Hi

I've bought a well looked after 10-year old defender 110 that I'd like to get a couple of things done on and some general cosmetic mods to make it look slightly less like Lara Croft's drug dealer's car and more like a family wagon. Does anyone have any recommendations for a specialist in the Bucks/Beds/Northants area?

Thanks

Yokel

A bit more info might be useful!
Is it a CSW, Hard Top, HiCap, Open/Rag Top, or what?

Oldseadog said:

A bit more info might be useful!
Is it a CSW, Hard Top, HiCap, Open/Rag Top, or what?

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Not sure on how the lid matters.

ER1C said:

Not sure on how the lid matters.

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Depends what he wants to do with it, and how much he wants to spend.
It's always good to know what the starting point is don't you think?

Sorry, I didn't realise the model was important. It's a Puma-engined 2007 7-seater. A previous owner has added chequerplating, rock/tree sliders, blacked-out windows in the rear and I think the suspension has been raised a little. It has been gently used and the mods were just for show.

I wanted someone to look over the engine which blows a bit of smoke under hard acceleration and the cosmetic mods I'm definitely considering at the moment are gentle - maybe remove the blackout windows, add a heated front screen, sort out the woeful washer jets, replace the rear work lights and added front spots with something less "urban". Possibly look at what could be done to winterise, add storage, make the suspension more road-focussed. Open to suggestions, really, which is why I was after a specialist with a real feel for Defenders rather than a bog standard garage.

You can do most jobs on a fender.
Screen washers. Take the vent & top of the dash off.less than 15 self rappers. Remove the 1 washer move across & add 1 other so you have double jets.

Check your screen in each corner & look for a metal tab. This means heated screen. Some are fitted to these as standard.
Good luck & happy spannering

If you want the suspension to be more road focused, revert to standard suspension - standard shocks, springs, anything else that has been used to create the lift. Puma in standard trim is probably the most road focused defender LR ever produced. Smoke on hard acceleration could be caused by a number of things ranging from worn engine to just needing a good service, and possibly overhaul / cleaning of the EGR system. I would recommend getting a diagnostics done (invest in a quality diagnostics tool such as nanocom it will pay for itself in the long run) and get hold of a workshop manual (Haynes do one, genuine LR item can be found on t'interweb and ebay on disc). Diagnostics will get you focused on what needs doing service wise rather than spending loads of time and money on things that might already be ok. Despite the modern electronics used to manage the engine they are still relatively simple to work on and dead easy to service, provided you do invest in learning and building on your knowledge.

I have used this garage and I think that there good real good fair prices and a good job.

https://ampthillmotcentre.co.uk/