Landie blues...

[casey]

I'm currently holed up in Puerto Natales in southern Chilean Patagonia, and have recently hatched a plan to purchase an older land rover and drive it home(Oregon, or as far as I get before I give up on keeping it going). Any input on this plan would be welcomed as I currently have no landie specific knowledge(normally work with E30 BMW's). My specific questions are:

Suggestions for models I should look for and models I should try to avoid, and specific things to check out on various models when inspecting? Right now I'm thinking Series III station wagon (not the big 5 door ones but the little SWB ones)

If anybody happens to know of areas in South or Central America farther north(Ecuador, Columbia, Costa Rica, etc.) where there is a surplus of 70's rovers as there is here in Patagonia? The reason behind this question is that I figure my odds of making it home with the rover go up the closer I get to the states before buying it.

Any input welcomed, Thanks!

[O'Brien]

casey -

first off, let me say that i am sure there are loads of other people who have WAY more experience than i do in this area. i have never been to South America, and I have never imported a vehicle into the states. I am attempting to answer your question with my general knowledge of trying to find something you need, using the internet!

from my understanding, Series rovers were quite ubiquitous in costa rica. granted, i know this is quite a bit north of patagonia. however, i was able to turn up quite a few for sale there just by checking craigslist. here is a link to the search i did.

http://costarica.craigslist.org/search/car?query=land+rover&minAsk=min&maxAsk=max&addTwo=

purchasing one there also cuts out several thousand miles of driving, and you're already north of the panama canal to boot. might be something to consider.

I would also look for a series III '88 that is 1973 or older, as it will make it a lot easier to bring into the states. not too sure about Oregon (though im from there) but when earlier researching importing a rover to california myself, it seemed the best route was to bring in something from '73 or older ( no need to smog it). you should check out this link for more info from Oregon DOT

http://www.oregon.gov/ODOT/DMV/vehicle/troocountry.shtml

sounds like you have a fun adventure on your hands!

[Hormel]

Take 2!
Seriously, if you are going to make the drive it you might as well tow an extra 88 behind you. That way when the first dies you can pul a part or just swap around the tow bars and get back under way. Granted this would be much slower route and the vehicles need to be in decent shape.

I would bring in a 109 5dr towing a 88 softop. Both would be IIAs since the resale market is better, especially on the 109.

John

[Terrys]

Get ahold of Jorge Valdes. He's on this board as jvlata. Here's his website: http://www.terraultimaexpeditions.com/expedition
Jorge is from Chile andd runs a great expedition through Patagonia. He will probably know where the good ones are.
My experience is that the further you get from civilization, the less original the truck will be. Necessity, being the mother of invention, has often replaced the original with the 'get by' fix.
A sound S2A (last year was '71) will always fretch more than a S3, and the longer the drive you have to make, the longer the wheelbase you wish you had. 109s are a hot ticket item these days, so you'll never get stuck with a good one.

[IIA Lightweight]

No joke
money in hand beats 3 in the bush.
I keep a fund just for LRs that I HAVE to have, when they come I can act on them.
Good luck
David

[badvibes]

casey-

In addition to the challenge of a vehicle up to the trip is the challenge of route. Is there a route thru the Darien Gap in Panama yet? I thought the Pan-Am highway was still incomplete here. I would definitely read the book you could write after taking on this little jaunt. Maybe one could do the route South to North as far as you can in Colombia, then maybe a ferry to wherever the route could be picked up again in Panama? I don't know maybe a vehicle to do the Southern part, sell it where the road ends, and pick up another vehicle on the Northern side of the gap for that half? I don't even know if there is a ferry service across the gap. Maybe it could transport a vehicle, I have no idea what the costs would be. I have a friend who many years ago drove a Ford Courier pickup down and back to Honduras/Nicauragua to live with his father who ran a school there. 2 wheel drive did fine for that part of the route and would require less maintenance. I don't know if you're set on a Rover or even 4 wheel drive, I'm just spit balling things here.

If a Rover is a definite I'd look for something as new as you can stand model-wise and price-wise. I have a '64 and it's a constantly needy beast. Not always anything major, though at the moment it is with clutch problems, but seems like it's always something. Then I'd try to round up all the spares I could for it, belts, hoses, tires, alternator, fuel pump, filters, fluids. I've had to change a fuel pump out on the drive home from work, not that big a deal because I had a spare in the parts box in the truck. But even in a "big city" like Albuquerque, New Mexico finding a fuel pump at 8:00 on a Sunday morning is going to be a challenge. I can't imagine what one might need on the side of the Pan-Am highway in the middle of the night.

I applaud you for even contemplating an adventure like this. My daring so far has been back roads in New Mexico and Colorado. I aspire to do a trip to Baja next year for a couple of weeks. Best of luck and update us on your progress and plans.

Jeff

[casey]

thanks for all the advice people, keep it coming...

Any recomendations on where the best service manuals/resto. guide/maintenence books specific to SII or III rovers can be found?

[PH4]

When I lived in San Jose, CR, there were a good number of Series running around and I would think that may be your best bet. I would definitely get one as original as possible. There used to be a place in San Jose that I think was named Quatro y Quatro that sold four wheel drive vehicles. You may want to try and contact them.

[tmckeon88]

Casey-

I did a reverse version of that trip, from Alaska to Tierra Del Fuego in a 1969 IIA 88", back in 2000. A few tidbits from that -

-I was strongly advised by the US State Dept. not to drive in Colombia at all, to ship the truck around it. There is no road route from Colombia into Panama, and you are risking kidnapping or worse driving through the countryside in Colombia. You can ship from Quayaquil to Panama City in a container (safest way) but it will run you $2000 or so.

-South American countries may require a vehicle carnet, sort of a passport that guarantees you are not going to sell/dump the car illegally in their country -that can be expensive and tricky to set up. The Canadian Automobile Assc. handles them as well as perhaps some agencies in Argentina. Check into that. It's less of an issue in Central America, but in S. America I know we would not have been allowed into most countries without it. I requires posting a bond for the full value of the car, which is dififcult to manage.

-We had breakdowns, of course, but people were generally helpful and with an older, simpler car like a Series you stand a reasonable chance of getting it fixed, provided it's not too parts-dependent. It's true that Costa Rica has lots of Rovers- they used to make them there - and less so in S. America. If you want a more common vehicle, get a Toyota. One thing I would recommend carrying is spare rear axles, fuel filters and gas cans.

-Email me off the forums if you want more info and good luck -

Tom

[tmckeon88]

[quote=tmckeon88]Casey-

I did a reverse version of that trip, from Alaska to Tierra Del Fuego in a 1969 IIA 88", back in 2000. A few tidbits from that -

-I was strongly advised by the US State Dept. not to drive in Colombia at all, to ship the truck around it. There is no road route from Colombia into Panama, and you are risking kidnapping or worse driving through the countryside in Colombia. You can ship from Quayaquil to Panama City in a container (safest way) but it will run you $2000 or so.

-South American countries may require a vehicle carnet, sort of a passport that guarantees you are not going to sell/dump the car illegally in their country -that can be expensive and tricky to set up. The Canadian Automobile Assc. handles them as well as perhaps some agencies in Argentina. Check into that. It's less of an issue in Central America, but in S. America I know we would not have been allowed into most countries without it. I requires posting a bond for the full value of the car, which is dififcult to manage.

-We had breakdowns, of course, but people were generally helpful and with an older, simpler car like a Series you stand a reasonable chance of getting it fixed, provided it's not too parts-dependent. It's true that Costa Rica has lots of Rovers- they used to make them there - and less so in S. America. If you want a more common vehicle, get a Toyota. One thing I would recommend carrying is spare rear axles, fuel filters and gas cans.

-Email me off the forums if you want more info and good luck -

Tom tmckeon88@hotmail.com