P38 DSE mod wish list

Thought I'd put some ideas out there and see if anyone has any pics of similar mods done etc so I can learn how to do what I'm wanting to.
I know some will think pointless and over the top, but I want to sort the vehicle out so I can go anywhere and do anything with it, without having the all out 4x4 look and retain the range rovers elegance and grace. Before I get too many snipes... I have std 16 rims running mud tyres... and due to the use I want, I will not be fitting 22 rims or low profiles or neon under body mods... nor am I wanting the 20 speaker in car audio set-ups.

External

Snorkel. Why? So I can wade a little and with a Morocco trip next year (fingers crossed) raise the air intake to prevent sand intake a little.

I understand that there isn't an after market one and some DIY kits I've seen range from nice to just wrong. Then I saw a Freelander 1 with one and thought that this looked good and had the same issues as a p38 (bonnet fits over wing) and started thinking. Could a freelander one fit a p38? and if not... how do you make one and from what. Vacuum formed plastic, Fiberglass, metal?

Strengthen bonnet. Why? I may fit a roof tent, or just want to get up high to take in views and terrain etc. Out of all the upgrades I'm looking at - this one is the most questionable due to it dramaticly changing the look of the range rover from road to off road.

I want to be able to stand on the bumper to climb onto then stand and move around on the bonnet. Will I need to put internal strength into the bonnet or would checker plate on the bonnet do? I was thinking that even if I don't plate the bonnet I'll have to coat it with something or I'll slip off or scratch the paintwork to hell anyway... so was thinking of 3mm checker powder costed black or just ali sheet covered in Treadmaster diamond black. Either way I want to follow the inside line of the bonnet bubbles.. ie. Cover the Centre run from screen to leading edge.

Alternative is to simply strengthen the bumper to I can stand on that instead. I suspect this will be connected to the winch installation maybe.

Rock sliders. Why? so I don't damage my sills and body work.

I'll Post link once I find the ones I want... but again. Don't know how to fit them and there may be home made designs out there.

Locking air diff. Why? So I can have true 4 wheel drive. This is the only feature I can think of why you would select a land cruiser over a land rover.

Any ideas of the best solutions... do you need them and if so both axles or just rear or front etc. Diff upgrades needed or stock ok? I know ABR do them...but any experiences with them.

Roof rack. Why? To fit a roof tent and carry kit.

Again. Seen some really bad fixes. do they have one for the p38 at all? I currently have roof bars, so can I get away with strengthening them to carry the roof tent?

Winch. Why? For self rescue.

Any diy installs here... understand some problems with Airbag or something, but don't really understand it. I know that the factory one is expensive so am looking for a cheaper one. Am happy to fit an A-bat to assist.

Flashing led /recovery light system Why? So I can be seen when I brake down..lol.

I want them in grill and in rear tailgate(white and orange) to flash at a set pattern from dash switch. No idea how to achieve this yet as I don't want the flasher box that comes in kits on the dash... so was thinking of possibly extending the switches to the dash and tucking the flash unit away somewhere. Problem is I would probably want a different flash program than the ebay type flash 8 times, or single.

Running day lights. Why? Added safety of front lights on but without using side lights.

Found these and thought of putting them where fog lamps would normally go.

Wing mirror mounted Led indicator lights. Why? Increased visual. After off road use, the indicators can be covered in muddy water and thus this would add a little confidence and added 'I'm tunring' to others.

Example of what I fancy. I expect that I would need to set these into the housing somhow... could I tap into the indicator wiring to get them to blink or do I need a new flasher relay?

Tyre inflation system. Why? So I can change tyre pressure on the fly, plus not need to keep visiting the garage for normal maintenance.

Can this run off the eas compressor or will it run off the additional compressor used in the Air diff locks?

Steering and diff guards. Why? Protection.

I may go for a tank guard as well.


Internal

EAS pump indicator light in dash. Why? So I can have some warning if the pump runs too often.

Just want a little led to light up when the pump runs. Thinking of using a 12v led warning light 12.5mm dia.

EAS tank pressure. Why? same as above... so I can have a heads up on how things are.

Is there anyway to get the tanks pressure fed into an a lcd display in the dash?

CB... in dash install - Why? Comms on the fly.

The cubby above the radio I was thinking about there... is it big enough you think to fit a CB like a radio unit in there? or can it be mounted up by the sunroof switches would be (mine is not a sunroof model). Worried about the weight up there and how I get them to fix. If this was an option - I was thinking of something like the Hanes Discovery books example of a roof control box thing where I could place all additional switches etc. Anyone ever seen anything like that in real life? The antenna would not be drilled through roof. Top has roof bars so could bolt to that.

Rear spare to be set like a classic in the rear. Why? Free up the spare wheel space and lager tyres don't fit in anyway.

Will it fit, how do you hold it in place. Do you need to take back wing off or can you just build a box or wheel chocks to hold it in place. The other side will hold either fuel, water or cooking stuff.

Duel bat system. Why? To run all the add ons from without touching starting bat.

Possible install under bonnet or in spare wheel well possibly. Any ideas on best kits and bats to use.

Fit a high level rear brake light into p38 which doesn'r have one. Why? Coz I want one.

Is the wiring to connect into already there?

Rear cigerate plugs. Why? So I can run a kettle or light from the rear.

I've also seen Din connectors???? what are they, are they the same thing?

Reverse Cam. Why? So I can see what's low down, like children and parking bollards that are bellow the back window

Link to what I'm looking at here. Would like to feed a switch so I can override it if wanted. I was also thinking of plugging the cam signal into one of those pop out screen radio / cd player dash mounted units (like this one)

Parking sensors. Why? So I can have increased awareness

Example would be this


Anyway - thoughts and ideas anyone... what would you add to your p38 if you could and what do you think of the above list or have you done any of them on your own vehicle.

I'll update this post as I find links and more pics of what I'm after in the project... please feel free to add.

that is a big list,bit too technical for me some of that,especially the airbag bit,i can see your thinking tho.

Example of the snorkel fit I am after for the p38.

Rock slide example of what I'm after (without the price tag).

Roof rack ideas... Big price tag though, and it looks a little long on the back (or is it just me). I'm starting to think of just working a floor into the current Roof bars and uprating them to carry the weight I'm after (roof tent with people in it).

Winch setup wanted... without the wraparounds....

Thats one hell of a project you're planning! Can't really help you on any of the items as I'm a n00b, but sounds like an interesting project. Have you done anything to the car already or is it standard? Any pics?

I'd love to take a P38 and mod it - I remember seeing a thread for some guy in the US who did an awesome build on a white P38, but cannot remember where I saw it now!

MikeV8SE said:

Thats one hell of a project you're planning! Can't really help you on any of the items as I'm a n00b, but sounds like an interesting project. Have you done anything to the car already or is it standard? Any pics?

I'd love to take a P38 and mod it - I remember seeing a thread for some guy in the US who did an awesome build on a white P38, but cannot remember where I saw it now!

Click to expand...

I think I've resided myself to a project in working over a period of time whilst I learn the trade so to speak.

The car it pritty std at the moment. The ECU has been remapped, full service inc Glow plugs, Fuel filter, Oil change with filter, Air Cleaner and Pollen filters. The engine is sweet and its currently in with a clunk gear change on the change down which has developed (if connected) with a front diff collapse. The oil in the Gearbox and transfer box have been changed.

She has a hot start fix on her and running on Mud tyres on std 16 rims.

Most of the items will be hidden away and all externals will be as close to factory as possible. I want to retain the org look of the vehicle as much as possible.

Well I like the sounds of it, so hopefully it'll all come together for you! I reckon the cheapest way for some of the things (e.g. rock sliders) will be fabricating the parts yourself, but depends what tools you have and how handy you are with them!

Looks like i have some mods that interests you

-snorkel
-underbody protection
-roof rack

I'll be honest and thought that you were totally mad and should buy a Defender and fit some comfortable seats then do everything else that you want and be able to buy all the bits off the shelf.

Then 996TURBO put his picture up.

Go for it - it could be awesome.

Hi

Be careful of to much weight behind the back wheels. I have 2 spares on the bumper and the weight keeps on blowing my rear airbags. A modified Discovery 1 snorkel will fit. A snorkel does not increase the wading depth of the car. You will have to waterproof all the electrics as well. It works great for dust. Don't put a lighter fitting in the back. Rather go for a Hela or Brad Harris fitting. They can handle higher loads and doesn't fall out while driving. My CB is fitted above the radio. I'm moving it to the recess on the dash, together with the GPS. When traveling, you need lots of packing space in the dash. I've also fitted a strip of velcro on the dash. My cellphones has the opposite. So I just stick my phones onto the strip and they are secure and out of the way.

KarelP38 said:

Hi

Be careful of to much weight behind the back wheels. I have 2 spares on the bumper and the weight keeps on blowing my rear airbags. A modified Discovery 1 snorkel will fit. A snorkel does not increase the wading depth of the car. You will have to waterproof all the electrics as well. It works great for dust. Don't put a lighter fitting in the back. Rather go for a Hela or Brad Harris fitting. They can handle higher loads and doesn't fall out while driving. My CB is fitted above the radio. I'm moving it to the recess on the dash, together with the GPS. When traveling, you need lots of packing space in the dash. I've also fitted a strip of velcro on the dash. My cellphones has the opposite. So I just stick my phones onto the strip and they are secure and out of the way.

Click to expand...

I use Gen3 airsprings and bilstein shocks.
I really like you disco 1 snorkel, looks much better than my modified Mantec snorkel for Defender.

You're right about electrics, that's my next project. I'll move up the BECM.

I have a special CB by Midland where all the internals and display are in the mic. Perfect for the P38 dash.
Like you i use velcro and magnets to hold cell phones, GPS remote...

dogsbody said:

I'll be honest and thought that you were totally mad and should buy a Defender and fit some comfortable seats then do everything else that you want and be able to buy all the bits off the shelf.

Then 996TURBO put his picture up.

Go for it - it could be awesome.

Click to expand...

Thank you
I never want a defender myself for many reasons :

-not comfortable (seats, gearbox, roadnoise)
-too expensive here : you can get 2 used P38 for the price of a Defender of the same year and same mileage.
-too common on the trails
-i always love the bulletproof design of the Range Rover
-i ran at 160 km/h on highway, try do that in a stock Defender
-try to add all that equipment in a defender : AC auto, premium stereo...



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Well.. no modding until the beast stops clunking!!! Got to sort that first before I think of anything. Reality Check of P38 ownership biting hard at the moment.

jwaldron said:

Well.. no modding until the beast stops clunking!!! Got to sort that first before I think of anything. Reality Check of P38 ownership biting hard at the moment.

Click to expand...

Are you still tracking a winch solution?

I would be thinking of (gulps) replacing the bags with springs and perhaps using the remains of the old system to run a couple of helper bags on the rear to level her when shes loaded. In answer to your other question, to get tank pressure in the cabin, just T off the pipe marked 6 from the valve block and run a line to a 160lb pressure gauge - about £7/8. if you wanted digital, have a look at CPC or Maplins.

I'll leave the off-road stuff to those that understand it but as far as your electrical questions.

If you're fitting a permanent roof rack then don't forget this as a possible mounting place for your extra lighting; running lights, high level brake lights, indicators and break down lights. Then, when you're running power up to the rack you could add a couple of cables and fit side flood lights or whatever you desire. The one thing that you didn't mention but has been one of my favourites is under bonnet lighting. My cars always seem to break down at night in the middle of nowhere.

Running lights - have a look a some of the leds now available on ebay. The trim piece just below the headlights would be the first place that I would investigate, the fog light mounts are a bit low and vulnerable and why aren't you fitting the offside fog light anyway?

For your indicators in the mirrors you simply run a two core wire from the wing repeater up through the door to the mirror. Rather than drill into my mirrors I bought some cheap wide angle mirrors with cowls that I've sprayed (they came in black) and mounted on top of the original mirrors. Without any electrics inside there is plenty of space to mount leds. Or, you can buy stick-on repeaters that you could stick to the outside of the mirror housing. These seemed like a simple idea but I just didn't fancy them. My trick for getting the wiring through the rubber pipes from body to door is to feed a big cable tie through then use that, and a bit of insulating tape, to pull the cable back.

Tyre inflation - If you're going to keep your air suspension, and with Gen3 bags why not, then a second compressor would surely be a good idea. So don't only fit this to pump up your tyres but think of it as an emergency back up for the suspension.

EAS - your idea of an led on the dash is so simple. A feed from the pump feed and the job's done.

Dual batteries and power supply in the boot. You should combine these ideas. Run one chuffing great cable right through the car, mount your second battery in the back and from that you can take any power that you like. Don't use cigarette lighter sockets, they were never designed for continuous use and an after market one I bought once burst into flames. However if you use different sockets make yourself a convertor lead so that you could use a piece of your equipment in another car if necessary.

Parking sensors - make sure before you buy them that they will work in a steel bumper. But if you've got a reversing camera isn't this a bit of overkill?