Classic - Project Scab

Since last weekend I now have a new addition to the fleet. Picked up a solid but pretty scabby Range Rover Classic 3.9 Auto. Structurally it is sound. Some minor welding has been done on the arches in the past however the chassis and sills appear to be absolutely solid and original unwelded. It drives well with no knocks or bangs at the moment. The plan is to smarten it up a bit and keep it as another weekend toy. Ill be keeping the 110 that some of you may have followed the build on my previous project thread - Project thread

So first up - I've ordered some new wheels and tyres. Went for Cooper At3 in 245/70/16 to go on some 0 offset modulars. I'll keep the stock wheels and tyres and tidy those up also as they have some good tyres on.

Next up will be a full service this weekend. Then I'll address the suspension and maybe fit some police springs to lift the rear ever so slightly as it looks like it should be higher. I like the stance when slightly higher on the rear. I've read the police springs will do this??

After that I'll address the roof lining and then start the prep to fully rub it down and respray. I've never sprayed before however I plan to buy myself a compressor and all the gear then teach myself how (DIY Standard) and spray it in my garage in the summer. I'll also fully rub down the chassis and paint it then under seal it but that's definitely a job for the summer.

Here's a photo of it now. Ill keep this thread up to date with any progress. Also..... wow this classic looks tiny parked next to my 110!!

You want a small block for it ?

Not yet. Maybe once it's finished I'll look Kay building something for it. Thanks

Set of uprated (police) springs and shocks worked wonders on my Classics. Sat a bit higher and didn't roll so much. I did two of them and made a hell of a difference

tomcat59alan said:

Set of uprated (police) springs and shocks worked wonders on my Classics. Sat a bit higher and didn't roll so much. I did two of them and made a hell of a difference

Click to expand...

Did you do front and back? Do you have any photos?

lucifus said:

Did you do front and back? Do you have any photos?

Click to expand...

I just did the backs as I remember, the last one was about 14 yrs ago. Did it to help with towing the tin tent. I will have a look to see if I have any photos.

I took the plunge and ordered some police spec HD springs for the rear. Also ordered some new shockers to go with them as I may as well replace them at the same time. Also purchased a decent angle grinder as I don't fancy spending 4 hours on my back with a hacksaw this time round cutting through seized bolts. With any luck it will all turn up before the weekend and if its not pooring with rain all weekend then I'll get them fitted. Watch this space.....

lucifus said:

I took the plunge and ordered some police spec HD springs for the rear. Also ordered some new shockers to go with them as I may as well replace them at the same time. Also purchased a decent angle grinder as I don't fancy spending 4 hours on my back with a hacksaw this time round cutting through seized bolts. With any luck it will all turn up before the weekend and if its not pooring with rain all weekend then I'll get them fitted. Watch this space.....

Click to expand...

Correct me if I'm wrong, everyone else does, but isn't it only two bolts. One on each shock, at the bottom, when you change the rear springs and shocks

Bolt holding top and bottom of shock. I've got police spec springs, give a bit extra ride height without compromising the ride and handling, best of both worlds.

tomcat59alan said:

Correct me if I'm wrong, everyone else does, but isn't it only two bolts. One on each shock, at the bottom, when you change the rear springs and shocks

Click to expand...

Lol. Yes that's correct. It takes me about 15 mins per side to remove my 110 suspension now. That's because the bolts are new and copper greased etc. the bolts on this range rover could be 22 years old. They won't come off easily. There's 1 nut at the top of the shock that holds it to the mount and one at the bottom. I've ordered 2 new top shock mounts also as Sod's law tells me that these will probably be too corroded to get the bolt off.

I changed out my springs not that long ago, put police spec HD on rear then put standard spec rears on the front, gives a small amount of lift but doesn't seem to affect ride and handling. Front shock turrets can stay in place to swap springs and dampers. Spring retainer bolts will probably snap when you try to undo them and it is likely you will need to use Mr Angry Grinder to cut off the bottom nut on the dampers (I did).

Bits are all here to service it and fit the HD suspension. Now if this bloody rain would just stop for a few hours! Hopefully I can get out tomorrow.

New wheels and tyres - 245/70/16 Cooper AT3 (pretty aggressive looking for an AT)


Police spec rear springs and new shockers to go on. Also some nuts to go with the wheels and some upgraded night breaker ultimate light bulbs. Ive used the nighbreakers in other cars with great results. These are supposed to be even better.




Lastly the service stuff. Spark plugs, fuel filter, air filter, oil filter, diff oil, engine oil, coolant, dizzy cap, rotor arm etc. Ive already topped up the auto box this morning.




I can feel a busy day coming up tomorrow

Even though it's not stopped ****ing down with rain all day, I couldnt resist getting the new wheels and tyres fitted. I also fitted some 30mm spacers that used to be on my defender. Drives perfectly.

Looking good mate! I am planning to do pretty much the same as you to my classic suspension wise, let me know how you get on with the tyres as I am thinking the same need something particularly good in snow and ice though

lucifus said:

Even though it's not stopped ****ing down with rain all day, I couldnt resist getting the new wheels and tyres fitted. I also fitted some 30mm spacers that used to be on my defender. Drives perfectly.

Click to expand...

Plod may think you need wheel arch extensions

kool..

2 things...

one..you are now illegal..tyre tread past wheeh arches..do something about it, or get a nick..ie a bit of rubber popped on to arches to cover tread.

two..REMOVE PICS OF YOUR NUMBER PLATE,,cos really easy to trace and nick your car..now that you have told the world of all the new bits..

scrubbed up nice, looks sweet.

zen said:

kool..
one..you are now illegal..tyre tread past wheeh arches..do something about it, or get a nick..ie a bit of rubber popped on to arches to cover tread.

Click to expand...

Just out of curiosity do we actually know that anyone has ever been nicked for this?

Myself and quite a few of my mates have done this for years (not taking the **** maybe a inch out) and never had any problems with MOT's, been pulled and it's not been mentioned either.. I know it's technically not allowed but 'in the real world' is it a problem?

Sorry for thread hijack

Had this on my sierra cosworth . Got pulled a couple of times by police mainly used as an excuse to check car and me over.

Now I like to stay under the radar .

I ran a similar ammount of tyre outside fender on my previous 90 and my 110 before I fitted bigger wheels and arches. I ran this for years. It's actually not as bad as it looks in the photos.

Anyway.... first service done.

Coolant - Drained flushed and new added. Managed to over tighten and break the first plastic radiator plug. Nipped down to AJD to grab a new one. The bottom hose was a bitch to get off too. Ive struggled to put pipes on in the past but never to get one off lol

Engine Oil - Changed. The stuff in there was pretty black and gopping.

Oil filter - Changed. The old one looked like it had been on there a while.

Spark plugs - All changed.

Dizzy cap - Changed. The old one had some corrosion on the points but not that bad.

Rotor arm - I couldn't get the old one off. Didn't want to pull it too hard. I cleaned it up and left it. It wasn't actually that bad anyway.

Front and rear diff oil - Changed. Wow the old stuff was nasty!

I haven't changed the air filter yet. It seems there's a K&N cone filter inside the stock box. The stock filter wont fit as there is a part missing that I need. I'll have to try and work out the part number later and get it ordered.


The outcome - Maybe it's in my head but it seems to drive nicer now. Seems smoother and faster. Or it could just be that I haven't driven the 110 for a few weeks and used it half way through the service to pop down the road for the replacement plug. Anything will feel faster and smoother after the 110 lol


As for the number plate showing on my thread.... can people (other than police, dvla, parking wardens etc) really track my address and would they for a £1500 range rover? I can look on ebay any day of the week and find plenty of range rover that would actually be worth stealing with their number plates showing. Should I really worry about this thread?