FUTURE PROOF- REBUILD
Future Proof- Replace Anything & Everything To Make As Reliable As Possible
2011 Land Rover Defender 110 Rebuild
On this occasion the Aberdeen Mountain Rescue reached out to us regarding what to do with their fleet of Defenders. They were weighing up whether to fix up and future proof their Classis Defenders versus trading them in and buying new style Defenders.
We put a quote together for them for replacing the diffs, engine, chassis, doors, suspension components, an underseal, upgrade gearbox intermediate shaft, full LED light conversion, replace corroded panels, galvanised side frames, all new window & door seals, new winch bumper along with a winch service, upgrade rear half shafts, rear tub floor repairs and much more.
The Mountain Rescue decided that repairing their Old Defenders to a high standard would be a better way forward for them, and so with their authorisation we took a deposit and set a date for the work to commence. As with all Defender large scale work the job did grow once the vehicle was stripped down for the chassis change. Through regular communication with the customer though we were able to plan the best way forward providing the level of service that the Mountain Rescue wanted whilst keeping as close to the agreed price as possible.
Our Specialist Technician Pete with 36 years of experience spent 412 hours giving this Defender a loving rebuild.
Work completed January 2024
Before- Front end
Before- Drivers side
Before- Drivers side
Before- Rear quarter infill panel
Before- Door hinge screws corroded
Before- Bulkhead & windscreen frame corrosion
Before- Corrosion on crossmember, chassis to body bracket & body bolts.
Before- Threshold panel corroded
Before- Rear work lights
Passenger & rear doors removed
Upper panels lifted off- corrosion found on the cappings underneath.
Corrosion on cappings- customer advised to replace for new galvanised cappings whilst vehicle is stripped down.
Drivers doors removed.
Front end- a lot of parts to remove in order to lift the body off to do this chassis replacement.
Bonnet, windscreen frame, roof & upper rear panels removed.
Corrosion found in the rear tub once rear seats and carpets removed.
Holes caused by corrosion found in rear tub benches.
2nd row seats, rear seats & carpets all removed from interior.
2nd row floor panels removed & front seats removed
Rear lights & tow ball removed.
Snorkel & roll cage removed.
Front wings removed
Body removed from old chassis.
Engine removed from old chassis.
Old chassis
Axles being rebuilt
Rear axle & brakes
Corrosion to rear callipers
Cleaning corrosion off of suspension arms, rebushing.
Axles & suspension components cleaned up and ready for paint.
Suspension components painted.
Differential removed from axle
Differential
Checking front differential
Checking front diff
Checking rear differential
Checking rear diff
Axles painted
New galvanised chassis painted black
Hub painted, new backing plates fitted. Galvanised turrets fitted.
Front suspension painted and fitted.
Axles fitted to chassis
Rear A-frame rebushed and painted. New brake flexi pipes.
Rear axle painted
Heavy duty steering arms fitted
New coil springs & shock absorbers fitted all round.
New rear brake discs, callipers, pads & brake pipes.
New front brakes, Galvanised turrets fitted
New front brake callipers, discs & pads
Rear axle built up and attached to chassis
New engine ready to be built up & fitted.
Building up the new engine
Building up the new engine
Pete is a happy man when he's working on a Defender!
Rear tub rebuilt
Rear tub rebuilt
Rear tub rebuilt
Rear tub in paint booth freshly painted
Rear tub in paint booth freshly painted
Tub & Bulkhead fitted
New engine installed
New side frames installed
Corrosion on bulkhead cleaned off.
Bulkhead primed, ready for paint
Bulkhead freshly painted
Bulkhead painted
Windscreen blocks primed, ready for paint
Optimill door hinges fitted
Passenger door fitted
Drivers front door fitted
Drivers side doors fitted
Roof back on
Tail door fitted
All doors fitted
Passenger side wing fitted
Refitting front roll cage
Both front wings fitted
Radiator & intercooler fitted
LED headlights fitted, headlight surrounds on, side & indicator LED lights fitted.
New winch bumper fitted
Fuel tank fitted
Galvanised fuel filter cover fitted
Roll cage going back on
Roll cage fitted.
Rear LED lights fitted
Roof rack fitted, beacon lights on roof rack fitted, snorkel fitted
Roof rack side lights fitted
New Laser LED lights
Drivers side new wheels & tyres fitted
Passenger side- new wheels & tyres
Tow bar & mud flaps fitted
Almost complete!
Front Laser LED work lights fitted
Winch fitted
All LED lights working
Rear LED work lights fitted