SandFish
New Member
- Posts
- 2
- Location
- Split-Dalmatia, Croatia
I have a 1969 LHD Series 3 made for the Yugoslav police, which has been re engined with a Defender 19J engine and LT77S gearbox. The engine number is 19J00189C, so is a very early production model. It is a "Bitza" vehicle though, with oddments from all sorts of LR's.
The odometer is stuck at 35,000 KM, but for how long? I suspect it has had many, many more kilometers than are shown. In southern Dalmatia where it is over +35C for most of the summer, I know it will have had a hard life.
Recently I have been suffering with oil leaks, lots of them, then degraded performance which I put down to a failed head gasket, due to the spraying of oil around the engine, but I can't see the engine for the sticky oil. Then this week the starter has failed as I was trying to get it to be steam cleaned. I have no information about age of things like the timing belt!
I do not have any workshop facilities, or even covered storage so although I have some knowledge, I don't have the facilities to do anything more than basic maintenance.
I think the time has come to consider a reconditioned or replacement engine which a local engineer would install for me.
Does anyone have experience they could share of where to obtain one in UK or Europe? There only seems to be one supplier when I Google the term - landroverreconditionedengines.co.uk/ - although they seem to be just a clearing house rather than actual reconditioner.
Any advice would be appreciated.
Thanks for reading
NW
The odometer is stuck at 35,000 KM, but for how long? I suspect it has had many, many more kilometers than are shown. In southern Dalmatia where it is over +35C for most of the summer, I know it will have had a hard life.
Recently I have been suffering with oil leaks, lots of them, then degraded performance which I put down to a failed head gasket, due to the spraying of oil around the engine, but I can't see the engine for the sticky oil. Then this week the starter has failed as I was trying to get it to be steam cleaned. I have no information about age of things like the timing belt!
I do not have any workshop facilities, or even covered storage so although I have some knowledge, I don't have the facilities to do anything more than basic maintenance.
I think the time has come to consider a reconditioned or replacement engine which a local engineer would install for me.
Does anyone have experience they could share of where to obtain one in UK or Europe? There only seems to be one supplier when I Google the term - landroverreconditionedengines.co.uk/ - although they seem to be just a clearing house rather than actual reconditioner.
Any advice would be appreciated.
Thanks for reading
NW