TAH-TAH FORD - Rackspace Hosting

So You Want To Buy a Defender
So you want to buy a Defender? Join the club – it’s a rare Land Rover
enthusiast who does not covet one of the NAS Land Rovers.
You don’t have a lot of choice. Officially, only two models made
it into the North American market. The Defender 110 made a huge
splash in 1993 when the uniquely numbered and specially-kitted-out
examples were imported into the US and Canada. With their “safari”
cages and stark white paint, they were instantly identifiable and
helped reestablish the Land Rover image for new enthusiasts. The
Defender 90 that followed between 1994 –1997, whether in unique
soft top or station wagon mode, became the off-roader’s car of
choice.
Regardless of the engine [3.9 or 4.0 liters] or transmission
[LT77 or R380, or ZF automatic] choice, the brilliant drivetrain and
suspension design assured you of extraordinary off road capability
and safe interstate driving. Whether you score a Defender 110, of
which only 500 were officially imported in 1993, or the Defender 90,
of which about 7,000 came into the North American market, you had
a car that absolutely, positively everyone knows is a Land Rover.
By Jeffrey Aronson
What should you look for in searching out a Defender?
Mark Letorney of Rovers North says that “corrosion is the
greatest problem. Look at the rear frame member of the chassis. Just
like in a Series Rover, if it’s rusty, you can suspect rust elsewhere
on the frame. The second place is the doors, where Rover used
dissimilar metals. Pull up the carpets and look at floors – you might
find corrosion there, too.”
“Once you’ve looked over the car, take it for a test drive. The
great thing about the Defender is that it hides nothing. You’ll hear
everything that’s going on as you drive it. When you shift, you’ll
hear and feel if the transmission is working correctly, the clutch is
operating properly and the suspension components need work. If you
hear whining or clunking, crawl underneath to shake the propshaft
or the suspension bushings. Check the fluid levels, too. They’ll tell you
whether the car has been properly maintained.”
“The V-8 might have high mileage on it so you’ll want to do a
compression test and cylinder leak down test. Also, check whether
Photo: Calef Letorney
20