Lel

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initially I had discounted the v8 due to cost to run but I have been offered a 1990 110 with a 3.5 v8 with twin 40l lpg tanks underneath (not sure on ground clearance yet).

Yes, the v8 will be more thirsty but lpg is half the price so if it was say 14mpg that would mean a cost to run equal to 28mpg.

But I don't know how lpg actually works so must also be using some petrol I assume and if that is the case makes it a lot harder to figure out actual equivalent lpg based on cost to run.

Also, I'm assuming the v8 is a very reliable engine but again, I've never had one.

So any feedback from people who have had a 3.5 v8 with lpg would be great :)
 
On the serial plate thing it says Code No. V8 1714 if that means anything.

I'm assuming that means it was a v8 from new but could be wrong
 
I run a 110 V8 on LPG and my advice is BUY IT!
MPG is still painful even on gas, but you use very little petrol, [none in summer] and 50p a litre is excellent. AND you get a V8 so you're actually counting it in GRINS per gallon.................................
Which carb set up is it running or is it injection? [if injection it's a conversion] Has it got a current LPG certificate?
But above all - buy it! good luck
 
I have asked him.

Other info I had on it:
£3950

I have a file of history.

It came out of the army in I think 2000, then a private school in Worcester bought it as a grounds vehicle who had it regularly serviced with a fleet company garage using things like Mobil 1 as oil throughout its time with them.

I bought it in 2010 and have made sure regular servicing and anything it needs gets done.
 
Land Rover Defender 110 3.5 V8 Hardtop Ex Military Petrol/LPG 1990
Mileage 119204
Registered with DVLA as Petrol/LPG.
Twin 40 litre lpg tanks underslung and above chassis level.
Brownchurch ex electricity board full length roof rack approx 9foot x 5foot, 5mm checker plate deck fitted and twin access ladders.
Dixon Bate adjustable tow hitch, ball and pin coupling.
Rear twin step fitted to tow hitch and also driver/passenger side steps.
Front sump guard, front track rod guard and rear axle guard.
Bull bar with two Cibie Oscars fitted, four rectangular spots fitted to roof rack.
20 litre Jerry can in lockable holder fitted to back door.
Avon Rangemaster 7.50x16 tyres and spare all good tread.
Recent new radiator.
Recent waxoiled.
Chassis and bulkhead perfect.
Sony radio/cd fitted.
CB radio fitted.
Rear seats, four fold up singles with lap belts and two bench seats no belts.
Everything works as it should.
MOT September 2017
 
To be honest I'm not up on values/prices as I've had mine for almost 20 years. So hopefully others will comment on value [but they're all going up]
Twin SU's are fine - and no doubt original.
No gas cert. not the end of the world but worth getting the price down as you might need new LPG tanks, worth checking - and talk to your insurance company.
All the nice extras are good news but chassis/bulkhead the most important.
Some more history on engine work done would be good, really by that mileage it ought to have had a camshaft etc.
If I had the money I'd be very tempted - but to finally answer your 1st question I reckon I get about 12 - 14 miles to the gallon on LPG - but mine is old school 4 speed.
Hope this helps
 
Thanks.
So comparatively speaking yours costs the same to run as a 24-28 mpg diesel.... That's not bad...
 
I guess so - TBH I don't like to work it out, but am normally pleasantly surprised by how little I buy [but do have a 120l tank]
Another thing to consider is that now diesel is the new evil it's unlikely to go down in price, possibly go up............. plus if you go into London you wont get hit by the Low emissions charge [LEZ] and you can be sure other cities will be going for LEZ schemes soon enough..................
Slightly less power on LPG, slightly less MPG - but half the price.
A 110 running a 3.5 on carbs will most likely be an old low compression engine [like mine] so don't expect amazing performance, more reliable slogger. Carb LPG systems are a bit crude/simple but reliable - what vapouriser is it running?
Conversion to 3.9 injection a fair amount of work but simple and would give better performance/economy. Rover V8 parts cheap and plentiful - including performance bits.
Good luck,
 
I hope to find out more tomorrow but it's a bit of an ugly duckling job so if chassis etc. Is as solid as he says, then with full respray, sort interior and tune engine I'll easily loose another £3000 so total cost circa £7000.... But it would be a nice motor then and more reliable than the likes of the diesels.

However, at that end price we are in same money as a TD5.... Hmmmmm......
 
initially I had discounted the v8 due to cost to run but I have been offered a 1990 110 with a 3.5 v8 with twin 40l lpg tanks underneath (not sure on ground clearance yet).

Yes, the v8 will be more thirsty but lpg is half the price so if it was say 14mpg that would mean a cost to run equal to 28mpg.

But I don't know how lpg actually works so must also be using some petrol I assume and if that is the case makes it a lot harder to figure out actual equivalent lpg based on cost to run.

Also, I'm assuming the v8 is a very reliable engine but again, I've never had one.

So any feedback from people who have had a 3.5 v8 with lpg would be great :)
Ok several questions to answer.

Let's start at the beginning. The 3.5 V8 is a low CR (compression ratio) version of the RV8. 137hp instead of 155 and less torque than the version used in the TR7 V8 and the SD1.

This means that while they performed well for their day, they will not feel spritely today. But it should go ok. Similar to slightly better performance than a stock Tdi, although won't have the turbo sensation. They are smoother and more refined.

They use the LT-85 gearbox. This is quite an agrucultural box, but fairly I durable.

The good thing is, there are loads of RV8 engines about. So it is easy and relatively cost affective to swap in a 3.9, 4.0 or 4.6. And these will really wake the performance up and generally exceed anything any of the diesel Defenders can muster.


In terms of mpg. The Low CR twin carb is probably the least fuel efficient RV8. An EFI larger displacement one will generally do better.

I would expect on petrol that you should average in the region of 15-17mpg for general use. And maybe as low as 12mpg for short journeys or heavy right foot and 19'ish on a run.

I regularly drive a factory 3,5 V8 90 btw.

As for LPG, well best to hit Google if you want to know how it works. But in practice you'll usually get slightly less mpg running it. E.g. If on petrol you were getting 16mpg, then LPG it'd probably be 14mpg.

And pricing in my experience is usually not as good as 50% cheaper. But I think this can be region specific. When I last checked which was a while back I admit. LPG locally was 55-58p/litre and petrol was 105p/litre.

This means that real world running costs will not be halved. But they should be reduced.

You'll usually loose some performance on LPG too.

As far as LPG goes, it can be reliable. But depends on the exact system in use, how it was installed, setup and maintained. Many people have had issues with LPG. But this shouldn't put you off. Just give you some reading up in advance.

How this affects running costs, well that really depends on how many miles you are likely to do in a year.

E.g. Let's say the annual average mpg for a V8 is 16mpg on petrol @ £1.10/litre

And let's say a Tdi averaged 25mpg, which isn't unfair for a 110. Also at £1.10/litre

If you are doing 4000 miles a year.

250 gallons of petrol
160 gallons of diesel

£5/gallon

V8 = £1250
Tdi = £800

Fuel costs for a year.

This means that while the petrol mpg migh look horrific at first. For this distance it'd only cost you £37.50/month more to run.

If you going to be doing say 10,000 miles a year or more, then obviously the cost difference will increase quite a bit!


V8's should be just as reliable as a Tdi and just as easy to repair by and large. They are a 50's design, bit like the Tdi is really. So will need some maintenance. But nothing out of this world. Worn cam and followers is common, but pretty cheap and easy to fix.

And of course, with the V8 you have huge modding potential. An EFI one will really fly and should improve mpg. My 4.6 Range Rover is heavier and is blunted by a 4 speed automatic. Yet it easily managed 17mpg for short journeys and off road. Take it on a longer run at sensible speed and its up to 20-22mpg. And it's massively faster than a Tdi Land Rover.
 
Well that's your choice.................. mine looks crap, I like it that way, plus have a theory that the worse it looks the less likely that it'll be nicked!
 
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You've had a lot of good advice but I'll throw in my own offering, for what it's worth. The 3.5 RV8 is the most reliable variant & far less likely to be effected by the higher combustion chamber temperatures produced by running on LPG than the later over-bored versions, which can suffer from liner slip. If the engine has been well maintained it's current mileage is not a concern, just change the oil & filter every 3K, ensure you maintain about 50 percent of anti-freeze in the cooling system & change the coolant every 2 years. SU carbs were standard on later 110's when the bhp was raised from 114 to 134 & as for performance remember the vehicle was designed & built as a workhorse, so if you want poke I suggest you look elsewhere :rolleyes:
 
According to the serial plate on this it is only 90bhp so very little power for a 3.5 but hey, I'm not wanting to race.

Being 26 years old and adding the LPG I'm guessing I'll be around 80bhp on a good day ;)
 
LPG was fitted in 2010 at 94,000 miles by mint LPG Ltd.

My only worry is the very low power. Great that it's the more reliable engine but will I be left for dust by standard 2.5 diesels?
 
No it's not that slow - and although many on here swear a low comp engine is untunable I'd disagree, mine runs a slightly hotter cam, Edelbrock/Weber 500 carb, four branch manifolds and sports exhaust. I'm happy enough with it, good enough in the mid range and 70 mph cruising ...........................
 
According to the serial plate on this it is only 90bhp so very little power for a 3.5 but hey, I'm not wanting to race.

Being 26 years old and adding the LPG I'm guessing I'll be around 80bhp on a good day ;)
Sounds like it must be the same spec as a Stage 1 V8 with restrictors. TBH, didn't realise they fitted them to 110's. If so I think it's possible to remove the restrictors back to normal low CR power.


Bit of a Google and found this:

3528cc V8 Petrol: The ex-Buick all alloy V8 engine appeared in the Range Rover right from the start of production in 1970, but did not make its way into the company's utility vehicles until 1979. The Series III 109 V8 (or 'Stage One V8') was intended to replace the 2.6 litre six cylinder vehicles: Land Rover's engineers obviously thought the new vehicle would be too fast for its brakes and suspension, so they detuned the engine to 91 bhp by fitting restrictors in the carbs. Removing these takes the engine up to Range Rover spec (138 bhp or thereabouts). The One Ten (from 1983) had the 138 bhp V8 as an option from the start, and the same engine later appeared in the Ninety.
 

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