Should I refit 2a wings back to original or keep s3?

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Hi, just wondering whether to try and refit series 2a wings and radiator panel (lights in grill) to the series 2A I have just bought, just for the sake of originality. Or, whether to just buy the maltese cross grill and fit this to it to make it appear to be a later 2a with the lights in the wings or would i need a different radiator panel to do this? Any opinions or advice would be great as its being done on an apprentice budget!
Thanks
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The N/S wing is late 2a [ no heater inlet ] Door hinges are series 3 or later types. You would probably be ok fitting the wire mesh grill on the panel you have but they are hard to find.
 
Well ,if it were mine I would do all that . The Series 2A looks much better than a Series3 , especially when the grill is the correct one .
Nonsense. They look 98% the same and it's only from the front you'd see a difference, yet overall shape and profile are still identical.
 
If it were mine, I'd put it back to original, but that's just me. I'm a sucker and i like the look of the centre headlights, but then I'm biased because i own one.
I also think the plastic grills look naff, especially when they are old and past their best
 
Nonsense. They look 98% the same and it's only from the front you'd see a difference, yet overall shape and profile are still identical.

So why is that nonsense ? We are looking at the front and TO ME the Series 2A looks better than the Series 3 . You would also see a difference in the cab as the dashes are completely different . And why would you want to make a Series 2 look like a lesser Series 3 ?
 
The big problem is budget
Its my Sons car, he's a second year Electrical apprentice so its took him a lot of effort just to buy it.
He would like a fully restored one but its just beyond him financially.
The initial plan is just get it running properly and re paint to make it more presentable.
He wants it ready for a summer camping trip
 
If you choose to restore back to original then it doesn't have to be done all at once. if you see a part at a good price and you have the spare cash, buy it- it doesn't have to be fitted the same day. Then sell the removed parts and get some money back!
 
Personally id get it solid and reliable. Run it and iron out any issues. Once you're all happy with it, either paint what you have or leave it as is, gather the parts to go with headlights in the centre (looks loads better in my opinion) and then paint it.
Definitely safety and reliability first though.
 
The one on there now? I think its series 3 but I'm no expert. Think the panel for the wire cross type grill should have hook type brackets for the mesh grille to sit in. Cant see them in the picture which leads me to think its S3.
As I said though, I'm not a rivet counter so it's quite feasible that I'm talking out of my arse!:D
 
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Not knowing how much you know about Series Land Rovers I am going to risk telling you something you already know , but here are a couple of photos which hopefully show you main differences between the the 2A and the 3 . If your son’s 2A is as old as the number plate would indicate that it was registered in 1964 which would make it a fairly early one . This would mean that , as has already been suggested, that the front wings are from a later Series 2A, and not correct for your 2A .The bonnet is correct , having the knife edge at the front and not rounded over . And the grill is Series 3 . I believe it is possible to get new grills , but they are not cheap .

As has also been suggested your son should concentrate on making sure it drives properly before changing anything at the front ,as it is purely cosmetic . Depending how important looks are to your son he ought to leave repainting it until he has acquired all the correct panels . It doesn’t look any worse than many Series 2As of a similar age .
 
So why is that nonsense ? We are looking at the front and TO ME the Series 2A looks better than the Series 3 . You would also see a difference in the cab as the dashes are completely different . And why would you want to make a Series 2 look like a lesser Series 3 ?
You think a Series 3 is lesser, that is hilarious ;)

I don't mind you have a preference on which you prefer, but factually stating a 2A is better looking is total nonsense. Especially when they look almost the same. I suspect most of Jo public wouldn't even be able to tell them apart, even if parked next to each other.

BTW - how does changing the wings alter the dash :rolleyes:
 
Thanks for all your help
The plan is to sort the list of issues out, but rebuild the doors and paint the hard top etc in any spare time we have.
He wants a bonnet with a spare wheel well in it but these are not Razor ones I assume its a deluxe and where fitted to series 2's?
The big initial problem is the glow plugs have been incorrectly connected up with no Ballast resistor and a starter solenoid instead of a big relay, so I will be looking at them first then the engine bay plumbing as it can only be described as a mess.

So plenty to be going on with.
Now rivet counters look away now
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Its got a 3L Mercedes 5 cylinder engine in it so whilst its never going to be 100% original he would just like it to look the part
 
I would echo everyone above that the first thing you want to do is give it a good service and get it structurally and machanically sound first befroe doing naything to the body work.

Having siad that My series 3 is a very late model (1982) and I have gone through little changes to make it look cosmetically older than it is. With yours where is the dash clocks, are they in the center (correct) or behind the steering wheel (series 3) this is the largest and most difficult to change visual difference between the two models.

If you wanted to go back to lights in the grill you would need a new radiator panel, grill and wings, however you can convert a series 3 front panel to a take a series 2a Maltese cross grill. I have done it with my series 3. In order to do the conversion you need the maltes cross grill, the pressed land rover badge, and the hook type brackets mentioned by @callisr. I got my grill and badge from ebay, there are "plenty" available but they are not cheap unfortunately. The hook brackets can be bought new fr not very much money for "the welding wood" on facebook. they are great and very easy to deal with.
You need to mark and drill a new pair of holes for the badge mounting screws, I filled them square and used the plastic inserts the same as the series 3 grill used. the mounting tabs for the hook brackets are already there at the bottom of the panel and just need drilling out to rivet the brackets on.

As has mentioned above you also have later series 3 door hinges and mirrors. The proper series 2a hinges (especially with the mirror mount top hinge) are difficult to find and expensive when you do. What I did with mine is just swap out the nwer style wing mirror for the older two price one more similar to the correct version.

picture of mine which you can see superficially looks more like a late 2a now than a 3:

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