Since the xmas break things have slowed down a little due to parts needing to be sourced as well as me stopping to have a bit of a holiday. I have managed to get a few bits and pieces done though so I thought an update was in order.

To start with, all the clutch parts have been sourced locally. I was going to order from Paddocks but the weight of the parts being shipped to NZ plus the risk I might order the wrong bits made it worth paying a premium to buy them in NZ. It has cost me the best part of £200 but for that I have the slave cylinder, master cylinder, new release bearing, new pressure plate, new friction plate plus the flywheel ground back. The master cylinder probably didn’t need to be done but looking at the fluid that was in it plus the condition of the slave cylinder suggested that it would not be long before it failed on me a long way from civilisation. The one part I could not source locally was the flex hose but Paddocks came good with one at the grand price of £3.00, much better than the £28 I had been quoted to get one made locally. All the parts were bought off a local brake and clutch specialist supplier that was good to deal with and also had all the parts sourced and the flywheel machined overnight. I did call Land Rover NZ as you do get some genuine parts at a good price every now and then, but the £1100 quote for just the Clutch kit and not including the master and slave cylinder put me off a little……

Around the same time I also placed a big order from Paddocks for all the engine parts I need to clean it up before putting it into the new chassis. I have decided to replace the rocker cover and sump plus the inlet valley gasket due to leaks and holes plus all the rubber hoses. I also have the rear crankshaft oil seal that I may or may not attempt depending how hard it looks in the manual. I noticed that the small water pump bypass hoses were kinked and not the correct molded parts so these are all being done at the same time too. I am also putting a new water pump, temp sensor and thermostat in to try and avoid any overheating issues in the future. All these parts just turned up so I will be doing another big push this weekend to try and get the engine all sorted and mated to the gearbox and into the new chassis if things go well.

I have also had a visit from a friend who is a professional welder who has sorted out the engine mounts for me. He generally works with stainless so they have been very well attached using his nice big industrial TIG welder and it is a much neater and stronger job than what I could have managed with a hired MIG welder from down the road. It was a bit of a shame having to sand back the galvanizing to get a good weld surface but I have re-sprayed it with galvanizing paint so it should be OK for a while. It is also under the engine so given the leaks that these V8’s seem to have the oil in the area should stop any rust starting anyway.

I have also done a bit more work trying to strip the body down ready to come off the old chassis. One of the last big things to come out is the LPG tanks and they are a bit more of a job than I was expecting. They had been attached under the wings on both sides but the tops of them came into the cabin a little so a lot of silicone has been used to seal between the tanks and the body panels they were through. It took a good hour of cutting, pushing and wriggling everything around before I eventually got one of them free. I still have the other one to do but as that is on the side next to the garage wall it can wait till all the fun engine stuff is finished. I am planning on re-using the LPG setup if at all possible given the V8 thirst but that will be after it is on the road and running as I don’t want it to delay the build.

The last thing that is still in progress is that all the body mounting brackets, fuel tank and a few other random bits and pieces are off being sandblasted ready to be painted and put back together. These should all be ready in the next day or two so that will be added to the list of things for the weekend. I have had pieces acid dipped before to remove rust but they seem to rust so quickly after that process it does not seem worthwhile whereas sandblasted stuff lasts a week before rusting again and has a great surface for the paint to key into.

So, another update will be on the way soon that should involve and engine being put into the new chassis along with the gearbox and the chassis in general being almost finished. I am tempted to say that I am almost half-way but there is still all the fuel lines, electrics , body and interior to go so it might be a while yet before I am driving it down the road.