Land Rovers waiting to be rescued - the hunt is on - post photos

[Bostonian1976]

to make you feel better, kwd - things will *always* be falling off of your Rover

I towed my blue one home and my passenger side rotted window fell off (luckily onto the trailer with no breakage!)

looks like a complete station wagon with rare-ish jump seats in the back - that's going to be a great truck when done!! congrats!

[kwd509]

additional photos East Tennessee

A couple more
rover on our arrival, being loaded, and a closeup of corroded weld on driver side door post.

I'm sure there are unexpected and exciting developments to come.

[kwd509]

Able to load photos of East Tennessee

Not sure why previously photos wouldnt load, but success this time. Yesterday, covered 500 miles, headed north. A quick update...
realize now that i managed to get poison ivy (lurking amidst the other weeds- unseen until the rover was moved), all over right arm - a small but uncomfortable price to pay.

IN the last day assessment of rover continues........ frame does look good even under closer inspection..... Left/driver side wheel well seems weak spot with a 1 inch hole just below the accelerator pedal. Great disappointment. Also aforementioned corroded box in left wheel well..... see attached photo- I think it is the steering box cover......corrosion still seems treatable

In our excitement on learning the engine was not seized, we deferred adding mystery oil to the pistons. Now on reflection, the hand cranking of the engine seems too easy (compared to what I remember with high compression diesel). I have the oil with me, and we still have a couple days drive..... perhaps the rings are stuck? It has been suggested that I go ahead an add the oil now. My son and I are increasingly focused on getting it running and so the unresolved status of the engine remains a concern......... any thoughts?

Lastly, I hadn't expected it (but should have). Road vibrations as we cruise up interstate 81 have their own consequence. Parts of door trim, already weakened by ravages of time are just falling off. And when I closed right door yesterday the rivets of the window lock gave way and it fell off. Funny in a way but also sad and I hope it is not a foreshadowing of things to come. I suppose anything that breaks in transit needed to break.

Will post one more message to include 3 more photos but end now with an email received from my brother, who previously derided the recovery of the vehicle as a complete folly.

" Am I very moved by your experience............ The sight of Charlie, and Fred, and you guys all nestled next to the legendary Rover is almost too much to bear. That you have gone and resurrected it, and that it can live again; what a story,,,,,, if only Dad and Mom were alive to see those photos..........."

It has been a heck of a trip. The recovery of the rover is increasingly an intersection of mechanics and sentimentality.

[NickDawson]

wow great post KWD509! Looking forward to following the progress!

[Bostonian1976]

This is a great story - thanks for sharing! It'll be great to see the pictures when you can

[kwd509]

2a from east Tennessee

Saturday afternoon we arrived at my very dilapidated childhood home. My father's rover was in a pasture where it has been for at least 23 years. In planning to get the vehicle I had anticipated, all sorts of problems. I am a newbie to auto repair and restoration so it was difficult for me to know what concern was realistic and which was unlikely. Accordingly, I had planned for lots of difficulties. None of them materialized. The transmission briefly resisted moving to neutral, but that was not problem because the transfer case shifted to neutral easily. And, with a little wd 40 around the base of the gear shift it loosened up a few minutes later. So that first step went really well. I found the hand crank for the engine and thought I would go ahead and give it a try. To my great surprise the thing turned ] easily with the fan belt and fan clearly rotating. I had planned to just assess the situation on Saturday and then load the vehicle on Sunday but it went more quickly. Wit the engine determined not to be seized we skipped adding mystery oil to the pistons for the moment
(Question, with engine turning freely is there still benefit to adding the mystery oil?).

........the crankcase oil was a beautiful golden color- I suspect there must be a ton of sediment in the oil pan.

When a friend/mechanic arrived unexpectedly on his motorcycle we decided to load it immediately( he had been scheduled to arrive the following am). We were able to get the truck and trailer into the pasture, which made the process much easier. Once it was lined up to the ramps All wheels rolled, so even that was not a problem.......The tires had sunk about 8" into the soil.......it took a little time to winch it on and as we winched the tires began to give up the ghost. I wouldn't say they have disintegrated, but they are clearly headed in that direction.

All the contingencies were unnecessary. From start to finish, we took less than 2.5 hrs to get the truck loaded.

My son and I are elated. ....... (though there were also the emotions associated with seeing the neglected homestead and the vehicle after all these years and in recognizing the many years that have passed). Family members who thought this was a wacky idea have been swept up in the adventure as they see the email photos.

I haven't given the frame a complete examination because the truck was resting in a bed of poison ivy sprouts. But the rust on the frame seems quite superficial. Rust on the firewall and footwells seems a little more involved but that is not too bad and for the most part I think it seems a tad worse because the metal itself is so much less substantial. I've found no holes in the bulkhead.

As for confirmed corrosion, there is a sheetmetal shield in the driverside wheelwell that is rusted away. It seems like it covers a steering column component. One dimple on the driver side doorpost seems to be opening up where there was a weld- adjacent to the air vents........, otherwise the structure seems quite solid. That is all pretty good news.

The truck will soon it will be in VT.
I am ever more confident that the engine can be brought back to life without too much trouble. And so that brings me head on to the reality that getting the thing operational, roadworthy and/or to the point that it will be fun to drive will take a tremendous amount of work............ I have a few days to ponder that as we drive north.

Tried to load photos, but having some difficulty and will try again when I have a better internet connection.
Thanks agains for your help and encouragement. It has been a heck of a trip.

[Triumphdaytona2007]

Agreed. I went to look at three tr6's last weekend. Well, three piles of rust that used to be tr6's that is. The guy had finally decided that he'd never restore any of them, and wanted $3500 for the lot. He'd actually gotten one running, but it was totally unsafe to drive. First bunp you hit and the car would fall into peices around you. The other two were basically just drivetrains with crap around them I'd have to remove to sell. He was insulted at my offer to take them away for $1500. One car was an overdrive which was the only reason I went that high. If he'd covered the cars, or sold them 10 years ago they'd of been a steal at $3500. Now they're junk.

a tr6 would be nice i had a tr7 for awhile and it was awesome

[thixon]

I'll never understand the mentality of some of these people who have old classic vehicles sitting and rusting away. On one hand they either don't want to sell them or they want 10 x market value and on the other hand they don't even take the simplest step to protect the vehicle from the elements. I mean, get a cheap tarp or even pour used motor oil over the thing. It's beyond me.

Agreed. I went to look at three tr6's last weekend. Well, three piles of rust that used to be tr6's that is. The guy had finally decided that he'd never restore any of them, and wanted $3500 for the lot. He'd actually gotten one running, but it was totally unsafe to drive. First bunp you hit and the car would fall into peices around you. The other two were basically just drivetrains with crap around them I'd have to remove to sell. He was insulted at my offer to take them away for $1500. One car was an overdrive which was the only reason I went that high. If he'd covered the cars, or sold them 10 years ago they'd of been a steal at $3500. Now they're junk.

[kevkon]

I'll never understand the mentality of some of these people who have old classic vehicles sitting and rusting away. On one hand they either don't want to sell them or they want 10 x market value and on the other hand they don't even take the simplest step to protect the vehicle from the elements. I mean, get a cheap tarp or even pour used motor oil over the thing. It's beyond me.

[Tim Smith]

To me, that truck is hard to figure mainly because of that silly light rack on the front. Not sure what whoever was thinking and it is kind of scary to think what else might have been done. Otherwise it doesn't look too molested so that could give you a reference to start with. Since it's not running, you would really have to guess what it would take to make it run and the truck you want, and at market value.

To me? $500 tops. That really is because of the rot showing on and under the hood. I'm guessing it didn't stop there and since I wouldn't really want to do the work to get it right, that would be my cut off with my arm twisted.

However if I was roverless, and this truck had a decent frame and ran...

[Triumphdaytona2007]

im not sure what it was really worth, the windshields had cracks in them, the frame didnt have much rust on it compared to others ive seen, the interior looked in decent cleanable shape, the motor didnt run, but it wasnt stuck it turned over, it had a title, overall it looked nice, he said it had only been sitting 6 months, looked a little longer than that though

[mongoswede]

So what is a dilapidated rover such as this worth?..... or better what would the range be given what we can't see in the photos?

Well it depends on what shape its in. I paid $2500 for a 71 series 3 88" rover with a bad frame and bulkhead but a bunch of spare parts. it ran and drove and it came with a series IIA breakfast, a spare windshield frame, a Disco rolling chassis with brand new 33" BFG mud terrains, and a bunch of other odds and ends.

The one mentioned here might be worth $1500..but all depends on what is saveable and what is junk. If it is 100% solid and just really dirty...then it could be worth $4000...its just not likely that that is the case.

[kwd509]

Anyone care to guess?

So what is a dilapidated rover such as this worth?..... or better what would the range be given what we can't see in the photos?

[Triumphdaytona2007]

ya there are a few people like that around here where i live, they think there old land rovers are worth a fortune, i guess thats because you rarely ever see one, i didnt think it was worth anywhere near that much but i wish i would have traded my old ford for it, it definately had potential

[mongoswede]

lol nah it was an old 1976 ford that had been lifted and redone, it was only worth about 1500 but he wanted to trade anyways, but we couldnt get together at the same time, i still have his number if anyones interested in it he said he could sell it for 4000 or 5000 on ebay, so i assume thats how much he wants for it

ha another one that thinks Land Rovers are just dripping with liquid gold. Good luck getting that much for it on ebay.