Finally got the LR 109 Home

[DonDavis]

First off, a side note about the Subaru...I finally finished that and its back on the road.
It runs sooo damn good. Love driving that thing.
I had pulled the engine to do timing belt, water pump, valve cover gaskets and a bunch of other o-rings and gaskets.
Swapped trans with the donor car I found on CL because my transfer driven gears were moaning something fierce.
New clutch, pressure plate, main bearing and new style air/oil separator cover.
New struts all around, new rotors/pads and a new steering rack since mine was leaking, and new tie rod/ball joints.

Enough about that...

Did some much needed garage organizing/cleaning then had the beast towed over. Had to remove the top rack to make it fit. Planned on pulling that off anyway. It's fairly tweaked.

No brakes, clutch is seriously resisting action. can't move the shifter ( I thought it was in 3rd, but it will roll freely ). I'll have to dig into that later.

Got under it to drain the 9 year old oil. About 12 ounces of water shot out first, then some clumpy black stuff, then pitch black oil poured out with the occasional clump of goodness. Yuk...
Pulled the filter housing and installed a "new" filter that he had for years on a shelf. That'll work for the first batch of oil. Thinking about converting to the regualr spin on filter type.

Pulled off the driver's side front wing to better access brakes/clutch/carb.
I think I'll pull radiator today and get it tested.



Removed the hood easily. Just one cotter pin holds it in place. Well, that and the weight of a tire.


Just a few minutes with a micro fiber cloth and Simple Green.


The frame is in bad shape. Short term plan is to just get it running, putz around in it and see what breaks.

Then I found these guys...
North America Overland

Holy hell, they do some really impressive work. Take a look at this vid.
It's pretty much what I'd like to do with mine.
But I won't say "patina" as much as he does.

[widebody911]

Doesn't look bad from the top

[DonDavis]

Ha! ^^ Spoken like a guy that knows a thing or two about what lies beneath.

There's plenty of rust and cracks in the front part of the frame. It's terminal.
Many moons ago, I drove a '69 88 in Marine Blue like in the video. It's frame rusted through over the front axle and cracked.
As the cracked progressed, the front began to twist and it developed Marty Feldman headlights.
Then the fan began contacting the shroud, so I removed the shroud. Then it began touching the radiator, and so it goes.
We just parked it and salvaged all the good stuff.

This truck will need the frame replaced before I can safely do much travel.
But that'll have to wait a couple years. Not prepared to dive that far in just yet.

[Baz]

Thanks for the update, Don. No experience working on those but glad to see she's in the hands of someone who will give her another chance of life.

Very cool looking vehicle!

Have fun and good luck!

[porsche4life]

Looks like a fun project don!

Let me know if you need a hand pulling the body off it, happy to come help.

[wdfifteen]

They are so cool looking!

[pavulon]

new frame:
https://www.roversnorth.com/ProductDesc.aspx?code=PLH416&type=0&eq=&key=it

or

https://www.roversnorth.com/ProductDesc.aspx?code=PLQ322&type=0&eq=&key=it

[DonDavis]

Thanks guys. It'll be a long process, but that's ok.
"It's all part of the experience, Russ."

Originally Posted by pavulon

new frame:...or

Neither. It's this one. Mine is the station wagon with a 4 cyl.
https://www.roversnorth.com/ProductDesc.aspx?code=PLE413&type=0&eq=&key=it

[jyl]

So cool. I miss my Landie.

Buy an old Range Rover. Transplant the Landie body to the RR chassis and running gear. Bunch of work but it'll be cool as hell.

[LWJ]

Love these!

[VincentVega]

I'll pile on. Love it, thanks for the update.

[DonDavis]

More "loveliness".



And how often does a guy tear into an old truck, knowing there's rust, and says "hmm, not as bad as I thought it'd be..."

Well, I can tell you those words ain't being uttered in my garage today.






Depending on how far up the rust is on the bulkhead, that may need to be replaced as well.
I pretty much knew I'd need a new frame. And the site I referenced above goes into good detail on when and where to focus efforts and $$$.

This truck just might fall into the category of "not worth restoring" because there are more affordable LR 109s out there. But since this one has history and sentimental value, I'll be pressing on.

Question is, how far do I go to get it road worthy until I can go "full boat" on it?

[DonDavis]

Back in 1994-95-ish, Dad crashed the truck into a construction ditch. That's where some of the front frame was compromised, but the rust was going to get it eventually.

Here's one of several pics he gave me when I was there in June, ( there's some water damage to the pics ).
He had quad heart bypass about 3 years after the crash. I bet his ticker hiccuped and he passed out. At least no one was injured. He was dinged a little, but overall ok.

[Seahawk]

I wish I had better than, “it is as bad as you thought it would be”.

It is.

Take a step back and think about what you really want to do.

[Captain Ahab Jr]

Originally Posted by Seahawk

Take a step back and think about what you really want to do.

Eeerrrr..... Sell it and buy a Toyota

Seriously, great thread, pleaae keep posting your progress

Doesn't get much cooler than owning your dad's old Land Rover with all it's battle scars

[widebody911]

The roof is interesting - I've seen that option on UniMogs and VW buses, as well as other makes

[look 171]

Oh my goodness. That's a beautiful Rover. Especially since been in the family for some time.

You gonna to be a busy boy for a little bit

[DonDavis]

Originally Posted by widebody911

The roof is interesting - I've seen that option on UniMogs and VW buses, as well as other makes

Yeah, and I like seeing those in use, too. They really create cooler-ish air to the cabin.
A canvas roof is much more pleasing to the wallet, but the factory safari roof is the shiz-nit.

[WPOZZZ]

Originally Posted by DonDavis

Yeah, and I like seeing those in use, too. They really create cooler-ish air to the cabin.
A canvas roof is much more pleasing to the wallet, but the factory safari roof is the shiz-nit.

Camper top?

[Daves911L]

Cool Rover. Will be a fun project to get it all sound and functional again.

Over the Christmas holiday, I went to Texas and brought my Dad's '66 88 home to New Mexico. Dad is moving to Arizona and decided he couldn't take it with him. A shame. I suggested the Rover would make an excellent golf cart. I'm hoping once he gets settled in, he'll change his mind and want the Rover back.

"Benny" has been in the family for 30 years. He could use some mechanical freshening up, though he can be driven OK as is. Thankfully, he is solid as the day he was born.