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ISSUE 22 DECEMBER 2015

LANDYBRING ON THE WORLD!

You don’t normally see 90s prepped for overlanding.

Far less so� -top examples.But this remarkable 90 is more

than just somebody’s home from home. It’s the culmination of a full-on rebuild – and possibly the � rst in what will be a long line of trucks that blend travel prep with bling. Full story: Page 34

It’s been said that the Discovery 2risks being missed out by modders. But though it’s not as simple as the Mk1, the last live-axled Disco can still be turned into an o� -road hero Full story: Page 30

� is 110 Wolf was about to be built in standard form. Until someone stumbled over a full WMIK kit… Full story: Page 22

� is is more than just a handsome old Classic. It’s in an original colour that suggests it may once have been part of an all-conquering F1 team Full story: Page 18

Setting up your Land Rover for overlanding is a personal affair – it is, after all, about turning your beloved 4x4 into a home-from-home; some-thing that will give you a place to relax, feel safe and experience motoring perfection. The Soft-Top 90 we have here, though, is one of the best pieces of customisation you’ll see anywhere

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Spinning a globe, stopping it and setting off around the world to the point where your finger landed is a virtue that

can be taken for granted when you own a Land Rover. You won’t see Mr and Mrs Hastings from the adjacent cul-de-sac venturing off to the African

savannah in their Seat Alhambra. But while this is true, people can under-estimate the effort of prepping your vehicle for adventure.

When you leave for the deserts of Africa or the mountains of the Americas, you want to feel ready for anything. You’re halfway there with a

Landy anyway, but like our German friend here, the finish is in the detail.

Alex Frisse-Bremann hadn’t owned a Land Rover previously to this 90. But he demonstrates brilliantly that if it’s going to be your first Green Oval machine, you may as well make it one that’s worthy of being your last.

‘These old cars – Land Rovers and the original Mini, for example – are just timeless,’ explains Alex. ‘They have so much character and are very individual vehicles. Each one is a little bit different – they are not stereo-typical vehicles.’

This Soft-Top 90 is definitely not a stereotypical vehicle. Over the last few years, Alex has transformed this Defender from an ex-MOD relic into something that any overlander would be happy to call their own.

Christened Sandy Grey – a hat tip to her complexion over the years – this lady of the land has shed her desert livery to make way for the Beige Grey you see her flaunting before you now.

The olive green canvas has also been swapped for a classier black number fashioned by Exmoor Trim. It may not offer much in the way of security from the jaws of a hippo – but when trav-elling cross-country, churning up red dust as you spur off through the savan-nah, gazelles bounding along beside you and lions purring in the midday haze, you will at least look worthy of your blissful surroundings.

Alex works for Nakatanenga in Ger-many, whose products are distributed here in the UK by 4x4 Overlander.

‘This Land Rover used to be a customer’s vehicle,’ Alex informs us. ‘My boss, Peter Hochsieder (owner of Nakatanenga) bought it from the customer and seeing it every day in the few weeks afterwards made me decide to buy it off Peter.’

Having made the purchase of Sandy at the end of 2012, Alex didn’t hang around before embarking on the con-version of his 90 into the vision he had drawn up in his wildest dreams.

Right First Time

Words and Pictures: Mike Trott

‘These old cars – They are noT TyPical vehicles’

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‘She was painted in sand colours originally, so the first thing was to take off all the layers of paint,’ recalls Alex. He ‘sanded’ her down... before sending her off for a new look.

Then it was time for some of the more interesting additions.

In the back you’ll notice a wood-en loadspace, along with door cards compiled from the same material. This lighter shade of wood is from larch trees, a conifer that actually loses its leaves in the autumn, thus making it deciduous. Better still, it’s a very durable material that also tends not to crack and splinter.

Alex continues, ‘I then went about modifying the engine. I swapped the old 2.5-litre naturally aspirated unit for a 300Tdi.’ In one fell swoop, Alex al-most doubled the power being ousted

from his 90’s engine bay… power isn’t everything, but it always helps!

‘I also exchanged the rear axle so that I could install disc brakes all-round. Then I fitted a new suspen-sion from Bilstein with iRC, which means the dampers are electronically adjustable and can be tuned through my tablet.’

It’s a very neat gadget to have in-deed, and we do live in a technical age which is why Alex has set up his Landy in this manner.

There’s a real blend of modern tech-nology integrated within traditional engineering here, like the homemade cubby box that houses the waterproof radio and the dashboard equipped with smartphone and tablet. The LED headlights shine boldly from that

Above: Inside is all tailored around Alex. The centre box – which he made himself – houses a waterproof radio and a place to charge his iPhone. On the dash lies a mount for that same smartphone so he can listen to his favourite tunes while travellingBelow: A new rear axle gave Alex disc brakes all-round, and there’s a diff guard for a bit of protection as well. No Torsen locker… yet

Above: Storage space is something each overlander has to battle with, but Alex has done a great job of making this conundrum as small a headache as possible. The rear loadspace has been levelled off with Larch wood, which isn’t going to crack at the first sight of adverse weather. The drawer underneath makes for additional practicality and further options as to where to put tools and supplies

Below: Few Defenders will ever have as good looking doors as the ones we have here. Alex has put something very special together and it’s even more admirable owing to the fact that this is his first Land Rover. The speakers are a nod to Alex’s love of music, with more being positioned in the roof lining for the full effect

Continued overleaf

‘i Would like To Travel The MosT dangerous unsurfaced roads’

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evergreen front end while bolstering a fresh, black aluminium grille.

Yet all of this is contained within a Defender that served in the military during the early 90s. It’s a vehicle that had already seen many moons pass, even before Alex acquired it.

Rest assured, however, that isn’t about to stop Alex from exploring the world and spending his own nights with the 90 under the moon in a whole host of different climates. This will be the vehicle he can spin the globe with and tick off all the destina-tions he encounters.

That’s why he has a roof tent ready to deploy and even has a shower that can be erected, even in the most remote environments.

‘I have already travelled around Cor-sica and through Romania, tackling the Carpathian Mountains – I really enjoy the off-road adventures,’ states Alex. ‘This car is all about fun and is going to be used for plenty of off-road-ing and travelling.

‘I would like to travel to so many more places, particularly taking on the most dangerous unsurfaced roads in the world. My Land Rover is nearly finished now, too; I just need to add a winch bumper and winch.’

Even without a reserve method of propulsion, Alex’s Defender was one happy lady traversing the Yarwell off-road site. She is, after all, donning a set of Cooper Discoverer mud-terrain tyres and those adjustable Bilstein shocks help lift her rock sliders out of harm’s way most of the time.

Alex also has a Torsen diff locker on the wish-list, which really would make this one hell of an overland vehicle. Not the most conventional, and better off-road than an expedition truck should need to be, but who’s asking?

Few overland vehicles are 90s, and fewer still are this tasteful. Alex fell into Land Rovers and this may still be his first one. But it’s a classic example of starting as you mean to go on – and for sure, of getting it right first time.

Left: That right there is 100 percent prime Land Rover power, especially since the 300Tdi you see here came along to replace the original 2.5-litre naturally aspirated unit – which was better known for its reliability than its horsepowerAbove: When overlanding, a roof rack is essential. It gives you a place to strap down water, fuel and other crucial supplies. Alex has gone one further, though, and hangs a shower from his. Perfect for after a long day’s drive through unknown territory

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Comment

Every month, I have the pleasure of going through all the small ads in the back of The Landy and being the first to see the vehicles our readers are selling. It’s a fun and fascinating part of my job, but it’s definitely not without its hazards.

You’re probably familiar with the secondhand obsession phenomenon. You see a vehicle advertised that looks as if it would change your world, you read the blurb the seller has written and all of a sudden you can’t stop thinking about it.

As a consequence of my job, this happens to me about three or four times a week. It might be a really fit looking 90, a gnarly Disco 2 that’s been prepped for off-roading, a 130 that’s begging to be turned into something glorious, an early L322 with low miles and an ever lower price tag or some sort of classic that would turn my driveway into a small-scale motor museum. I very much doubt that I’m alone in having my head turned like this almost non-stop by the Landies that show up for sale.

A year or so back, I spotted a Disco which I obsessed over for ages as the asking price crept down, until all of a sudden it cropped up in the Dunsfold collection. It was the last D1 off the line and had previously been on show at Gaydon, and I still kind of kick myself for not taking a punt.

Just as well I didn’t really. Because carrying two small boys in the back of an important part of Land Rover’s history might be considered bad form.

Normally, though, it’s just common sense that prevails. When you see a tidy V8 Rangey and start thinking about gas, it’s easy to ignore what you know about parts prices and every other aspect of running costs.

I’ve even found myself obsessing about P38s recently. Which is a thing I never thought would happen, given that the last one I drove, a brand new test car back in 2001, was probably the most disgracefully bad vehicle I’ve ever sat in.

But , you know, THIS time it would be different. The mantra of every secondhand obsessive. Who needs commonsense anyway? A cool new Land Rover is always a good idea…

Alan Kidd, Editor