1991 Range Rover Classic or My Foray Into Madness

en480c4

en480c4

Well-known member
So, as many guessed, the JLR didn't last.  Can't complain about much, though the corrosion issue was not welcome.  But ultimately I just didn't like it enough to justify how much they go for these days.

So, I did something I've always wanted to do.  I found a 1991 RRC about 2 hours away that spent most of it's life out west.  Other than one small spot on the floor, it's incredibly clean, and nothing like what lifetime northeast vehicles look like.  I spoke with the seller, letting him know I was looking for something that could be daily-driven while addressing longer-term mechanical and cosmetic issues, and this seemed like a good candidate.  It only had 115k miles when I picked it up, but at least some of those miles were it being put to good use.  I think it only has two straight body panels, but for those that don't know, all of the RRC panels can be unbolted and replaced.  So I figured I'd go for it, and picked it up in early September.

From the ad:

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Anyway, going in I knew it needed a new rear bumper, new tires and a new cat-back exhaust.  And the interior cosmetics weren't great.  The front seat leather was in rough shape and the carpets were trashed.  Beyond that, I just needed to start pecking away at baseline maintenance.
 
The seller swapped the (ugly) 3-spoke wheels onto it prior to sale.  I knew it going in, but didn't realize how much I hated them!

Stopping at LL Bean in Freeport on the way home.

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I found a great deal on 5 265-75R16 KM3s.  They were already mounted on a set of steel wheels the seller had bought for a Defender project he was moving on from.  I figured it was a good enough deal as a package, and it was convenient, so I threw them on.

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Stock exhausts were backordered, so I ended up going with a stainless steel Magnaflow.  Install was easy, except the flange from the cats had studs, and they of course broke off.  So I had to cut them off and grind them smooth and drill them out.  It's nice, but does have a bit of a drone around 55. 

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I also got the rear bumper and corners replaced.  While everything was off, I was able to clean up and paint the rear section of the frame and cross-member.  I also got the lift gate cleaned up and painted.

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Finally, the vinyl on the D-pillars was all cracked, so I removed them and re-wrapped them in marine vinyl.  They look great, but unfortunately they didn't adhere well.  But short-term it's a big improvement.

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And to get the build up to speed...

As I said above, the interior isn't great.  The front seats are cracked/split.  The carpet is gross.  The center console is broken. Most of the wood trim is rough.  And the dash is pretty chalky and scratched up.  And the exterior is well-used.  Someone definitely wheeled this, and it shows.  There are dents and dings all around, and even more scratches.  I had a long-term plan to get some replacement leather and carpets, and peck away at finding some decent body panels to swap over. 

Well, some craigslist searching to replace those steel wheels found this:

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The sheet metal is straight.  All of the trim is complete, and all the lenses are intact, unlike mine. The interior is in very good shape.  The seller is including the rest of his spare parts, including another set of wheels among many other things.  I got it all for $1,000, which is less than the seats and carpet would've cost to replace.  And the little bits would've cost me tons over the next year.  The only issue is it's a LWB model, so the headliner (which is new) and rear doors won't swap over.  But everything else will, and I can sell everything else I don't need, so I should end up ahead.

I like the ARB up front, but won't be adding a winch any time soon, so I'm thinking I'll swap over the bumper and air dam from the parts rig and clean up the front end while doing everything else.

My only concern is if I stay with the Ardennes Green, I'll have to repaint everything I swap over.  Since it's a metallic, I'm concerned how good a job I can do.  The new donor is black (except the hood), which will be easier to match short-term.  I also like the early '70's Range Rover color Lincoln Green, which is non-metallic, and I could paint the panels as I swap them on.  We'll see how it goes.  I may just change to black short-term with plans for going back to green longer-term.
 
Got the KM3s swapped over. These look soooooo much better than the black steelies. Less backspacing, so they rub on the radius arms at full lock. But a little adjustment of the steering stops should be all it needs.

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I was also able to adjust the ARB, which was drooping a little. It looks much better as well. I was considering going to a factory front bumper and air dam, but am pleased enough with the improvement that I?ll probably keep this setup.
 
So, one of the joys of these are the sunroofs. They leak. There?s no stopping them. The seals are unobtainiam. It?s not a matter of if but when you end up with a wet seat and rust floors. 

The sunroof in mine is not aligned correctly and has tubes of caulking sealing it up. And it still leaks. I have much nicer seats and carpet to go in from the parts rig, but the DS floor is the one spot with rust, primarily from the leaky sunroof.

So I jumped when I saw one of the rarer RRC parts pop up on FB marketplace about an hour away. It?s a short wheelbase roof with no sunroof. Almost all US models had the sunroof. Picked it up today and it?s damn near perfect. Bolts to the body structure with 40+ bolts, but next spring when I pull the headliner, I?ll swap the roof over.

Here it is on the Touareg:

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Looking forward to big changes in the spring!


 
Hard Line Rob said:
I always thought RR were ?aluminium? body?s??
Is the pan steel and the panels alloy?
Click to expand...

All the panels are aluminum hung on a steel structure.

Here?s a bare 2-door:

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The roof only weighs like 40 lbs. it?s pretty crazy.
 
G Beasley said:
X2 and the roof  bolts on?!
Click to expand...

It does! 40+, with captured nuts in the roof. Some people have added adhesive when reattaching and found it helps with rattles and leaks. I?ll probably dry-fit and re-evaluate.

You can see how nice the new roof is, and where the sunroof usually lives on the far end.

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And here?s the underside with the captured nuts.

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The only thing I need to check is the hole layout. The2-door and SWB 4-door have the same size roof, but the holes don?t all line up. So I may have some work if this came from a 2-door. But it?ll still be worth it to eliminate the leaks!
 
en480c4 said:
It does! 40+, with captured nuts in the roof. Some people have added adhesive when reattaching and found it helps with rattles and leaks. I?ll probably dry-fit and re-evaluate.

You can see how nice the new roof is, and where the sunroof usually lives on the far end.

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And here?s the underside with the captured nuts.

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The only thing I need to check is the hole layout. The2-door and SWB 4-door have the same size roof, but the holes don?t all line up. So I may have some work if this came from a 2-door. But it?ll still be worth it to eliminate the leaks!
Click to expand...
Should just be a matter of drilling new holes that line up with the captured nuts.  I would go the extra step of running a tap through the nuts so you do not have issues when you go to install the new roof. 
 
So, my wife had an event to shoot this weekend, so I had some extra time to work on Rover.

Driving it at night was borderline dangerous. Sealed beam halogens did not get the job done. The parts Rover had some Hella H4 housings, so I swapped those over. I also didn?t care for the giant 7? Hella driving lights on the ARB, so I swapped in some 4? KC driving lights. Between the two, visibility is much improved. I didn?t get any pics, but the smaller driving lights look much better.

My seats have covers because they were rough. The leather had split entirely on the DS bottom, and the padding wasn?t far behind. I had planned on reupholstering them, but the seats in the parts Rover were one of the justifications I made for getting it.  The seers aren?t perfect, but they?re much better.  So I tried removing the good seats yesterday afternoon, but there were some issues with the power seat controls so I couldn?t move them to access the rear mounting bolts.

Today I hot wired the seats by tapping 12V from a set of jumper cables and went directly to the pins on the harness under the seat. Worked great!  I was able to get most of the 5mm Allen head bolts out, but a couple on the back of the DD seat did not want to cooperate. A grinder and sawzall to the body-side brackets did the trick. There are still a few quirks to work out with the controls between the ?91 and ?93. I?ll eventually swap over all the interior trim to match the darker leather, but it?s much improved already.

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Now I just need to get some leather conditioner on them to try to extend their life moving forward.
 

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