johnyt Posted February 16, 2007 Share Posted February 16, 2007 I'm a 2 truck owner but only want 1. I drive a late model chev 1/2 ton 4x4 at work and have a 79 SIII 109 LHD military surplus for fun. My work in the oil patch takes me on the highway for 400-500 km trips, as well as down winter roads, Ice roads, and even some cut lines. I'm looking for a truck cab, thats more comfortable than the SIII, warm in our Canadian winters, not as loud as my SIII, yet capable in poor driving conditions, has good payload capacity and is reliable. If you have owned or operated a Rapier I would like to hear from you , and your experiences John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Yak Posted February 16, 2007 Share Posted February 16, 2007 I'm a 2 truck owner but only want 1. I drive a late model chev 1/2 ton 4x4 at work and have a 79 SIII 109 LHD military surplus for fun. My work in the oil patch takes me on the highway for 400-500 km trips, as well as down winter roads, Ice roads, and even some cut lines. I'm looking for a truck cab, thats more comfortable than the SIII, warm in our Canadian winters, not as loud as my SIII, yet capable in poor driving conditions, has good payload capacity and is reliable.If you have owned or operated a Rapier I would like to hear from you , and your experiences John Hi John. Welcome! We ran a 127 Rapier for a while over here in England. It was ex military reserve and like new. It had the original petrol V8 and the full length canvas canopy. IT WAS FUN! Thoughts.... All Rapiers were built for the military and only with the petro lV8. The V8 is thirsty but will not be so costly for you with your cheaper fuel prices. There are some Rapiers now converted with the Land Rover Tdi diesel engines. Also, as you will know, petrol is less likely to freeze. I would strongly suggest you get a Rapier with a Truck Cab, then YOU won't freeze! It is a great load carrier. The chassis is stronger than a 110 and the rear has twin (coil within coil) springs. It is sometimes a bit on the large size on our roads but not in your wide open spaces, and the body offers itself for all sorts of possible conversions at a later date. Foley Specialist Vehicles have utilised the body for various camper conversions, personnal carriers and box bodies. For you, there is plenty of room for your provisions, recovery kit and survival kit. The more weight you put in the back the better the ride, as when empty the back of the Rapier is surprisingly light! The cab will be spartan and cold. As you probably know from your S111 the military did not put in mats, carpets, warm comfy seats and sound proofing, so allow for some comforts in your budget. Also, get a seperate petrol fueled cab heater as the standard Land Rover heater is not much better than your S111 and will be struggling in Alberta! Get the right heater and it can pre-heat the engine coolant as well. Try Eberspacher or Webasto. The Rapiers were all built around 1990 and never did many miles, most living on airfields, and even now there are examples with quite low mileages. So you can get a 'young' vehicle for your money. John, you should have no worries about using one for your daily driver over there in Alberta. It will be just like driving/using any Land Rover, except it will be more useful and MORE FUN! All the best, John. Regards, Bob. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest dew110CSW Posted February 17, 2007 Share Posted February 17, 2007 Part of me fancies a Rapier for when I deside to move away from the 110. To me the appeal of a really big, V8 Defender is just too great to miss. LPG Conversion would make them a lot better to run, and even better would be to contact someone like Foley Special Vehicles (Foley Website) who can build bodies onto the back for you in Camper, van, pretty much anything you want. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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