Buying my first car... a Land Rover

Hi Everyone!

New member here, buying my first car this year and I've decided on a Land Rover 90. From what I've looked at compared to other vehicles I'm getting a better deal in the long run, the insurance quotes I've run have come out cheaper than the hatchbacks everyone else I know is getting, and it will hold it's value. Also I'm a bit of a tinkerer and would love have something I can play with.

I'm currently looking at a 1997 Defender 90 with a hard top, but I wanted to know how easy it is to remove/refit the hard roof? I'd love something that I can make a flatbed on the hot summer days and then have the full cab in winter. From what I understand it's just a few bolts around the inside to completely remove the roof, and it's something I would like to do from time to time as long as it's easy enough to do.

If any of you experts could offer any advice then I'm all ears!

Thanks!

Welcome to loony zoon pal, easy enough to do but you'd have to find a way to secure the seat belts as they secure to the sides of the roof. Might be nice to swap the doors for Series ones that have removable tops as opposed to wind up windows fitted to most defenders

Marmaduke said:

Welcome to loony zoon pal, easy enough to do but you'd have to find a way to secure the seat belts as they secure to the sides of the roof. Might be nice to swap the doors for Series ones that have removable tops as opposed to wind up windows fitted to most defenders

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Ahhh, thats good to know. Do the series 1 doors have the same sort of scale and fitting? My other option is to have a hard top truck cab, though I would hate to buy one and find it's a slightly different colour to the rest of the vehicle.

Series 1 doors won't fit and I would have thought that they are more expensive. Depending on how much you spend you might find that the body panels are a different colour let alone the truck cab .

Mine's all green apart from the black drivers wing from where I had an argument with a telegraph pole

Marmaduke said:

Series 1 doors won't fit and I would have thought that they are more expensive. Depending on how much you spend you might find that the body panels are a different colour let alone the truck cab .

Mine's all green apart from the black drivers wing from where I had an argument with a telegraph pole

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Oh dear haha

The one I'm currently looking at is black. I've just looked at a video of somone removing the roof from their 90, and I see what you mean about the seatbelts being fitted to the side panelling. There must be another way around it, I've seen far too many softtop truck cab defenders for there to not be a solution.

I think you'll find that they fit to the sides in a truck cab to, soft tops use this sort of setup I believe

Look at this on eBay http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/322229195310

Marmaduke said:

I think you'll find that they fit to the sides in a truck cab to, soft tops use this sort of setup I believe

Look at this on eBay http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/322229195310

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Well would you look at that. Perfect! Thanks for the help Should be taking my driving test in a month, I've been having lessons once a week since february and feel really confident about it. So I'm hoping to buy the car before Christmas

Good luck with that, have you driven a Defender before and what are insurance quotes looking like?

Good luck with that, have you driven a Defender before and what are insurance quotes looking like?

Marmaduke said:

Good luck with that, have you driven a Defender before and what are insurance quotes looking like?

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My mate has got one and he's let me drive it about a few times, and I really enjoyed it. The insurance quotes I've ran have come up around £180 - £200, I've ran hatchbacks like Civics and Puntos which have come up around £250 and won't hold their value like the D90.

£200 and it's your first car.... How old are you, in your sixties

Bloody hell. £250 for a Civic!? My 1.2 Fiesta was £2700 when I was 18. Landys only just come down to £500 and im 25.

bankz5152 said:

Bloody hell. £250 for a Civic!? My 1.2 Fiesta was £2700 when I was 18. Landys only just come down to £500 and im 25.

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Me thinks someone has put themselves as a named driver who hasn't passed their test or they've failed gcse maths and misread the decimal point. Mine's 200 quid and I'm 44 with 9 years no claims.

Or that was the quote for breakdown cover

bankz5152 said:

Bloody hell. £250 for a Civic!? My 1.2 Fiesta was £2700 when I was 18. Landys only just come down to £500 and im 25.

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Sorry that was per month

Marmaduke said:

£200 and it's your first car.... How old are you, in your sixties

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Sorry those are per month, I work out all my expenses monthly

At £200 a month, I'd just get the cheapest to insure that's possible! I can't think that's a landrover either. In fact, at 200 per month, I'd consider a moped to build ncd.

julianf said:

At £200 a month, I'd just get the cheapest to insure that's possible! I can't think that's a landrover either. In fact, at 200 per month, I'd consider a moped to build ncd.

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I have always wanted a Motorcycle but these days I need a car. Getting from A to B is one thing but I need to be able to take stuff with me, if I were to get one in the future it would be purely as a hobby thing.

I didn't say motorcycle - I mentioned the far cheaper and less cool alternative.

julianf said:

I didn't say motorcycle - I mentioned the far cheaper and less cool alternative.

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Haha