Yeah the wishbones are a pain as you have to reset all the geometry to make sure it's all in line, steering ones are simple

Love modded D3's would love to go to morocco in our D4 :)

Do it :D you don't need to do too much modding to them really, (although it's easy to get carried away!)
 
Do it :D you don't need to do too much modding to them really, (although it's easy to get carried away!)

Are you getting carried away ? ;) the D4 already has a fridge in the cubby box so I'm half way there :D

The more I get accustomed to D3/4's the more I realize how good they are for over landing, second fuel tanks where the spare is would be a great investment with twin spares mounted at the back, massive internal space, great off-road and on.

One day :) Aus, Africa and South America are my over landing targets :)
 
Are you getting carried away ? ;) the D4 already has a fridge in the cubby box so I'm half way there :D

The more I get accustomed to D3/4's the more I realize how good they are for over landing, second fuel tanks where the spare is would be a great investment with twin spares mounted at the back, massive internal space, great off-road and on.

One day :) Aus, Africa and South America are my over landing targets :)

fridge in the centre wouldn't do for Africa i'm afraid. You'd need to invest in a proper compressor type.

1st fuel tank is massive too, i would rather have the spare under there, but, your choice! The back door mounts for the spares i think would be a pain.

Internal space is awesome though :D
 
fridge in the centre wouldn't do for Africa i'm afraid. You'd need to invest in a proper compressor type.

1st fuel tank is massive too, i would rather have the spare under there, but, your choice! The back door mounts for the spares i think would be a pain.

Internal space is awesome though :D

Haha OJ an engel or equivalent would be a must have,

It's just space that can be better used for fuel or water, plus it means you don't have to crawl underneath to mess about with tyres, they're used a lot in aus and over landing is so common out there

Something like this

null_zps021fa4f4.jpg
 
Yeah, i've seen them, but, every time you want to open the back door you have to swing it out - for me when the roof tent is on that would involve swinging it inside the awning part of the roof tent... not ideal. I'm either putting one spare inside or on the roof and the other underneath - if i need the underneath one then so be it, i'll crawl under!
 
Yeah, i've seen them, but, every time you want to open the back door you have to swing it out - for me when the roof tent is on that would involve swinging it inside the awning part of the roof tent... not ideal. I'm either putting one spare inside or on the roof and the other underneath - if i need the underneath one then so be it, i'll crawl under!

Ashy yeah with an awning it wouldn't be ideal. On the roof I would go for on a D3 as they aren't going to affect the weight distribution and balance as much as a lighter 90/110 inside space is too precious for perishables/ valuables etc

Have you solved your ride height problem ?
 
Morning Guys,

It was good to meet some of you at the AO show.

Thought I would let you all know that myself and Chris (my other mate in the 300tdi 90 not on the forum) are no longer coming along on the trip. Chris has had some unfortunate circumstances at home and is now unable to come along. I spoke to John at Trailmasters some months ago regarding this so he is fully aware of us pulling out of the group etc. We was living in hope that things would improve and he would be able to attend however this hasn’t come to fruition.

There is a slight twist, our view was to simply re-plan a trip together for next year etc, however my circumstances have also now changed. Myself and my partner are now expecting a baby due in March and so next year I doubt I will get a pass to bugger off to Morocco for a month. For this reason I am now going it alone.

I will still be catching the same ferry as you guys but just wanted to let you all know that I won’t be continuing with the Trailmasters tour. I had mixed reviews/opinions on the guided trips and with the baby now on the way I fancied saving the money and doing some proper exploring/wild camping on me own.

The route I have planned is fairly challenging in comparison so I may be calling you guys for some recovery haha.

If any of you fancy tagging along with me your all more than welcome or if you know anyone that would like to come but cannot justify the money to book with a tour company, again they are more than welcome to tag along.

Regards,

Glenn
 
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yeah, we heard from John you'd pulled out a few weeks back. Congrats on the baby - defo worth getting in the fun trips before you're tied down to changing nappies and alike ;)

For us the Trail Masters tour is exactly what we want, I can go break my Series at a P&P in the UK, but, we'd like to get around Morocco and see it from the countryside - that entails rough roads, etc. - We're not after an off-roading holiday. (I understand everyone has different desires from a holiday)

Have a good trip, our path's may cross as we tour round, but, if not enjoy :) (maybe take a tool kit too ;) )
 
Please please please don't shoot me down in flames her im just asking a question here.

You all rave on and on about Morocco but from what I can see of the routes, from photos etc - whilst being beautiful and a great way to see the country they are relatively "easish" to drive - rough roads but still roads - not off roading, and certainly from the pictures I have seen little really really tough technical stuff ... I've seen freelanders do these routes. So that I get so far - fantastic way to see a country and combine your love of driving ,if not a tad expensive , but if you have it why not .

Now I get the idea of it BUT whilst I get the idea of trip preparation and vehicle maintenance beforehand I don't get the absolute lengths that some have gone to in pre trip preparation of their vehicles. At the end of the day Morocco isn't the middle of Africa- 8 days drive to the nearest village and in the age of modern communication you're never that far from anywhere there ....so it seems that some have spent £1000s on just their vehicles let alone the cost of the trip

That's the bit i dont get - is it really necessary and vital or is it just for peace of mind or just coz they want to have a excuse to do it ?

Like i said pls dont shoot me- Im just staggered by the amount of money being spent and wondered if anyone has done this on a budget- pre trip and trip itself and what that budget is ?
 
Personally, the level of work on my vehicle has simply come sooner rather than later.
It was always going to get done.

A Landy is for life, not just for Morocco. :D
 
Please please please don't shoot me down in flames her im just asking a question here.

You all rave on and on about Morocco but from what I can see of the routes, from photos etc - whilst being beautiful and a great way to see the country they are relatively "easish" to drive - rough roads but still roads - not off roading, and certainly from the pictures I have seen little really really tough technical stuff ... I've seen freelanders do these routes. So that I get so far - fantastic way to see a country and combine your love of driving ,if not a tad expensive , but if you have it why not .

Now I get the idea of it BUT whilst I get the idea of trip preparation and vehicle maintenance beforehand I don't get the absolute lengths that some have gone to in pre trip preparation of their vehicles. At the end of the day Morocco isn't the middle of Africa- 8 days drive to the nearest village and in the age of modern communication you're never that far from anywhere there ....so it seems that some have spent £1000s on just their vehicles let alone the cost of the trip

That's the bit i dont get - is it really necessary and vital or is it just for peace of mind or just coz they want to have a excuse to do it ?

Like i said pls dont shoot me- Im just staggered by the amount of money being spent and wondered if anyone has done this on a budget- pre trip and trip itself and what that budget is ?

No shooting necessary, it's a very valid question, and you're right - a F2 is perfectly capable and indeed we have a guy going in a F2.

Other than Mark rebuilding every aspect of his D1 because it is his passion and needed doing (well... maybe) - preparation is simple, you need a well maintained, reliable vehicle, descent set of A/T tyres, potentially a bit of underbody protection and ideally a snorkel, though, neither are essential.

There are some other useful things - twin batteries will allow you to keep a fridge running all night long in the desert, quite useful, a roof tent gives you some advantages, but, also some disadvantages, etc.

That's it really. The main thing is reliability. Wheel bearings are an obvious point - they're going to take some serious hammering - they're cheap items, it would be silly to not replace them before you go. A good service by any garage isn't going to be cheap, but, you are putting the vehicle through a lot mileage and terrain wise, so, you want it running at its best.

I wouldn't say I have done anything overly unnecessary - i've gone with performance brakes, but, i'd have done that anyway for UK driving. It's had a proper service which was expensive as it's a D3 and instead of saying to leave a few bits as we'd probably squeeze another year out of them, i've had them done - they're not like D1's and 'fenders, parts actually cost money! The other purchases are standard holiday things - descent chairs, descent camera, etc.

A Landy is for life, not just for Morocco. :D

Damn right! And, of course, Iceland 2015 :D
 
Bump said:
Damn right! And, of course, Iceland 2015 :D

EXACTLY!

The prep work for that will be a tiny fraction compared to the last 9 months work because it'll already have been done.

And being as the Mrs has commandeered my 'daily' car, the Disco is also my daily runner and therefore needs to be reliable.

As you say, it's also my hobby and passion, so why the hell not. :)
 
Please please please don't shoot me down in flames her im just asking a question here.

You all rave on and on about Morocco but from what I can see of the routes, from photos etc - whilst being beautiful and a great way to see the country they are relatively "easish" to drive - rough roads but still roads - not off roading, and certainly from the pictures I have seen little really really tough technical stuff ... I've seen freelanders do these routes. So that I get so far - fantastic way to see a country and combine your love of driving ,if not a tad expensive , but if you have it why not .

Now I get the idea of it BUT whilst I get the idea of trip preparation and vehicle maintenance beforehand I don't get the absolute lengths that some have gone to in pre trip preparation of their vehicles. At the end of the day Morocco isn't the middle of Africa- 8 days drive to the nearest village and in the age of modern communication you're never that far from anywhere there ....so it seems that some have spent £1000s on just their vehicles let alone the cost of the trip

That's the bit i dont get - is it really necessary and vital or is it just for peace of mind or just coz they want to have a excuse to do it ?

Like i said pls dont shoot me- Im just staggered by the amount of money being spent and wondered if anyone has done this on a budget- pre trip and trip itself and what that budget is ?

There is plenty of technical off roading there if you want to do it, same as anywhere in the world :) Having said that we are doing Andorra on the way back and that looks pretty hardcore.

The money I spent on the fender is not for this trip, it is for the lifetime of the vehicle and it will last many trips all over the world, so far money spent exclusively for this trip is the cost of the ferry.. :p

:your_wrong:
 
Morning Guys,

Agree with all of you, I have a friend who has been round Morocco and most of Africa in his 1987 2.5NA Diesel 110 kitted with a bed in the back, fridge, twin batteries, two spare wheels and a few spares. Other than that it was a completely standard and a very slow 2k 110.

With regard to my previous post I want to make something clear, I did not in any way mean to take away from Trailmasters or any other companies of their type. John and the guys at Trailmasters are grate and have been very helpful throughout the year and throughout planning a trip to Morocco. It is unfortunate that as the circumstances are and the way things have planned out I won’t be coming with you all.

As far as the trails are concerned I have spoken to many many overlanders etc and while I’m not going there to ruin my vehicle there is plenty of technical trails and washed out roads that will provide a challenging experience that wouldn’t be possibly in a standard vehicle without extensive damage. Tbh my only requirement of this trip is to have a blast .

Either way I hope this clears any views up that I was trying to slate or take anything away from the tour guys as this was not my intention at all.

Cheers,

Glenn
 
yeah, we heard from John you'd pulled out a few weeks back. Congrats on the baby - defo worth getting in the fun trips before you're tied down to changing nappies and alike ;)

For us the Trail Masters tour is exactly what we want, I can go break my Series at a P&P in the UK, but, we'd like to get around Morocco and see it from the countryside - that entails rough roads, etc. - We're not after an off-roading holiday. (I understand everyone has different desires from a holiday)

Have a good trip, our path's may cross as we tour round, but, if not enjoy :) (maybe take a tool kit too ;) )

The tool kit is now in the vehicle Bump :) I also have a selection of jubilee clips J. She run sweet on the way home, no issue what so ever. I need to get a new oil temp sensor as this is weeping slightly but other than that she’s all good.

I’m doing Lands End to John o’Groats at the weekend so I should iron out any issues there. problem on Friday was more it was the first ever run out and had been rushed to make the show and collect me tent.

You guys will have a fantastic time but like you I would probably take my D4 rather than the defender if I was still coming with you guys. I agree we all have different ideas and different wants from a trip but the primary reason for me no longer going was first due to the issues with my friend Chris, our plan was to simply re book next year, I then had the baby news and thought bugger I better get it done before I’m no longer able to so decided to save some cash and go it alone.

Ow and thanks for the congrats J I honestly can’t wait haha.
 
No shooting necessary, it's a very valid question, and you're right - a F2 is perfectly capable and indeed we have a guy going in a F2.

Other than Mark rebuilding every aspect of his D1 because it is his passion and needed doing (well... maybe) - preparation is simple, you need a well maintained, reliable vehicle, descent set of A/T tyres, potentially a bit of underbody protection and ideally a snorkel, though, neither are essential.

There are some other useful things - twin batteries will allow you to keep a fridge running all night long in the desert, quite useful, a roof tent gives you some advantages, but, also some disadvantages, etc.
That's it really. The main thing is reliability. Wheel bearings are an obvious point - they're going to take
some serious hammering - they're cheap items, it would be silly to not replace them before you go. A good service by any garage isn't going to be cheap, but, you are putting the vehicle through a lot mileage and terrain wise, so, you want it
running at its best.
I wouldn't say I have done anything overly unnecessary - i've gone with performance brakes, but, i'd have done that anyway for UK driving. It's had a proper service which was expensive as it's a D3 and instead of saying to leave a few bits as we'd probably squeeze another year out of them, i've had them done - they're not like D1's and 'fenders, parts actually cost money! The other PPrchasesare standard holiday things - descent chairs, descent camera, etc.
/QUOTE]


Cheers for that Bump


Like I said couldnt really understand marks kind of 6million dollar man approach ( you have to be a certain age to get this...we can rebuild him :p) and couldn't work out if that was necessary to complete a trip like that...makes sense now when you explained it as you did. It makes sense as a passion/hobby thing more than like you say an absolute requirement. I get it now. I have to say .not my cup of tea tbh driving in a 110 in a hot dusty country .....give me wet damp wales anydayor somewhere snowy....but I can see the photos from other trips look amazing.
 
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Cheers for that Bump


Like I said couldnt really understand marks kind of 6million dollar man approach ( you have to be a certain age to get this...we can rebuild him :p) and couldn't work out if that was necessary to complete a trip like that...makes sense now when you explained it as you did. It makes sense as a passion/hobby thing more than like you say an absolute requirement. I get it now. I have to say .not my cup of tea tbh driving in a 110 in a hot dusty country .....give me wet damp wales anydayor somewhere snowy....but I can see the photos from other trips look amazing.

Despite being 12 i got the reference :p

Mark has taken a standard 15 year old disco and made it fit for the modern world. I think a lot of people fail to grasp what "well maintained" actually means - most of us (me included) wait for something to break and then fix it, but, when in the middle of the desert, potentially a day's drive from major civilisation the last thing you want is something failing.

Everything Mark has done is what anyone taking a 15 year old disco would do, the only difference is Mark has upgraded things instead of just replacing, e.g. old knackered radiator - would need replacing anyway, Mark's just put in a full width Ali-sport one which will deliver better cooling for the engine and reduc the risk of overheating. Not a definite requirement for Morocco, but, if you're going to the effort of rebuilding it and you'll get other advantages from the upgrade, makes sense to do it.

You can follow the same principle for everything he's done. What it has resulted in is a very impressive Disco 1! The winch and lift kit and other "off road toys" are things most people have on their vehicles anyway, they're not Morocco specific toys.
 
Guys, no need to justify yourselves, what you have done is an absolute credit to your passions!!! Only wish I was joining you.
 
Guys, no need to justify yourselves, what you have done is an absolute credit to your passions!!! Only wish I was joining you.

well... it turns out a couple of spaces have just opened up on the trip... ;)
 

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