Opinions from ex military Landy owners please

jee said:

I'm told it's definitely not overheating although the temp gauge reads high & might be faulty. Sound plausible?

What mpg would I expect from a 2.5n/a engine in general use? 25?

I'm close to pulling the trigger on this...

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Pull the trigger!!
You will love it despite its short comings. You can't help it!
Re The temp gauge, a mate of mine has a similar symptom where it suddenly started reading high. Changed the sender etc but it still reads hot despite being cold.
Gauge has gone faulty.

Rich

I agree, get it bought, I waited ages to buy mine, wish I'd done it years ago, Yes it's slow, noisy and leaks like a sieve but it's great fun in this sterile none polluting world, I'd say make sure if you test drive that you do a good few miles, first thing in the morning mine feels like it has no oil and square tyres, drive it for 10 miles and everything warms through, feels like a different vehicle. You will also get used to people smiling and giving you the thumbs up as you drive, I've had some nice cars and bikes but I've never driven anything that creates such affection from people.

Damn it guys, you're pushing me very near the edge! LOL

Some research throws up issues with temp gauges and that they ground through the body so it could be a faulty connection or faulty gauge (assuming the other checks have been done). Seller has apparently replaced the sender and fan, and says it never actually overheats, so if he's honest then it is most likely a gauge issue.

Might be a silly question but what's the club scene like? Lots of owners meets/events to go to? Not that I'm buying to get into that but I've enjoyed getting involved with previous clubs for cars I've owned.

I belonged to the ex military Land Rover association for a while but binned it off - they are more interested in series vehicles rather than defender era, just wasn't my thing.

Slow, leaky, noisy. That's what mine was like till I stuck a rebuilt tdi in it, fitted power steering and some mats. Rebuilt the suspension and rebushed it. Now it looks like **** but drives very well!

All done in my garage (or a mates) with nothing more than DIY hand tools.....

Super easy to work on.

As log as the chassis is solid, no rust issues then everything else is (easily) sortable.

As for overheat, buy a cheap IR temp gun and check the engine after a drive.

Could be as simple as the gauge is defective or a dodgy earth if the engine isn't actually overheating,

Where in the country are you by the way?

flat said:

Where in the country are you by the way?

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Croydon

jee said:

Croydon

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just wondering from a low emissions done point of view - is it exempt?

jee said:

Damn it guys, you're pushing me very near the edge! LOL

Some research throws up issues with temp gauges and that they ground through the body so it could be a faulty connection or faulty gauge (assuming the other checks have been done). Seller has apparently replaced the sender and fan, and says it never actually overheats, so if he's honest then it is most likely a gauge issue.

Might be a silly question but what's the club scene like? Lots of owners meets/events to go to? Not that I'm buying to get into that but I've enjoyed getting involved with previous clubs for cars I've owned.

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For the overheating, you can buy an infra red thermometer pen off the internet, they are only a few quid. Go over the engine, hoses and rad, and it will show you the actual temperature of the components when the engine is running.
If the actual temperatures are in line with the thermostat temperature, the engine is fine, problem is wit the sensor or gauge.

flat said:

just wondering from a low emissions done point of view - is it exempt?

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Very much doubt it.

Agree with most of what's been said already. If the chassis and bulkhead are good, pull that trigger. It's all about the grin factor!!

Unfortunately I hesitated a bit too long and the Landy I viewed had sold. Doh! My search continues, ideally for a petrol model so LEZ isn't a worry at all.

I'm searching ebay, autotrader and Gumtree regularly, but are there any other less obvious sources of potential vehicles? I'd like an ex Military lwb but an non military would be fine - I'd probably give it a bit of a military look makeover anyway.

I popped down the a Land Rover day at Amberley yesterday, mostly the earlier models and some Forward Control vehicles and other unusual models.