Series 1 1953 model in need of love

Hello Ladies and Gents, here's the family's old Series 1. I'd have to ask my granny to know exactly when we got it... It has seen A LOT of abuse. It was used as primary work horse for building a cabin in the woods, and not really lookd after.

Car has been sitting for at least the last 20 years in the woods. Engine was presumably swapped for a Peugeot 404 diesel unit, but is now seized.

I am not looking at restoring this vehicle to its factory condition and specs, I'd just like it to run and drive well. Body has dents a bit everywhere, so restoring this would be quite costy.

I am new to the Land Rover world, and I wouldn't mind some advice regarding spares or particular difficulties I might face during this restoration project. I believe I could do most of the work on the car myself, as I already hold some skills when it comes to working on vehicles (although I'm more used to small cars, like first generation Polos).

The front of the chassis is quite obviously shot, and I'm waiting for the car to be in a more decent location to have a proper look underneath.

Here are some pictures I took last weekend. Can't wait to get it out of there into a dry storage place!

Good luck with your project it will be worth it in the end.

Don't worry about the Dents. This is part of its life's story.
You have a lot of original parts like the rear lights(expensive)

Here's 2 series 1 80"
Owned by the family
The panels will all unbolt if needed and you can then get to the chassis.
Good luck with your rebuild

The car should be fairly complete... I'll have some questions about whether or not some items/specs are original, once I'll get to the car again.

Any idea if chassis are easy to find? Already found a bulkhead for £1500... excluding VAT!

Also, if it turns out I have to put the original engine back in (which could also have been the petrol one, still have to check all that), are they easy to source?

Sorry for the noob questions but I'm really just beginning to learn things about the Series 1 !

Nice ones, Phill ! I doubt mine will ever look like that unfortunately haha

What you've got there are some body panels and peripheral bits. It'll be a huge project give you need a new chassis and bulkhead. The problem being scarcity of other donor vehicles. You should be able to source them. Could end up with a landy with lots of character given the dents and dings. Good luck with the project.

The engine will have been petrol. The slant angle door shows it is an 80 inch model.Condition of what can be seen looks pretty good,the bulkhead looks well restoreable .Let us know more when you can.

Lucky fellow; I wish I could find one, especially a 1953: my birth year. Keep us posted and keep asking questions.
John

Every dent tells a story..

leave 'em.

As for the rest she looks to be in reasonable condition considering the neglect she has recieved the past few years..

And i'd imagine working on an old series would be much simpler than working on a Polo!!

That interior is certainly 'rich with patina'.

Lovely vehicle.

Have you joined the Land Rover Series One Club yet ? If not that will be the best investment you will make . In addition you should have a look at their forum http://www.lrsoc.com/forum/index.php where you will find many helpful people telling you what you should be doing with your 80" ! You might be surprised how many Series One owners there are in mainland Europe who might be able to help you .

First job, get it under cover .

I'm surprised by the very warm welcome, thank you gents!

I've unfortunately had some potentially bad news. Without asking me, my grandma asked someone to take it away. It's a long story and basically, the car is still there. For now... I live in the UK, and the car is in Belgium. I am trying to organize an emergency rescue mission before it dissapears forever.

As for the dents and dings, I absolutely want to leave them! It tells so much about the car's life, and since it has been in the family for as long as I can remember, it just adds up to the reasons why I want the body to remain like it is (as much as possible).

Remora107, I'll follow the link and join the club in then, I do need A LOT of information about this vehicle. I want to make sure that the parts that need replacing will be replaced by original ones.

Given the year, I guess the original engine was a 2.0L, right?
Also, there is a sort of extension to the door that overlaps on the rear quarter panels, any idea if that is standard or if it was just added at some point during it's life?

I am really excited about this project, I hope things will go as planned and that I'll be able to get her out of where she is at the moment ASAP.

Just one last question, and I know this is not necessarily the right section to ask it, but I'll need a vehicule to tow the Series 1 around, pick up bulky parts etc. I'd like to go for a Land/Range Rover. Any recommendations on a cheap-ish and reliable model I could buy? I'm pretty much into the Disco 2 or the P38 at the moment, just wondering if either (or both) are good or bad ideas.

Once again, thanks for the warm welcome!

Any reliable tow motor to drag a landy round is good. Does not have to be a landy just practical.
Get the enjoyment of driving a classic.

It's just that I've always been into Land Rovers in general, if I could choose I'd go for a RR Classic or a Defender, but not really the same budget.

DuckSherminator said:

I've unfortunately had some potentially bad news. Without asking me, my grandma asked someone to take it away. It's a long story and basically, the car is still there. For now... I live in the UK, and the car is in Belgium. I am trying to organize an emergency rescue mission before it dissapears forever.

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All you will need is a 4x4 and a suitable car trailer to mount a rescue. Depending on where you are in UK and where it is in Belgium you could do the return journey in a day. If you don't have already have them it it possible to easily hire bother a car trailer and a tow vehicle. Or ask on here if anyone is local and could lend a hand with recovery.

DuckSherminator said:

Just one last question, and I know this is not necessarily the right section to ask it, but I'll need a vehicule to tow the Series 1 around, pick up bulky parts etc. I'd like to go for a Land/Range Rover. Any recommendations on a cheap-ish and reliable model I could buy? I'm pretty much into the Disco 2 or the P38 at the moment, just wondering if either (or both) are good or bad ideas.

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If cheap and reliable are the main criteria a tdi powered discovery is probably going to be your best bet, just make sure the normal patches of body work have either already been replaced or not yet rotted away. Disco 2 is also good but not as cheap as the tdi's if it is only going to be a temporary motor.

Tell your grandma to tell whoever, that she had forgotten that she had promised it to you. Don't let some chancer get away with it.

DuckSherminator said:

Just one last question, and I know this is not necessarily the right section to ask it, but I'll need a vehicule to tow the Series 1 around, pick up bulky parts etc. I'd like to go for a Land/Range Rover. Any recommendations on a cheap-ish and reliable model I could buy? I'm pretty much into the Disco 2 or the P38 at the moment, just wondering if either (or both) are good or bad ideas.
!

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Get yourself a Toyota then you stand a good chance of getting home !

Sorry, I wasn't really clear, I work and live in the UK, but the car has to be moved within Belgium. I've already found a dry storage unit (won't be able to work on the car there I think, haven't seen the place yet), and my cousin should help me get the car out of there!

Concerning this funny story with my grandma giving the car... it's a long story like I said. Won't go into detail here, but the fact that I have to pick it up ASAP remains, unfortunately. The guy was supposed to come months ago, and since then had a disagrement with my grandma. I doubt he'll come (although the property is private, anyone can easily enter) any time soon, but better be safe than sorry, don't want to lose this beauty that I've been dremaing to put back on the road since my grandpa stopped using it.

So you guys really don't like modern Landys, right? Once again, I wasn't 100% clear. Fuel consumption won't really be an issue, I just don't like spending silly money on things that should not break (that is the reason why I only drive old Polos for the moment, no silly electronics). The P38 was sort of my first choice because as a kid (as you might've guessed, my love for Land Rovers started relatively early), I always dreamed of having one, and now I can actually afford buying and owning one. I don't mind higher maintenance costs associated with such a large vehicule, I also want a vehicule that I'll enjoy. If the experience is good with the vehicule, I'll probably keep it afterwards too (hence the V8, I've alays wanted that too).

Concerning the Tdis, I absolutely love them too ! I'm just afraid the 2.5L won't be strong enough to pull a trailer with the Series 1... It is quite hilly in Belgium

Anyways, enough talking about modern cars ! The Series 1 is missing the top rear door (opposite to tailgate, don't know the term...). I guess those things are not easy to find? And what about soft tops (the whole lot, with the cage etc)?

I've been told by a friend working at the belgian equivalent of MOT that I could keep the diesel engine that's in it and still be legal. I will try to find the original 2.0L petrol engine eventually, but depending on the difficulty to source one, it might be an easier solution to keep the engine that's in it. I'll see how things go, the idea is just to have a running project to work on (also better for motivation).

Thanks for your messages, gents. Each time I come here, it makes me more and more impatient to get started!

Good luck finding a 2 ltr engine
Most S1 have canvas roofs it's more fun.
We have both a full & truck cab canvas.
When you join the S1 club you may be able to source parts easier than on this forum. Most parts are available as they remake them but pricey.

As for a TDI 2.5 not been able to tow a small motor like that.....These are so light your motor will not notice it.

the engines do come up occasionally but can get expensive, last one I saw - and I don't actively look - went for a couple of £k.

apparently there are two types spread bore and Siamese bore (means nowt to me )

stick a v8 in it