...so having missed the joys of lying under a Defender with spanner’s, mud and oil for company - I recently took the plunge and bought a 2004my Td5 110 DCPU in Bonatti Grey. It had a Meshback Ifor Williams and a pile of bits removed by the current owner ( a farmer) mostly with an angle grinder.

It’s a bit of a project mind, it’s been abused for 3.5 years having previously been a special projects vehicle with lots of goodies - it’s now a sorry, dirty, mud caked, butchered shadow of its former glory...the interior is trashed, the dashboard is just resting in place and under the bonnet is a mess. But everything works and the chassis, transmission and engine are all solid.

Plan to return to standard, if I can fill all the holes, find all the missing bits......

Just got to get used to the Td5 heavy clutch

Wish me luck......

Some more pics would be nice....it’s probably my fave chassis / body combo!
Looking forward to more as you progress
Good luck!!

Good luck, it looks like a fun job

Nice looking Landy and a good project too. Let us know how you get on.

Spent a half hour at the local jet wash getting the mud out - don’t think i’ll be welcomed back, it’s now about a half ton lighter

Front has had a tidy up, new lights and bulbs, bumper off next for a repaint - need to find bumper ends.
Headlining and interior trim have been out, cleaned and mould proofed (HG Mould Spray, epic stuff).
Gearbox and Xfer box oils changed, Gearbox tower replaced and clutch bled - it’s now a Five speed again!
About 20m of spurious wiring removed from the interior
Back seats are out - caked with dog hair and muck
Carpet is out and scrapped - surface corrosion is everywhere, so etch primer next...
Floor Plate screws have all rotted from being permanently wet - the previous plug fit luxury carpet had all been ripped out along with the plastic receivers - rubber mats over the top meant it stayed nice and damp! Will dig them out and replace with stainless then seal the floor plate back in.
There are so many holes drilled in this thing it’s like a sieve!

Pig Shed back is now sold and away, putting the vinyl canopy back on it until the Tonneau cover is made.
Rocker Cover Gasket needs replacing, will do when servicing.
Safari Snorkel has been cut off with a grinder leaving the screws in the windscreen frame and the studs in the snorkel - not to mention the holes in the wing undecided about replacing like for like.

Underside is looking shabby, so engine & chassis steam clean booked - then plenty of black stuff to be applied.
Springs and shocks are tired, so Medium Duty replacements (probably Terrafirma) will be on the Santa list.
Mid box is toast, silencer delete pipe will go on after the suspension is done.

Then it’s paint restoration, interior tart up (carpet & covers), repair the butchered dash/console, stick some boost alloys on it, wire up the LED light bar (bumper mount Grill Width) fit that tracker gadget and done!

Just left with a bull bar that was apparently a Land Rover ‘Tomb Raider’ special, shame it was cut off at the bottom with the farmers favourite tool - shame to weigh it in.

Periodic pics will follow for the before and after...

Dirty old girl, will soon be back on the straight and narrow....

Such a shame the PO was a fan of the grinder. Still, looking forward to seeing your results.

saved mine from a farmer too love the pick up is grate for hunting trips was trying to find one with the 300tdi but got one with the td5 motor. Love the td5 motor has just the right amount of power mine has never had carpet in it is all rubber mats witch is grate for river crossings lucky the farmer i got it off hadn't taken to it with a grinder although the surface of the moon is probably smoother than the body of my truck.

So second row seat box- toast

slomofo said:

So second row seat box- toastView attachment 164233

Click to expand...

Not toast at all, you need to cut out the rotten bit and pop rivet in a new lump of ally plate a bit thicker than the original.

Good plan, will attack tomorrow with renewed faith.....

Second Row Seat box bracket patching, One down - Two to go...



All the floor screws are rusted beyond shape, cannot get them out so have opted to Kurust and leave. At least it will be dry in the back now all the bulkhead & door seals are sorted....

Patching done, brackets fitted and seats back in - carpet can wait until I’ve got the back doors to fit in a vaguely ‘metal touches rubber seal’ way. I have a Solihull ‘Special Tool’ to help....nice length of 4x2.

This dry cold weather is showing up plenty off areas for rust neutralising and liberal spraying of Dinitrol

Looks a nice project does that - my neighbour has just sold his (TD5 DCPU)and bought a toymota - bad move IMHO

slomofo said:

Just got to get used to the Td5 heavy clutch

Click to expand...

Easy to fit a servo .... can operate clutch with one finger then

slomofo said:

fit that tracker gadget and done!

Click to expand...

Given current events mentioned elsewhere on here, I'd move this bit up the list a bit ... actually up the list a lot ... I.E. to the top

Replaced the fractured Radiator / Pressure Hose, a real 5min job for once..
Replaced the knackered wing mirror mounts, took longer than expected - Door Hinge bolts came out fine, j-nuts dropped off the bulkhead bolts as they had rusted to nothing. All shiny new and greased now....
Trusty helper started derusting the rear crossmember, took longer than expected - tow bar bolts were seized and the tow electrics mount was like a Weetabix. Halfway done now.....had to give up and eat a Cheeky Chow Mein....

I have been undecided (faffing around) for 3 months now as to which defender to go for.
well it will now be double cab.
keep up your good work, along with the up dates.
garry.

Disco1BFG said:

Looks a nice project does that - my neighbour has just sold his (TD5 DCPU)and bought a toymota - bad move IMHO



Easy to fit a servo .... can operate clutch with one finger then



Given current events mentioned elsewhere on here, I'd move this bit up the list a bit ... actually up the list a lot ... I.E. to the top

Click to expand...

Pricey though.

Cheapest - clutch spring mod £23 hours work

Also TD5inside are set to release a new clutch slave said to reduce the pedal weight by 70%

bankz5152 said:

Pricey though.

Click to expand...

Servo is less than £100 - if you can't fit it in a couple hours, you're doing it wrong

bankz5152 said:

Cheapest - clutch spring mod £23 hours work

Click to expand...

- Thing is, Why TF is the original system so bleeding heavy ?????? WTF is the point of a heavy clutch ?

bankz5152 said:

Also TD5inside are set to release a new clutch slave said to reduce the pedal weight by 70%

Click to expand...

That'll be another bl@@dy job on SWMBO's D1 then - don't you dare tell her .....................

slomofo said:

Second Row Seat box bracket patching, One down - Two to go...

View attachment 165021

All the floor screws are rusted beyond shape, cannot get them out so have opted to Kurust and leave. At least it will be dry in the back now all the bulkhead & door seals are sorted....

Click to expand...

I had the same problem with floor screws, used a small slitting wheel to cut a slot in the heads then used an impact screw driver,
put stainless ones back with stainless washers and silicon grease.

Disco1BFG said:

Servo is less than £100 - if you can't fit it in a couple hours, you're doing it wrong



- Thing is, Why TF is the original system so bleeding heavy ?????? WTF is the point of a heavy clutch ?



That'll be another bl@@dy job on SWMBO's D1 then - don't you dare tell her .....................

Click to expand...

Ahhh sorry! I thought you where on about the red booster!

No idea! Some 300s had the softer spring from factory! They swapped back to the old heavy spring from 200s in the td5 for some reason!