View full gallery (123)

1984 Land Rover DEFENDER

23 Bids
9:38 PM, 09 Jul 2020Vehicle sold
Sold for

£5,500

Background

*** RESERVE LOWERED ***

Introduced in 1983 and only modestly revised over the years, the Land Rover Defender has rightly earned a place as one of the most influential vehicles of the 21st century. Able to trace its lineage back to the very first post-war Land Rover (and not a lot of squinting is necessary to bridge the seventy-year gap ‘twixt old and new), the Defender might not be the last word in civility but by heck it’s a survivor.

With its permanent four-wheel-drive system, lockable centre differential, live axles at both ends, and long-travel coil suspension, the Defender is as good off the beaten track as it is appalling on it. But no-one cares, because it has levers sprouting out of the floor, a big, bluff front, and only gets better with age; like a certain type of man, the Defender doesn’t age, it matures, and any hard-won patina it gains simply adds to the legend.

Available from the factory as a pickup, van or stationwagon, there are a vast array of companies out there who will turn yours into a motorhome, campervan, mobile crane, tray-back off-roader, or recovery truck. In fact, if you can imagine it, then someone will have built it.

And the latter-day prettification and domestication of what was once a strictly utilitarian truck means that there are plenty of folk out there who can turn yours into the off-road equivalent of a Singer Porsche; tuned engines, gearbox swaps, Bentley-esque interiors, concours-quality resprays, and a full suite of fitted walnut cabinetry for your weapons and booze are just the start; if you can imagine it, it will be on a spec sheet somewhere.

It’s true that some do it with more skill than others - and some have the ethos that they’ll take the cash and to hell with their customers somewhat wayward life choices. Others, however, are fine engineers who use their considerable skills to bring the Defender slap-bang into the 21st century, something Land Rover never managed in period.

Which brings us back to the standard Defender, which finally died in 2012, killed by The Man. Or Euro-sanctioned emissions and passenger safety regulations if you like your conspiracy theories Brexit-shaped. In either case, crude and uncomfortable as it was, we miss the old girl, which is why we’re so pleased to be able to offer you this example as our next auction.

PATINA PICKS: https://picks.getpatina.com/2016/05/land-rover-defender-dies/


  • SALLDHAH7BA219115
  • 179870
  • 200TDI 2.5l
  • Manual
  • Green
  • Black

Background

*** RESERVE LOWERED ***

Introduced in 1983 and only modestly revised over the years, the Land Rover Defender has rightly earned a place as one of the most influential vehicles of the 21st century. Able to trace its lineage back to the very first post-war Land Rover (and not a lot of squinting is necessary to bridge the seventy-year gap ‘twixt old and new), the Defender might not be the last word in civility but by heck it’s a survivor.

With its permanent four-wheel-drive system, lockable centre differential, live axles at both ends, and long-travel coil suspension, the Defender is as good off the beaten track as it is appalling on it. But no-one cares, because it has levers sprouting out of the floor, a big, bluff front, and only gets better with age; like a certain type of man, the Defender doesn’t age, it matures, and any hard-won patina it gains simply adds to the legend.

Available from the factory as a pickup, van or stationwagon, there are a vast array of companies out there who will turn yours into a motorhome, campervan, mobile crane, tray-back off-roader, or recovery truck. In fact, if you can imagine it, then someone will have built it.

And the latter-day prettification and domestication of what was once a strictly utilitarian truck means that there are plenty of folk out there who can turn yours into the off-road equivalent of a Singer Porsche; tuned engines, gearbox swaps, Bentley-esque interiors, concours-quality resprays, and a full suite of fitted walnut cabinetry for your weapons and booze are just the start; if you can imagine it, it will be on a spec sheet somewhere.

It’s true that some do it with more skill than others - and some have the ethos that they’ll take the cash and to hell with their customers somewhat wayward life choices. Others, however, are fine engineers who use their considerable skills to bring the Defender slap-bang into the 21st century, something Land Rover never managed in period.

Which brings us back to the standard Defender, which finally died in 2012, killed by The Man. Or Euro-sanctioned emissions and passenger safety regulations if you like your conspiracy theories Brexit-shaped. In either case, crude and uncomfortable as it was, we miss the old girl, which is why we’re so pleased to be able to offer you this example as our next auction.

PATINA PICKS: https://picks.getpatina.com/2016/05/land-rover-defender-dies/


Overview

First registered on the 28th of September 1984, this Land Rover Defender has been refurbished with a good secondhand chassis and many new mechanical parts. It has also been upgraded with a turbocharged 200TDI engine at some point in its past.

It’s got freshly reupholstered front seats too. Its paper trail is light but the vendor is an independent Land Rover specialist who needs to make some space, so it’s being sold with an incredibly reasonable reserve to compensate. There are some works required to finish the job which we'll come on to shortly.

So, if you haven’t got the six-figures needed for a well-spec’d new Defender - and don’t want to wait for the Ineos Grenadier to reach the market - then (maybe) your time has come…

Exterior

The green bodywork is straight; sure there is the odd mark and ripple, most noticeably on the nearside door which is a bit wibbly and doesn’t align very well, but this is an old working Land Rover and the fit ‘n’ finish is streets ahead of many you’ll see.

And, while many old Land Rovers feature a patchwork of mismatched panels and various shades of paint, this looks to have had a good, thick coat of traditional green applied. There is some orange peel to the finish, plus the odd run, but a decent machine polish should remove the bulk of that and leave a very serviceable and durable finish.

The rear chassis member looks to be strong and neatly finished, while the rear door is straight and unadorned, and many of the original fixing bolts have been replaced with stainless steel cap-head screws.

The tops of the front wings and the sills are protected by chequerplate, while the headlamps sit behind black mesh grilles. The wheelarches are very good black plastic items, which are easy to unscrew and cheap to replace if they get bashed about during your off-road forays.

The white roof and black air-intake grilles, door handles, and mirrors provide a welcome contrast to the solid green coachwork. The bonnet is held down by auxiliary bonnet pins and the front bumper is straight and strong.

Fitted with very good, painted white steel wheels, the fronts are fitted with Nexen Roadian MT tyres, while the rear axle sports a pair of BF Goodrich Mud-Terrain. All have good tread.

Problems, given that it is not pretending to be concours? Well, there appears to be some electrolytic corrosion on the driver’s door window surround, the offside front indicator repeater needs securing, and some of the mounting screws (most notably on the bonnet pins) are rusty.

Interior

The two front seats are way more comfortable than anything Land Rover ever fitted in period having been reupholstered with a kit that includes a faux leather fabric cover to them. Bolstered by a very useful central cubby box, the cabin is as attractive as it is practical.

The carpets are good, and lifting the rubber mats shows solid footwells. The entire roof, both above the two seats and in the rear, has been lined and the dashboard is as durable and spartan as we’ve come to know and love.

The rear load space has been neatly painted and finished but left unfitted; the new owner could either leave it as it is for carrying goods, or fit it out with twin bench seats if they’d like to carry people. Or they could, of course, fit folding bench seats and use it for both.

Work to do includes sorting out the door locks; we don’t have keys for them and the passenger door lock appears to be seized. We also do not believe all the gauges are wired up.

Mechanical

Upgraded with the installation of the venerable 200TDI engine at some point in its past, the Defender goes much better than it ever did in period. The five-speed gearbox works well, and the engine bay is nice and tidy. We’ve driven it and can confirm that it drives as you’d expect, including a little smoke but then they all do that, sir…

The chassis is a good secondhand unit that was stripped down, made good, and then repainted before being built back up. The underside shows plenty of evidence of recent work and expenditure including Terrafirma dampers on both the suspension and steering, a new exhaust, a new fuel tank and lines, and many new bushes and brake pipes.

History

The Defender has been taken for an MOT and has a list of jobs to finish off: front seat belts are poor, inoperative washers, wipers (vendor reports that both were working 6 months ago), indicators, handbrake, ball joints and tracking required and some tyres are aged and split.

Unfortunately it doesn’t have any other paperwork bar the V5 registration document, so potential bidders will need to set their bids based on its current condition rather than being able to rely on a thick wad of paperwork to guide them.

If you’d like to inspect the car prior to placing a bid – something we would encourage – then please use the Contact Seller button to arrange an appointment to come and see it.

Summary

Everyone loves a Defender, and the long-wheelbase 110 adds an element of versatility and usability that can be missing from the short-wheelbase 90 - and while the 200TDI engine might not be the last word in power, it is much more refined than the unit is replaced.

And, the need for some finishing means that this could well be a bit of a bargain for the canny DIYer; with a guide price of £7,500 to £10,000 it’s unlikely that the winning bidder will lose money in the long-term.

Viewing is always encouraged, and this particular car is located with us at The Market HQ near Abingdon; to arrange an appointment please use the Contact Seller button at the top of the listing. Feel free to ask any questions or make observations in the comments section below, or try our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.

About this auction

Seller

Private: twiggy1664

Viewings Welcome

Viewing is strongly encouraged, and is strictly by appointment. To book one in the diary, please get in contact.

preview-9B7DE2F2-52CA-48F6-AC92-CB3FDE14B94E.jpg?optimizer=image&width=650&quality=90&format=jpg image

Thinking of selling your Land Rover