At what point do I cut my losses and run?

[kjm1311]

Ok, people, I've always been a fan of cruisers, drove 80's years ago and bought myself a 1998 90 Colorado a couple of years ago. Engine is great, pulls like a train and brother-in-law wishes it was in his Defender (cough, spit). Kidding Gordon, each to their own!!

But....just failed its MOT on 14 points, yes, yes I know, only 14!! I was shocked! Anyway, point is, 18 years old, 154,000 on the clock, £1300 invested in Pedders suspension and springs all round, rear diff lock replaced at £400, rear seats removed and cargo guard fitted, new tank (after I holed the old one on a green lane in Lake District, my fault ) and new lines, chassis and rear cross member patched and there's still more to do. I still need (want) air-con, and a winch, bumper and 2 new front seats so there's another probably ....£4000 all in.


So, do I sell it and spend £6000-£8000 on a 'new' LC3, LC4 with air con and decent seats or do I persevere? I could do a lot of damage with even £3000 to current car.

Our ultimate plan is to drive to Cape Town in a couple of years or so with our trailer (pics to follow when built) but I'm now worried about the chassis, body mounts ( 'severe' corrosion within 30 cm of body), towing, brakes, and to be honest, every other damn thing!!

I know nobody can say definitively what to do but just looking for peoples opinions based on their experience.

Ta, much appreciated.

Ken

 

[Trevor]

I'd keep it as a donor for parts and buy this one HERE

Yes it's my truck and a shameless plug but there is a bit of good logic in there somewhere , also MOT'd in the last month and no advisories so might be a contender.

 

[Beau]

It's easy to look elsewhere thinking "the grass is greener on the other side" but you'll probably find a lot of newer landcruiser are suffering from corrosion as well. It's also been mentioned that some of the newer landcruisers are holding up to the salt on the road worse than the older landcruisers so I wouldn't be surprised if newer ones were in worse condition. That doesn't mean you won't find good examples though, but it's be rare.

Trevs truck above is a good example of a 90 that's been well taken care, you should really check it out if you want to use the truck more as a overland vehicle, plus everyone on this forum can vouch for the work/condition that truck is in.

Alternatively just splash out on your truck and get it back to 100%. It looks like you'll be keeping it long so a initial investment to take care of some things won't look so bad in the grand scheme of things

 

[Shayne]

I have two swb 90's and i would have to sell them both twice to get back the money i have thrown at them so i understand your dilemma . I won't be moving into a 120 though

Trev's offered you a good one there that trucks been on the forum since i joined about 5 years ago .

How about giving us your reg so we can see for ourselves what needs doing ?

https://www.check-mot.service.gov.uk/

 

[Bob]

I'm always amazed at the underbody corrosion of trucks in the UK compared to here. I know it stems from the amount of salt used to treat the roads but is quite a lot worse.
As for the age and mileage, that's not high miles on one of these trucks, and I have always been a believer in 'the devil you know'. I've looked at newer cruisers and a safe bet that I'd have to spend close to 15 grand to get one as good as what I have now.. but the underside is not nearly as corroded as what you describe. I think with any vehicle, if you hold on to it for more than a couple of years, then you need to part with bug money to change, so work out how much is needed to remedy the issues, and compare it to the price of changing.

 

[kjm1311]

I have two swb 90's and i would have to sell them both twice to get back the money i have thrown at them so i understand your dilemma . I won't be moving into a 120 though

Trev's offered you a good one there that trucks been on the forum since i joined about 5 years ago .

How about giving us your reg so we can see for ourselves what needs doing ?

https://www.check-mot.service.gov.uk/

Hi Shayne, thanks for that, Reg is R502 OUG. I've never seen that link before so going to check it out too. But judging by comments so far I think I need to stick with it and get myself under there and get it all fixed up good and proper. Then it'll be looked after by me once sorted nut also wonder once fixed if it's worth getting it professionally waxoiled.

 

[AndyCook]

Most of the fails on your MOT arent that difficult to remedy e.g. Brake pipes and cv gaitor

They big job will be cutting out the rotten steel in sills and near seatbelt mounts and welding in new steel and painting

 

[Shayne]

Hi Shayne, thanks for that, Reg is R502 OUG. I've never seen that link before so going to check it out too. But judging by comments so far I think I need to stick with it and get myself under there and get it all fixed up good and proper. Then it'll be looked after by me once sorted nut also wonder once fixed if it's worth getting it professionally waxoiled.

My truck is 1998 with about 130 on the clock and her age starting to show but i only have myself to blame . In 5 years of ownership i've had most of it apart and i'm kicking myself now because i simply fixed what needed to be fixed and job done when i could have added a couple of days to each and every job to get busy with a wire brush and some paint .

Thankfully its not too late for me and i would hope i'm at the very least i'm a couple of years away from needing weld repairs but there's still a lot of work to do before i can look forward to dropping it in for an mot with no greater worry than wondering if they will make me change the wiper rubbers this year or next .

The fact you mentioned replacing the truck with a newer model does make me wonder if your time and money would be better spent on another 90 in better condition allowing you to swap your suspension and other new parts into the new truck .

Time is money and also the only thing money can't buy .

 

[kjm1311]

My truck is 1998 with about 130 on the clock and her age starting to show but i only have myself to blame . In 5 years of ownership i've had most of it apart and i'm kicking myself now because i simply fixed what needed to be fixed and job done when i could have added a couple of days to each and every job to get busy with a wire brush and some paint .

Thankfully its not too late for me and i would hope i'm at the very least i'm a couple of years away from needing weld repairs but there's still a lot of work to do before i can look forward to dropping it in for an mot with no greater worry than wondering if they will make me change the wiper rubbers this year or next .

The fact you mentioned replacing the truck with a newer model does make me wonder if your time and money would be better spent on another 90 in better condition allowing you to swap your suspension and other new parts into the new truck .

Time is money and also the only thing money can't buy .

Hi all, thanks for input, most welcome. I've managed to get a chat with the MOT tester and he says it's not as bad as I feared when I first saw the list. As Andy says above some of them are small but it was the structural welding that concerned me but apparently it's all quite small stuff.

Once it's done I'll get on top of it and invest in a rust treatment done properly by a professional.

Ken

 

[Shayne]

Get the mot pass before you have it undersealed otherwise they will go around jamming a screwdriver into your seal suspicious it hides something .

 

[tim falce]

Get the mot pass before you have it undersealed otherwise they will go around jamming a screwdriver into your seal suspicious it hides something .

We're not allowed to go jamming screwdrivers anywhere, finger pressure at first or a light tap with the corrosion tool and we can scrape with the corrosion tool if anything is amiss

 

[kjm1311]

Thanks for all the inputs. I went ahead and got it all welded up, fixed etc and only cost £300 all in. I can't weld and could do mechanicals but started ne job and now moving house so left it for garage to do.

Will look at it in a few weeks and really focus on getting underbody in good order before undersealing, waxoyl, Krown or similar.

Thanks again for advice.

 

[Jack VZJ90]

My VZJ90 is first used at 2-1997 and i am first owner.
Corrosion, nothing that i can't fix with a welding machine.
Parts are sold everywhere over the world.
Just keep them driving !!
In africa they drive land cruisers aged over 40 years !!
So what are we talking about, just fix it .... !!