Evenin' all. Just thought I'd pop my head round and introduce you to our new motor...for once, it's not a 300zx (we already own 3 so one more and I may of had to get myself committed...;))...it's a Defender!

 

This was our old 90 which we loved to bits:

 

 

Unfortunately we had to sell as, at the time, I was put on a brand new drug treatment for my Crohn's which looked like it was going to cost an arm and a leg and there was a major worry that the NHS wouldn't help us out with it, so we ended up having to part ways ready to put the money aside for the meds.

 

Luckily that eventually all sorted itself out and recently, after a few sh1tty years with one thing and another, we decided life was too darn short not to enjoy ourselves a little bit so we set our sights on getting a new Defender (which has always been one of my "dream" vehicles...bizarre but true), and this time trying to get one that was as close to our "ideal" as funds would allow...in otherwords a TD5 engined, van sided, 90 with excellent, rust-free bodywork, sound expensive oily bits....and in black (and I do mean "our ideal" as well...strangely my better half is as enamoured with Defenders as I am!)

 

And bVgger me, after only 2 weeks of hunting we managed to find one! And here she is:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our last NA engined Land Rover was more than a bit of a boneshaker so the newer TD5 engine has been something of a revelation for us as she's an absolute pleasure to drive. To be honest, the level of comfort and drive quality was a massive issue: she's being used as a daily driver and we needed something big enough to cope with our two large Dalmatians and with carrying lots of amps, instruments and stage equipment backwards and forwards to gigs BUT again we had to take my Crohns into consideration as unfortunately it's got a lot worse over the last few years and brought jolly old Osteoporosis along for the ride with it so the car had to be comfortable to drive on those days when I'm not on enough Morphine to knock down a bull elephant! I think we've got as close as we can to achieving that with the purchase itself so now the plan is to set about her to really make her not only a comfortable ride but also bring her even closer to our ideal (I know, I know...they were never mean't to be comfortable barges...or quiet...or quick...but I'm going to give it a damn good go nonetheless! )

 

In no particular order, we're hoping to sort out the following:

 

1. Soundproofing everything that can possibly be soundproofed. Going down the Dynamat and sound absorbing foam route I think.

 

2. Replace OEM seats. Preferably with something adjustable, electric and heated! Not sure what at the moment, although I do have two Z32 cloth seats to hand...

 

3. Interior retrim. Possibly in faux leather from an accomodating plastic cow. The real deal would be great but I'm not sure we could stretch to it to be honest! Mind you, the fake stuff is hard wearing, easy to clean and it can still be made to look great if in the hands of the right retrimmer using the right stitching and interesting panelling...Christ, I sound like Gok Kwan...

 

4. Lose some of the ruddy stickers! Previous owner went a bit bonkers with them so most of them are going to be culled...will be keeping fingers crossed the paint underneath is ok and the same colour on removal...

 

5. Raise the suspension. Maybe something like a 2" lift.

 

6. Change the wheels and tyres. Something that is hard as nails but also looks great to boot. Also look at getting a set of bigger and wider all terrain tyres. Again, in case of off-roading but also to give it a more aggressive stance...also something that strikes a good compromise with the increased road noise. The only problem is that all the really nice alloys are available in the U.S. and not over here! U.K. Defender owners get a very limited choice. Luckily I'm quite used to importing car parts and engines from the U.S. and Japan so I'll probably take the plunge and do the same on a set of alloys...these are the current contenders: http://www.quadratec.com/products/92613_06XX_C_PG.htm

 

7. Get her re-mapped. Depending on funds we might uprate the intercooler, change the exhaust and do a few other bits of light fettling.

 

It's a bit of a list but fingers crossed if we take our time and tackle things one by one we'll get there eventually! It's so good to be driving a Land Rover again!

 

Leigh.

awesome i could do with one of these for fishing etc and towing my zed :D

thats a nice mud monkey . i used to have a rangy . i still miss the fun that we used to have in that thing . was it just mine or do they all naturally pull towards mud and water. lol.

where abouts in brum are you ?

That looks tough - I like it mate!!

 

Good luck with it....

 

Richard:cool2:

thats a nice mud monkey . i used to have a rangy . i still miss the fun that we used to have in that thing . was it just mine or do they all naturally pull towards mud and water. lol.

where abouts in brum are you ?

Lol! Definately seems to be a trait! I think we might do a spot of green-laning and some off road courses just because we've never tried it before and it looks like fun! :D

South Birmingham area, not too far from J5 of the M42 :)

I think you will need quite a few tins of tyre shine :lol::lol:

I love Land Rovers best 4x4 you can get and the back bone of the British Army:thumbup:

Lol! Definately seems to be a trait! I think we might do a spot of green-laning and some off road courses just because we've never tried it before and it looks like fun! :D

South Birmingham area, not too far from J5 of the M42 :)

 

oh ye solihull way . im not far from the airport . you,ll have to take it down to packington ford . only 10 mins from you

 

theres a 4x4 club that meets in the bell inn in colehill the last thursday of each month . nice bunch of lads .

Edited July 15, 201015 yr by andyzx
forgot to add the last bit

looks to good to take it off road :lol:

Very clean looking Defender, but did you shrink it in the wash ?

 

 

 

 

 

 

Very clean looking Defender, but did you shrink it in the wash ?

 

 

Nice looking truck. I have to say my preference is for the 90 rather than the 110 unless it's for an expedition vehicle in which case it's 110 all the way :) In fact I was half tempted to go for a 110 after Chris at Liveridge showed me round a lovely example as I was half considering kitting it out and taking a few months travelling round Europe but for normal road use it's just a bit too cumbersome for us :)