Couple of questions about originality

Morning All!

I picked up first a Series this weekend (I've had moderns before) and I'm over the moon with it. It's an early series 3 ragtop in limestone white. Still has the 2.25 petrol and it doesn't seem to have been overly meddled with. Now, I'm not a rivet counter, nothing against people that chase authenticity to every detail but I want my S3 to be usable whilst still looking as it was intended, externally at least. A happy medium I hope.

So some questions:

1)How do I know what is right and what isn't. For example, mudflaps, some have Land Rover moulded in black whilst some have it picked out in yellow. How would I know which is right?! Same with wheels, they're body colour, if I'm going to tidy them up should they remain limestone? I've no idea where to start with period pictures etc.

2) Lumenition or similar. Read lots of people saying its a worthwhile modification but if it goes wrong you couldn't fix it roadside like points? Is lumenition fitted properly truly "fit and forget?"

3) Is fitting a defender heater straight forward? Does anyone have a fitting guide?

4) The speedo doesn't work. Should I try and fix it or just accept that it may well never work and therefore not care? It's on limited mileage insurance and I have to warranty my mileage is under 5k annual (it will be) but how can prove it beyond doubt (I can't) but do I care?!

Sorry for all the questions. Only been on the forum a short while and I've already had an awful lot of useful help, so thanks!

amcblack said:

Morning All!

I picked up first a Series this weekend (I've had moderns before) and I'm over the moon with it. It's an early series 3 ragtop in limestone white. Still has the 2.25 petrol and it doesn't seem to have been overly meddled with. Now, I'm not a rivet counter, nothing against people that chase authenticity to every detail but I want my S3 to be usable whilst still looking as it was intended, externally at least. A happy medium I hope.

So some questions:

1)How do I know what is right and what isn't. For example, mudflaps, some have Land Rover moulded in black whilst some have it picked out in yellow. How would I know which is right?! Same with wheels, they're body colour, if I'm going to tidy them up should they remain limestone? I've no idea where to start with period pictures etc.

2) Lumenition or similar. Read lots of people saying its a worthwhile modification but if it goes wrong you couldn't fix it roadside like points? Is lumenition fitted properly truly "fit and forget?"

3) Is fitting a defender heater straight forward? Does anyone have a fitting guide? It won't give you much, i wouldn't bother, either wrap up warm up put in a second heating system in the cab, but, that'll ruin you're originality.

4) The speedo doesn't work. Should I try and fix it or just accept that it may well never work and therefore not care? It's on limited mileage insurance and I have to warranty my mileage is under 5k annual (it will be) but how can prove it beyond doubt (I can't) but do I care?!
Most likely just a snapped cable, they're cheap enough, might as well buy and fit one, might be more fundamental, but, most likely just the cable. Make sure you get the S3 cable - the s2 cable won't reach! (he says haivng learnt from experience :/)

Sorry for all the questions. Only been on the forum a short while and I've already had an awful lot of useful help, so thanks!

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Hi,

A few answers in red for you, for originality, have a look for some original pictures or "sales brochures" - that might help? Or i'm sure someone will be along later to help

2) An intermediate solution is powerspark and carry a spare set of points in case it breaks or some one lets off an e-bomb near by you can swap the point back in in approx. 10 minutes.

3) I swapped to a defender fan (instead of fan and matrix) as it looked easier the defender fan can be made to fit under the wing like a series one buy you need to fabricate a square to round adaptor for the fan to matrix pipe. The good defender fan is only marginally better than a good series fan but a lot better than a knackered series fan. With it installed there is no visible difference.

4) What bump says, but if its broken then you could try speedycables.com if the clock really is busted

As to originality, just don't change the engine for an oil burner! I can recommend ACR for getting your head converted to unleaded or upgraded though...

Hi!

Good questions.

1. Mudflaps: TBH that may be down to dealer fitment as opposed to what is "original".The truck was likely shipped ex-factory with nothing on it and the flaps were fitted at the dealer depending on customer order - and would have been what the dealer had on the shelf. In a case like that I would go with what I liked best and go from there.

2: Lumenition is truly fire and forget. I've had one in my truck for over a decade now and had a failure which turned out to be loss of ground internal to the distributor frying the module. If you feel the need to truly be braces and belt scavenge up a distributor baseplate to fit your distributor and put the lumenition on that - THEN install it and keep the present one with points and condensor in the toolbox in a plastic box. This way it's pop the cap and rotor, lift the baseplate, install the old baseplate and wire and you are off.

I don't see it as a serious threat, though, so don't wory about it. The benefits of the Lumenition are far outweighed by the remote potential of failure.

3: Heater: Before you go swapping out this and that and the other bit, take out (not now, of course) the heater and blower and refurbish it. Oftentimes the heat the poor thing generates is being lost to perished seals, dead squirrels blocking airflow to the matrix, blowers that turn slowly or not at all and so on.

Pulling the heater box and the blower will allow you to rectify all of this, and check that the valves and such are actually doing what they should be doing. Poor heat in a Series is often a matter of degree rather than completely failed components - add together a half-opening valve, a dirty blower, perished seals and you get nothing. Rectify all of this and get the core flushed (and hooked up properly) and you might be surprised at what you get.

4. Speedo: Fix it. Little there to go bad, and cables are cheap. Used speedos are cheap as well so no excuse not to have it functioning.

ajr

Series flaps - lettering should be yellow but originals now only black moulded. I painted mine with plastidip. V8,s had white lettering.

The James Taylor specification book is really useful for this sorts of spec information

Thanks for some really helpful responses. Going to buy a couple of books to help with future questions.

Rather than replace the heater I'll do a bit of a summer refurb on the existing one and see where we get to. It's actually producing heat at the moment. So it isn't dire but I expect it has more in it.

I've bought a speedo cable and I'll see if I get time to have a to this weekend. Fingers crossed for success!

My series heater (powered by a 200di engine) pushes out more heat into the truck cab than i ever need, i don't have it on all the time, just on and off as required, so, it can be done!

my series 3 heater, ..warm as toast, also defrosts faster than our moderns.... just remember to turn the fan on as there is no flow generated by forward movement

My heater worked quite well on Saturday when I took it for an MoT Got to wait a bit for the engine to warm up first but once its warmed through a little, I got quite a bit of heat coming out Engine wasn't even showing it was up to temp on the gauge

Speedo cable was one of the first jobs I tackled. Its a good excuse to lift the floor and have a poke around. Find your gearbox fill points and what suffix box you have. While the floors up its a good time to check your transmission fluid levels.
Also you will get an idea of how imminent an electrical fire is while you are in behind the dash connecting up.
I've had the power spark unit in mine for over a year now. It truly was plug and play.
I found my manuals at the Legion Landover site.

Broken speedo is mot fail nowso will need to be fixed.
Go elec ignition for sure, points are ancient history and good quality ones are not easy to find. I had a simon bbc dizzy and it was fine, no issues.

Broken speedo is mot fail nowso will need to be fixed.

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I was just about to say that...

ronsealdeath said:

Broken speedo is mot fail nowso will need to be fixed.
.

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Does the MOT include a test drive now?

wattfield said:

Does the MOT include a test drive now?

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IT does if you have permanent 4x4 & the brake rig isn't suitable for 4wd trhey use a tapperley meter (decellerometer.) to test the brakes.

Pikey said:

IT does if you have permanent 4x4 & the brake rig isn't suitable for 4wd trhey use a tapperley meter (decellerometer.) to test the brakes.

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I knew that! I was wondering how they test the speedo?

My wife often aasks me to turn off the heater blower in our '71 s3 SWB. why? Because it is BURNING her legs.
I fitted a ford 2.5 di diesel in place of land rover 2.25.
Why?
water flow?
fan motor is Std S3 model as is heater matrix.

Can you actually hear her above the engine noise?