Newly Purchased MY15 110 - trip home from Dubbo

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Originally Posted by alan48

Hi Col,
agree re Expo--had a lot of fun and enjoyed the motorkhana events on the Sat too--hope more next time. Re centre cubby box which some find too low, as mentioned if you want to go E box ok but we simply made a second opening box on the top using the original lid and had it trimmed to match--so now a top and bottom opening compartment and super arm rest--so much nicer to drive and if done properly will not interfere with gear stick--ours trimmed by Liam's Trim in Wilberforce.

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Hi Alan - thanks - would be nice to catch up in the Hawkesbury when you have some spare time. Would be good to take a look - sounds like a nice mod for a arm rest.

We are having some fun with the cavenous centre console - I reckon things will get lost down there. I thought I lost my wallet at the Expo - my black wallet was found down in the depths of the centre console.

Cheers,
Col.

Col,
I bent up some 20mm square thin walled tube and welded on some mounting brackets. Using existing bolt points, I mounted the frame to the inner guard. To this frame I mounted insertion rubber sheet which I mounted with nutserts so I could remove it easily for repair.

The rubber sheet stops stones hitting the inner guard metal directly. The rubber sheet drops straight down at the back so that stops rocks and stones entering the void behind the wheel where they can bounce off the chassis and into the side panels causing dents.

It is not too difficult to do but a bit fiddly. I did not want to make the assembly too heavy as I suspect over time a heavy assembly could cause stress cracking to the mounting points. I did not drill any holes or alter any panel work to fit my guard protectors. They do make a big difference and I don't have to worry about the noise created by wet road spray or stones causing damage.

For the time being, for the forward section of the guard, I used some self adhesive under bonnet sound deadener which is about 10mm thick. Stones are less likely to hit the forward section but it still happens. When I get time I am going to fabricate a frame to mount some more insertion rubber to the forward section.

I don't intend to fit oversize tyres so fouling should not be an issue. I have made sure that the bent frame cannot come into contact with the tyre at full flex just in case. I have tried to make it so it is strong enough to do the job but not too solid such that it will bend first and not cause panel damage should a branch lodge or be forced up into the wheel well catching the frame.

Depending upon the tyre type and brand, stones being launched into the guard might be less of a problem but with the Continental tyres supplied on my vehicle, stones are a real problem.

Don't forget to protect the bare metal of the bulkhead rear of the front wheels either as this is also prone to damage and will start to rust once the paint is damaged. Insertion rubber will do the job here as well.

Attachment 99942

Attachment 99943

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Originally Posted by 4wheeler

Col,
I bent up some 20mm square thin walled tube and welded on some mounting brackets. Using existing bolt points, I mounted the frame to the inner guard. To this frame I mounted insertion rubber sheet which I mounted with nutserts so I could remove it easily for repair.

The rubber sheet stops stones hitting the inner guard metal directly. The rubber sheet drops straight down at the back so that stops rocks and stones entering the void behind the wheel where they can bounce off the chassis and into the side panels causing dents.

It is not too difficult to do but a bit fiddly. I did not want to make the assembly too heavy as I suspect over time a heavy assembly could cause stress cracking to the mounting points. I did not drill any holes or alter any panel work to fit my guard protectors. They do make a big difference and I don't have to worry about the noise created by wet road spray or stones causing damage.

For the time being, for the forward section of the guard, I used some self adhesive under bonnet sound deadener which is about 10mm thick. Stones are less likely to hit the forward section but it still happens. When I get time I am going to fabricate a frame to mount some more insertion rubber to the forward section.

I don't intend to fit oversize tyres so fouling should not be an issue. I have made sure that the bent frame cannot come into contact with the tyre at full flex just in case. I have tried to make it so it is strong enough to do the job but not too solid such that it will bend first and not cause panel damage should a branch lodge or be forced up into the wheel well catching the frame.

Depending upon the tyre type and brand, stones being launched into the guard might be less of a problem but with the Continental tyres supplied on my vehicle, stones are a real problem.

Don't forget to protect the bare metal of the bulkhead rear of the front wheels either as this is also prone to damage and will start to rust once the paint is damaged. Insertion rubber will do the job here as well.

Attachment 99942

Attachment 99943

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Thanks - so helpful and interesting read - I appreciate your time to post all the information!
Cheers,
Col.

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Originally Posted by 4wheeler

Col,
The other thing to do for a new Defender in my opinion is to get the tools out and tighten every nut and bolt which you can get to. From my experience there are generally a few which are not tightened correctly.
I did this on my 2007 Defender which had quite a number of loose items and I found there were missing floor panel screws. I thought I tightened most bolts and screws on my 2013 Defender but today while filling up I noticed a slight gap between a bolt head and lower rear door mount. When I went to tighten it up I discovered there was no nut on the bolt and probably never had been. I have also found that behind the rear side window trim on both sides, mount bolts had been put into recesses but no nuts had been fitted! The Defender has the structural integrity of a tissue box so leaving nuts off securing bolts holding the side panels to the body did not impress me much. You might well find a few spares floating around as well from the build process.

My 2013 Defender seems to have been put together better than my 2007 Defender.

The other thing I do is to paint clear coat onto exposed Torx bolt heads as this keeps them looking like new and slow the weathering of the heads.

I made some inner rear wheel arch spats to stop stone and rock damage to the vulnerable aluminium inner arch and rear side panels as panels will dent from the inside out. That sort of damage will really show up with your deep red colour. Protect it before the damage occurs.

Some might think all of what I do is overkill, but each to their own.

Good luck with your impressive looking purchase.

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If you have a good dealer tightening everything is part of the first service,they let the vehicle do some miles which settles everything in and then they go back over it. Pat

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Originally Posted by cuppabillytea

Hi pat. I've been swanning around at the Expo and haven't been keeping a close eye on this thread. My question is what about the Axil Splines? do they flog out as well?
Cheers, Billy.

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Absolutely,thats why I recommend doing them straight away,if you leave it both the axles and the flanges flog out,spend the money up front and your good as gold. Pat

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Originally Posted by PAT303

Absolutely,thats why I recommend doing them straight away,if you leave it both the axles and the flanges flog out,spend the money up front and your good as gold. Pat

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Thanks Pat I'll get on with that post haste.

Don't forget to put a ''blob'' of grease in the cap,once you've done the flanges go your hardest,they don't like being babied. Pat

What I usually do with splines is give them good dose of MoS2 motorcycle chain lube then a bit of MoS2 grease in the cap. Good or bad?

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Originally Posted by 4wheeler

Col,
I bent up some 20mm square thin walled tube and welded on some mounting brackets. Using existing bolt points, I mounted the frame to the inner guard. To this frame I mounted insertion rubber sheet which I mounted with nutserts so I could remove it easily for repair.

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That looks like a great solution to a problem I hadn't considered (I won't be taking delivery of my car for a while yet). In lacking both the tools and the talent to fabricate something like that myself, do you know of any off the shelf products that have been developed to achieve the same protection?

Are stones an issue for every day tarmac driving?

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Originally Posted by Andrew86

That looks like a great solution to a problem I hadn't considered (I won't be taking delivery of my car for a while yet). In lacking both the tools and the talent to fabricate something like that myself, do you know of any off the shelf products that have been developed to achieve the same protection?

Are stones an issue for every day tarmac driving?

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I don't know of any off the shelf product unfortunately. My solution is probably a little complex. Others have used coating products to do a similar job which helps a little. I wanted to stop objects hitting the metal as I am a bit OCD when it comes to panel damage no matter how minor.

The other problem is that the 2007 pattern was different to the 2013 frame due to different bolt locations between the two.

You will always pick up some stones on tarmac but is mainly a problem on dirt roads. It also depends on tyre type. You will soon hear objects and road spray hitting the inner guards so once you get your new truck see what you think. It might not worry you too much. You might be lucky and never get any damage. It is just something I noticed on my first Defender and did not want it to get damaged too much.