No matter what our chosen profession we all get one of those jobs from time to time that make you wish you took a different path.
This particular job was no exception from the very first bolt.
Whilst it's not a surprise to everybody that Land Rovers suffer from the rot (shock) I doubt many out there will realise how bad they can get. The above pic is the rear cross member of a 2001 DEF 90 Td5. When you consider that this is the mounting area for the tow pack you can appreciate how dangerous this could have been. You'll see the section of bolt sticking out which had to be cut off along with the entire fixings for all of the tow pack.
No bolt or nut on the entire job came out and either broke or had to be cut off. Even the fuel tank cradle developed a hatred for me in removing it and took about an hour to get off.
Once this entire section along with a section of chassis was cut off the new one was welded in. As you can see from the pics it truly was a shocker. 15 years of impacted mud and corrosion only added to the pleasure.
A cautionary tail to anyone looking at buying one of these.
Check the entire chassis along with he rear cross member.
Beware of body sealers and mud as they tend to hide all sorts of horrors. Get it waxoiled every few years as a matter of course otherwise you may end up with something like this......
The last pic is the entire section removed.
Last edited by Franky Four Fingers; 27th May 2019 at 12:16.
Ouch!
Finding a good Defender is becoming something of an exercise in futility. I have had a Series 1 and a Series 3 in the past, so have an idea of the pitfalls, but have been keeping my eyes open recently for something more modern, including looking at decommissioned military versions.
Seeing your photos is almost enough to convince me to give up!
I'm awaiting a slot with a local Land Rover restorer to have a new chassis on my '96 Defender 90 and a full respray. The current chassis is somewhat of a patchwork quilt and the paint is almost nonexistent in places. The open chassis is both a blessing and a curse.
That's appalling for a 2001 car. Is it a Chelsea tractor or a working vehicle? I'd have expected them to be galvanising the chassis parts for the last 30+ years.
Not sure of its previous life but it's a bit of both at the momentOriginally Posted by Jeremy67
Galv......no way, you're lucky to get rust proofing full stop.
About 10 plus years ago they were covering them in certain places with a thick sealer but that's about it.
Makes you wonder what the rest of the chassis is like further forward, and when that will need replacing.
Pete
Thanks for sharing these pics! Horror, but very educational
I think that - now the Defender is no longer produced- a lot of the forum members here could do with a '101 on how to look at a Defender chassis'. In this case: is it worthwhile repairing/patching or simply replacing the rotten chassis. What's more: is it useful to have a proper chassis galvanised or ...
The Defender is still and will be a popular car. In years to come, lots of owners will run into problems easily solved at this stage with (still) proper parts supply.
Menno
It greatly depends on the rest of the car to be honest and how much an individual is prepared to sink money in to it. A full galv chassis for a 90 is north of £1500 just for the chassis, that doesn’t include labour and the potential issues when stripping. As another poster said.... what’s the rest of the chassis like further on. In most cases these later 90s all appear to be mainly back end problems and so without doubt the most cost effective way is a 1/4-1/3 chassis.
Wax oil of any description is a must- not the hard body Shultz but good old waxoil
That question is always asked, we would never entertain such a repair if there was the reasonable possibility of near future issues
Wow, I'd expect that of a '71 car but not a 2001. Terrible.
Two years since mine was waxoyl'd. Booked in again for this summer! It's a few hundred well spent. Nothing when you think of how much a tank of diesel costs.
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Search for Mike Sanders Grease. Superior German stuff. Google it.
Menno
i have felt your pain Franky ,i replaced the rear cross member on my series 3 LWB landrover ,it was a long time ago but i still remember what what a b@rstard job it was.i also replaced the chassis outriggers.i used it as a recovery truck with a jib in the back so having a sound chassis was essential.it had the old rover 6 cylinder 2.6ltr petrol engine ,the one with one overhead valve and one sidevalve per cylinder.12 MPG was its best,down to single figures when towing..
Last edited by greasemonkey; 27th May 2019 at 19:53. Reason: sspelin
I picked up an old 90 recently as an additional work runabout- didn’t really know what I was looking at - but got it anyway, by luck it had the chassis rear section replaced and the rest was pretty good. I have now learned a lot about these vehicles! It seems like a lottery with the land rovers. I could have got another 4x4 but the Defenders are pretty cool and have a bit of character absent in Japanese vehicles
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A customer/friend of mine has just had his swb one completely re-done, new galvanised chassis etc.
Can’t say I’m the greatest fan of them really but he loves them so they’ve obviously got something attractive going on. After working on them and driving them for years I’m still yet to work out what it is though haha.
I can see the use for them on sites I work on (quarries etc) but the chap I mentioned above used to have an ex electricity board, LWB one with a huge box on the back. He’d use it as his road van, was like a boat in the waves to drive. Used to dread when he’d ask me to test drive it when something was wrong!
My Dad bought one when I was a kid and we were going to go through it as a project, one day I was sat in the cab & he was trying to start it with the starting handle, kicked back and smashed his wrist to pieces!
I’ve absolutely no need for a Landy but I’ve always wanted one. Maybe I’ll have to scratch the itch one day and if I do I’ll drop it off here https://www.defender2.net/forum/topic10467.html
My Dad had a Series 3 conversion by Searle Carawagon back in the 1970s, he worked abroad a lot and it went with him. When he was home we used to go to Scotland on holiday towing a caravan and I just loved being out with him in it. That got me hooked, I've had mine around 15 years and wouldn't drive anything else. They are an acquired taste I admit.
I do understand they must be as I know people that love them. My mate gets a lot of grief about his but then he’ll dish it out about my car so it’s all good fun.
Similarly I’ve always said one of my favourite cars to own/drive was my mk1 VW golf GTI, I’d probably still have it now if my mate hadn’t written it off. By modern standards it’s a dinosaur, even back then it was old school (going back 24 years) but I loved the analogue feel despite the terrible electrics etc. Yet tell my mates that now and they’d think I was barmy. Again, same reason I still have old imprezas, just something I gel with about them yet I’m 42 & my mate’s are waxing lyrical about their new S3’s etc.
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