Thread: Series III SWB Soft Top V8 Engine Conversion, Re-Chassis and Modifications

Very impressive looking vehicle.
With that front cross member moved forward there is enough room to hold a barn dance between the front of the donk and the radiator.
That had brake conversion looks so simple and functional.


Cheers, Mick.

Originally Posted by mick88

Very impressive looking vehicle.
With that front cross member moved forward there is enough room to hold a barn dance between the front of the donk and the radiator.
That had brake conversion looks so simple and functional.


Cheers, Mick.

The replacement handbrake from X Eng is a fantastic bit of kit. Here:

X Brakes for Land Rover Series 1, 2, 2a, 3

As it says it is 8 kgs lighter than standard, is bolt on and really easy to fit, it holds like you wouldn't believe and it is really easy to clean because, unlike the standard drum brake there is nowhere to trap dirt.

They do them for the other land rovers as well. If I was going to recommend a single simple bolt on mechanical upgrade it would be this. When you put the brake on, the car is going nowhere, unlike the drum brake which never really inspired confidence, especially offroad on a hill when covered in mud and water.

As for the front cross member moving forward - it is great. Not only is it in the correct position to fully brace the power steering but it perfectly supports the radiator in its 'defender' position. And definitely no more skinned and burnt knuckles working down the impossibly small gap between the radiator and the front of the engine.

Your radiator position problems may have been solved by a tie rod as fitted to military Landrovers.

Do I understand you are planning on registering this in Australia? If so, how are you managing the wheel spacers?

John

Originally Posted by JDNSW

Your radiator position problems may have been solved by a tie rod as fitted to military Landrovers.

Do I understand you are planning on registering this in Australia? If so, how are you managing the wheel spacers?

John

Already successfully through the Roadworthy, registered and on the road as per the photos.

I am (painfully) aware of all the things which require 'engineering' over here. Hence my much modified Disco in the UK was a lost cause from an importation point of view simply because of the enormous cost there would have been in getting it all written up and approved. Perversely, if I bought the same car over here and then modified it in the way I have with the same parts, I would probably get away with it without formally going through the modification approvals process. The single completely unacceptable mod on that vehicle would have been the dislocating suspension, but I could probably have solved this by fitting axle check straps for use on road (to prevent the suspension dislocating) which can be unclipped when off road.

Potentially there were a whole host of things on the Series which were probably in a pretty grey area. However because of the way that they have been executed on the new chassis, (which technically could be an issue in itself), they probably weren't seen as too much of an issue, mostly because stock standard Land Rover parts were used. Notably the power steering. I already mentioned that technically the cage should be engineered, but becuase it conforms to the pattern of the original hood sticks it can be presented that it isn't actually a cage, so much as... heavy duty hood sticks. It was however designed and built followng the requred LK code for cages so if it was ever checked over it would be fully compliant.

Similarly the engine swap. I think here I was saved by the fact that the DOT tester seemed to accept that the engine number / description recorded on the UK V5 registration document was a satisfactory starting point for his inspection. Because this document reflected the replacement engine upon importation, it didn't seem to be an issue. You could also get into an argument about the fact that there were a limited number of SWB Stage Is built, so argubably this conversion (and modified front end) is just an upgrade to something which was 'factory'. In any event the problem didn't materialise although I was expecting it.

The disc braked handbrake in place of the drum also technically requires engineering, but it looks so much like it should have been made like that, that it was probably regarded as a factory option.

Bonnet pins also are not allowed unless they are flush and do not protrude. One might reasonalby present that if I hit a pedestrian and he ends up as an additional bonnet ornament, the least of his problems will be a couple of pins protruding by perhaps 10mm. Nevertheless had bought a set of flush fitting pins in case I had to change them over due to a Roadworthy failure item, but apparantly the ones I have are flush enough and were accepted.

The only thing that was however picked up by the DOT tester at the first Roadworthy inspection as a failure item were the changes to the rear bench seat mounts. To solve this and get the thing through the Roadworthy re-test I unbolted the rear seats from the cargo track mounts and got the thing registered as a 2 seater. I am now going through the process of getting the rear seats and seatbelts formally approved through the modification process.

Also not picked up were the front seats despite the fact that the rear seats were. My suspicion here is that DOT testers may have been instructed by the department to turn a blind eye to replacement high back seats providing that the LK codes have been followed in their installation. Personally I am of the opinion that vehicles without proper head support in forward facing seats should be instantly defected until they are upgraded to modern standard high back seats. I am probably going to get a howl of protest stating this on a Series forum but the reality is that low back seats + relatively minor road traffic accident = broken neck and rest of life in wheelchair even if you survive. The same accident with high backed seats results in minor whiplash. My suspicion is that the DOT look the other way on this particular modification, providing it is properly done, specifically because they don't want to get in the way of something which is clearly safety related.

I know that wheel spacers are, according to the rule book, not allowed. The DOT tester did not however have a problem with them. In due course the issue will go away because I will put disc braked defender axles under the car (and get that modification formally engineered).

As I have found, bringing in an older vehicle to Aus is a double edged sword in respect of what are considered 'modifications' here. On the one hand things get picked up (my bench seats) which really are so minor that it is deeply frustrating how much time and effort will be required to now sort them out. On the other, many pre-existing modifications appear to be accepted at the initial Roadworthy, providing, it is obvious that they have been professionally executed using standard parts from other vehicles in the same class.

One way or another the car is successfully through the Roadworthy inspection, registered and on the road.

Originally Posted by JDNSW

Your radiator position problems may have been solved by a tie rod as fitted to military Landrovers.

John

With the benefit of hindsight on that one that seems like very good idea. That is also how my Disco 1 is arranged. Certainly if anyone else wanted to do this engine swap and were adimant about retaining the classic front end, this would be a good way forwards.

It is all done now however and on balance I am pleased with the new front end cosmetically and because of the extra working space created infront of the engine.

Loved reading this through. I have a series 2 SWB that I wish to make into a custom machine like this.

One question re the chassis, did you have to make the modifications for the steering box or could you order it this way?

Rich

Originally Posted by dickyjoe

Loved reading this through. I have a series 2 SWB that I wish to make into a custom machine like this.

One question re the chassis, did you have to make the modifications for the steering box or could you order it this way?

Rich

The chassis was brand new and made by Richards Chassis here:

Richards Chassis

There are two other similar companies in the UK, Designa Chassis and Marshland Chassis, here:

Designa Chassis Specialist Land Rover Chassis and Special Parts Fabricator
Marsland Chassis - Landrover Chassis replacements - Home page

These guys will make stock standard chassis, coil conversion chassis and modifications to suit what you want.

There are others which focus on spaceframe and tubular type variants for racing, but if you want something which ends up looking basically original to even a relatively expert eye, then the first three are your options.

I went with Richards Chassis because when I started talking about the modifications that I wanted they were most proactive in servicing my requests and making suggestions that I might have overlooked, notably the the extra struts to support the rear crossmember.

Anyway the holes to mount the PAS box were built into the chassis from new. The other main changes as previously described were to move the front cross member forward to suport the radiator in the defender position, a defender pattern rear crossmember in terms of holes to make sure that I could bolt up the Douglass Motors rear defender winch bumper (although I also specified that the original PTO hole be retained in case I ever wanted to mount a rear PTO - can't imagine I would but why not have the hole anyway), the unboltable gearbox cross member, inserting the extra struts to strengthen the attachment of the rear cross member onto the chassis rails and removing the battery carrier. On reflection I might have asked them to leave this in place but move it back a bit so that I could carry a third battery, but frankly if I ever get the desire to fit one then welding one in will not be a disaster.

They also stamped up the original VIN in the original position.

Great build!

Quick question regarding the PAS. You say the new chassis is made yo mount the PAS box straight up - what box is it, and how did you do the column from the steering wheel to the box? Any pics or info in that?

Cheers - Gav.

EDIT - found a pic there of the column - what is that off and were the steering shafts modified? If so, how as welding shafts is illegal in Vic and I'm hoping there is a different way.