There is something about Land Rovers… folks either love them or hate them… and those who hate them are usually people who have owned one before… and got stuck somewhere in the sticks with some sort of mechanical problem.

Well, being a Toyota Land Cruiser fan I never really had much of an affinity for Land Rovers but when we started talking to the previous owner about buying our ranch two years ago I saw an old beat-up Land Rover “pick-up” standing in one of the carports so – in a joke I said we’ll buy the ranch on condition that the Land Rover comes with it. To my surprise his response was that this was a done deal… and later – after the contract was signed and the money paid over he said to me: “Buddy, that pick-up has been standing there or the last 3 years, the gearbox has had it, the engine doesn’t run, the interior is infested with rats and the only thing it’s good for is the scrap yard…”

Other things have been keeping me busy since we moved here while the Land Rover patiently waited for me there under the carport… And every now and then I’d look at it thinking… “I’d love to see you run one day”…

About 3 weeks ago I drove over to a local guy to look at animals he had for sale and we ended up on his porch with a sundowner in hand. And as the discussion progressed it turned out that he is a V8 fan that used to build up street cars in his spare time before he moved out to the bush. As it turned out that he was not only a V8 fan but also a BIG fan of a favourite South African alcoholic beverage – “brandy and coke”…

Well, I told him about the Land Rover and invited him over to our place to have a look at it. The next day he was there…

To cut a long story short; he took one look at the Land Rover and said: “Chris, we’ll get this old lady on the run in less than a week.”

Further inspection of the truck revealed that the original engine had been replaced with a Chevy 4.1 litre straight 6 and by the looks of things all the engine parts were still there. After removing most of the rat shit, fitting new sparkplug wires, coil, battery and sorting out the fuel supply we tried turning the engine and to our delight and surprise the engine coughed into life! What a moment!!!

The gearbox was a total mess and had to be overhauled – which my new friend managed to get done for me at nominal cost. The pressure plate and clutch was also replaced and we’re presently busy overhauling the brakes before starting with the bodywork. To date, I’ve spent just short of $600 on the vehicle and about $100 on buying brandy and coke for my friend cause see… as much gasoline as what the Chevy motor needs to run – as much brandy and coke my friend needs to keep on working. But the Land Rover is now a “runner” and I fall in the category of those who LOVE Land Rovers…

Aptly we’ve decided to name the truck “Brandy” and if all goes well we’ll be using her to hunt with this season.

Here are a couple of pics:


The Chevy 4.1 motor in its current state


The back of the Land Rover


The front

Looks like the perfect solution to your problem. I would say new coat of paint and tires and you could rule the world with it.

Hi Chris, I don't often look into this forum, stick to guns & stuff over here normally, & being a Landie fan, theres no shortage of Landie forums out there.
Thats a lovely old thing you've got there, I especially like the front end, I've long been a fan of the Stage 1 front before they festooned them with plastic junk. Not sure what gearbox you have there, possibly the LT95 as that would have been standard for the V8s at that time. Does it have the transfer case integral with the gearcase? The Aussies ran these with Isuzu 4BD1 diesels in them, 3.9Litres of pure pulling power, there is also a Turbo version, I've seen them have a FD35 Nissan diesel put in them too, 3.5 litres in that case but very simlar output. These also came in turbo persuasion. Both would be a suitable replacement for you thirsty Chev donl, as would a Mazda 3.5 or Toyota 3.4, they've all been put in Landies at some point. I'm sure you have engineers in SA who can make up adaptors but a google search may also reveal info.
Steve

Wow! But my first thought is " What are you doin for an air filter?"
What a fun project. This story kinda makes me laugh though. The first engine I ever rebuilt was the same one you have, a 250ci chevy. I was 14 at the time and had a lot of fun pulling the head, changing the cam, pulling the rod caps, removing the pistons, honing the bores, and changing valve seals, etc.( by the way, I bet that engine smokes to beat hell, right?) but other than starting easier, there were no real changes, especially in power. So after a couple weeks my I talked my dad into letting me toss that old 250 out ( which we later put on a dune buggy) and putting in a tweaked 4 bolt main 350 from an old 72 blazer. That engine had balls! Oh yeah, it was a ck1500 pickup we were molesting at the time. Anyway, changing engines most literally changed my life as I could feel real power when I mashed the gas and people looked and listened to that bad ol engine almost everywhere I went. Not that I am telling you to do the same, but a big ol snarling gas V8 is hard to beat when it comes to fun.

quote:

Originally posted by Shinzo:
Hi Chris, I don't often look into this forum, stick to guns & stuff over here normally, & being a Landie fan, theres no shortage of Landie forums out there.
Thats a lovely old thing you've got there, I especially like the front end, I've long been a fan of the Stage 1 front before they festooned them with plastic junk. Not sure what gearbox you have there, possibly the LT95 as that would have been standard for the V8s at that time. Does it have the transfer case integral with the gearcase? The Aussies ran these with Isuzu 4BD1 diesels in them, 3.9Litres of pure pulling power, there is also a Turbo version, I've seen them have a FD35 Nissan diesel put in them too, 3.5 litres in that case but very simlar output. These also came in turbo persuasion. Both would be a suitable replacement for you thirsty Chev donl, as would a Mazda 3.5 or Toyota 3.4, they've all been put in Landies at some point. I'm sure you have engineers in SA who can make up adaptors but a google search may also reveal info.
Steve

Thanks Steve, heck I'm not much of an expert on auto mobiles... Although I've learnt quite a lot since starting with this project. The transfer case is integral with the gearcase - that much I do know but as for the model number / type etc. I'm afraid that's way above me. My understanding is that this particular model originally came out with a V4 diesel of some sorts... but how true that is I don't know. Some of the insignia on it states "Leyland".

Thanks for the advice on an alternative engine. This is definitely something I'll consider in time to come as this lady sure is thirsty! Anyway... I prefer diesels for hunting cars.

But we're hunting from month-end up to end of August and after that we're off to the States for a month so replacing the engine is something that'll have to wait and the Chevy will have to do for now.

BTW, I went to fetch "Brandy the Landy" at my friend's place yesterday (that's where the pics were taken a while ago) and drove her back home without incident. She misfires on her no. 6 cylinder but makes small fry of the muddy roads here now in the rainy season regardless... I have to admit (albeit reluctantly)... even better so than my Toyota 4WD Pick-Up which has a perfectly running 3.0 Diesel motor with turbocharger and intercooler.

quote:

Originally posted by Hokkaido:
Wow! But my first thought is " What are you doin for an air filter?"
What a fun project. This story kinda makes me laugh though. The first engine I ever rebuilt was the same one you have, a 250ci chevy. I was 14 at the time and had a lot of fun pulling the head, changing the cam, pulling the rod caps, removing the pistons, honing the bores, and changing valve seals, etc.( by the way, I bet that engine smokes to beat hell, right?) but other than starting easier, there were no real changes, especially in power. So after a couple weeks my I talked my dad into letting me toss that old 250 out ( which we later put on a dune buggy) and putting in a tweaked 4 bolt main 350 from an old 72 blazer. That engine had balls! Oh yeah, it was a ck1500 pickup we were molesting at the time. Anyway, changing engines most literally changed my life as I could feel real power when I mashed the gas and people looked and listened to that bad ol engine almost everywhere I went. Not that I am telling you to do the same, but a big ol snarling gas V8 is hard to beat when it comes to fun.

Hi Hokkaido, the engine has a Donaldson airfilter that we removed before I took the picture. I've been thinking of installing or devising my own "snorkel" but we'll see...

Strangely enough the engine does not smoke at all and it idled perfectly from the first day we started it. Spoke to one of my staff members who used to work for the previous owner and she says that she never saw that Landy run in the 2 years she worked for him so she couldn't believe it when she saw me driving Brandy for the first time.

Pulled the dashboard apart some days ago and found a massive rats nest (including the rat) inside so the wiring needs some serious work too. But it really is fun to get the old lady up and running again.

Old,beat up ? Thats a minter you have there! Look at all those straight panels.A lick of paint and you are away with it.
A Discovery1 200Tdi engine slots straight into an earlier Series 3.It makes a simple,economical diesel runner.However I am not sure what gearbox a stage 1 was fitted with.
A company in the UK has a website and will give you a very good rundown on how it fits in and various simple modifications.
Look for www.glencoyne engineering.co.uk or Google Glencoyne engineering.
The average lifespan of a modern car is 10 years.Are,nt Landrovers great ?

Thanks for the advice on another engine as well as posting the link Sika. This old girl sure made me change my mind about Landrovers... I can already see the fights coming between my wife and I as to who drives it when... she loves the truck as much as I do...

quote:

Originally posted by ChrisTroskie:

quote:

Originally posted by Shinzo:
Hi Chris, I don't often look into this forum, stick to guns & stuff over here normally, & being a Landie fan, theres no shortage of Landie forums out there.
Thats a lovely old thing you've got there, I especially like the front end, I've long been a fan of the Stage 1 front before they festooned them with plastic junk. Not sure what gearbox you have there, possibly the LT95 as that would have been standard for the V8s at that time. Does it have the transfer case integral with the gearcase? The Aussies ran these with Isuzu 4BD1 diesels in them, 3.9Litres of pure pulling power, there is also a Turbo version, I've seen them have a FD35 Nissan diesel put in them too, 3.5 litres in that case but very simlar output. These also came in turbo persuasion. Both would be a suitable replacement for you thirsty Chev donl, as would a Mazda 3.5 or Toyota 3.4, they've all been put in Landies at some point. I'm sure you have engineers in SA who can make up adaptors but a google search may also reveal info.
Steve

Thanks Steve, heck I'm not much of an expert on auto mobiles... Although I've learnt quite a lot since starting with this project. The transfer case is integral with the gearcase - that much I do know but as for the model number / type etc. I'm afraid that's way above me. My understanding is that this particular model originally came out with a V4 diesel of some sorts... but how true that is I don't know. Some of the insignia on it states "Leyland".

Thanks for the advice on an alternative engine. This is definitely something I'll consider in time to come as this lady sure is thirsty! Anyway... I prefer diesels for hunting cars.

But we're hunting from month-end up to end of August and after that we're off to the States for a month so replacing the engine is something that'll have to wait and the Chevy will have to do for now.

BTW, I went to fetch "Brandy the Landy" at my friend's place yesterday (that's where the pics were taken a while ago) and drove her back home without incident. She misfires on her no. 6 cylinder but makes small fry of the muddy roads here now in the rainy season regardless... I have to admit (albeit reluctantly)... even better so than my Toyota 4WD Pick-Up which has a perfectly running 3.0 Diesel motor with turbocharger and intercooler.

Integral Transfer case is the LT95 gearbox, a bit agricultural but tough as all hell. The Aussies use them behind Turboed Isuzu 4BD1Ts in their big 6x6 Landrover based patrol veicles, they're the only Land Rover box up to it. From memory they should run 20W-50 engine oil in them but check on that. There never was a V4, at least not from the factory. When these came out Land Rover had no suitable diesel which is why in Aus they persuaded Land Rover to let them fit the Isuzu diesel to them. I'm not sure what they did in SA, I have read that SA had some differnet engine options all of their own. The Brit sourced ones came with the ex Oldsmobile alloy 3.5 litre V8. Keep us up to date with progress.
Steve

Please Please Please do not dare paint that truck!! That kind of Patina on the paint can only be recreated by time and weather. The panels are aluminum and won't rust. If someone could recreate a way to weather newly painted panels to achieve that patina's look they'd make a lot of money of of LR enthusiasts. It would be like rebluing an old english double rifle, just don't.

Thanks Kevin, we've just entered our hunting season so painting the truck will have to wait for a while anyway...

Cheers,

Chris

For some reason I assumed that the truck was in the USA. I guess what I said about collector value to the paint goes right out the window when it is getting used in it's proper environment in SA. Glad to see it.

quote:

ex Oldsmobile alloy 3.5 litre V8.

Buick, actually. Pretty good engine all the same though. - dan

Chris,

Any idea of year of manufacture?

I still reckon that s Landy will go places a Toyota won't make...... they're not as comfortable and certainly not as reliable but the good news is they're easier to fix than a Toyota.

Steve, I think it was built early eighties but don't know for sure. You're right about it going places where the Toyota won't. It's proven that to me over and over again.

I reckon one thing that makes an immense difference over the Toyota is the diff lock.

The downside is no matter what you do to the steering, it'll still wander a bit.

Chris,

I've just thought...... check out the Ignition Channel on DSTV. It's only on at weekends but they screened a great Landy documentary as part of their Great Cars series...... it's bound to be repeated sometime.

Some of the old ads they show are terrific.

Have had three over the years, and hopefully another someday
---despite my previous oaths and busted knuckles.

Very cool! I had a series 3 once upon a time but sadly had to get rid of it. Over the years I have used a number of Defenders and Discos overseas and they have served me well (despite the sloppy drivelines!). But, that said, it's hard to beat a Toyota.

I've had quite a few different Landies of different types, including 2 Range Rovers with gas conversions and the only one I'd never touch again is a Disco........ those bloody things seem to go wrong every time you turn the key and the drive train has to be the worst bloody design in the universe.

Actually, of all the different 4x4s I've owned over the years, the most reliable one is pictured below. It's 30 years old and on the very odd occasion it goes wrong, I can usually fix it with a half inch spanner and a big hammer.

Mind you, I obviously don't work it hard and it sure as hell won't go places a well prepared Land Rover will.........