In the market for a 90

[Donnyboy]

Hi, I'm presently looking to buy a late 90's, early 00's 90. It's not my wife's first choice as she thinks it shouldn't leave a farm so looking to make some modifications to make it more 'car-like' in noise and handling etc. Do you know where, in the London area, where I could take the car and they will undertake the modifications and can be trusted, reputable etc? I just relocated back here from the US and came across these people (see link below) and would be great to have something similar here i.e. highly recommended, special modifications, good workmanship etc

http://www.eastcoastrover.com/index.html

[300bhp/ton]

Donnyboy said:

Hi, I'm presently looking to buy a late 90's, early 00's 90. It's not my wife's first choice as she thinks it shouldn't leave a farm so looking to make some modifications to make it more 'car-like' in noise and handling etc. Do you know where, in the London area, where I could take the car and they will undertake the modifications and can be trusted, reputable etc? I just relocated back here from the US and came across these people (see link below) and would be great to have something similar here i.e. highly recommended, special modifications, good workmanship etc

http://www.eastcoastrover.com/index.html

I think it depends what you want from it and what you want to do. And also what you mean by "more car like"?

At the end of the day it'll never be a car.

Sure if you want it faster that can be done.

If you want it to handle differently (possibly better, depends how you measure handling), but at least with less body roll. It's all possible, but it'll trade off ride quality and off road ability.

You can fit more comfy seats, although the stock ones aren't bad IMO.

But you won't ever change it from being a 4x4.


There are quite a few "tuning" companies. Twisted Performance, Allisport, Scorpion Racing, JE Engineering, Famous Four, Deven4x4, Paddock Spares and many others (can find them all via Google).

I suspect your best bet would be to buy a copy of a Land Rover Magazine (LR Monthly, LR Owner or LR International) and have a look through the ads.

One could argue and say if refinement is what you are after, then a Disco II or P38a Range Rover would be a better bet, underneath they use the same axles and box frame ladder chassis, but are equipped more for road use than a Defender.

As for Defenders, the late 90's went from the 300TDI engine to the much more modern TD5 engine. The earlier TDI is a good robust unit, but it has its roots in the early 50's and is quite noisy. But its a dependable unit and favoured by many.

The TD5 is more powerful, more tunable, smoother, more refined, quieter and probably more economical. It's also a proven good engine.

Some give it a bad rap, but this IMO is mostly due to two main reasons.

1. It was the first Landy ECU controlled mainstream engine. So many enthusiasts ran in stark horror and still b*tch and moan about it using this modern fangled thing called electricity and computers. (similar sort of reception that the 996 water cooled Porsche 911 received when it replaced the old air cooled 993 I suspect).

2. The TD5 was introduced on the D2, which had a lot of other modern electrical gadgets and air suspension. Should the air suspension fail, many blame (inadvertently) blame the TD5 engine, simply stating TD5's are rubbish.


Personally I'd buy on condition more than anything else, within your budget. But I would advise driving both and personally I'd opt for a TD5 engined one (BTW - I run a Tdi powered Landy )


Lastly, if it is speed and refinement, then you might be better off looking for a V8 powered one. They are fairly rare due to the diesel out selling them and production stopping in the 80's. The gearbox is a bit more agricultural. But it'll be smoother than a diesel and quieter. mpg is the only downer, but LPG can help solve this.

50th Anni Editions also had a V8 (4.0 EFI) with an auto. They hold their money well and arguably are the ultimate factory Defender. But don't know if these are in budget.

[Arrive Alive]

I live and work in Snowdonia and use the 4x4 capability of my Defender Td5. I do however sometimes have to use it to travel along the A55, to visit South Wales and to tow long distances. In order to keep the original performance and to improve refinement fuel economy and cruising ability I fitted a JE engineering chip, a GKN overdrive, noise killer sound insulation and a more powerful stereo! It's now much improved and has even been to Le Mans!! (PS.Not near to London I know but Devon 4x4 did a brilliant job on the overdrive)

Edited by Arrive Alive on Tuesday 23 March 22:26

[BLUETHUNDER]

I had a 50th anniversary model. And would have to say its far more refined than either diesel models.You can hear what your passengers are saying to you and hear the radio at motorway speeds.

A good example will set you back though. My one now lives in Germany.

[Donnyboy]

Thanks for all your comments. I used to own a '95 Discovery with the 300tdi and thought it was a great engine (drove from Melbourne to Alice Springs and back and didn't miss a beat, great fuel economy and range). Unfortunately the fine red dust of the outback penetrated all the gaps in the car and stained the whole interior. My other LR experience was an '07 Discovery, great car but the turbo lag when you hit 3,000 revs and going up a hill was rather annoying. I most likely wouldn't take the Defender off-road (apologies to all the serious car nuts here) so I could compromise the suspension to make it handle better on the black stuff. I test drove a new Defender XS with my wife and she wasn't a fan of the noise. I appreciate that the Defender is not a Discovery and shouldn't try to be so but was hoping that a fair bit of sound deadener, tighter dampening could make it a pretty good, albeit compromised, road car.