Help - newbie looking at buying

Hi all,

I viewed another Landy today and am tempted but there are some issues and wondered if I could get some feedback/advice from knowledgeable owners.

It's a 110 2.5 petrol hard top. Perfect for me (no LEZ issues). It's got an MOT but the owner bought it a few months ago and says he's never used it and needs to move it on. He had another Landy as his business vehicle.

It looks OK on first glance, no major bodywork issues although it needs tidying up and ideally repainting (I'd go Nato green roller job). It has the 130 deep rim wheels with good tyres, and a roof rack is fitted (together with two rails that have been annoyingly bolted to the actual roof panel - no sure what for). There were also a couple of bolt holes which will need plugging up!

It ran fine for the short drive I had.

Bad points…

Both footwells have rusted through and someone has riveted a couple of sheets of metal over as a temp. repair but they will need doing properly. The passenger side is worse with rot up the inner side panel and a nice view of the road as you go along.

The box under the drivers seat is also gone, just some rusty metal remnants.

The Bulkhead looked OK, apparently it has had some older repairs but I couldn't tell. I did spot a small rust hole below the lower hinge of the passenger door however, just tiny but there.

Underneath was clean - no obvious problems that I could see. A couple of outriggers had been replaced apparently and some minor welding in the past.

The brakes felt a bit spongy although they worked.

None of the door locks work, in fact the passenger door lock is missing.

The indicators didn't work nor did the hazards. The side/headlights did work.

The top of the rear door didn't sit tight in the gap, like it needs pushing in at the top.

The engine bay was pretty tidy. Signs of an oil leak from the rocker cover area. Recently fitted new rad.

With the above points seen to an a lick of paint it could be a smart looking example but I know there will no doubt be a few other issues to make themselves known (always are with new old cars!).

Any thoughts or advice welcome.

Best thing for anyone new to Land Rovers,especialy older models is to take someone who knows them along to view.

Great advice, if you know someone like that who's able and willing to do so!

But as I don't…...

If it is cheap, meets your requirements and you can do any work needed then go for it.

Have you checked the MOT history on the .gov website?
Has it been abused or had a monkey working on it? if it has then you can expect more fun for your money.......

Cheers

I notice you've left the price off?

There's someone in the for sale section giving away an under seat battery box

Asking price is £3K. I can do some work myself but stuff like brakes I have to hand over to my local mechanic.

I'm trying to gauge a ballpark of what that stuff will cost to sort out. My biggest two issues if I bought it tomorrow would be how to drive it home with no indicators and how to secure it parked outside with no locks!

OK,

3K.......That sounds overpriced to me..............

Cheers

No indicators - use hand signals. Remember them? Wouldn't worry - no other road user would understand them even if you get them right!
Even when landy locks work, they don't exactly make the vehicle secure, so again, don't worry - just don't leave anything of value in it in the short term.
You don't say how old it is?

1984 model. I live in S London so if I don't lock it I'll come out one morning to find the seats and dash ripped out and squatters living in it!

Also, one thing to check is that all the numbers match the paperwork.

Cheers

Beneagles said:

Even when landy locks work, they don't exactly make the vehicle secure

Click to expand...

made me guffaw but very true

I paid less than that for my 1988 110 - I have to say I was very lucky for the price.

It is not showroom, nor is it a shed, it drives fine (now i have done the belt, FIP timing and replaced the rear output flange) Now just need to do the front swivels and CV joints and she'll stop knocking when pulling away going round corners!

The door bottoms are highly suspect, but the chassis and the rest of the bodywork is sound.

A £3k Landy will be just that fella - budget that again as a minimum to get it right, and that's doing the work yourself. if you're paying someone to it, double that again at least....

So what's the best approach for a first Land Rover? What do I need to spend to get something useable (but maybe needing some tidying up etc). ?

The problem you have is that you want a petrol due to the LEZ. these are not as common as the good old diesels.
You can be lucky and find a good one for cheap, but you need to be lucky, in the right place at the right time.
Good chassis / bulkhead / engine and gearbox. A lot of older landies have had "additions" to the wiriing, not all of them well done. The rest is easy enough to swap out / change / repair if needed and would not be that expensive.
Check the .gov MOT history for the vehicle. See how it has been cared for. If it has a NEW MOT, fresh out of the box, then ask yourself , is this a mates special MOT?

The other choice is spend a lot more than 3K and get a Diesel that is LEZ compliant.

Cheers

Both our 110's (1988 and 1991) are LEZ compliant running on Diesel....

They are registered as Estates as the body type on the V5C which means they are not considered light commercial or 4x4 utility vehicles.

So don't discount the Diesel Land Rovers or Defenders, get the reg number and plug it into the LEZ Vehicle Checker to see if it is subject to the charge or not.

I work in two locations primarily, at Farnborough Airport and Heathrow Airport...so to get to Heathrow I need an LEZ compliant car, which both of ours are.

Wish mine was....my mum and dad are buried a stone's throw from Heathrow and I can't take my Defender there with the mower in back to cut the grass or it would cost me £100....

Any station wagon is LEZ compliant. The same vehicle in hard top form isn't. Neither is a hard top that's been converted to a station wagon.
Any petrol version is LEZ compliant.
In addition I know that some ex MOD diesel models have been registered as PLG and therefore are LEZ compliant, even though they technically aren't. I also have heard of someone with such a vehicle being fined as it doesn't comply even though it does 'on paper'.

Clear as mud isn't it! The only way to be certain that it's OK to use your Landy in the London area is to have a petrol engine or a factory station wagon model.