Even more annoying questions by me :)

Ok, here are some more annoying defender related questions by me.... Please feel free to answer, or ignore me

Basically, heres my situation. I'm self employed (and only 17), but dont worry I have insurance in hand

I want a decent defender as my first car, which I plan to upgrade and generally clean-up.

I'm a little confused as to which engine is the better one? Should I get a 200tdi, 300tdi, TD5?

I basically want the engine tuning for more bhp and torque, which is the better option, I dont plan to work on them myself.

Also, if I was to buy a 90 from around '87 could I drop in a new TD5? Or have gearboxes, mountings e.t.c changed?

Can I fit an 07 bonnet to a late '80s or early 90's defender?

more to come, providing you havent flamed me

stick to a 200 or 300 tdi and leave alone (maybe increase turno boost slightly)

bonnet - believe yu can - but why?

I agree, a 200 or 300 is perfect and both are pretty reliable. You could go the TD5 route and have the ECU chip remapped for better performance, but personally i dont like to fiddle. If you want a street machine, well, a Landy is not for you. Buying an older one and dropping in a TD5 engine aint a wise move...you gonna have problems every step of the way.

Thanks for replies so far.

I want to add the 07 bonnet cos it looks better Purely cosmetic really.

I'm looking at sorting out the chassis, perhaps with a galvanised chassis, does anyone know of any good suppliers (and fitters) that come highly recomended?

richards - do a search for chassis.

thanks.

Does anyone have a tips for making a galvo chassis last longer?

I heard of a method which involved filling the chassis rails with expandable foam, and then coatin all the chassis with waxyoyl in a mag I believe.

if the galvo is done properly it should last forever. had mine done but put in a few extra drain holes and rinse it out thru every hole i can find at least twice a year cos they tend to trap sand and dust towards the rear and this gets wet and hold the moisture in and does cause problems. spose u could fill it with a high density foem, but then if it aint done properly and u get water in you never gonna get it out

A galv chassis should last you 30+ years, i doubt you will still have the landy by then , or the oil will have run out and it will need a electricx motor retrofit !! Dont try to fill with foam , waste of time and will make worse.
At 17 a 300 tdi is plenty fast enough to get you into trouble JMHO
If you mod it at your age you wont get insurance if you tell them , and if you dont it wont be valid when you need it HTSH

BenG said:

thanks.

Does anyone have a tips for making a galvo chassis last longer?

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Zinc provides the cathodic protection and becomes sacrificial to the steel, so covering it up defeats the point. Perhaps a waxoyl after 10 years would be of benefit.

Whats all this about sacrificing catholoics

As long as its not muslims

damn...sum big words there Gramor....wot they mean??

Bushtoy said:

damn...sum big words there Gramor....wot they mean??

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'O' grade physics and chemistry.

So why are most vehicle body panels zinc coated primed and painted then these days????

um, so u went to school....i kinda think i did but only really remember it was like a bad dream. Woke up one day and was sweating a lot, but it was over.

Ed Foster said:

So why are most vehicle body panels zinc coated primed and painted then these days????

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so that if paint gets scratched the zinc underneath prevents the steel rusting. Spun or hot dipped galvanised finish is not the best looking finish........so they paint them.

car manufacturers could actually use rust resistant steel in the construction, but final build costs would be huge, so we have a compromise.

So if you hot dip galvanise a chassis then use a paint or powder coat finish on top of it you do actually increase the corrosion resistance!!....Don't you

Its a cosmetic thing JMHO

Ed Foster said:

So if you hot dip galvanise a chassis then use a paint or powder coat finish on top of it you do actually increase the corrosion resistance!!....Don't you

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Galvanising is not actually corrosion resistant, zinc looses electrons quicker than the metal it is applied to and oxidises.The zinc is slowly consumed over time, but as long as some remains it slows down the disappearance of the metal parts

So by slowing down the onset of corrosion it resists corrosion doesn't it! If you add an additional barrier the zinc doesn't oxidise until that barrier i.e. powder coat has been breached! Also if you scratch galvanise it oxidises and 'prevents the steel from rusting' so is self healing! Saying that a good hot dip galvanised chassis should not need further coatings but if you are at all worried about the quality of the galvanise espeicially inside the chassis it may be worth taking further precautions, these could include waxoyling or foam. The chassis has drain holes in it to allow water to get out but on the downside this can also allow mud and other rubbish in and one of the main causes of corrosion is what is called poultice build up where you get build ups of damp mud on the chassis or body panels if you can help prevent these build ups or at least clean them off regularly you will go along way to reducing your chances of getting a rusty chassis or body in the first place!