I have to main reasons for it.

  1. I will be using a different AC unit than the land rover ones as they impossible to buy locally and better models have been developed since
  2. Another reason it that I have available to me and 180 amp alternator and I did some calculation the pas pump draws about 40 amps at full load so i will have plenty of power for the ancillaries while also theoretically losing less horse power in the process. Assuming the PAS pump does not draw any power?
  3. The last advantage is the electric pump has a Yaw and Load sensor allowing me to adjust the amount of assist i want from it something i cannot do in a normal pulley pump. So i can change the feel depending on the road or requirement . How are you planning on controlling this? I can go full series impossible to steer to fiat 500 

They might not be reason enough but I decide to give it a try if all fails i can still convert it back to a normal pump

 

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23 minutes ago, Daan said:

Doesn't that add an electric motor in the equation?

Well yes, but the pump is quite compact (and a sealed unit) and can be anywhere, plus you're not using a belt-drive on the engine to constantly stir hydraulic fluid. If the pump fails, a fuse blows, rather than take your fan belt out. I think they've got more upsides than downsides, and certainly make plumbing easier for modified vehicles or retro-fit PAS.

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  • 2 months later...

Hi all,

 

It been a while since I posted COVID as usual impacted everyone so here are the updates till now.

  1. I have completely dismantled the landy 
  2. Discovered a crack in the centre cross member so that will first thing weld and reinforce 
  3. Power steering bracket fabricated and test installed and front axle stripped and painted waiting on new set of bolt to start reassembly

IMG_20200406_193121.thumb.jpg.106926eaaf94136ebfceb943dd096f0d.jpgIMG_20200406_202748.thumb.jpg.150972c3356ba71bb085e1a95c5e1ac8.jpgIMG_20200410_125914.thumb.jpg.bc5bb7c949b99950a9965eadee2ab207.jpgIMG_20200410_125929.thumb.jpg.2c70ba0711811966e72cb7291f49799b.jpgIMG_20200410_160324.thumb.jpg.fb29b827b29e2fc22a514d2db78ef99a.jpgIMG_20200413_180404.thumb.jpg.52b76ec123de60e1095be7ded5df0e13.jpgIMG_20200413_181014.thumb.jpg.bdf7b5f33bedd1e6f731f9a41afd221f.jpgIMG_20200414_210304.thumb.jpg.042362c682fcd0d696111b74ab640972.jpgIMG_20200414_210508.thumb.jpg.a51ec589cf4fe3eedb7621d519aa122c.jpg

 

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1 hour ago, FridgeFreezer said:

That's an impressive crack! :ph34r:

I was stunned as well the Landy doesn't look abused as in no rust or off road dents in the aluminium body. I can only assume it was either in  accident or some sort of extreme crash i don't know i will re-welding it up and adding a square beam across the member to prevent it from re cracking.

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19 hours ago, steve200TDi said:

I was also surprised it was on the top of the chassis

Hmm, me too,.... it's hard to see how the cross member could be stressed there in normal use, twisting the chassis is the only obvious scenario, but to crack like that suggests repeated max load stress? could be the edge of the haz from construction.

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2 hours ago, Blanco said:

Hmm, me too,.... it's hard to see how the cross member could be stressed there in normal use, twisting the chassis is the only obvious scenario, but to crack like that suggests repeated max load stress? could be the edge of the haz from construction.

That is the likely cause. I know the vehicle has been offroaded fairly recently before i bought and it tore it apart. Before that is was used to haul construction cement so easily went over the max carriage weight . An the roads back then where horrible compared to now.

 

Edited by alaincam
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Painfully slow!  But you’d have buckets of torque.  You don’t have that many high speed roads in Malta, but lots of steep hills and road junctions.  To be honest, I think you’d be changing gears too often as the old diffs will narrow the speed-rpm range too much for each gear.  If you are set on fitting the LT77 and LT230, then get some old 10spline 3.54 diffs from a 200Tdi or earlier Defender, RR or Discovery.  You can identify donor axles by the hubs - the type you need has the thicker hubs, with a thick drive flange (about 3/4”) and long plastic cone (Defender) or solid metal dome with no centre cone (RR and Discovery).  If the axle has a thin flange (1/2”) and a shorter plastic cone with the Land Rover logo, or has relatively flat flanges (rear), then it’s the later axle with a 24 spline diff that won’t fit the Series axle shafts.

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I haven’t tried the maths, but if you have decent size tyres (235/85 or bigger), the 4.71 Series diffs may be alright behind a Discovery or RR LT230, with the 1.2 gears.  I’m not sure - it’ll still be low geared, but might be OK on Maltese roads.

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Thank you all for the replies. After inspecting the Serial numbers it seems the donor LT230 and LT77 from a defender was a donor from another vehicle its range rover classic variant

with 1.22 gears in it. Also found out that series had defender diffs fitted so 3.54 ratio. I am mainly after a good cruising speed and as low rev as I can get without lugging anything. I enjoy that it is slower then most vehicle and the main purpose of most of the mods is to make a safe and capable over lander that I can keep as a family jewel :). I own sports bikes for cheap speed.

  • I have ordered a remote brake booster to retain the series 2a setup and still get a decent amount of braking 
  • Converted and rebuilt to pully drive an Audi A6 alternator its a cheap way to get 160A alternator cost around 30 pounts and 15 for bearings and rectifier.
  • I will retain the old 60A alternator as sub feed for the a deep cycle battery for onboard electrics :)
  • I will also reveal my plan to quiet down the 200tdi using hydraulic mounts 

I will attach pics soon

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