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Heartbeat off buying my first car - a 1977 SIII...

LordDoig

LordDoig

In Third Gear
Hi guys,

I've been reading around these forums quite a bit recently and am very impressed with the enthusiasm of the Land Rover community.

I hope to join this community in the next few days with my purchase of a 1977 88" SIII.

Do you think you guys might be able to give me some pointers on what to look out for before I hand over the cash? I know that getting in about the chassis and bulkhead looking for deterioration is a primary concern but apart from that I'm not sure how to tell whether it's on the brink of death. (I'm not particularly experienced in car maintenance but I'm well aware that I soon will have to be!)

I've seen pictures and shown them to mechanical mates who are convinced it looks immaculate under the bonnet - also the body is in pretty good shape. Apparently it's only got 80k on the clock, is there a way to check this?

I'd be really appreciative of the help guys.

Thanks,

Sean
 
Hi and welcome to the forum. You will indeed find all the help you could possibly need here, I have. I acquired my first Landy last year and have found this site to be most helpful. There are some useful threads in the articles section of this forum specificaly for what to look out for when buying your first landy.

https://www.lrukforums.com/showthre...ndy...What-should-I-look-for-........Part-One.
https://www.lrukforums.com/showthre...look-for........Part-Two-Chassis-and-Bodywork
https://www.lrukforums.com/showthre...ndy-what-to-look-for.......Part-Three-Engines!

Pay attention to the chassis in my limited experience that's what's going to be the most time consuming and expensive to sort.

I know form experience im currently doing a half chassis swap ;)

The maintenance section also has good threads on maintenance (of course).
David
 
:cool: Firstly. welcome to the forum Sean. Buying an old car is always a gamble and an old 'working vehicle' like a Landrover is doubly so...especially if you've no background in maint/repair. If you part with the cash you will for sure ride the roller coaster of emotions shortly afterwards - Joy that you've got a geniune classic car, a piece of motoring history, and despair at the amount of work you have to do to keep it mot able... :rolleyes:

Until you've got a few projects under your belt ignore the mileage on the clock and go on what you see and hear...if it looks and sounds like a dog, it probably is.
With an aged vehicle you can never be sure it's the original clock, and with their workhorse abilities the Landy engine may have been used for hundreds of hours while the rest of the vehicle was stationary...so 'mileage' is largely irrelevant. Whatever, engines, and all their parts can be easily replaced.

How rusty is the chassis ?...particularly the lengthway's parts ... if there's more than
20% rust then walk away... Same with the cross members - They can often be repaired but for a novice project it may get complicated if the cross members are too rusty - Check the outrigger tops too (where the body sits on the chassis), often another rust trap.
Bulkhead..look at and poke(hard) the bottom edges and where it joins the floor...again, if it all begins to fall off, this one isn't the one for you...You can get panels to repair the bulkheads and floor but you need to have a few skills and enough time to do decent repairs...check the top edges of the bulkhead too, either side of the vent flaps, another common area for the rust fairy to visit.
After that, I'd say trust your instincts..what is the seller telling you ? If 'they're all easy repairs mate' then why isn't he doing them, he'd get a better price if he did the easy repairs ...etc etc ...
Don't be afraid to walk away from this one if it feels like too much work, there are plenty of Land rovers out there looking for a loving home that will have less work needed... and if you're like a lot of us Landy owners, it'll only be your 'first' landy anyway .. Plenty more will follow :D
 
As Eraze said , but take a small hammer with you !! Have a good tap over the chassis , rear cross member is an area prone to rot , out riggers. Just give every area you can get to a good hard tap .The owner should not mind , if he has nothing to hide .If he doesnt want you laying underneath tapping away.Then i would walk away , as he may have something to hide!!

Gearbox is another area .Check it goes into all gears , nice and smoothly .Check all the 4 wheel drive gubbings engage as well .These can sieze up if not used .If it has free wheeling hubs, check these engage as well .If you dont know what these are , then has a wee google to see how and what they are .

Make sure there is no excesive smoke on start up , and when out for a drive . See if it smokes a lot when you put your foot down when out on the test drive .

Steering should be raesonable .Remember its a series , so wont be power steering smooth ;).

Check for rot around the footwell area .

Also make sure the aircon works (the flaps open ;):D)

Someone will come along with more things , this is what i was told when i got my first Series .I missed some dodgy areas on the rear cross member , and had to have it replaced . I think i was so smitten that i missed it :D

Lastly , if you do purchase it . Make sure you post up some pics .Then enjoy every moment of driving it :D

All the best ,Mark
 
Hi Sean. It wasn't my first car but it was my first Landy. (Freelander aside...cue discussions!) I bought last year the exact same model and age as you. 1977 Series III 88". Like you, I'm no mechanic and I never intended to be but thanks to the folks on here being genuinely brilliant I have in the space of a year fitted brake drums, shoes and cylinders. Replaced prop shafts, replaced wheel bearings, fitted and repaired lights, retrimmed seats and removed a hardtop roof to go canvas. All of which was never in my mind when I handed over my cash but I'm so glad I did. I have been told, by many more experienced than I that I got a goodun'. I think that is key to the whole thing and I do feel lucky. Thing is, it's nice to know when you pick up your first spanner in anger that this forum and the people behind it are there to help and give Landy specific advice. Not just general advice. The only other thing I've found invaluable which you may not have considered is a copy of the original handbook. If one doesn't come with it, then get one. For nostalgia alone it's great but it's got all the levels, oil types, and basic maintenance in it to at least give you an idea of what things are called and what they do. Enjoy.
 
One of the best bits of advice anybody can give you, is...Take somebody who knows about Land Rovers with you. If you are only used to cars, then its quite a shock to sit in, and drive, a series Landy.

If thats not possible, then reading the above articles will help... Taking a spanner with you to tap the chassis is a good idea..if the seller objects, walk away. You are looking to hear a ring, rather than a thud..A thud equals rot, or filler..or both.

You dont say if it is a petrol or a diesel you are looking at?

Workshop manual is a good idea..even a haynes manual, but I would suggest you get both parts books (parts and optional parts...you'd be surprised what LR consider an 'option'...a heater for example...) as the break down drawings are very useful and of course, the parts numbers are invaluable. Though, again..if you ask here, somebody will always have the part number for you.

In any case, if you do buy it, you'll get a lot of help and advice here. The inmates are all very friendly. Good luck, I hope its the right one for you. (Remember, if its for ye, it'll no go by ye. :D)
 
I will second Big Sandys advice take somebody who know Landrovers with you, there are plenty about.....get a good one or you will be soon put off for life....seen it happen a few times.....if you have never driven one it can be a culture shock.

The body is alloy and tends to be good hiding a very corroded chassis.

Nick.
 
Thanks for all the advice guys.

I bought the beauty! Picking it up on Wednesday so will have the gory details then. Think (and hope) I got a good one.

Sean
 
Congratulations!!! and welcome to the world of Series Land Rovers. The first few months may be a nit tough but it gets easier with time and despite driving series for many years they still bring a smile to my face when driving along. :cool:
 
Nice one....and don't forget to wave to other series drivers.....your one of the clan now!

Let us know how you go on with it.

Nick.
 
So I don't have any pictures yet but she is a beauty however I now have a minor issue...the clutch has gone. I drove her about 150 miles yesterday with no issues until I parked her for 3 hours. When I returned it was very hesitant to select any gear at all but I got it going. This morning however it wouldn't go into any gear at all and the clutch has gone super slack. I also noticed that this morning is the only time I've parked it without finding a puddle of fluid underneath it. The clutch reservoir is also empty.

I'm assuming and hoping this is a simple refill and bleed operation - and obviously attempt to curb the leaking?

Pics tonight.

Sean
 
sean

Master and Slave cylinders, or the hose between the 2, dont bother fitting the supper cheep parts but go for a branded part and should be fine

A
 
You might get away just fitting a slave cylinder, but generally when one goes, the other isn't far behind. Could try it though... Depends on how far you are from a parts supplier, one lot of carriage and all that.

The slave is on the passenger side of the engine, by the front of the gearbox. Its interesting to get at, you'll see it just above the gearbox cross-member. Generally the fluid leaks from the seal on the cylinder, into the flywheel housing and out of the flywheel drain plug.

Bleed it the same as you would the brakes.

Actually, you could refill and bleed it, see how bad it is...give you an idea, and you could check to see if it is the slave or the master cylinder. (master usually leaks down the pedal and into the cab)
 
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