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landrover as a daily car? - 18 months on...

I sometimes see peoples posts wondering whether an older landrover is OK as a daily car. Mine is, and since I've had it for nearly 18 months now I thought I'd post the experience.

I have no previous knowledge of landrovers, but needed a cheap tow vehicle for the mobile espresso bar when my Saab 9000 decided it didn't like towing >1 ton about too often. A friend had this 1984 110CSW V8 on his forecourt (£2495) which he kindly let me have for £1500 with a fresh MOT. They'd had the car as PX for a year, using it to tow things to the scrapyard etc, and weren't that bothered whether they sold it or not.

Although I also have a bike, which I use to save fuel when I don't need to cart stuff around, the 110 has been my main form of transport. I've covered 14k miles with the 110, mostly towing the espresso tariler to events locally, with the odd 150 mile journey thrown in.

I read all the posts here detailing everything that might go wrong - but the 110 has proved as reliable as other cars I've owned. I also read posts about the likely performance I could expect, and the fuel consumption of a V8. I have to say that it "does what it says on the tin" - happily cruises at 70-80 (haven't found out what the top speed is, although I've had it at over 80 a few times), seems to do about

14mpg, which as I do mostly local towing doesn't seem too bad.

What's gone wrong?

It had a noisy release bearing, and it still has a noisy release bearing (or primary output shaft or whatever can be wrong with a 4 speed box).

It had dry swivels and they are probably not much better even after adding 1 shot grease.

The clutch master cylinder failed and was replaced, and it now uses some fluid.

The starter motor has been fixed two times.

It failed the MOT on minor stuff -

swivels leaking (wiped them and took it back for the retest) couple of bushes (steering damper and a suspension bush) - a few quid to sort out brakes with excessive travel - rear calipers adjusted. Blowing front pipe.

That's it - solid chassis, some new tyres (Goodyear wranglers @ £65 ea). I'm not good at maintenance, so I've only topped up fluids and given it new plugs. It uses sufficient oil to give itself an oil change regularly :)

It doesn't like starting after damp weather, and it doesn't like starting hot.

The tappets were noisy when I got it and they too are still noisy.

All in all, I get in it every day, it starts and does what I hoped, but hadn't really expected after reading the doom and gloom here. I may be just lucky, plus it has to be said that most people don't post when everythings' OK, just when things go wrong.

I'm looking forward to another year, with possibly a new clutch, fixing the fluid leak, and if I'm very lucky, a sort out of the noisy tappets - are new heads viable and within a tight budget? I'm fairly sure the cam profile isn't...

Reply to
danny
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Well I'm three years on with my 1968 .Ser 2a - owned it for 7 years but only started commuting with it three years ago - four miles each way. Major problems are that the short runs cause the oil to sludge in the rocker cover. It badly needs a tune, has a noisy rocker, does about 15 mpg, is bloody cold in this weather. In the past three years I have had to replace the clutch plate, fiddle the brakes, rinse the K&N and plate the chassis a few times. All in all it's been pretty good to me.

T'missus has been using the Range Ruster all that time - it has also been pretty good up until the recent acceleration in coolant loss which we've put down to a dead head gasket - although today's look under the valley gasket shows that it was leaking too.

All in all I've probably spent a few hundred quid (mainly on EP90) on both these vehicles in three years and, touching wood, they're still doing well - OK so a nice little supermini would be the ideal commuterwagon but, where's the fun in that??

Graeme

Reply to
Graeme

I'm lucky - the heater in mine isn't bad, although I wouldn't mind one of those Kenlowe preheaters.

And I still maintain, 18 months on, that there isn't much else available at the price that can still put a grin on my face everytime I walk up to it (and I *still* have to look back when I walk away from it!)

Reply to
danny

Not sure - SWMBO just bought a baby Porsche (924) for £1K - it's her new getting to work car (and it's a bit fun to drive too). Means I get the Range Ruster back as 'my' car - spooky given that it's currently shagged - but then I get to fix it - joy of joys :-))

However - even after a brief look at the 924 I have to admit that a Land Rover is a hell of a lot easier to work on - and the ground clearance? Pah!

Graeme

Reply to
Graeme

I'm exactly the same. I too have a v8, my only car, bit older than yours, similar condition by the sounde of things, and although this week he's misbehaving in a big way, there's no way I can face the thought of getting an 'ordinary' car instead.

(although a friend gave me a lift in his Rover P6 3500S last week........ must be a V8 thing....)

Reply to
Olly R

Can't beat a P5a coupe if we're talking Rover. I used to have a 3litre coupe - loved it. More useable than the earlier 75s etc and bigger than the P6, although I would like a P6.

Reply to
danny

I have a 1980 S3 lwb petrol as my only car. I don't use it for work, but it does get used every day (withdrawal symptoms if I don't) and occasional off-road trips, up and down the motorways at weekends. It is treated as a regular car, just slower with a lot more fuel.

week........

Reply to
Martin (Wirral, UK)

On or around Sun, 16 Nov 2003 18:57:05 +0000, danny enlightened us thusly:

make sure you still change the filter say about every 6000.

probably worn cam, but if it still runs, not worth bothering about.

standard cams is about 60 quid, set of followers somewhere similar, set of pushrods 25 from real steel.

can be done with the engine in situ, you just need the rad etc out, don't even have to lift the heads.

But.

You'll have the "can of worms" effect to contend with. e.g. having gotten it all apart, the extra effort to lift the heads is not much, then you check the valve guides, and maybe find 'em worn, then of course having got the cam out, you might as well replace the cam chain and sprockets... and the rocker shaftsa may be worn, and, and,...

but just a straight cam-and-followers requires:

grille off, grille panel and fixins, rad out, inlet manifold and valley gasket off, rocker covers off, rocker shafts off, pull pushrods, lift followers, pulley off engine, front cover off, pull camchain/gears, pull cam.

re-assmebly is, as they say, the reverse of dismantling... lob a load of oil over everything in the process.

summat like 5 hours, I reckon, roughly, assuming it all comes apart according to plan.

Reply to
Austin Shackles

My series 3 is in daily use although I have not had one for long.

I just keep putting petrol in .... what else can you do ?

Reply to
Larry

In message , Larry writes

Covert to LPG?

Reply to
hugh

Thanks for that Austin. I think it's just one tappet. I wouldn't mind finding a reasonably priced mechanic in the Portsmouth area to swap the cam, maybe for a 3.9, with possibly a chain and sprockets as well - the engine's done just over 100k miles.

I'll file your quick how-to.

Reply to
danny

On or around Wed, 19 Nov 2003 10:48:18 +0000, danny enlightened us thusly:

it's not exhaustive... but at that mileage, unless it's been scrupulously maintained, it's a fair bet the cam's worn.

Reply to
Austin Shackles

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