Series 2 Advise on buying

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Davie F

Active Member
Posts
380
Location
North East Scotland
Hi all, years since I have been on here, going to be looking for a series 11a later in the year when I have finished the house. Need advice on what to look for, diesel or petrol, 88 inch or 109 inch, or is it a case of take whats available, hoping to get one that has original engine if possible with salvageable chassis as want to restore to as far as possible to original and mechanicaly sound but want to protect the patina on the body. I like the pre 68 with the inboard headlights, I know rust is a major issue, any advice gratefully received.
Davie
 
Surely you should know what you want???? How bizarre to ask other people if you should buy a petrol or diesel or if it should be swb or lwb.
 
Petrol engines are robust and fairly quiet compared to the diesels but only get 20 mpg at best but a diesel won't get much better than 28 anyway. LWBs are. More useful than SWBs for lugging stuff about but it depends what you want one for. Check the chassis and bulkhead and footsteps for rust, all repairable but depends on your welding skills or the depth of your pockets. Buy a sorted one unless you can do it yourself.
 
Anything is reparable and salvageable with enough time patience and money.
If you want to "use" the vehicle get a 109, if you just want a weekend classi get an 88. I personally prefer diesel over petrol, but at that age the petrol might be a better bet. I also wouldn't worry about protecting the "patina" by the time you have had to repair and replace parts you will have lost enough of it that it would not look right anyway (think bulkhead repair sections, top corners, vent panels etc, doors tops, and maybe bottoms). You would be better rebuilding it all, repainting everything, and then using the vehicle for a couple of years, then all the hard won wear and tear will have returned as it has been used.
 
The rover diesel is one of the quietest diesels there is. I know a few chaps that have had transit engines grafted in and the noise is deafening.
They need old fashioned tinkering with whichever you get. Mine has patina. Mostly cow patina but sometimes pig and even horse on occasion.
 
Took mine for a test run round a field and got plenty of fresh cow patina in the tyre treads. I also trod in some of it so there's some patina in the drivers footwell too.
 
If you’ve previously owned you should have a good feel. The difference is time and the fact that S2’s command more depending on condition. Counter intuitive to current sentiment could be buy a diesel which could become more rare? Personally I’m a petrol head? If you go diesel get an original none of the TDI stuff, can’t beat a smokey joe.
 
Davie f....welcome on board...ignore 300bhp per kg...obvs drives a pimp mobile...diesels noisier than petrol and not much more mpg so i prefer petrol. wheelbase depends what you want it for. 88's great fun, easy to park and steer but slightly more expensive. 109" slightly cheaper but bags of load space... 88's have relatively small load beds. 109 better ride especially with half tonne of concrete in the back. best advice is drive both first. they are slow, scary steering, noisy but best drive you'llevere have.
 
John S said:
If you’ve previously owned you should have a good feel. The difference is time and the fact that S2’s command more depending on condition. Counter intuitive to current sentiment could be buy a diesel which could become more rare? Personally I’m a petrol head? If you go diesel get an original none of the TDI stuff, can’t beat a smokey joe.
Click to expand...

Definitely try and get something which is nearer to original. TDI's are great for allowing it to keep up with modern traffic and makes it easier as a daily drive but I feel you lose half the character and feel of a series vehicle. A lot of what you end up going for will depend on what you want to use it for, but what ever you get the normal land rover principle applies of going to look at as many as possible and buy on condition.
 
Its not like a normal car buying exercise, the youngest is going to be 50 years old. Buy according to condition and your abilities / wallet size to sort out what's required. A good one will be £££££ and a poor one ££ + £££? to make good. I think the one that feels best to drive (if that's possible) is a good choice. If you don't like driving it before you weld up the faults, its not going to feel any better afterwards.
 
Petrol. Lwb are useful but have the turning circle of an oil tanker. It's cheaper to buy one already done up than doing one up yourself.

Col
 
Cheers for all the sensible reply's, this is going to be my first series Land Rover, I previously had a P38 that's why I was on the Forum, so what I get so far is to get one with either the petrol or diesel as both good but steer clear of transplants which is the direction I want to go. I will not be using it as a daily driver, will be more of a hobby for me, years ago served my time as a marine engineer so looking forward to getting stuck in, some brilliant info on here especially following the rebuilds.
 
Davie F said:
Cheers for all the sensible reply's, this is going to be my first series Land Rover, I previously had a P38 that's why I was on the Forum, so what I get so far is to get one with either the petrol or diesel as both good but steer clear of transplants which is the direction I want to go. I will not be using it as a daily driver, will be more of a hobby for me, years ago served my time as a marine engineer so looking forward to getting stuck in, some brilliant info on here especially following the rebuilds.
Click to expand...
If it is not going to be a daily drive I would definitely find one with an original or original replacement engine. This will ensure that it will hold value well in the future and you don't need the additional speed or power a different engine will give you if not using it every day.

What are you going to be using it for as that will have the largest bearing on what model to get. As a general rule, 109 station wagons are the most expensive and 109 pickups are the cheapest with the 88's in between the two. but it is very easy to chane the body configuration to what you want (eg, hard top, soft top, additional side facing seats etc)
 
LWB are not just longer, they are heavier and feel a lot bigger. A SWB is the size of a small ish car, a LWB is more of a van and has to be driven and parked like a van. With a LWB I rarely get into a road side space and I can't use multi story car parks due to the turning circle and height (pop top plus roof rack) but I can carry 2 or 3 double matteresses or 4 bikes no trouble. You haven't asked about mil or civvy? Mil are higher and heavier but there are also quite a few mil vehicle events and there is often some history. Historic status may be as imporant as engine choice as more and more emissions rules come in. I would probably prioritise orginal (or like for like) replacement over later engine of any type. I know TDIs and V8*s are on trend at the moment but I think they could be like flares and platform shoes with unmolested vehicles holding value better in future. Anyone who doubts should look at the values of early 2 door Range Rovers as a result of it having been on trend to make them into off road specials. Don't kock "patina", it saving me having to do a paint job!
 
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