Popular Post Junglie Posted December 23, 2021 Popular Post Share Posted December 23, 2021 (edited) So I bought my 110 - a 1985 12J utility - at the end of November last year. It was a good price and looked pretty solid, so all in all I was happy. The vendor had done some good work - footwells, rear eighth chassis, overhauled diffs and new shocks all round, but he did tell me that the clutch was slipping and probably just needed adjusting. He wasn't wrong. The drive from Reading back to Croydon was...interesting. I made the mistake of going on the motorway and reminding myself how utterly carp Landies are for "High speed" work. At least like this. I also discovered that this one gets a bit unstable around 60mph. Something to examine later. And the clutch slip was getting worse. I went through London instead of around the M25 and discovered how close 1st and reverse are. Fortunately I was alert enough not to cannon into the car behind me at the lights. Home. And somebody mentioned the LEZ. Nah, not a problem - this is my car, not a van...is it? Um, yes. I think that's when I came on here and started looking for advice. Which I got, in abundance... Fast forward a while. I'll finish rebuilding the LT230 that I acquired over this break, and will hopefully make inroads on the LT77 as well. Then all I'll have to do is overhaul the 3.9 V8 I have in the garage and do a heart transplant to keep TfL happy. Until then I'll just dodge the cameras and keep my fingers crossed. What have i found over the last year? That owning a 36 year old Land Rover is never dull. Or predictable. Yesterday, for instance, it started to make an appalling noise. a shrieking whine that really put my teeth on edge. As I'm using it heavily at the moment I was distinctly worried. No need - turned out I'd knocked the diff lock on by mistake. How did I know this? A light I've never seen before briefly flickered on the dash... At the same time, the indicator repeater, which has never worked, started working. But the driver's door stopped opening from the inside. Last week someone stole the filler cap. Why? I have no idea - it's not like it fits anything else. A couple of weeks ago I replaced the fuel pump. Enough said about that, other than thanks again to this board. A couple of weeks before that I put a new pair of Wipac Crystal headlights in as the old ones were rusty and one of the sealed beams (original I think) had failed. Cheap as chips and a really easy job that went exactly as planned. I also had to replace the hazard light switch, which basically exploded when I tried to use the hazard lights. Again, cheap as chips and a really quick job. People smile at me driving it. Other Landy drivers flash their lights. I assume they're greeting me and not warning me about some mechanical derangement I haven't noticed. Parts are stupidly cheap, while postage is ridiculously expensive. It is not as thirsty as I expected. Though it does widdle oil wherever it's parked. It's probably not actually a very good vehicle. But it has bags of soul and I love it. So sorry - unless you ban me from the forum you're stuck with me and my stupid questions. Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year. Simon Edited December 23, 2021 by Junglie 5 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
western Posted December 23, 2021 Share Posted December 23, 2021 Your as bonkers as the rest of us 90/110/Defender owners. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pete3000 Posted December 23, 2021 Share Posted December 23, 2021 If you needed a reason to own one, it'll teach you loads whilst draining your bank account/wallet. 🙂 Pete 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Junglie Posted December 23, 2021 Author Share Posted December 23, 2021 1 hour ago, pete3000 said: If you needed a reason to own one, it'll teach you loads whilst draining your bank account/wallet. 🙂 Pete Um, I have a 21 year old BMW M5. The Landy is positively frugal in every way compared to that. Oddly enough I love them both the same... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Junglie Posted December 23, 2021 Author Share Posted December 23, 2021 More thoughts. The horn. Oh stop tittering. Why is it so weedy? It's a big tough manly truck with a voice like a gelded chipmunk. *That's* got to change. Windscreen washer stopped on the way home. Fortunately it started to rain so the crud got washed off anyway. Definitely needs rewiring. The night before last my breath was freezing on the inside of the screen. Despite the heater being on. Gotta love the thermal efficiency of the 12J converting all that energy into power rather than wasting it on heat, right? My cousin mentioned something about heated windscreens. Maybe that's to go on the "While I've got it all apart" list. Windows. Sliding windows are an option if I get some new/unfitted Series 3 doors of E-Bay and then buy the tops from Paintman Panels. But is it a good idea? They're kinda cool, but are they also kinda rubbish? Oh - the clutch slip I mentioned earlier was a gentle breaking-in. An easy job that just needed a bit of lateral thinking to make it easy rather than being an utter pig. Really hoping I don't need to weld anything apart from the V8 mounts. I haven't welded for a bit over 40 years and I wasn't great at it then... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Junglie Posted December 23, 2021 Author Share Posted December 23, 2021 (edited) 2 hours ago, western said: Your as bonkers as the rest of us 90/110/Defender owners. I'll take that - it's nice to feel I belong Edited December 23, 2021 by Junglie 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
western Posted December 23, 2021 Share Posted December 23, 2021 Horn, I fitted a Nautilus one bought via ebay, https://www.mx5parts.co.uk/stebel-nautilus-electropneumatic-horn-p-3369.html Heater see my post - - - 'Feeling cold in your truck' Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miketomcat Posted December 23, 2021 Share Posted December 23, 2021 Sliding window are great and hideous for the same reasons. They rattle and don't shut on the seals very well (even if they do they pull away at about 50mph). They leak when parked at certain angle's. Are a pain at drive thru/ ticket booths. However the front window just cracked open demists the screen better than the heater and the air flow you can create in the summer is sublime. I love them but I'm nuttier than most. Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mo Murphy Posted December 24, 2021 Share Posted December 24, 2021 If you drive it rather than posting it you'll save a lot of money. HTH Mo 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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