bugsnwedges
New Member
Hello,
I'm Dan and have been a long time lurker always wanting to own a Land Rover. I have randomly been offered a 1990 90 2.5na diesel, however it has a few possible faults and I just wanted to sound them out to see if its worth buying or not.
The car is very straight and original, has done 197,000 miles but has an ex MOD rebuilt engine (according to the plate on the engine). The chassis has lots of surface rust which has been reported as an advisory on the MOT, and also needs a new rear cross member. I can see that the chassis will need some patching in the next year or two, but I can weld and I’m not looking for a show winner.
The front bulkhead has rust near the vents under the windscreen, however further down seems solid enough. I’m thinking a couple of repair sections for the vents will do the trick.
I’ve driven the vehicle and it drives ok, however there is a whining noise from the transmission when you change up to third and remains there through 4th and 5th as the speed increases. It sounds a bit like the whine you hear when you reverse. Is that normal for a 90? I’ve only ever driven this one so I don’t have a comparison. The clutch feels heavy too. Also, when pulling away, there is what appears to be a transmission shunt/knock. Again, its not a huge, just a knock when letting out the clutch and the drive engages.
The good points are that the car has had lots of the bushes changed underneath on the various tie bars, has new top spring mounts, new lights all round plus 5 new tyres. The bodywork is straight enough (it’s a van) and everything electrical seems to work.
I wasn’t really looking to buy a Land Rover at the moment, however this one has come up and I’ve been invited to do some green laning, so I figured it could be a good first Land Rover to do 2 or 3 thousand miles a year in. The owner wants about 2.5k for it with a new MOT. The garage owner who is MOTing it is a friend of mine who seems to think its in reasonable enough shape for the age/mileage.
Any thoughts or advice would be gratefully received.
Many thanks,
Dan.
I'm Dan and have been a long time lurker always wanting to own a Land Rover. I have randomly been offered a 1990 90 2.5na diesel, however it has a few possible faults and I just wanted to sound them out to see if its worth buying or not.
The car is very straight and original, has done 197,000 miles but has an ex MOD rebuilt engine (according to the plate on the engine). The chassis has lots of surface rust which has been reported as an advisory on the MOT, and also needs a new rear cross member. I can see that the chassis will need some patching in the next year or two, but I can weld and I’m not looking for a show winner.
The front bulkhead has rust near the vents under the windscreen, however further down seems solid enough. I’m thinking a couple of repair sections for the vents will do the trick.
I’ve driven the vehicle and it drives ok, however there is a whining noise from the transmission when you change up to third and remains there through 4th and 5th as the speed increases. It sounds a bit like the whine you hear when you reverse. Is that normal for a 90? I’ve only ever driven this one so I don’t have a comparison. The clutch feels heavy too. Also, when pulling away, there is what appears to be a transmission shunt/knock. Again, its not a huge, just a knock when letting out the clutch and the drive engages.
The good points are that the car has had lots of the bushes changed underneath on the various tie bars, has new top spring mounts, new lights all round plus 5 new tyres. The bodywork is straight enough (it’s a van) and everything electrical seems to work.
I wasn’t really looking to buy a Land Rover at the moment, however this one has come up and I’ve been invited to do some green laning, so I figured it could be a good first Land Rover to do 2 or 3 thousand miles a year in. The owner wants about 2.5k for it with a new MOT. The garage owner who is MOTing it is a friend of mine who seems to think its in reasonable enough shape for the age/mileage.
Any thoughts or advice would be gratefully received.
Many thanks,
Dan.
