Opinion requested from the experts here

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Qumungis

Qumungis

Member
Posts
18
Location
Newmarket UK
my “new” Defender 110 apparently needs the quarter end redone and welded (crossmember with extensions) for £1950. Mansfield 4x4 also wanted to inform me that to do just the whole chassis it would just be another £4300 tacked on (as to not require any more welding repair). Would anyone like to offer an opinion on if I should do one vs the other? I imagine a good welding job wouldn’t require any further repair. Plus, my intention is not to take it through the harshest of terrain I can find as to further damage the chassis.
 
Qumungis said:
my “new” Defender 110 apparently needs the quarter end redone and welded (crossmember with extensions) for £1950. Mansfield 4x4 also wanted to inform me that to do just the whole chassis it would just be another £4300 tacked on (as to not require any more welding repair). Would anyone like to offer an opinion on if I should do one vs the other? I imagine a good welding job wouldn’t require any further repair. Plus, my intention is not to take it through the harshest of terrain I can find as to further damage the chassis.
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its very pricey at the most a rear cross member with extensions is 200 quid and a days work, and over 6k for a chassis change is robbery
 
Qumungis said:
my “new” Defender 110 apparently needs the quarter end redone and welded (crossmember with extensions) for £1950. Mansfield 4x4 also wanted to inform me that to do just the whole chassis it would just be another £4300 tacked on (as to not require any more welding repair). Would anyone like to offer an opinion on if I should do one vs the other? I imagine a good welding job wouldn’t require any further repair. Plus, my intention is not to take it through the harshest of terrain I can find as to further damage the chassis.
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That seems like a lot of money to have a crossmember replaced, and not all that much to re-chassis, assuming that includes the price of the chassis.
Obviously it isn't worth putting a new crossmember on a chassis that is going to rot out further forward, so I would imagine they think the existing chassis is on the way out, and are trying to cover themselves against you coming back in a few years and saying they have taken your money for nothing.

If your existing chassis has a lot of rot already eating it from inside, the kind of usage it gets isn't going to make a lot of difference, the damage is already done.

Personally, I would try and inform myself about the condition of the existing chassis, by going over it with a hammer, especially in the known trouble spots, outriggers and upper crossmemember attachments, around the shock mounts, front dumb irons, etc.
And I would get a cheap endoscope with a light, and try and assess how much rust there is inside, by using the endoscope through the many holes in the chassis.
 
Last edited:
As above :) ( both JM and Turbo )

Piccies would be necessary for us to see what is wrong....

A full, and presumably galv chassis, will mean that the vehicle will essentially last for ever ... subject to the condition of the other weakness on Deafeners ... the bulkhead....
 
Qumungis said:
my “new” Defender 110 apparently needs the quarter end redone and welded (crossmember with extensions) for £1950. Mansfield 4x4 also wanted to inform me that to do just the whole chassis it would just be another £4300 tacked on (as to not require any more welding repair). Would anyone like to offer an opinion on if I should do one vs the other? I imagine a good welding job wouldn’t require any further repair. Plus, my intention is not to take it through the harshest of terrain I can find as to further damage the chassis.
Click to expand...

£4300 for a chassis swap don't sound too bad but depends on turn around, I know the nay sayers will be baulking at this but if you are looking at a 4/5 day turn around on the whole chassis swap then that will require a couple of blokes working on it every day and considering working hours of a workshop (this is not a home gamers shed on the side of the house) they'll spend 6/7hrs a day on it from start to finish and fit and replace parts as necessary.

I would have thought that the £1950 was a bit steep but then again depends on how they are doing it and what vehicle it is exactly?
Later CSW with forward facing seats takes longer to strip the back end out to get in there to weld it up and then put it all back to normal again and make it as though it had never been touched, it all sounds a lot of money but you are using a garage where they have overheads to cover and wages to pay, easy for me to sit here as a home gamer who does it all himself to shrug it off, go outside and crank the welder up and do it all myself for the cost of parts but you are not me and have decisions to make.

The big number means you would only need an annual application of your preferred anti corrosion product to ensure that it holds a higher residual value and never needs welded.
 
dieseldog69 said:
£4300 for a chassis swap don't sound too bad but depends on turn around, I know the nay sayers will be baulking at this but if you are looking at a 4/5 day turn around on the whole chassis swap then that will require a couple of blokes working on it every day and considering working hours of a workshop (this is not a home gamers shed on the side of the house) they'll spend 6/7hrs a day on it from start to finish and fit and replace parts as necessary.

I would have thought that the £1950 was a bit steep but then again depends on how they are doing it and what vehicle it is exactly?
Later CSW with forward facing seats takes longer to strip the back end out to get in there to weld it up and then put it all back to normal again and make it as though it had never been touched, it all sounds a lot of money but you are using a garage where they have overheads to cover and wages to pay, easy for me to sit here as a home gamer who does it all himself to shrug it off, go outside and crank the welder up and do it all myself for the cost of parts but you are not me and have decisions to make.

The big number means you would only need an annual application of your preferred anti corrosion product to ensure that it holds a higher residual value and never needs welded.
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plus the 1950 tacked on the 4300,and you dont remove body to fit a cross member or repair the chassis
 
dieseldog69 said:
£4300 for a chassis swap don't sound too bad but depends on turn around, I know the nay sayers will be baulking at this but if you are looking at a 4/5 day turn around on the whole chassis swap then that will require a couple of blokes working on it every day and considering working hours of a workshop (this is not a home gamers shed on the side of the house) they'll spend 6/7hrs a day on it from start to finish and fit and replace parts as necessary.

I would have thought that the £1950 was a bit steep but then again depends on how they are doing it and what vehicle it is exactly?
Later CSW with forward facing seats takes longer to strip the back end out to get in there to weld it up and then put it all back to normal again and make it as though it had never been touched, it all sounds a lot of money but you are using a garage where they have overheads to cover and wages to pay, easy for me to sit here as a home gamer who does it all himself to shrug it off, go outside and crank the welder up and do it all myself for the cost of parts but you are not me and have decisions to make.

The big number means you would only need an annual application of your preferred anti corrosion product to ensure that it holds a higher residual value and never needs welded.
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As I read his post, they want £4300 plus the £1950 for the chassis swap. But he doesn't say if that includes the cost of the chassis.

£1950 seems silly money for the crossmember either way, which is why I would conclude they don't want to do the job.
 
jamesmartin said:
plus the 1950 tacked on the 4300,and you dont remove body to fit a cross member or repair the chassis
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Turboman said:
As I read his post, they want £4300 plus the £1950 for the chassis swap. But he doesn't say if that includes the cost of the chassis.

£1950 seems silly money for the crossmember either way, which is why I would conclude they don't want to do the job.
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neilly said:
I read it as an additional 4300 on top of the 1950...Sounds quite high to me. But then the original 1950 seems extremely high for a rear chassis.

Cheers.
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Then we need OP to come back and clarify because I read that with the full stop in place as £1950 to do the rear 1/4 chassis and you still need to get access to the top of the chassis rail to weld it fully! as opposed to replacing the whole chassis for £4300.

@Qumungis please come back and clarify the quoted prices.

Prices do seem high but then again everything costs money and I price things in parts not labour as mine costs me nothing, Mansfields have overheads and have to turn a profit, either that or they over priced in order to turn the OP away as they didn't want the work to start with, who knows.
 
dieseldog69 said:
Then we need OP to come back and clarify because I read that with the full stop in place as £1950 to do the rear 1/4 chassis and you still need to get access to the top of the chassis rail to weld it fully! as opposed to replacing the whole chassis for £4300.

@Qumungis please come back and clarify the quoted prices.

Prices do seem high but then again everything costs money and I price things in parts not labour as mine costs me nothing, Mansfields have overheads and have to turn a profit, either that or they over priced in order to turn the OP away as they didn't want the work to start with, who knows.
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pics are needed and there is enough access to fit a cross member with extensions
 
Everyone! Appreciate your input!!
The total includes a chassis, and labor...so, £6250 total.
I think they subcontract out, which is the reason for the high price.
 
Are they including replacing all the other parts that are likely to need changing, including bushes, brake lines, etc? Even then, over £6k for a new chassis is steep. If you do look at a new chassis, shop around. The average is around £2k lower depending on who does it and what else is included in the price.
 
jamesmartin said:
its very pricey at the most a rear cross member with extensions is 200 quid and a days work, and over 6k for a chassis change is robbery
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So, I'm feeling that a second opinion is in order. Anyone have a good recommendation for a shop who does this work in the Bury St. Edmunds area?
 
Qumungis said:
So, I'm feeling that a second opinion is in order. Anyone have a good recommendation for a shop who does this work in the Bury St. Edmunds area?
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Most of the regulars do their own work, which is very often the best and cheapest option with an old Land Rover. But it also means they are unlikely to know of many good garages.

Why not do as they suggest^^^^^, and post up what age and model of Defender you have, and some good clear pics of the rusty areas of the chassis, and we might be able to give you some helpful suggestions.
 
Turboman said:
Most of the regulars do their own work, which is very often the best and cheapest option with an old Land Rover. But it also means they are unlikely to know of many good garages.

Why not do as they suggest^^^^^, and post up what age and model of Defender you have, and some good clear pics of the rusty areas of the chassis, and we might be able to give you some helpful suggestions.
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Great suggestion! It is a 1995 300 TDI 110. Unfortunately, it is still sitting at the shop-so I don't have the pics. Looking at it straight on, looks solid. even crawling underneath wouldn't cause concern, however when you reach inside from way underneath, that is where you find the corrosion, rust, and pieces. I unfortunately wouldn't have the capability/space to do the work myself over a 10- 36 month period that some people have suggested on here. Not only that, I love this vehicle, I wouldn't want to risk ruining it with my "skill".
 
Qumungis said:
Great suggestion! It is a 1995 300 TDI 110. Unfortunately, it is still sitting at the shop-so I don't have the pics. Looking at it straight on, looks solid. even crawling underneath wouldn't cause concern, however when you reach inside from way underneath, that is where you find the corrosion, rust, and pieces. I unfortunately wouldn't have the capability/space to do the work myself over a 10- 36 month period that some people have suggested on here. Not only that, I love this vehicle, I wouldn't want to risk ruining it with my "skill".
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Good start, at least we know the nature of the beast. At 22 years old, any mild steel structure is likely to be showing signs of deterioration.
With a Land Rover, the condition of the body is of no importance at all, it is the condition of the chassis and bulkhead that determines the value of the vehicle, and to a lesser extent the condition of the engine and transmission.

When you say " sitting at the shop", do you mean you have not collected the vehicle after purchase?
 
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