Gromit Posted June 10, 2008 Share Posted June 10, 2008 Welcome to the forum Tom. If you haven't already found the tech archive, there's loads of info in there. heres a basic buying guide to buying a defender. As other have said, try and drive a few to get a feel for what's good and what's not. It's very tempting to buy the first one you find, but try and resist and find one in good nick that suits you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happyoldgit Posted June 10, 2008 Share Posted June 10, 2008 nah electronics shoud be no trouble for me. sitting exams in maths, physics and electronics, in fact ive got my electronics exam in 3 hours, and im hopefully going to edinburgh to do electrical and mechanical engineering! anyways, if i get stuck, theres nothing a haynes manual wont help with Can we quote this in future? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gromit Posted June 10, 2008 Share Posted June 10, 2008 Can we quote this in future? I recall that the Haynes has the positions of the 200tdi piston ring gaps, where as the work shop manual does not In fairness, the LR Haynes can help a fair bit, once you have a modicum of salt. Tom, the parts catalog and work shop manuals are available for download and worth getting, once you've found your truck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
casey_cole Posted June 10, 2008 Share Posted June 10, 2008 Noticed one or two people advised doing an engine swap - you will have immense trouble getting insured on a landy with a swapped engine as an 18 year old. Trust me - I'm currently having nightmares of my own - my CSW has been swapped out for an Isuzu 2.8l TD and the insurance companies simply won't touch it. CC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happyoldgit Posted June 10, 2008 Share Posted June 10, 2008 Noticed one or two people advised doing an engine swap - you will have immense trouble getting insured on a landy with a swapped engine as an 18 year old. Trust me - I'm currently having nightmares of my own - my CSW has been swapped out for an Isuzu 2.8l TD and the insurance companies simply won't touch it.CC Might that be partially down to it being a non standard LR engine which means that they cannot conveniently tick boxes? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Godlykepower Posted June 10, 2008 Share Posted June 10, 2008 its done 140k, which is a fair bit What?! That's still being run in! Got loads of life left in it yet Tom. I had a 200 TDi Discovery this weekend with 280K on it....felt like it had about 1/10th of that. Get on your back & have a good poke around underneath.....look for obvious signs of rust & rot in the chassis. Try not to be swayed by the price too much though. If you have £2000 to spend, you will end up spending it all one way or another on a Land Rover. You might spend £1200 now, but something may well go wrong at that price. Try & spend as much as you can on your base vehicle, and do all the little modifications to it as you go along. Best to have a mechanically sound base vehicle to work with, than something that is a bit cheaper, that you may end up pouring lots of money into, constantly doing repairs & maintenance, and getting fed up, that you never have enough money left to buy toys & gadgets! That sounds a little negative, but I dont mean it to be. Land Rovers are the greatest vehicles in the world, and you will fall in love pretty quickly when you see what they can do, and the freedom they give you when you want to go travelling & exploring; but there will be times when you will feel like your pouring money into a bottomless pit. Having the best base vehicle that you can afford will reduce that feeling of despair, and increase the feeling of joy. I would seriously try & find a TDi within your budget....there are loads out there, just look. Martin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
landynewb Posted June 10, 2008 Author Share Posted June 10, 2008 i think at the moment id stick with the engine in the truck i get because a) not that ambitious/experienced so far B) not got an engine hoist so for the moment at least, if i get a truck, the engine will stay put! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
landynewb Posted June 10, 2008 Author Share Posted June 10, 2008 ha that was supposed to be a "b bracket", not a B) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
landynewb Posted June 10, 2008 Author Share Posted June 10, 2008 godlykepower you make some good points. got a lot of thinking to do yet.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quagmire Posted June 10, 2008 Share Posted June 10, 2008 As already mentioned, make sure you check the chassis thoroughly- tap it and see what it sounds like in areas you not sure about. After owning a series vehicle for 6 years i still managed to miss rusty areas on my 90 when i bought it- they go in different places! The places i would say to look out (others may well chip in) for are: -The rear cross (obviously) -The webs that strengthen where rear spring seats meet chassis. -The cross member that the A-frame attaches to. On mine the triangular braces on top had rotted through as they catch and hold mud. -Areas around bump stops, again full of mud. -Outriggers I bought mine a year ago, and now commute 70 miles a day in it, 'tis only a B-Reg but i love it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lansalot Posted June 10, 2008 Share Posted June 10, 2008 The best thing you can do is take someone along who knows their stuff - I see you've had offers above. Believe me, someone who's been there is far and away the most valuable thing you can have. You can read till you're blue in the face, but a stranger who knows the vehicles and is able to stop you getting all giddy and carried away will be worth their weight in gold. That was the mistake I made - went and looked myself and came away with problems. But, most of them are solved now thanks to them being nothing major and I'm up and running. That's saying nothing of the 8 months it practically sat there while I uhm'd and ah'd. Take someone with you - please !! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hattymender Posted June 10, 2008 Share Posted June 10, 2008 Bulkhead? Did anybody mention it? Just below the windscreen there's a narrow strip above the vent, and next to the upper door hinge, also the footwells. It's steel so they all rust there, it's just a case of how bad. Replacements are quite cheap but it's a lot of work. 2.5D would be a good choice. It's stand a lot of abuse (Army used them for years. Still do?). Also at your age the insurance would be about as low as you can get with a 90/110, know from personal experience (bank of Dad funding daughters) that insurance can be savage at 18. Before you buy it might be worth phoning some of the more 'specialist' insurance companies as they can be much better than the mainstream when it comes to Land Rovers. My personal experience is that the main players only want to know about standard vehicles. Which rules out 90% of Land Rovers over 10 years old? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
landynewb Posted June 10, 2008 Author Share Posted June 10, 2008 using those anoyingly advertised websites cofused.com and gocompare.com i got quotes backin the region of a grand. one was less than a grand! which is ridiculous that it is cheaper with me on a 2.5TD defender than an 11 year old straight 1.4 peug 306. cheaper by a good £400 as well. funding is starting to become a bit of an issue. not coming as cheaply as i hoped they would. might have to pull a good months full of shifts before ive got anything lke the money i need for a decent one . ive got savings and stocks and shares to my name going to the value of 15k, but im wanting to keep them as savings. wa splanning on takin out 1k, but for a decent one its looking at least 2k. might need a second job.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hattymender Posted June 10, 2008 Share Posted June 10, 2008 Just read this through again. We're being very negative trying to point out things to watch for but I guess if it can be broken it has been by somebody on this forum. There's twice as much to a Land Rover so twice as much to go wrong as an 'ordinary' car and they do rust. But: They last a lot longer. A £2K Corsa will be worth £500 in 5 years. A £2K 90 will be worth, well, about £2K if you don't trash it. Parts are cheap (sort of) and easy to come by. Help is always at hand. Stop at side of road, open bonnet and you'll be beating help off with sticks Most things are fixable if you're handy with spanners. Even better if you can weld. Information? Manuals, parts lists, etc. are all available on the net. (Try that with a Yaris) But above all: They have character. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest noggy Posted June 10, 2008 Share Posted June 10, 2008 just to clear this up, im 17 and insured with NFU on my 200tdi 90 for £1400 (should be £980 when i do passplus(nfu take 30% off when you do it)) mine was a 2.5TD and the engine swap has made no differance to insurance . oh, and my 90 cost me £1600 and its in perfect condition, and it had only just had a £2000 pound 200tdi fitted, and everything renewed, it even had new axle casings! Go and get friendly with your local landrover garage, and ask them to keep an eye out for you, thats what i did, and i got a damn good deal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6cyltdi Posted June 10, 2008 Share Posted June 10, 2008 £1400 FOR INSURANCE..............!!!!! AT 18 with no no-claims used as they it was being used on another vehicle my series cost me £93 a year fully comprehensive with £50 excess... At the same time i had my 90 insured (modified) engine change and lift for approx £330 with 1 years no-claims and fully comp too..... There are some clever tips i can give for lowering your insurance.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest noggy Posted June 10, 2008 Share Posted June 10, 2008 that is completely on my own policy and everything tho, if i was on my dads as a occasional driver, it'd be 300 quid. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6cyltdi Posted June 10, 2008 Share Posted June 10, 2008 They were both on my own policys, i have only ever had my own policys, Where i live i think has a small factor in my insurance not being too high but there are other ways of getting reasonible priced insurance.... There's no point on being on someone elses policy when your young, otherwise you won't be able to get the price to drop quickly over the years to come.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kingrat Posted June 11, 2008 Share Posted June 11, 2008 Welcome m8. As already said take a small hammer to 'tap' the chassis all over when you go to look at one. The triangle side windows can be got from www.mudstuff.co.uk Contact Roadsure for insurance. My 90 is heavily modified now in my opinion, and only costs 153 pa fully comp, and they dont do a no claims, its an off road policy, which makes a difference. there's a lot of knowledge here, and many of us have had landrovers from bieng in our teens ourselves (and I'm in my forties now). Once the bug bits thats it, welcome to the experience of your life Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.