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2002 Land Rover Defender
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The Project

This 2002 Land Rover Defender arrived at our Carrosserie HQ in November 2023 for a complete new chassis to be fitted, head gasket replaced, corrosion repairs to underside of bodywork plus a general mechanical overhaul to get it back on the road.

Bodywork is the biggest bugbear of Defender ownership. Or, to be accurate, the combination of the bodywork and the separate ladder chassis.

14th December 2023 – New chassis has been installed. New suspension. Head gasket has been replaced. Bodywork repairs to the rear and underside framework.

18th January 2024 – Fully reassembled after new chassis installed, head gasket and suspension replaced, along with fabrication to underside and backend due to corrosion. Just an immobiliser to be fitted and a valet and this will be ready for collection.

The Land Rover was steadily improved following its launch in 1948. Mechanical changes had arrived at a glacial speed since the introduction of the 2¼-litre engine in 1958 and its diesel equivalent in 1961 – and the looks had been little-changed since the Series III of 1971.
 
A sign of things to come appeared in 1979 with the Stage 1 V8, incorporating a detuned Range Rover engine and LT95 gearbox with permanent four-wheel drive: all were on 109in chassis and most were exported.
 
The formation of Land Rover Ltd as a separate company within British Leyland finally meant attention was paid to updating the legend to compete with the plethora of rivals eating into its market.
 
The name ‘Defender’ would be adopted in 1990 to differentiate the original car from the recently introduced Discovery – when launched in 1983-’85 the models were known as the One-Ten, the Ninety and the 127, denoting the different wheelbase options.
 
Visually distinguished by their one-piece windscreens, full-length bonnets, flat fronts and wheelarch flares, under the skin they featured coil-sprung suspension, permanent four-wheel drive, a five-speed ’box, high/low ratios and central diff lock, front disc brakes with a servo, more comfortable seats, wind-up windows, better soundproofing, power steering (an extra at first) and the option of the V8 across the range. All this without any reduction in its superb off-road ability.
 
Pick-up and van bodies, as well as the usual range of specific-purpose versions, continued as purely working vehicles, but the County estate with its luxurious interior – with carpets, even! – was aimed at family transport and its equipment level was regularly updated.
 
The vast array of variants, special editions and upgrades – in 2007, when there was only one engine, there were 27 listed models – means that just about every car you see will have a different spec.
 
If originality matters, try to establish that everything is at least period-correct – but if not, just search for the spec you want and make sure any upgrades have been carried out properly and completely.
 
Rust, especially in the chassis and bulkhead, can be a killer, followed by extreme off-roading, which could have distorted the chassis and damaged the running gear.
 
But at least you won’t need a ramp to get underneath and have a good look – just overalls and a decent torch.
2002 Land Rover Defender | Classic Car Restoration | Carrosserie
Karen Innes
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Friendly, helpful, extremely knowledgeable, patient enough to explain the processes and reasons for doing things and highlighted even more how approachable the team are. They tried to accommodate our needs and requests to get our beloved old riley back on the road as soon as possible despite the ups and downs that were thrown our way and into the teams path! We could not have wished to deal with a more personable company after encountering some other teams that really made a botch of stuff, seemed uncommitted and were not professional at all. Carrosserie as a team were totally the opposite . . would we recommend them ? ABSOLUTELY !!! We would not go anywhere else now, THANK YOU TO Steve, Neil, Graham and Nicola . . Oh and Karen who spilled the beans about the the birthday surprised to my partner (whose car it is ) . but made the experience all the more special when a bottle of wine was presented as well as a treat to Simon for his birthday AND made it all the more worth dealing with the team ! THANK YOU AGAIN !!!
Graeme Phillips
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My car was the subject of some body and paint repairs here in Spring 2024, to address corrosion plus some substandard paintwork. An annual service was also carried out. There was good responsive communications, advice, and attention to detail throughout, to ensure a high quality, durable result, with the final paintwork being indistinguishable from factory finish, and easily better than any franchised dealership repairs. If you are invested in your classic car, want to make it last, with an exemplary finish to be proud of, then you need look no further.
Steve
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I can't recommend Carrosserie highly enough, the service was exemplary from start to finish and the workmanship is second to none. I highly recommend giving the team a call for any work you need doing to your classic car, no matter what it is, you will not be disappointed!
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23rd November 2023

14th December 2023

18th January 2024

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