Betsy Posted May 12, 2007 Share Posted May 12, 2007 Last weekend I took 'Betsy' on a bit of a trip. We left Stockport at 6am Friday, headed south, and arrived at Dover docks at 2pm. Caught the 3pm ferry to Dunkirk. We then drove 2 hours down the A16 to Marcanterra. Met up with a few other Land Rovers and setup camp. Saturday we took a day trip to Dieppe and visited the hypermarket to stock up on beers etc. Sunday we went sand driving at Marcanterra. There is a fantastic privately owned area, which has some fantastic dunes and sand tracks to practice in. Spent all day there. Monday, we drove all the way home again. 920 miles round trip. Only breakage was the brake light switch failed, and the rear diff developed an oil leak. At Dover Dieppe sea front Playing in the sand Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brasco Posted May 13, 2007 Share Posted May 13, 2007 'Betsy' looks great !! what engine and gearbox has it fitted? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Betsy Posted May 13, 2007 Author Share Posted May 13, 2007 'Betsy' looks great !! what engine and gearbox has it fitted? Its absolutely bog standard 2.25 petrol, with original 2a gearbox. The only no standard bit is salisbury rear axle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stewart Posted May 13, 2007 Share Posted May 13, 2007 Hi, how many miles can you get out of both the tanks. I recently got 575 miles using both tanks, but I was only doing 55mph. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Betsy Posted May 13, 2007 Author Share Posted May 13, 2007 Hi, how many miles can you get out of both the tanks. I recently got 575 miles using both tanks, but I was only doing 55mph. She only has 1 tank fitted at the moment. The new chassis did not have the out-rigger for the left hand tank. I get about 160 miles out of the remaining tank, and it takes 41 litres to fill. So, if I had 2 tanks that would be 320 miles. You did well to get that many! is it diesel or petrol? Mine is working out to about 17mpg at 55mph steady speed. We were heavily loaded though with camping gear, 60 litres of water, and 4 x 20l jerry cans of fuel, and a big tool box, high lift jack and recovery gear. We wanted to try out the sand driving fully loaded to see how she handled. In the sand she used 20 litres to do 20 miles! thats about 4 mpg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stewart Posted May 13, 2007 Share Posted May 13, 2007 She only has 1 tank fitted at the moment. The new chassis did not have the out-rigger for the left hand tank. I get about 160 miles out of the remaining tank, and it takes 41 litres to fill. So, if I had 2 tanks that would be 320 miles. You did well to get that many! is it diesel or petrol? Mine is working out to about 17mpg at 55mph steady speed. We were heavily loaded though with camping gear, 60 litres of water, and 4 x 20l jerry cans of fuel, and a big tool box, high lift jack and recovery gear. We wanted to try out the sand driving fully loaded to see how she handled. In the sand she used 20 litres to do 20 miles! thats about 4 mpg I went from grantham to some where past bury st edmunds with an engine crane in the back and a load of tools (just in case) and on the way back I had a 2.25 petrol engine with me as well. Previous to this it had new points, leads plugs etc and the dwell angle and timing done. Where did you get your sills from? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Betsy Posted May 13, 2007 Author Share Posted May 13, 2007 The sills are of unknown origin. I got them some years ago, and can't for the life of me remember where from! I know they had to be specially made. They are not complicated and would be easy to fabricate. They bolt to the bulkhead mounting at the front, and the spring out rigger at the rear. They are v strong, and have taken a few big hits over the years without damage. High lift adaptor holes front and rear too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brasco Posted May 16, 2007 Share Posted May 16, 2007 Its absolutely bog standard 2.25 petrol, with original 2a gearbox. The only no standard bit is salisbury rear axle. Wow !! i would be afraid to do a trip like yours on a 2.25 petrol engine.. I have this mentality that the engine will turn to red hot and crack, but i guess it is not the case if you drive on a constant speed, not like here in Malta where you melt the gearbox changing the gears .... you got overdrive at least?? what tyres are you using??? are they good on tarmac ?? I am asking cause i have a Series II swb petrol which would like to restore to the original specs or almost, cause it is really neglected. would be nice to see more pics of the Landy if you have during the trip.. what is the meaning of Black registration plates ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MJG Posted May 16, 2007 Share Posted May 16, 2007 what is the meaning of Black registration plates ? This Landy was registered before 1973 which means he can legally display his registration number using older style 'classic' plates. Unlike some others on here whos Landy's were registered after this year and who shouldn't do this but do.......... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Betsy Posted May 16, 2007 Author Share Posted May 16, 2007 Wow !! i would be afraid to do a trip like yours on a 2.25 petrol engine.. I have this mentality that the engine will turn to red hot and crack, but i guess it is not the case if you drive on a constant speed, not like here in Malta where you melt the gearbox changing the gears .... you got overdrive at least?? what tyres are you using??? are they good on tarmac ?? I am asking cause i have a Series II swb petrol which would like to restore to the original specs or almost, cause it is really neglected. would be nice to see more pics of the Landy if you have during the trip.. what is the meaning of Black registration plates ? The engine is rebuilt, and runs very nicely. It never even got warm! Steady 56mph is cruising speed. This is good because you can stay with the trucks, and get a tow in the slipstream sometimes. She has no overdrive. I used to have one but it broke and I never replaced it. I found it noisy and she struggled up hills with OD engaged. No difference in fuel consumption without it. The engine is happier without the labouring. She has 750 x 16 General Sags fitted. These are very noisy on the motorway, and 10 hours of that was hard going i'll tell you!! They are however, superb in mud and look really good on the vehicle. I found that the SAG's were not really suited to sand driving. I will be replacing them with General Grabber AT2's in the near future, on tubeless rims. This will allow me to run lower pressures in sand without risking shredding a tube. Black plates are allowed on pre 1972 (3?) vehicles in UK. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stewart Posted May 16, 2007 Share Posted May 16, 2007 Do you do many long distance trips in Betsy? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Betsy Posted May 16, 2007 Author Share Posted May 16, 2007 Do you do many long distance trips in Betsy? Yes I do a fair number. This Friday I am off to Tyne & Wear for a weekend of camping and off-roading with friends. Its 150 miles each way. Usually go to Wales 3 or 4 times per year, also go to the Lake District regularly. Can also be found in Abersoch during summer hols too! Having said all that, the annual mileage is only about 4k. I don't use her day in day out. This year will be more, because of France and Morocco. Although she will be taken to and from Morocco on a trailer to save time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThreeSheds Posted May 16, 2007 Share Posted May 16, 2007 In the sand she used 20 litres to do 20 miles! thats about 4 mpg Now come on... Don't be to hard on the old girl... That's 4.55 miles per gallon... TS (and goodness knows how many smiles per gallon!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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