Defender 110 Restoration

[P4T]

FlashBastd said:

Excellent progress, I just wondered why you chose a cone filter; will it cope with wading like an airbox arrangement?

Well I used a cone filter direct to the turbo on my last defender project and chose to do the same on this one as I quite like the neatness... It keeps the engine bay clear of an air box and the associated pipe work. Another reason I didn't keep the air box with snorkel setup is that the plan with this defender was for more of an urban assault vehicle than a mud plugger!..

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Ok, a bit of an update for everyone...

Not too much progress really over the last couple of weeks as I am still waiting for the body to come back from the painters...

Not having any big jobs to get stuck into has meant I have been able to get some small jobs out of the way. The first of these was to give the seat box a lick of paint. Most of the seat box is covered in carpet so I wasn't fussed to have it body colour however I didn't want bits of blue visible so It got a lick of black paint!..



The next job was to put some fresh oil in the differentials and gearbox (trying to keep best practice with new seals etc)...



I decided to renew all the carpets in the defender. On my last one I found some good automotive carpet so I bought another roll and set about replicating the factory carpet sections.





I have taken the fresh carpet panels to a lady who re-upholsters chairs and she is going to sew some edging strips on for me..

Next job on the list was to get the rusty modular steel wheels I bought blasted and powder coated.. They went from this...



£100 later (which seemed a very good price to me) we have 5 of these in Satin Black...



Now an inevitable expense which I had been putting off was 5 new tyres to go on the newly powder coated rims. I went for the same tyres as I used on the last Defender which were 265/75/16's. These give the vehicle a nice stance with a relatively attractive tread pattern.









Now as I say I've been a bit slow on progress on the defender due to waiting for the body however this has given me an opportunity to try and help a friend with a 1.2 polo that has suffered from the common timing chain skipping resulting in this!...



So at least I've got something to keep me entertained whilst Im waiting for my freshly painted body!.. (It does not keep me entertained!.. It is a chore and I would rather be in the pub!)

Hopefully the next update will include some nice new Stornoway Grey panels!..

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No real updates to offer!.. I am still waiting for my painted panels to come back. A friend is doing the painting for me and his circumstances have changed since he took on the project meaning that he is struggling for time to get it finished. I am hoping Im not going to be waiting too much longer as the original plan was to have had the defender finished by now.

I have managed to get some photos of the paint prep in progress.. I believe that some of the panels have had their first coat of primer by now.









Hopefully for those interested there will be some colour soon...

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Well still no painted panels back so I have had to try and find some other small jobs to be getting on with...

I decided to re-trim my headlining as it was looking in a very sorry state. I bought a roll of some fleece type material and some contact adhesive and away I went!..

Before....







The current white vinyl coverings were attached with staples so I unpicked them and removed the vinyl.. (lots of dead spiders etc under there!)







The material was laid on and stuck in place!



And the final results on all 3 pieces of headlining..













On the whole I am very pleased with the results!.. If Im honest the fleece type material wasn't entirely as I expected... A bit Austin Powers but it looks a lot better than it did..

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Another update for those interested...

Still no painted panels so I have been getting other small jobs done.. I decided to tint the windows on the defender. Not normally my bag to be honest but I thought I would do it on this vehicle to further enhance the black and grey colour scheme. Unfortunately didnt take many photos but here are a couple of one of the rear quarter panel windows.. I attempted the tinting with the glass in the frames but I wasnt able to get the surface clean enough so decided to dismantle the frames and do the glass on the bench.











It transpires Im not the best at window tinting but Ive seen far worse so Ill put all the glass back in the vehicle and see if I can live with it!.. If not Ill start peeling!

Today I decided to give my inner arches a freshen up...









And my spare wheel carrier..



I also decided to give some other associated parts a lick of paint..





Well thats all for today.. Word on the street is that I should be picking up some painted panels on Tuesday so hopefully will be looking like a defender again by the end of the week.

Early on in the build I decided that I wanted to have a "special" interior in the vehicle as opposed to the standard grey cloth so this week I ordered a full interior trimmed in black leather with grey piping. Im looking forward to seeing the interior and Im hoping it will compliment the vehicle well. The seats are going to be in the same style as these below but with grey piping instead of lime green!



Before I hit Submit today I just want to say thank you for all the nice comments.. They never fail to make me feel all warm inside!..

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rwstokes said:

out of interest, is your background in this sort of thing, i.e. a mechanic or such, or is this just a hobby for weekends?

Nope Im not a mechanic.. I am a motor trader by profession so I generally spend my time at the other end of the business! Since I came of driving age I have been a petrol head and over the years I have just taught myself how to do various things that I have had to do to keep cars going!.. The Land Rover thing came about 3 years ago when I bought a Series 3 with the intention of doing a nut and bolt restoration... The series 3 is sat in a load of pieces in the shed with various other things having taken priority!..

I suppose I am one of those people that just enjoys making things.. I remember staying up all night as a pup to finish building my lego! Thats probably what started it all!

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Well I have some good news!..

This...



Plus this...



I have had some of the painted panels back which has meant I have been able to crack on getting the thing back together!.. Below are some of the photos of this happening.













With the bulkhead in place I was able to plumb in the various lines such as brakes, fuel and clutch.. So after a bit of a play bleeding the fuel system it ran!

I should be picking up the rest of the painted panels tomorrow so hopefully things should start to look better shortly.

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You guys are gonna hate me as I still havnt got anything substantial to offer!..

I have collected some more of the panels from my painter.. Took a couple of photos in the dark using the flash so they arnt the best!..





I am still waiting for some hinges and other smaller components to get done but they should be with me by the weekend..

I popped into the shed on Sunday with a view to making some progress but I found all of the water that used to be in the Defender on the floor! This meant I had to mess about taking the Radiator off to try figure out what I have done wrong?..



My first thoughts were a faulty rad but having taken it off I couldn't see anything obvious so I have put it all back together and will fill her up again tomorrow... fingers crossed it was just a loose hose clip or something along those lines..

I had to buy a new part this week which replaces the original I put in a safe place when I stripped the Defender... One day I'll find that safe place again!



I was able to put the glass back into the windscreen frame over the weekend (photo taken before it was in).. One of those fiddly jobs that makes you proud when complete!



Anyway the highlight of the day today was an email from the lady doing my interior with some snaps of the finished products...

Old seats ready to go back!



And the new seats!...









I am very pleased with the seats in the photos.. Hard to tell until I see them in the flesh as I think the flash on her camera is making the piping look more White than Grey..

Sorry to tease you all with another post but hopefully in the next one it will be closer to complete..

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Well my posts are increasing as more is happening but still not finished..

Got the rest of the painted parts last night...



Spent a couple of hours at the shed and managed to get one of the front wings on..



Today I got a large delivery...



And this is what was inside..



Anyway I will hopefully have more to offer after the weekend..

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Marlin45 - Trigger looks a decent but of kit!.. I still have to sort my old Series at some point!.

Well I spent a couple of hours at the shed on Thursday night and have been there this afternoon so there has been a little further progress..

I managed to get the other wing and front grill panel on..



Got the front bumper on..



And the windscreen in place...



I also managed to get the rear lights back in. They are yet to wire in but thats for another day..



I glued a couple of my fresh bits of carpet in place and secured the rear foot plate back in place.



I managed to get the rear quarter panels back on and thats where I finished today...







Ill be at the shed tomorrow afternoon and Sunday so hopefully I will manage to make some more progress... Ill keep you posted!

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Thanks again for the nice comments guys.. I am fortunate to have found a suitable shed to do my work in but as with most things in life its not free!

I was at the shed again Saturday afternoon and Sunday and managed to get a bit done.. Not as much as I would have liked however productivity drops on a Sunday due to too much alcohol on a Saturday night!

The biggest job of the weekend was that I managed to get the roof back on..





Whilst I was on subject of the roof I put my alpine windows back in...



I managed to get the NS sill back on...



And the NSR wheel arch extension spat in place.. The wheel arches certainly help to start to make it look more like a Defender.





I also put a new rear end door seal on..



Again not as much happened as I would have liked... Its the same old story.. I set out with grand plans to get lots done and it doesnt seem to materialise.. I could really do with a week off work to crack on and get it finished but I dont want to use up all my holiday allowance as I am due some sun!

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Well a bit of an update on progres...

This week's work has consisted of firstly, putting the rear end windows in...



Carpeting the seatbox...



Once the seatbox was carpeted I put the front seats and cubby box in place...





I Installed my rear quarter windows and I got the OS sill and rear arch liner in place...





I put all my new door seals on..



And I put the headlining back in...





I started to carpet the boot area and managed to do both sides...





Once the carpeting had been done I did a few smaller less photogenic jobs such as fitting the front driver and passenger footwells. I then began to put the interior trim back in...



Thats about where I am at the moment.. The end is in sight but lots of small jobs which are taking more time than expected.

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dr_rallye said:

Fantastic work OP. Can you share details of who did your seats?

Yep the seats were done by a lady called Sam who seems to specialise in Land Rover seats.. She trades as Sam's Trim Ltd I think. If you pop that into google you should find her.

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Pixel-Snapper said:

My I ask if this is a keeper or do you do this to pass the time and will sell on?

The intention with the Defender from the outset was always to restore then sell on..

As the year has progressed the sheer amount of time and money I have spent on the thing makes the whole exercise pretty pointless. I would be lieing if I said I didnt enjoy doing it but I feel pretty exausted at the moment as I have been working 7 days a week for the whole of 2012 (with my main occupation and the land rover) to try and make as much progress as possible and Im still not finished!

From a financial point of view it isnt worth doing however I will be safe in the knowledge that I have brought a vehicle back from the brink and it will hopefully provide someone with another 20 years of good service.

Anyway Its not far off now so keep watching!

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Yachtworker said:

PS it won't be finished until you put the Wavehunters and Kernow stickers back on I can send you one if you like.

Haha.. Im not a big sticker fan but thanks for the offer!.. Goes to show the thing spent some time as a surf wagon! Im pretty sure that it was parked with the off side facing the sea at some point as everything was rustier on that side!

Thanks for the nice comments everyone!.. Im trying desperately to get it finished asap!

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Well a bit of an update for everyone...

Have managed to get quite a bit done this week... Started with finishing off putting in the rear load area trim panels then put in the bench seats.







Finished off the headlining by fitting the rear end section. Had to wait with this as had a new rear wash jet on order..



I cleared the boot out to get ready to fit the rear carpet. I used the old one as a template to make my own new section.







And with the new carpet in place...





Next job was to re fit the seat belt buckles for the middle row of seats...



I made a new section of carpet for the middle row footwell..



I started to fit the middle row seats...







Next job was to glaze the new rear door then hang it...





Over the last couple of days I have managed to wire in the rear lights and I managed to get the headlights and front indicators back in with the light surrounds and grill panel..



I am off work tomorrow so should hopefully make some more progress and in an ideal world by this time next week I will be getting ready to drive her for an MOT...( Hopefully!)

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Rosscow said:

Only one slight niggle for me - the rear bench seat frames look like they could have done with a decent rub down and re-paint, they look pretty tired/rusty?

Yep, I agree with you there.. If I was to do another they would have been on the pile of parts to get blasted and powder coated. They have had a quick lick over with hammerite and in the flesh they dont look too bad. I think the flash on the camera has made them look worse!..

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Well a bit of an update for everyone....

The plan was to be driving the Land Rover for its MOT tomorrow morning but unfortunately that isn't going to happen!.. I have got quite a lot done over the last couple of weekends and I've been at the shed every night this past week but unfortunately it is still not ready!..

One of the first jobs I tackled during the week was to fit my front side repeaters. They are the later type with clear lenses so I had to cut the correct hole into the wings which was quite laborious however worth the effort.



Once the side repeaters were in place I could tidy up the front wiring and fit the front wheel arch extension spat.



And the off side...



I fitted the rear door catch.. Still not shutting as nicely as I would like so need the adjustment is on the to do list..



The biggest job of the week was to hang my side doors.. This turned into a much bigger job than I had anticipated due to alignment issues..



The main problem I have encountered was the front doors not hanging true.. After a lot of investigating it seemed that my bulkhead wasn't sitting at the correct angle. This was always going to be a possible problem when rebuilding a LR from chassis up so I was being pretty optimistic hoping I wasnt going to have to re allign. Anyway after loosening alot of bolts I was hoping not to touch again I got the ratchet straps out and hey presto things seem a lot better!..

The rear doors lined up without much issue which was handy!..







Another problem I encountered this week was that I seemed to have 3 hinges for the OSR and only one for the NSR which meant to get my doors hung I had to go out and buy a new hinge. The hinge is currently not painted so thats another job to add to the list!



Whilst struggling with door alignment I took a break and did some satisfying jobs like putting my new number plates and LR badges on!







Anyway after all the door alignment was sorted...



Another satisfying job I managed to get half done was to put my various bits of chequer plate on..





Another job I tackled was to get the spare wheel carrier in place..





Thats about where I am.. There are a couple of small jobs to get sorted before MOT time which will hopefully be later this week if I can put some evenings in.. Wish me luck!.. I'm going to need it!

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Thanks again for the nice comments everyone!

I'll answer a couple of peoples questions....

I think the purpose of the chequer plate was originally to add some durability. The common place to find it is on the wing tops as it means/meant you could stand on them if you needed to get something down from the roof. In my case it is purely a visual addition as I think it helps give the vehicle a 'meaner' appearance!

As far as my next project is concerned I am planning to buy and renovate a house!.. As well as my own Grand Design I have my series 3 Land Rover sat in a pile of parts waiting for some attention. If I have the time and energy I plan on turning it into a lowrider convertible in rat rod style complete with air bag suspension.

Now on the subject of money!.. My total costs so far including the cost of the vehicle before any work was carried out is into 5 figures. As far as what it is going to be worth?.. It is worth whatever someone is prepared to pay for it!.. I wont divulge what I am going to ask back for it at this stage. I dont want to get too far ahead of myself.. Ive got to finish it first!

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I thought I would show some mid week progress.. More photos than anything else!

Have been at the shed the last couple of nights and managed to get some things done.. Got all of the chequer plating done including the wing tops..



Fitted the front vent flaps and got the bonnet on.. Thats about all Ive got done over the last couple of days!.. Snails pace, I know!







MOT is booked for Monday morning so Its going no matter what!...