Series 3 Land Rover S3 Purchase Questions

Green88 said:

Hello, looks like quite a nice early S3. My thoughts.

Door alignment: these are notoriously difficult to get right. Need to adjust various elements. It may be a question of can you live with the misalignment? Do the doors close properly? As without dismantling a lot of the vehicle you may not solve it.

Rust on the bulkhead. The passenger side looks like surface only but you would need to address this straightaway to prevent penetration. Driver’s side looks much worse and has clearly been patched before. Rust is coming through where they have previously patched. This is likely to be deep and can only be solved by cutting out metal and letting in new metal and welding. This is way beyond my skill set but you may be capable? This would cost a few hundred in labour unless you have a friendly welder.

Oil leaks: hard to say. My 1974 S4 leaks from multiple locations. Sump, diff, gearbox. I keep on top of these but keeping checking and tipping up and they are not a major issue.

As with all old Series, it usually comes down to how much money you have to spend. The above issues are fairly typical but it would be preferable to avoid them. In my opinion the bulkhead rust is the biggest issue. Maybe get a welder to give you a quote for the work before you buy the vehicle?

Hope this helps and good luck.

Greg

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ANK84 said:

Hi all. A very long time lurker and hopefully soon to be an owner.

Appreciate any help you can give to me here. I’ve been wanting a S2a/3 for years and finally am in a fortunate position to buy. I’ve looked at a 1971 S3 which drives really well, starts first time, chassis looks fine etc but have several concerns.

1) doors do not seem to align with body with top coming out at an angle. Is this an easy fix? I know the door tops have been changed recently so might need pulling in but passenger door definitely out of alignment (photo attached)

2) AFAIK original bulkhead with a patch repair. I know bulkhead problems galore esp around door hinges but do the issues in photo look an easy enough fix? From what I can see rest of bulkhead appears fine although noted they usually rot from inside out!

3) as usual plenty of oil to be found underneath but seems to be all along entire bottom of drivetrain etc (blown back?). Not sure if main leak is around transfer case but photos show main areas of oil.

All advice, help, guidance appreciated. Will definitely be learning any mechanics as I go!

Thank you all in advance.

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Turboman said:

There is quite a lot of adjustment on the doors, both on the hinges and the catches. The top of the door sticking out and flapping in the wind is common. I have known people to use a bungee cord to prevent draughts in winter. Series doors are available, and not silly money like Defender doors.

That vehicle has already had a replacement bottom door pillar section welded in. The other side will need doing shortly. It follows that the rest of the bulkhead may require attention with a welder before long.
I wouldn't say that is excessive oil leakage for a Series, although it is hard to say from pics.

A Truck Cab doesn't generally sell as well as other body types. That one appears to have the rear seats from a Station Wagon in the back, so maybe it was once a SW, not sure.

Don't be shy of making an offer, it looks OK, but does need some attention. It is easy to increase an offer, not so to reduce it is the vendor bites your hand off.

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ANK84 said:

Thanks Turboman. Now you mention it the bottom pillar replacement probably accounts for the door alignment as it is not quite in line with still below and therefore assume would then throw top of door off. If I view again I’ll pay far more attention to the bulkhead and door hinges.

You are also right- it was a SW and recently converted with a truck cab. That’s a lot of the appeal of these cars is how easy you can change from rag top to SW to cab etc.

Just trying to find the right one- a mix of mainly cosmetic issues and not buying a complete box of spanner’s and bag of rust….

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Turboman said:

For me, that looks OK if you can get it at the right price. All old vehicles are ongoing projects, it just depends on how big a project.

The previous owner must be crazy, or else had a much better example to put the SW body top on. Station Wagons are much more sought after than Truck Cabs or Hard Tops.

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Bobsticle said:

I believe the insurance companies don’t like a truck cab. Prolly more to do with the pick-up bit more than the cab.

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Turboman said:

Don't know about that, but I am sure you are right.

I do know I don't like them, visibility is even worse than the others, and they are so small I have to smear myself all over with chip fat to get in and out!

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Bobsticle said:

Fworrrrrr

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Turboman said:

For me, that looks OK if you can get it at the right price. All old vehicles are ongoing projects, it just depends on how big a project.

The previous owner must be crazy, or else had a much better example to put the SW body top on. Station Wagons are much more sought after than Truck Cabs or Hard Tops.

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Bobsticle said:

I believe the insurance companies don’t like a truck cab. Prolly more to do with the pick-up bit more than the cab.

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ANK84 said:

Now that’s the age old question. Asking £7.5k but unsure on what I should be paying. Appreciate market is what someone will pay…. Seems to be wild swings in S3 values

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Green88 said:

IMHO it is not worth anywhere near £7.5k with rust in the bulkhead like that. For that money I think you should find a S3 that doesn’t need any welding. Then again, it’s always tricky to find something suitable that isn’t a five hour drive away.

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