newbie.. looking for buying advice.. and what its like to live with

biker1981 · Jan 8, 2011

Hi

sorry a newbie wanting some buying advice, but more about what its like to run/live with

I have seen a 1988 2.2 diesel landy 90 fo sale fairly cheap.... I'm looking to buy it as second car, i'm looking to do it up a bit with mods etc but also t use as a work horse as i'm renovating our house.

i just wondered what there like to work on and run? what the 2.2 engine like and how much is yearly tax etc?

any advice /help on what to look for or wat mods should be done... it has had a mod on that buy passes the hater plugs so you do it manually.. is this common?

any help appreciated

jak1471 · Jan 8, 2011

Hi

Are you sure it's a 2.2 not a 2.5 naturally aspirated? That's what was standard back then. When you say fairly cheap. How cheap because iv had problems with my first landy. Bought it for £2500 and didn't expect as much work as it needed. Never heard of bypassing the glow plugs but Iv only had 2 landys.

Iv now got a td5 that I use as my only vehicle. I use it every day an do 2000 miles a month. Had a few teething problems but nothing serious. As long as your not looking for comfort.

nesponge · Jan 8, 2011

are you sure it has a land rover engine in it?

biker1981 · Jan 8, 2011

it was this one I was looking at

1982 LAND ROVER 88" - 4 CYL BLUE on eBay (end time 09-Jan-11 15:55:22 GMT)

any advice

instantsquid · Jan 8, 2011

That's not a 90. It's a Series 3. Difficult to tell I know, but the clue is in the description - "You are looking at my much loved series 3"

Daz · Jan 8, 2011

Mate, that's a 1982 88" Series, not a 90. They are very different to own on a day to day basis. I have had series and 90 Landys and have to say I'd struggle to go back to a series as my daily drive.
I know I will get slated for saying that.

instantsquid · Jan 8, 2011

Can you weld? Do you know someone who can?

biker1981 · Jan 8, 2011

instantsquid said:
That's not a 90. It's a Series 3. Difficult to tell I know, but the clue is in the description - "You are looking at my much loved series 3"

Sorry ... not started off well have i

instantsquid · Jan 8, 2011

Daz said:
have to say I'd struggle to go back to a series as my daily drive. I know I will get slated for saying that.

Not by me! I've got a Series 2A (currently in thousands of bits undergoing major restoration) which I love to bits - but there's no way I'd swap it as a daily driver for my Ninety.

biker1981 · Jan 8, 2011

Daz said:
Mate, that's a 1982 88" Series, not a 90. They are very different to own on a day to day basis. I have had series and 90 Landys and have to say I'd struggle to go back to a series as my daily drive.
I know I will get slated for saying that.

What makes them so different to driver/ live with please? .. i wouldnt use it daily prob once a week but would like it to be reliable.

I can't weld but have mates who can, also have a mate who owns his own garage who does all my cars... although may not be impressed with this

Do they hold the money well?

i just wondered what makes them bad/ood over other landys please?

nesponge · Jan 8, 2011

they have crap heaters and leaf sprung axles as well as a distinct lack of grunt.

A defender is basically a series land rover with these things sorted out... so if the above bothers you than get a defender.

If you can live with the flaws... than you will love it

biker1981 · Jan 8, 2011

I think its the budget that i like, seems cheaper than others... is there away to fix the heater probs, other stuff woulnt bother me as not using it to much

landrover11019 · Jan 8, 2011

I'd say go for it, seris landys are a good introduction to landy ownership.
As for day to day drivers, it depends what your after and how far you want to travel.
When I had my seris landies, I went all over the country in them.

landrover11019 · Jan 8, 2011

The only reason a heater is crap is because its broken/not working properley.

instantsquid · Jan 8, 2011

A Series Landy feels much more agricultural than a Defender. This is largely down to the suspension - Series use leaf springs, Defenders use coils. In addition, the engines in Series Landys tend to be pretty underpowered by today's standards. In contrast, a Defender with a TDI or TD5 engine won't embarrass itself in today's traffic conditions.

The great thing about all "proper" Land Rovers (Series and Defenders!) is that they're essentially just big Meccano sets - everything is bolted together, so they're easy to work on. Having said that, a 30 year old vehicle will be showing its age and there'll be plenty of corrosion to keep you busy.

Best thing to do is the get a test drive in both a Series and a Defender (pre-1990 they were just called 90 and 110) An early Defender would probably be a more sensible bet than a late Series...

Don't forget that as long as the chassis and bulkhead is solid, pretty much everything else can be sorted out. If the structural steel parts are knackered, while it's not the end of the world, you (and your mate!) are gonna have a lot of work ahead of you before the next MOT.

instantsquid · Jan 8, 2011

biker1981 said:
is there away to fix the heater probs

Thermal underwear, ski jacket, gloves and scarf!

nesponge · Jan 8, 2011

landrover11019 said:
The only reason a heater is crap is because its broken/not working properley.

and you claim to have owned a series?

Daz · Jan 8, 2011

I'd agree, most of us probably started with a Series and have owned various forms of Land Rovers since. The first one I owned was a Series 3 109. It did about 45 flat out, I was constantly repairing it and it was like steering a barge. But it's the Landy that got me hooked and put the biggest smile on my face.
I did drive it daily and cursed it everytime it let me down, but if I saw it for sale now I'd buy it back.

biker1981 · Jan 8, 2011

Daz said:
I'd agree, most of us probably started with a Series and have owned various forms of Land Rovers since. The first one I owned was a Series 3 109. It did about 45 flat out, I was constantly repairing it and it was like steering a barge. But it's the Landy that got me hooked and put the biggest smile on my face.
I did drive it daily and cursed it everytime it let me down, but if I saw it for sale now I'd buy it back.

45 flat out.. wow its 2 hundred miles away... thats gonna be a fairly lon drive home

barmatt · Jan 8, 2011

Daz said:
I'd agree, most of us probably started with a Series and have owned various forms of Land Rovers since. The first one I owned was a Series 3 109. It did about 45 flat out, I was constantly repairing it and it was like steering a barge. But it's the Landy that got me hooked and put the biggest smile on my face.
I did drive it daily and cursed it everytime it let me down, but if I saw it for sale now I'd buy it back.

exactly right mate, my first was a s3 '88 and like all series it was noisy, drafty, thirsty etc.
I must be lucky as it wasn't unreliable but I did buy it off an old boy in solihull who'd worked for land rover

but I would sell a kidney to get it back again (sad bastid I am

)
Like others have said, go any some second hand dealers and test drive as many as you can find out which you prefer and once you've worked out what you like be prepared for a lifelong addiction to the green oval.

newbie.. looking for buying advice.. and what its like to live with

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