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is worth a look at?


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hi there,

i saw this on autotrader:

http://search.autotrader.co.uk/es-uk/www/c...icleRegLetter=N

what do people think? is it good value for the age, milage, condition? is it a 200tdi or a 300tdi? is there anybody in scotland around the glasgow/edinburgh/livingston area who would be willing to come see it with me? give me a bit of there expert opinion?

regards

calum

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Barely run in for a 300TDi so mileage-wise you're good.

Couple of noticable dents to the bodywork (wings etc), only you can decide if this is a factor for you.

Main thing is to check the condition of the chassis and bulkhead, and see how it drives (smooth gearchanges, pulls easily and without huge clouds of smoke etc).

It certainly has potential :)

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Barely run in for a 300TDi so mileage-wise you're good.

Couple of noticable dents to the bodywork (wings etc), only you can decide if this is a factor for you.

Main thing is to check the condition of the chassis and bulkhead, and see how it drives (smooth gearchanges, pulls easily and without huge clouds of smoke etc).

It certainly has potential :)

thanks for the replies, i forgot to mention, it will mainly be road miles i will be doing. whats the best engine to look out for? from an economic point of view and ease of day to day living?

calum

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Check for rust, rust, rust and rust. Chassis, bulkhead (especially around the flaps & door pillars) and chassis again. And bulkhead. :P Everything else is nuts and bolts. Check that it starts, stops, changes direction etc. without drama. It will be noisy & uncomfortable & cold (& probably leak if it's raining) but it should not be scary, unpredictable, clunky, whiny, graunchy, smoky or smelly. Small oil leaks are normal, if you can watch it drip then that's not so good. Check they haven't put the wading plugs in to mask nasty oil leaks (use the search button ;) ).

If you do buy it, change the tyres for something bigger & fatter it will look much nicer ;)

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Check for rust, rust, rust and rust. Chassis, bulkhead (especially around the flaps & door pillars) and chassis again. And bulkhead. :P Everything else is nuts and bolts. Check that it starts, stops, changes direction etc. without drama. It will be noisy & uncomfortable & cold (& probably leak if it's raining) but it should not be scary, unpredictable, clunky, whiny, graunchy, smoky or smelly. Small oil leaks are normal, if you can watch it drip then that's not so good. Check they haven't put the wading plugs in to mask nasty oil leaks (use the search button ;) ).

If you do buy it, change the tyres for something bigger & fatter it will look much nicer ;)

Don't do what i did and go to see a Defender, thinking that because you know series motors inside out you know all the rust spots. I did look at the crossmember on my 90, but did not look at the A-Frame crossmember, or too carefully around the spring mounts. Much welding and 2 years later its now (more or less) a match made in heaven and we do many miles together :rolleyes:

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Offer cash to a forum regular if necessary. No substitute for experience !

Wish I'd had one when I bought my lemon, but it's all sorted now. The main thing was there was no rust on the chassis/bulkhead, most mechanicals can be sorted (and, generally, relatively cheaply).

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It hides paint blemishes and makes them look shiny...

oh i c. not good. i was planning to respray any defender i got. if the paint has faded, does that indicate anything? also, any holes made by the brackets on the car, can they be filled in without rust occurring? do you think just by looking at the photos, the car is worth a look? ( assuming the engine works ok)

calum

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Go and take a look. You're not obliged to buy. I always think if you get the right feeling from the truck and the person selling, then thats always a good sign. Have a good poke around underneath, take a torch, some cardboard or mat to lie on, and have a mooch inderneath. If you're still happy, take a test drive. The first 90 I looked at, I didn't even take a test, didn't trust the bloke, second one, took a test but it didn't feel safe to drive, so walked away. Third time lucky, the guy was up front, I drove the 90, we even did a bit of green-laning (he showed me diff-lock, hi-lo ratios) even then I didn't buy, but took my wife the next weekend and she got the good vibes from the truck and felt the guy was upfront ,so we bought it. That was over 2 years ago, but I'm still tinkering with it, replacing stuff etc, but I love it. Good Luck anyway, Jon

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Red in particular is prone to fading but non metallic paint can be revived by a mild cut back with Farecla or similar. My advice would be to get hold of someone experienced in Defenders as they will know where to look and what to look for and will be able to quickly hone in on any potential problems. I'm not saying you won't be able to find them yourself but two heads are often better than one.

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Red in particular is prone to fading but non metallic paint can be revived by a mild cut back with Farecla or similar. My advice would be to get hold of someone experienced in Defenders as they will know where to look and what to look for and will be able to quickly hone in on any potential problems. I'm not saying you won't be able to find them yourself but two heads are often better than one.

yeah, i defiantly think i will get my mate to come look with me. he's a landrover mechanic but trying to convinse him to come look at defenders in his time off might be like trying to get blood from a stone! :lol:

so as far as everyone in concerned, faded paint doesn't necessarily mean underlying problems?

calum

p.s. cheers guy for all the advice btw.

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also, any holes made by the brackets on the car, can they be filled in without rust occurring?

You know the body skin is aluminium don't you :huh:

Anyway, it's a defender, you're not supposed to fill in the dents and polish it, dents add character and filler just cracks or falls out.

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My red 110 had never been polished in its life and was really flat. The paint has responded well to rubbing compound, and while not full 'showroom shiny', I think it looks better.

As pointed out, you can't really fill aluminium properly and the panels aren't flat even when new.

Cheers

D

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You know the body skin is aluminium don't you :huh:

Anyway, it's a defender, you're not supposed to fill in the dents and polish it, dents add character and filler just cracks or falls out.

Well said Fridge. I've also noticed that you get a bit more respect from other road users when they see the dents as they are about to 'cut you up' ;)

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I bought my wife's Toyota from Braidwood, and I would say that everything was fine with them (as far as used car dealers go)

I only had 2 gripes - When I 1st wanted a test drive there was virtually no fuel in it - trip comp said zero miles to empty!! and they were not too happy when I mentioned it.

Secondly, they balls'd up the V5 - I was supposed to be in my wifes name, but they had taken all of my details when i 1st enquired and registed it in that - but i suppose that is as much my fault for not checking.

They have been around for a good few years and I have mentioned the name and people seem to know of them.

They have 2 locations - they one where the picture is taken is the showroom - when I was there about 15 months ago it was full of mercs, BMW and more prestige marques. The more run of the mill cars were in a yard a few miles away - still a decent enough place. They had a few older cars that were obviously trade-ins but nothing that was not very neat and tidy - no wrecks sitting in the corner.

Just tuppence worth from a satisfied customer - If they had what I was looking for I would have no problem using them again.

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I bought my wife's Toyota from Braidwood, and I would say that everything was fine with them (as far as used car dealers go)

I only had 2 gripes - When I 1st wanted a test drive there was virtually no fuel in it - trip comp said zero miles to empty!! and they were not too happy when I mentioned it.

Secondly, they balls'd up the V5 - I was supposed to be in my wifes name, but they had taken all of my details when i 1st enquired and registed it in that - but i suppose that is as much my fault for not checking.

They have been around for a good few years and I have mentioned the name and people seem to know of them.

They have 2 locations - they one where the picture is taken is the showroom - when I was there about 15 months ago it was full of mercs, BMW and more prestige marques. The more run of the mill cars were in a yard a few miles away - still a decent enough place. They had a few older cars that were obviously trade-ins but nothing that was not very neat and tidy - no wrecks sitting in the corner.

Just tuppence worth from a satisfied customer - If they had what I was looking for I would have no problem using them again.

hi thanks for the honest reply. ive pm'd you.

calum

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