They have always been aluminum body panels with a steel frame. The models are still made today. They used to galvanize some of the steel bits that are exposed, but that stopped in the late 80s as they went to painting.
Diesels have always been available. In fact after 1991??, gasoline versions were very rare. The TDI diesels are quite nice. Most people find the non-turbo diesels a bit slow but it is a personal choice thing.
Have a good check for frame and bulkhead rust. Take a magnet to figure out what is steel and what is not. If they are from the UK, they usually have a lot of rust. A hammer and screwdriver to the frame is a good plan.
Mechanically, like any other vehicle it depends on the previous maintenance history, so an inspection from a knowledgable person is a good plan.
110 series questions
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Bill E.
- Landy Man
- Posts: 933
- Joined: Wed Mar 03, 2004 12:30 pm
- Location: Tsawwassen BC
Hi Squeeto,
Red90 is quite correct to be cautious of rust but I have found the chassis' to be reasonably durable. Areas that pack with mud like the frame outriggers behind the front wheels and the rear crossmember can present problems if the owner wasn't into cleaning his/her truck. The biggest concern is the corrosion of both the steel and aluminum at points where they interface. Places especially like lower door skins and the triangular piece just behind the rear side doors on 110's. As Red90 points out the bean counters deleted the galvanizing for these later trucks, often with horrific consequences.
Canadian/US market Defenders were for sale here in 110 form with full "safety devices" cage for the 1993 model year. Defender 90's with soft tops for our market were sold in '94, '95, with a small spill over to '96. 1997 saw the last Defender 90's for the North American market sold, they were hard top Station Wagons with a unique half internal/external cage. All the North American trucks were gas.
There are many grey market imports around and several local importers. The smart ones are importing trucks with either a 200 tdi or 300 tdi, ex-militaries will more than likely have 2.5 naturally aspirated diesels, solid, reliable but slow. Many of these 15 year or older trucks are a great buy and often have better body work. Just remember they are older trucks now and many will need mechanical attention. Beware of unscrupulous importers, I've seen some very sorry trucks with pretty new paint jobs that catch the rooky unawares. Big money old trucks are regularly dolled up with newer parts and even newer registrations. Get any truck you are interested in checked over fully by one of the local Rover savvy garages.
Have a look at LRX.com to get a feel for what's out there. If you want some local leads PM me.
Bill
PS I agree, stay away from my truck with screwdrivers and hammers.
Red90 is quite correct to be cautious of rust but I have found the chassis' to be reasonably durable. Areas that pack with mud like the frame outriggers behind the front wheels and the rear crossmember can present problems if the owner wasn't into cleaning his/her truck. The biggest concern is the corrosion of both the steel and aluminum at points where they interface. Places especially like lower door skins and the triangular piece just behind the rear side doors on 110's. As Red90 points out the bean counters deleted the galvanizing for these later trucks, often with horrific consequences.
Canadian/US market Defenders were for sale here in 110 form with full "safety devices" cage for the 1993 model year. Defender 90's with soft tops for our market were sold in '94, '95, with a small spill over to '96. 1997 saw the last Defender 90's for the North American market sold, they were hard top Station Wagons with a unique half internal/external cage. All the North American trucks were gas.
There are many grey market imports around and several local importers. The smart ones are importing trucks with either a 200 tdi or 300 tdi, ex-militaries will more than likely have 2.5 naturally aspirated diesels, solid, reliable but slow. Many of these 15 year or older trucks are a great buy and often have better body work. Just remember they are older trucks now and many will need mechanical attention. Beware of unscrupulous importers, I've seen some very sorry trucks with pretty new paint jobs that catch the rooky unawares. Big money old trucks are regularly dolled up with newer parts and even newer registrations. Get any truck you are interested in checked over fully by one of the local Rover savvy garages.
Have a look at LRX.com to get a feel for what's out there. If you want some local leads PM me.
Bill
PS I agree, stay away from my truck with screwdrivers and hammers.
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red90
- Defender of the World
- Posts: 1509
- Joined: Mon Mar 08, 2004 7:19 pm
- Location: Calgary
Where I have seen bad chassis rust is imports from the UK. The trucks need to have decent rust protection to live over there. If the previous owners did not do this, at 15 years the frame can be garbage. You just have to be careful when importing or buying an import that you have not gotten one of these. It is surprisingly common in the UK to do frame replacements.
Normally the ex-BATUS units have zero rust when they left the base. Unfortunately, they also had a hard life.
Normally the ex-BATUS units have zero rust when they left the base. Unfortunately, they also had a hard life.
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Bill E.
- Landy Man
- Posts: 933
- Joined: Wed Mar 03, 2004 12:30 pm
- Location: Tsawwassen BC
Hi Squeeto,
Yes, you will likely be looking at a +15-year old truck to score a diesel. Take JD up on his offer to look at his truck. JD has had lots of recent dealings with some of the local characters and can likely give you a good intrduction to dealing with the older trucks. I'm guessing if your wife has grown accustomed to the Audi it is going to be a really tough sell to get her into a truck that will probably leak water onto her knee and oil onto her driveway :wink:
PS that info site you found is pretty good.
Yes, you will likely be looking at a +15-year old truck to score a diesel. Take JD up on his offer to look at his truck. JD has had lots of recent dealings with some of the local characters and can likely give you a good intrduction to dealing with the older trucks. I'm guessing if your wife has grown accustomed to the Audi it is going to be a really tough sell to get her into a truck that will probably leak water onto her knee and oil onto her driveway :wink:
PS that info site you found is pretty good.
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ANDYD
- Defender of the World
- Posts: 3075
- Joined: Tue Mar 09, 2004 10:45 pm
- Location: Sunny Steveston BC
A bit more luxury.....
Hi Squeeto,
A compromise where you have the luxury for the wife but the off road capability of the Land Rover may be a Range Rover or Discovery. Some of the newer Land Rovers would make your Audi feel bland in comparison!
You can spend from $2000 on an early 1990's to $100,000 on a late 2007
All depends how far up the mountain you want to go and how fat you wallet is :D
cheers,
Andy
A compromise where you have the luxury for the wife but the off road capability of the Land Rover may be a Range Rover or Discovery. Some of the newer Land Rovers would make your Audi feel bland in comparison!
You can spend from $2000 on an early 1990's to $100,000 on a late 2007
All depends how far up the mountain you want to go and how fat you wallet is :D
cheers,
Andy