craig
Supporting Sponsor, Overland Certified OC0018
The last few weeks have been filled with minor repairs and the beginning of a complete interior redo. Other than the fridge mount, no accessories have been installed. Unfortunately, most of the work I'm doing doesn't warrant a photo so this is a pretty dry post. Getting an older truck is like this though. They require a certain amount of TLC before you can really enjoy them again. No reason to skip over that part here. Anyone interested in this thread might as well see what the process is really like.
Overall, I've been very fortunate with this truck. It has very little rust, other than oil leaks, it runs pretty well, and didn't need a lot of immediate mechanical attention. Most of the items are cosmetic or the creature comforts. If I'm going to drive a Range Rover, I want everything working and to be reasonably comfortable so this is the beginning of the process to get it to that point. Thanks to a bunch of my friends for donating/trading with me for the parts I need it is coming along. Here's what's been happening:
Installed 2 new O2 sensors to fix the EFI. Columbia Rovers gave me a great deal on the sensors. I tried several times to get them out on my own. Seeking advice from David Jenden at RoverTech in Kirkland, WA he couldn't understand what the problem was and suggested I bring it by. It turns out that the aftermarket NRP exhaust made them almost impossible to get to. David wound up breaking them off so we could get a socket onto them from the top. We carefully installed the new ones. The good news is that the EFI light is off!
Traded 2 pair of Rud 4x4 chains from my old truck for a set of manual cloth seats out of a 91 Hunter Edition RRC and installed them.
Columbia Rovers donated a set of tan interior panels that match the 91 hunter seats perfectly and installed them. I still need a few more tan interior panels to complete the conversion to a tan interior.
Replaced several door lock actuators. Still need to replace two of them as the used replacements were also malfunctioning.
Fixed / replaced several of the power window switches
Figured out why the stereo wasn't receiving power and fixed it.
Picked up a set of coax speakers and replaced the 6.5” door speakers. This freed up the tweeter location to install HAM radio speakers behind the factory speaker covers.
Spent a bunch of time finding and purchasing the proper screws to fix all the loose dash and center console panels. It's starting to look better, but I still need many other tan interior parts, carpet, and ultimately a new center console.
Had a muffler shop bend the NRP exhaust that was rattling against the frame. It's so nice to have a quiet running truck.
Removed the the window tint gunk from the rear window using Simply Green (great product!). I'd removed a sheet of purple tint before, but some of the adhesive wouldn't come off even with Goo Gone. The Simply Green worked fantastic.
Installed large Rivnuts and mounted the fridge slide I saved from my DII in the cargo area. I still need to figure out how I'm going to run power to it, but honestly this is a diversion; there are many much more important projects than the fridge at this point.
Replaced the ignition switch with a used one from Will Tillery. The original ignition switch had the key stuck in it, it didn't spring back when starting, and the wires were loose causing it to occasionally not start. I had my local locksmith re-key the ignition switch to match the rest of the truck.
I removed the trailer wiring harness since I have nothing to tow. The previous owner did an excellent job of installing it, but this truck is going to have enough wires as it is, so I'm removing what I'm not going to use.
Installed a NW Overland Society badge on the rear bumper
Individually these all seem like small changes, but collectively it's made a huge difference. I'm really liking this truck. I plan to just keep plugging away, trying to get the base truck where I want it. I'm hoping to have all of this stuff done by the end of January so I can start setting it up for spring/summer fun. Unfortunately there is still a lot on that base list…
LT230 goes in on Thursday
Overall, I've been very fortunate with this truck. It has very little rust, other than oil leaks, it runs pretty well, and didn't need a lot of immediate mechanical attention. Most of the items are cosmetic or the creature comforts. If I'm going to drive a Range Rover, I want everything working and to be reasonably comfortable so this is the beginning of the process to get it to that point. Thanks to a bunch of my friends for donating/trading with me for the parts I need it is coming along. Here's what's been happening:
Installed 2 new O2 sensors to fix the EFI. Columbia Rovers gave me a great deal on the sensors. I tried several times to get them out on my own. Seeking advice from David Jenden at RoverTech in Kirkland, WA he couldn't understand what the problem was and suggested I bring it by. It turns out that the aftermarket NRP exhaust made them almost impossible to get to. David wound up breaking them off so we could get a socket onto them from the top. We carefully installed the new ones. The good news is that the EFI light is off!
Traded 2 pair of Rud 4x4 chains from my old truck for a set of manual cloth seats out of a 91 Hunter Edition RRC and installed them.
Columbia Rovers donated a set of tan interior panels that match the 91 hunter seats perfectly and installed them. I still need a few more tan interior panels to complete the conversion to a tan interior.
Replaced several door lock actuators. Still need to replace two of them as the used replacements were also malfunctioning.
Fixed / replaced several of the power window switches
Figured out why the stereo wasn't receiving power and fixed it.
Picked up a set of coax speakers and replaced the 6.5” door speakers. This freed up the tweeter location to install HAM radio speakers behind the factory speaker covers.
Spent a bunch of time finding and purchasing the proper screws to fix all the loose dash and center console panels. It's starting to look better, but I still need many other tan interior parts, carpet, and ultimately a new center console.
Had a muffler shop bend the NRP exhaust that was rattling against the frame. It's so nice to have a quiet running truck.
Removed the the window tint gunk from the rear window using Simply Green (great product!). I'd removed a sheet of purple tint before, but some of the adhesive wouldn't come off even with Goo Gone. The Simply Green worked fantastic.
Installed large Rivnuts and mounted the fridge slide I saved from my DII in the cargo area. I still need to figure out how I'm going to run power to it, but honestly this is a diversion; there are many much more important projects than the fridge at this point.
Replaced the ignition switch with a used one from Will Tillery. The original ignition switch had the key stuck in it, it didn't spring back when starting, and the wires were loose causing it to occasionally not start. I had my local locksmith re-key the ignition switch to match the rest of the truck.
I removed the trailer wiring harness since I have nothing to tow. The previous owner did an excellent job of installing it, but this truck is going to have enough wires as it is, so I'm removing what I'm not going to use.
Installed a NW Overland Society badge on the rear bumper
Individually these all seem like small changes, but collectively it's made a huge difference. I'm really liking this truck. I plan to just keep plugging away, trying to get the base truck where I want it. I'm hoping to have all of this stuff done by the end of January so I can start setting it up for spring/summer fun. Unfortunately there is still a lot on that base list…
LT230 goes in on Thursday
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