“1985 110 County” newbie’s 1st restoration

Ok, so I guess I need to start somewhere & I’ve been pointed to this forum, so here goes!
Three years ago my Mrs persuaded me it might be a good idea to make an offer on a neighbours Land Rover. The owner had recently passed away after a long term illness and the widow was torn between selling her husband’s 2nd love and the knowledge that she had no way of keeping it going. It had already been stood for a few years and she had a garage bill to sort out so we did the descent thing and stepped into help.
I up until then had no intention of owning a Landy, but anyway the deal was done.
First job was to get it through an MOT which it did surprisingly easily although it did require some chassis patching.
My initial thoughts were to get it MOT’d and flip it, but then of course it/she started having an effect on me, namely a huge grin each time I drove it!
The next plan was to see if she would “fit” the family before we went down the big spend route of a restoration.

Hi and welcome!

Nice original looking Landy too!

Knappster said:

Hi and welcome!

Nice original looking Landy too!

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Cheers @Knappster yes I think visually she’s pretty original and yes I want to keep it that way.
The previous owner had fitted the 200 TDi and loads of spot lights (2 fogs on the front, an a movable lamping spot mounted to the drivers side windscreen hinge and one off of the rear roof, plus a welded plate above the drivers head for a CB magnetic aerial base and of course the series front bumper over riders (if that’s what they’re called?) plus some hand made galvanised wing tops.
All the spots have gone as our family camping trips and beech visits don’t involve lamping!
I’ll be keeping the wing tops & overriders as a nod to a respected neighbour & friend.
First job was to go through the boxes of bits to find the 2nd row seat brackets, mount the seats and fit new seat belts, plus 2 pairs of retractable lap belts for the bench seats. I can now safely transport 8 of my son’s rugby team when needed (Christ it gets loud) I’ve not bothered re-fitting the middle seat in the front as I want a cubby box/arm rest there instead.

Jobs to be done;
New galvanised chassis (when I’ve saved up for one)
New complete wiring loom at the same time because the current one is a proper rats nest that’s been chopped, changed and gnawed at over the years.
Mechanical fixes; power steering as I’ve been told the 200 TDi can support this and a disc brakes rear axle.
Body wise;
A full re-spray & re-graphic by myself after I’ve sorted the doors, which I’ll keep as lift-up handle types. I’ve got replacements for the fronts and the rear sorted, and I’m going to have a crack at repairing the 2nd row myself as I can’t find any non-safari with lift-up handles anywhere!
And I’ll add a tow bar and some pop-up steps (for the shorter members of the family)
Interior;
Full modern sound deadening and proofing. New covering of the original head liner, new carpet. Repair & renovation of the door cards and seats and dash. Oh and I need a new door card for the rear as that’s missing.
This will take a little a while no doubt as it’ll be done when cash & time allow.

Nice looking old girl. Very straight (on this side!) with just enough patina to keep it honest

Is it sitting next to a TR7?

You have got a lot of work on your hands.

The fact that your missus actually initiated the idea makes this a little strange haha! Nice Landy mate! The v8s are a beautiful tone...

GrumpyGel said:

Nice looking old girl. Very straight (on this side!) with just enough patina to keep it honest

Is it sitting next to a TR7?


You have got a lot of work on your hands.

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Cheers, yes she’s reasonably tidy but just about everything needs something doing. The front passenger door in this photo is a prime example, the outer skin looks fine, but that’s all that’s holding the door together!
And yes good spot, that’s a TR7, long gone I’m afraid.

Tin_Man said:

The fact that your missus actually initiated the idea makes this a little strange haha! Nice Landy mate! The v8s are a beautiful tone...

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Yeah she loves it and has named her/it “Vera”
And yes the V8’s do sound great, but this has had the inline 4 cylinder 2.5L 200TDi from a Disco fitted. It sounds equally cool imo when the turbo winds up!

Lying here in France, drinking wine, eating cheese & catching some rays, my mind has wandered off to Landy land.
Something I do need to sort is my stuck transfer box. It’s only ever been in high for a very long time (certainly longer than I’ve owned it) so of course it’s seized and won’t move over to low or lock the difs.
I’ve had a quick search through the forum but haven’t found much more than “gain access from the centre seat base panel and lubricate it”
Do you lot know of a more comprehensive thread for freeing up & maintaining a transfer box?

So I’m with the family lying by the pool, Sun’s out, kids are having fun, wife’s reading her third book of the hols, all is at peace in our little world. Then I make an involuntary squeak and can barely control my excitement.
Too late, she’s noticed and is now suspicious.
What? She’s says, is it a secret?
No, It’s better than that, I finally found a 2nd hand door card for my rear door.

She’s not impressed

Peachy! said:

So I’m with the family lying by the pool, Sun’s out, kids are having fun, wife’s reading her third book of the hols, all is at peace in our little world. Then I make an involuntary squeak and can barely control my excitement.
Too late, she’s noticed and is now suspicious.
What? She’s says, is it a secret?
No, It’s better than that, I finally found a 2nd hand door card for my rear door.
View attachment 270390
She’s not impressed

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If the mrs is after more reading giver her a Haynes manual. She can pass the spanners
(I find the kids will help more though)

Peachy! said:

Lying here in France, drinking wine, eating cheese & catching some rays, my mind has wandered off to Landy land.
Something I do need to sort is my stuck transfer box. It’s only ever been in high for a very long time (certainly longer than I’ve owned it) so of course it’s seized and won’t move over to low or lock the difs.
I’ve had a quick search through the forum but haven’t found much more than “gain access from the centre seat base panel and lubricate it”
Do you lot know of a more comprehensive thread for freeing up & maintaining a transfer box?

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There isn't much more to it.
It'll more or less definitely be just the lever and its connections in the top of the box. Take the plate off, take the gubbins over to a vice, bung it in there and slacken it off by application of your favourite deseize agent and a hammer. Then once totally freed off, lube with a grease or summat, then put it all back together.
Then remember to use it, i.e. at least put it into low and diff lock about once a week even if just for a coupla yards.

Stanleysteamer said:

There isn't much more to it.
It'll more or less definitely be just the lever and its connections in the top of the box. Take the plate off, take the gubbins over to a vice, bung it in there and slacken it off by application of your favourite deseize agent and a hammer. Then once totally freed off, lube with a grease or summat, then put it all back together.
Then remember to use it, i.e. at least put it into low and diff lock about once a week even if just for a coupla yards.

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Cheers @Stanleysteamer Me being relatively new to mucking about with Landrovers I guess I was over thinking it.

Remove the centre part of the tunnel & you will see all moving parts.
Follow linkage to the top of the transfer box to a 13mm nut. You can move this to engage/disengage diff lock.

have a look at some of the other projects they may have photos. Or tag their login & ask them. We are all a happy group on here

The Bible has arrived at last. I didn’t realise hunting for parts could be so easy!

Hicap phill said:

If the mrs is after more reading giver her a Haynes manual. She can pass the spanners
(I find the kids will help more though)

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Exactly what I did for my OH.
The bruising is slowly getting better....

Hicap phill said:

Remove the centre part of the tunnel & you will see all moving parts.
Follow linkage to the top of the transfer box to a 13mm nut. You can move this to engage/disengage diff lock.

have a look at some of the other projects they may have photos. Or tag their login & ask them. We are all a happy group on here

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Bit the bullet today and opened up the transfer box, everything looked in order. So after a liberal squirt of GT85 and some wiggling all seems to be fine, I’ve finally managed to select the lower range and lock the diffs. Very happy with myself even though I don’t really think I actually did anything.

Peachy! said:

Yeah she loves it and has named her/it “Vera”
And yes the V8’s do sound great, but this has had the inline 4 cylinder 2.5L 200TDi from a Disco fitted. It sounds equally cool imo when the turbo winds up!

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Does it burst out the we'll be home again?? I'm with your missus it looks fab. Always liked them.