I am considering an offroad project (budget: comfortably under 800 K) in the near future and obviously LR is one of the choices. Recommendations, suggestions, and advice needed for the following two scenarios:
Option 1: Series III (inspired by the Camel trophy) 88 inch wheelbase
- post 80's chassis and (unmodified) body, original diffs and axles
- maybe swap one of the axles with a LR Ninety/One Ten or Defender axle to accomodate disc brakes? (ofcourse this would bring in the question of different diff ratios)
- New suspension
- Engine: First gen Range Rover 3.5 litre V8 (although the ones used in the Camel tropy were straight 4 diesels)
- Other goodies: A reliable winch, roof rack
Pros: uniqueness - you don't see many up to the task, rugged Series IIIs here in Pakistan
Reservations: body rust, a good condition chassis, availability of parts, an all around drum brakes set up, maintenance costs
Option 2: LR Ninety
- Post 1985 chassis and body, original diffs, and axles
- New suspension
- Engine: 200/300 Tdi
- Other goodies: snorkel, winch
Pros: Iconic Defender shape, coil sprung suspension
Reservations: availability of parts, running costs
Of course this is a very generalized overview. When a project is started a million other problems surface. Also since both these hypothetical vehicles are considerably old a lot of TLC will be required to get them road worthy.
Looking forward to your input!
