Disco 2 What to do with my Discovery 2

I know I should've checked better when I bought it. But with not so many offers on the Island, cheap price and lovely testdrive, I kind of forgot to check for "bad" corrosion.

I did see the standard corroded parts, which are already common on the D2 and more so in our environment where rustfree metal falls apart in front of your eyes.
But didn't poke to find holes (nevermind the hammer haha)

Nevertheless I love me ride, and the fun she brings me on the green lanes here.

But now I got to know her a bit better, I felt comfortable enough to prod here and there and chassis parts came falling off.
Also the sill on one side is basically gone.

Shipping the chassis to the Island alone will cost £235, and then the cost of labour (no I can't weld, and don't want to bother someone with my stuff while they're busy on their own projects).
Best option would be to come to the UK, and get it sorted on the spot, and while I'm investing, get a nice winch bumper and alive remap since I'm there...
At least it would make the ferry worth while...

Or keep her (unsafe) untill she falls apart.
Or break her apart and sell.

But any other D2 I'd get would soon have the same issue, and may already have others.
At least now I know what I've got...

Can't make up my mind.
See pictures for more...

Off side rear chassis


Near side rear chassis


Off side rear chassis (from side)


Issue is alightly forward of rear spring. Reason for needing half chassis in stead of quarter.


Near side sill


Off side sill (best part of the car I think haha)


Don't mind the mud. Been off road yesterday, and no time for clean yet.
Doing that next.

I did the sills on my Disco 1 with 60 x 100 box section. Welded the body mounts to the box first, then welded the whole lot into the body.

Cheapest way forward would be to buy a MIG and do as above, but I recognise that's probably not a practical suggestion. If you need a half chassis, and stuff rusts as easily as you say, would it be worth getting a complete galv chassis (or buying a standard chassis and getting it galvanised) and doing the swap?

Meh. I recognise your conundrum. Too much work for too little return. Get shut of it, and source something solid on the mainland. This is exactly what I should have done and didn't do, and subsequently spent an absolute age replacing both sills, boot floor, rear crossmember, part of a quarter panel and three of the arches on my 300tdi. Still got the other arch to do, probably for the next MOT. If you've got to pay for all the labour, it's probably going to be beyond economic repair.

So it would appear that you were blinded by excitement when you bought it... Been there, done that, as probably many of the people on here have as well, but at least you know what to look out for next time eh
If you do decide to get rid, and you've got the space, you would get more for it if you break it for parts, rather than just taking it to the scrappies as that's all they'll do! Island supply and demand issue remember

Shimsteriom said:

So it would appear that you were blinded by excitement when you bought it... Been there, done that, as probably many of the people on here have as well, but at least you know what to look out for next time eh
If you do decide to get rid, and you've got the space, you would get more for it if you break it for parts, rather than just taking it to the scrappies as that's all they'll do! Island supply and demand issue remember

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Couldent agree more. Should easily get yer money back. The only other option i can see is (if you realy want to keep it) and the rest is solid is to find a good welder chap that could give you a bit of a crash course over a weekend (for a fhew beer tokens ) and have a go. Nothing realy lost if you realy cock it up as you can always break it for parts

Welding is really not that hard. Welding well is hard but adequate welding is not hard to learn. If you are meticulous about your preparation and set the machine up correctly then the welding becomes easy. If you don't cut back to solid. clean metal and you don't get the settings on the machine correct then you will struggle.
There are plenty of videos on youtube to show you how to weld up to the standard required for vehicle maintenance.
aman

Good advice guys, thanks.
I did actually look a little into welding yesterday. I did have someone who just started out welding as well, maybe give him a little project

Do you do any welding @Shimsteriom ?
Still the issue of getting the Chassis and Sills to the Island though. Although the Sill could be made here I guess.

Or is any of you fella's looking for a free trip to Isle of Man? Only requirement is bring your welding stuff and my chassis haha. I'll pay for the ferry, food and drinks

RBoshuis said:

Do you do any welding Shimsteriom

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I have done some welding before, but that was about 20 years ago, so I wouldn't even consider tackling a chassis.

RBoshuis said:

Good advice guys, thanks.

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Here's a new one for you.
https://www.manx.net/classifieds/Motors/advert/821791/land-rover-discovery-ii-td5

What aman said. It's impossible to overstate the importance of a) what you're welding to, and b) where you're welding from. Welding two nice pieces of clean steel together from above is really satisfying. Welding from beneath is an exercise in making holes and getting rained on by molten steel if you don't do it right. MIG welding rusty steel is just a waste of time - it all goes porous, like a Crunchie bar, and you spend more time grinding welds off to try again than you actually spend welding.

If you do get yourself a welder, have someone skilled spend an hour or so with you to get the machine set up, and to work out wire feeds and power settings for a few different thicknesses of metal. Make a note of them so you're not blindly twiddling the wrong dials trying to get back to a place where the wretched thing actually welds. Oh, and get one of those auto-darkening masks - being able to see where you're pointing the torch before you pull the trigger makes life far, far easier. Maybe the proper experts get by just fine without - I wouldn't know - but that doesn't mean the rest of us have to!

@thetim great advice, thanks!
There is a MIG for sale including mask on the Island. But I think a bit too early in my Landy mechanic career haha.

I am keen to learn it in the long run though!

@Shimsteriom , don't you think it's a bit overpriced?
Anyway, if I spend that money I can get mine in better shape as well
Thanks though!

RBoshuis said:

There is a MIG for sale including mask on the Island. But I think a bit too early in my Landy mechanic career haha.

I am keen to learn it in the long run though!

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I think the point is from what has been said above, if you get it now, learn and practice then you will be better off in the future when you need to do it. Rather than panic in the future and find yourself in a predicament like you have now.

Although the chassis does look a bit grotty.

Am I right in thinking once a vehicle is "signed off " for the Island then it never gets what we call an MOT inspection? I was over there last Year for a few weeks and spoke to a local who said he never buys a van /car from the Island as the roads and the environment kill the cars . He always buys from the mainland and has them certified for Island use from what I remember , but a few beers had been drunk.

Cheers

neilly said:

I was over there last Year for a few weeks and spoke to a local who said he never buys a van /car from the Island as the roads and the environment kill the cars

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Except for the top of Snaefell, everywhere else is just too close to the sea.

Agree with Neilly - maybe buying a welder isn't the solution this time round, but definitely better to get one sooner rather than later so you've got the skills in advance of needing them. Once you've dived in, it's actually not the dark art it's sometimes made out to be.

Maybe it would be worthwhile taking a mainland trip and buying a MIG set plus all the kit and picking up a rear chassis.

Would probably pay for itself if you collected everything in one go.

Cheers

Genuine question - is a half chassis a significantly better / easier proposition than getting a good secondhand chassis, getting it hot dip galvanised, and fixing the problem for good? Can you do a half chassis reliably without taking the body off?

thetim said:

getting a good secondhand chassis,

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I think finding one of those elusive beasts is the biggest problem.

Cheers

neilly said:

Am I right in thinking once a vehicle is "signed off " for the Island then it never gets what we call an MOT inspection?

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Correct. You should see the state of some of the cars over here because we don't have one.

I do agree I should start learning the art of welding, but need to find a place to do this and leave it, without the missus going mental that I leave the garden/driveway in a state of scrapyard

In the long run, I'd like to have a proper setup for this and do bigger projects as well. But with the current state of my job (away too often and irregular non scheduled trips) just not an option.

But I genuinely do appreciate and like all the feedback and ideas!
Sooo many wishes and ideas going in my head now, and so little time!

Cheers.

p.s. Yes probably the last Island car I buy

Our drive is accessed from the back of the house. Long-term project lives on it and "state of scrapyard" is a fair description.

If you do invest in a mig welder, avoid the cheap ones often seen on eBay. A good welder could probably get on with them but they are a nightmare for beginners cos the wire feed mechanism is crap. Buy the best you can afford and make sure you can get the shielding gas easily enough. It's a bugger when you run out half way through a job and can't get any for a day or two.

Col