Feathers McGraw
Well-Known Member
Would light guards make them harder to nick? Downside is the wing needs drilling..
Would light guards make them harder to nick? Downside is the wing needs drilling..
I guess would make it more difficult
Si Click
Well-Known Member
As long as you are fixing the light guards with security screws or riveting them. Off in seconds otherwise.
I cannot believe none of the aftermarket companies have produced any aftermarket headlights or rear lights for the D2. China are normally all over it. There are very few good condition used facelift headlights about now, and as @MJI knows, they aren't cheap new!
They used to be made in Droitwich by Koito. I know because i used to work there. Several years ago KEL (Koito Europe Limited) became a rear lamp assembly only plant and(i think) Poland Koito became a headlight only plant so we sent all of our headlight assembly to them.
I assume all Freelander, D1, D2, D3 rears are still made there.
Hopefully i won't be put on any hit list if i tell this story...
During early production of the Discovery 3 rear lamp production, our driver's side only, something went wrong with the heat shield production. I think it sits above the side light bulb inside the lamp. Instead of having to be pressed into place with a small hand press, it became loose enough to just pop into the groove. The numnuts in production thought this was such an improvement they decided to keep quiet. MANY lamps went to Land Rover like this and it was only discovered when someone at Land Rover slammed the tailgate and heard a rattle. Much slamming of the door later they traced the rattle to the rear light assembly.
Someone from Koito was despatched to Land Rover to check stock lineside and then to their goods inwards while all stock was checked back in Droitwich at the same time investigations were carried out on the production cell.
The proverbial brown substance hit the spinning widget! Numnuts were soundly bollocked! All lamps were tested for operation, scratch/defect free etc but we hadn't introduced a spank it's arse test so it got through all QC tests.
This was just before the D3 was released to the general public. There were hundreds awaiting shipping abroad. A couple of teams spent several days at various docks walking around the back of the cars slapping the lamp listening for any rattle. If heard, the car had to be unlocked, the computer connected via the OBD to unlock the tailgate to allow access to the lamp which was then replaced.
I spent about 14 hours one day walking up and down rows and rows of D3s inside the middle of the test track at Gaydon. It's one of the storage areas Land Rover stash cars prior to delivery to dealers.
It was a good day for me. About six hours overtime, having to rearrange my trousers at the sound of an Aston Martin blasting around the test track and afterwards i had to return the computer we were using to unlock the cars back to Jaguar. I was given explicit instructions to hand it back personally to a particular guy. DO NOT leave it with anybody else. So i was told to park up out of the way and wait for the guy who would be about ten minutes. While sat there counting my overtime i heard something extremely arousing!
And a Jaguar D-Type drove past popping and banging. Given where i was pretty sure it wasn't a fibreglass kitcar but the real thing!
Ironically, the first time i got to go to Land Rover i was handed two black permanent markers and told to go and check all of the high level brake lights and check for any breaks in the black part of the plastic. Something had gone wrong in the moulding process and it was allowing light to show through in the wrong places on some lamps. I was over the moon to be at the factory looking at the then brand new Range Rover while at the same time horrified at having to draw on the light with a marker pen! So if you have one of the first L322 Range Rovers and you noticed any black pen on your high level brake light, it might have been me. Sorry....
I assume all Freelander, D1, D2, D3 rears are still made there.
Hopefully i won't be put on any hit list if i tell this story...
During early production of the Discovery 3 rear lamp production, our driver's side only, something went wrong with the heat shield production. I think it sits above the side light bulb inside the lamp. Instead of having to be pressed into place with a small hand press, it became loose enough to just pop into the groove. The numnuts in production thought this was such an improvement they decided to keep quiet. MANY lamps went to Land Rover like this and it was only discovered when someone at Land Rover slammed the tailgate and heard a rattle. Much slamming of the door later they traced the rattle to the rear light assembly.
Someone from Koito was despatched to Land Rover to check stock lineside and then to their goods inwards while all stock was checked back in Droitwich at the same time investigations were carried out on the production cell.
The proverbial brown substance hit the spinning widget! Numnuts were soundly bollocked! All lamps were tested for operation, scratch/defect free etc but we hadn't introduced a spank it's arse test so it got through all QC tests.
This was just before the D3 was released to the general public. There were hundreds awaiting shipping abroad. A couple of teams spent several days at various docks walking around the back of the cars slapping the lamp listening for any rattle. If heard, the car had to be unlocked, the computer connected via the OBD to unlock the tailgate to allow access to the lamp which was then replaced.
I spent about 14 hours one day walking up and down rows and rows of D3s inside the middle of the test track at Gaydon. It's one of the storage areas Land Rover stash cars prior to delivery to dealers.
It was a good day for me. About six hours overtime, having to rearrange my trousers at the sound of an Aston Martin blasting around the test track and afterwards i had to return the computer we were using to unlock the cars back to Jaguar. I was given explicit instructions to hand it back personally to a particular guy. DO NOT leave it with anybody else. So i was told to park up out of the way and wait for the guy who would be about ten minutes. While sat there counting my overtime i heard something extremely arousing!
And a Jaguar D-Type drove past popping and banging. Given where i was pretty sure it wasn't a fibreglass kitcar but the real thing!
Ironically, the first time i got to go to Land Rover i was handed two black permanent markers and told to go and check all of the high level brake lights and check for any breaks in the black part of the plastic. Something had gone wrong in the moulding process and it was allowing light to show through in the wrong places on some lamps. I was over the moon to be at the factory looking at the then brand new Range Rover while at the same time horrified at having to draw on the light with a marker pen! So if you have one of the first L322 Range Rovers and you noticed any black pen on your high level brake light, it might have been me. Sorry....
SpagettiDefender
Member
Man I wished had know about this site a few months ago. I would have got a different bumper.
Ah well at least I can still get the Disco Radiator Mask.
Would light guards make them harder to nick? Downside is the wing needs drilling..
Yep.
Main reason I fitted light-guards was to deter headlight theft.
The nuts for the inner bolts on the guards are just glued into the rubber stand-offs attached to the radiator grill so a knowledgeable thief could, theoretically, prise the guard forward and then snap it off to gain access to the headlights but most thieves are looking for the "easy pickings" so the guards provide a deterrent.
Course, I suppose it has to be said that D2 headlights aren't as attractive to thieves these days, most of whom are busy nicking Porsche headlights so they can use them for "hydroponic" activities.
Personally, I'd suggest binning the supplied installation kit (little plastic posts and fiddly nuts & bolts) and just put rivnuts in the wings instead, then use stainless bolts with a security head to attach the guards.
Also, instead of having the nuts glued into the rubber stand-offs, I got a short length of steel, put rivnuts in that and positioned it behind the rubber stand-off so the bolts are tightening into the metal plate rather than into nuts glued to a lump of rubber.
As an added bonus, last winter a tree fell into the road right in front of me, forcing me into a bit of impromptu off-roading, and some branches clipped the front corner of my D2, damaging the guard but the headlight survived.
£80 for the light guards isn't cheap but they could prevent your headlights getting nicked or damaged so they're worthwhile IMO.
Rickspark
Member
My two-pennyworth... Purchased new lights and drilled holes in them. Threaded digital projector security cable through and each and then around the chassis. Sealed cable entry holes with silicone. Cable is to reduce the chance of someone running off with them. Engraved every component with postcode in multiple locations. Also wired them into the alarm system using micro-switches. If either is fitting is moved from its bracket while the car is locked, the alarm will sound. That was in 2011.
