90, 110 or Defender basket case for hybrid

[Muttley]

Hi folks,

I'm sat looking at a very sad and folorn 3.5Efi RR with terminal body rot, all the oily bits are in superb nick as is the chassis, I was going to break it and scrap the remainder BUT got to thinking the other week that it would be a shame to do this and a 100" hybrid isn't a great leap of the imagination, so I'm on the hunt for a Nintey or One Ten or a Defender 90 or 110 basket case. Mechanicals and chassis can be shot to heck and back or none existant body panels whatever. Hardtop in preference but I'll take what I can get.

No great urgency... just a plan forming WHY??

[Muttley]

to continue...
No great urgency... just a cunning plan forming, exact build spec depends on the pile of body bits I manage to accumulate, the other tought is to re-body it as a 3 door Disco. Intended use is eventually to get it out and about as a hill rally/comp motor and general "get it muddy" motor but the guiding philosophy behind the build is it must be done on the cheap (apart from the safety kit of course). It don't have to look pretty either...

I am of course aware that I'm making it sound far too easy and that there will be a heck of a lot of fabrication involved as well but I have access to all the usual metal munching and glueing toys as well as somewhere to put it all together.

[Sandy M.]

Gav, I was sat looking at my S1 project last week, chassis and mechanicals shot to blazes and back, but the bodywork was reasonably sound. I even went and looked at a Disco earlier in the week with the thought of buying that and running it for a year and then using the chassis as the basis for a 100inch, S1, Tdi, Safari, Toy thingy.
The plan was to fabricate summat resembling a bulkhead from new roll cage style tubing ;);) fit wings bonnet and grille forwards of new bulkhead with two bucket seats in the appropriate place to the rear. Remove rear body panels and tailgate from S1 tub and bolt to shiny new Defender rear cross member. Buy large sheet of ally, cut and bend to suit, then use that to fill the gap between the body panels. The hardtop would naturally lend itself to the trendy style of King Cab chopping that is all the rage [Well in Fife anyways ;);)]

Sadly the project never came to fruition as Mrs M politely pointed out that the Tomcat currently eats a lot of time, money and garage space [spannering on the driveway ist verboten :(].

So here I am back to dreaming about how to dispose of a scruffy but usable S1 body without taking it to the scrappies [despite the rise in the cost of aluminium]..........

[V8_Disco]

The disco option would be easyist, but they do rot out

[Muttley]

Oooooo,

Sandy.... S1 100" V8 Hybrid.... hmmm tempting.... :D very very tempting...

Ahh the thrill of the open road... mud and flies in your face... hmmmm never really considered using a series vehicle...

What EXACTLY is it that you have lurking.... ;) Why is Mrs Muttley reaching for the meat cleaver.

[Sandy M.]

It's one of these, or rather it was. It is now the worlds biggest Airfix Kit stashed about the garden :p

PS, the doors were stashed in the loadbay as there is not much of a bulkhead to hang them from

[Muttley]

Sandy,

Surely this vehicle would be better off as a full ground up restoration back to it's original spec rather than butchering it for a hybrid - as cool as such a beastie would look though :D.

My thoughts would be to re-build the bulkhead (if it still exists!) but mod the transmission area to take the auto box. Apparently S1 bulkheads are "relatively" straightforward to DIY repair (lot of stock steelwork rather than special pressings used in their construction) you just need a lot of patience to put it all together.

IF and I stress IF I'd did decide to head the route of a S1 hybrid I'd try and keep the body panels as original as possible. Another thought is to find an 88" chassis in decent nick and transfer all the RR gubbins into that butchering and modding the chassis to suit... but thinking about this as I write this is a major undertaking, what I'd be better off doing is to "cut" the RR chassis down to an 88" wheelbase.. or is that S1 of yours an 86" ???? and have the RR props modified to suit.

I've no worries about cutting a chassis down then welding, done properly and coupled with an internal roll cage it will actually be stronger than the original....

Dammit Sandy!:confused: You shouldn't have sent the picture... I can picture it in Bronze green, looking all meek and vintage, with this very evil burble coming from the exhaust... (the RR I've got has a full stainless performance system and tubular sports manifolds ;)) Get thee behind me tempter! :p

[Sandy M.]

Sandy,

Surely this vehicle would be better off as a full ground up restoration back to it's original spec rather than butchering it for a hybrid - as cool as such a beastie would look though :D.

That was my thoughts 4 years ago, however the chassis is Fubar'd, the bulkhead is non existent and the non original engine is seized. To repair / restore it would require too much expenditure on new parts for me to consider it an original vehicle (for my personal taste anyway).


IF and I stress IF I'd did decide to head the route of a S1 hybrid I'd try and keep the body panels as original as possible. Another thought is to find an 88" chassis in decent nick and transfer all the RR gubbins into that butchering and modding the chassis to suit... but thinking about this as I write this is a major undertaking, what I'd be better off doing is to "cut" the RR chassis down to an 88" wheelbase.. or is that S1 of yours an 86" ???? and have the RR props modified to suit.

Yup it is an 86", however by lengthening the rear body to suit a 100" chassis, you get a more stable platform for the Compy stuff, AND you can have the engine and gearboxes mounted as far back as you dare ;);). There is also the cosideration that the rear body is nowt more than a couple of sheets of bent alloy, which you would have to cut to fit a cage, tank, vertical shocks ;);) etc, etc - what difference does it make how old that alloy is, or how long they are??

I've no worries about cutting a chassis down then welding, done properly and coupled with an internal roll cage it will actually be stronger than the original....

My thoughts exactly

Dammit Sandy!:confused: You shouldn't have sent the picture... I can picture it in Bronze green, looking all meek and vintage, with this very evil burble coming from the exhaust... (the RR I've got has a full stainless performance system and tubular sports manifolds ;)) Get thee behind me tempter! :p

I had visions of a more rattly exhaust note with a hint of whistle to it, coupled to a vague chip shop type smell :D. Stop dreaming, get yersel up here with a trailer, load up the bits and get working

[Muttley]

That was my thoughts 4 years ago, however the chassis is Fubar'd, the bulkhead is non existent and the non original engine is seized. To repair / restore it would require too much expenditure on new parts for me to consider it an original vehicle (for my personal taste anyway).

I was heading towards that conclusion anyway...


Yup it is an 86", however by lengthening the rear body to suit a 100" chassis, you get a more stable platform for the Compy stuff, AND you can have the engine and gearboxes mounted as far back as you dare ;);). There is also the cosideration that the rear body is nowt more than a couple of sheets of bent alloy, which you would have to cut to fit a cage, tank, vertical shocks ;);) etc, etc - what difference does it make how old that alloy is, or how long they are??


Hmmm 86" would make for an awwwfully short rear propshaft... (heck so does 88") and I will acknowledge that 100" is a LOT more stable at speed. Having sat beside Jim both in his 88" 3M and the 100" SuggBugg for the Perthshire this is one of those cases where length does count ;). Never thought about vertical rear shocks but thinking about it that isn't that hard to acheive is it?


I had visions of a more rattly exhaust note with a hint of whistle to it, coupled to a vague chip shop type smell :D. Stop dreaming, get yersel up here with a trailer, load up the bits and get working

Nope deffo V8 for this one, the next one however will be spaceframed with more fibreglass and kevlar than you can shake your fist at and it will heave either that V6 howl with the whistles OR the off beat five cylinder grumble with the whistles both with eau de la chippy with nuances of propane... i.e. its going to be wildcat shaped running a TD5 or the Disco3/Jag V6 bi-turbo with LPG injection.... I can but dream :p


Mrs Muttley has said I have to get rid of the Scab before anything appears which I have interpreted as grudging approval... :D

[Sandy M.]

Hmmm 86" would make for an awwwfully short rear propshaft...

Works well enough in The Singing Kettle :D [4.2, auto, 86"]
<<<<<

[Sandy M.]

Mrs Muttley has said I have to get rid of the Scab before anything appears which I have interpreted as grudging approval... :D

Once the scab disappears, [and the Rad gets replaced], are you interested in the panels, or shall I take them to meet the rest of the chassis and drivetrain?

[Muttley]

Once the scab disappears, [and the Rad gets replaced], are you interested in the panels, or shall I take them to meet the rest of the chassis and drivetrain?


Scab went west last night for 100 Nicker! BIG HOLE on Drive now :hugegrin:

Your panels have a new home matey.... just once I fix the big 'ole in the rad that has appeared in the Disco.:Rant:

I will be up at the little "do" in Perthshire this weekend, catch up with you there??

[Sandy M.]

Scab went west last night for 100 Nicker! BIG HOLE on Drive now :hugegrin:

You wiz robbed Pal :eek: !!!

Just got 150 for the [non] rolling chassis, seized engine, and rusty axles :):)

See you at signing on, bright and early on Friday.

[Muttley]

You wiz robbed Pal :eek: !!!

Just got 150 for the [non] rolling chassis, seized engine, and rusty axles :):)

See you at signing on, bright and early on Friday.


No you won't you will see me on Saturday ... sometime (ish) some of us have to work... nah should be up fairly early on Sat morn.