Reply With QuoteI am very interested in this
A friend has a similar project with series 1 waiting in Africa that I am helping with.
Likely Less rot on the chassis but a lot more dust.
In the spirit of Menno I thought id share a few pics of a job we’ve taken on to restore a 1969 Series 2A Land Rover.
This particular vehicle has been in the same family since new and the lady who inherited it from her father decided she wanted to get it back on the road. Someone started it several years ago however it didn’t get very far and it sat untouched in an open barn for about 7 years.
After having it recovered we established that the engine wasn’t actually seized. The owners thought that was the case however we found that the water pump was totally locked and not allowing the engine to turn. After a check over we found that the body, shell , bulkhead are in remarkable condition but the chassis has essentially rotted away. We’ve had to do some remedial work to get the engine to crank over which includes new starter and battery, rework the ignition system and put in a temporary fuel line, once its been established the engine runs we will start the strip down where a new galvanised chassis is waiting. Cant see it being finished until at least mid next year however for anyone interested I’ll update with pics of the progress.
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I am very interested in this
A friend has a similar project with series 1 waiting in Africa that I am helping with.
Likely Less rot on the chassis but a lot more dust.
Last edited by Sinnlover; 29th November 2023 at 22:26.
Great thread and I am delighted that of all our UK members you’re the one who started it.
'Against stupidity, the gods themselves struggle in vain' - Schiller.
Love this D.
When you look long into an abyss, the abyss looks long into you.........
Oh yes!!! I'm going to enjoy this! I know all too well how this sort of work develops, and I think that mid 2024 is an honest 'dot on the horizon'.
Oo, I do love a good Land Rover thread. Looking forward to seeing the progress Dudley
My first car was a Series II. This one appears to have a Series III front though? Look forward to see it returned to it's former glory.
This will be fun. Out of interest, what will a job like this cost the customer? Just looks crazy, in a good way.
Christ, no idea. There’s far too many unknowns at the moment like the state of the diffs, transfer box and main gearbox. Once it’s running and we get some wind in the tyres we’re hoping that a run around the yard will give us a better idea. Whilst it’s going to essentially be a refurb we/ the owner want to keep as much of the original car as possible so things like paintwork aren’t being done. The aim is to be safe, road worthy and relatively reliable going forward.Originally Posted by Onelasttime
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Subtle differences than the series 3. Although they have the same front end this one is a H plate from 69 with a hard dash, screen brackets on the outside of the bulkhead rather than inboard, electric - wiring under bonnet very different and the bonnet hooks are slide in on this one rather than drop in on the 3.
Also VIN plate gives it away
Above pic is the series 3 (K plate) which we also have in.
Vin:
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Last edited by Franky Four Fingers; 30th November 2023 at 10:04.
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Series 2 had headlights in the middle, Series 2A had them on the wings - it's one of the easiest ways to tell them apart
Anyone see the Series 1 featured recently on Bangers & Cash Restorations? Ended up costing over £80k to purchase and rebuild. Final result was like a brand new vehicle, the bill for labour was about £58K .
It sold for £40k.
7 out of 10 customers that come here in the workshop will tell you: "That's the story of my life as well, don't tell my wife." But there are two sides to this:
The first:
Keeping labour costs as low as possible without bankrupting the restoration company is one of the hardest things. Many workshops here deduct 5 to 15% of their normal hour-rate when it's for lengthy jobs like a restoration. But, a lot of money (labour) is spent on jobs that are outsourced; to give you an example: machine shop work for the engine, paint job work and upholstery work. All those shops have their own labour costs.
Restoring a 'normal' 60s or 70s car is the same as losing money. Only a few cars are worth more than the amount it took to restore. Porsche 356, 911 - and nowadays the 912- are a few examples of cars that are worth restoring. With -as I said often before- the re-use of the original material. I've owned a 914 and the engine rebuilt which is basically a VW 2.0 engine, costed me 10 yrs ago 6000 euros. And that was 'mates rate'... We also see that along the way, customers ask for more than bringing it back to original. I already mentioned that most restored cars are built with upgraded parts (The Austin Healey with an upgraded steering rack). I think that in most cases, the focus of the owner shifts to upgrades, making a restoration more costly. Add 20 to 80%... is my experience.
The subject of this thread, the Series 2A, is a fine example of 'classic motoring-and-memories'. And people are lucky to spend money to re-live those memories. Or see thecar as a rolling memorial for their family members.
The second:
Many years ago, Practical Classic Magazine had an article about the use of a classic car as every day car. The car of their choice was a Morris Minor. A 'modded' one with -I think- a Fiat engine, better brakes etc. The investment and the more frequent maintenance was cheaper than buying a modern car (I cannot remember what they had as comparisson-car). You can take that route as well: restoring a car with every day use in mind: powder coating, galvanizing, modern 2K paint, modern rust prevention (Mike Sanders). Then you can end up with a car that will outlive you, so to speak! One word of warning: when you take route, stay away from cars with 'frist gen' electronics. Not a lot of people know how to handle problems with these rudimentary computers. Even 'tanks' like the early Volvo V70 are prone to difficult to solve electronics problems.
(Dudley, I hope you don't mind this long-read in your thread!)
I don’t hold the monopoly on this thread Menno, you are the restoration guru… I am just a mere upstart!
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A lad at our work has done one up over the years. Nice old boat but there’s always something that needs sorting with it. The boy in the car is not the owner BTW
Its a '63 series 2A with inboard headlights BTW.
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Last edited by stefaulkner; 30th November 2023 at 15:40.
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