New 120 Owner

[Dean120]

Hey guys,
Just had my 2003 lc3 prado land cruiser dropped off today. It's got 96000 miles and one previous owner.
Outside and inside are absolutely mint.
Now underneath is absolutely covered in surface rust but that's to be expected on an 18 year old I suppose. I spent a good hour underneath it today poking and hitting as much as could with a hammer haha! Couldn't put a hole in anything except for the rear cross beam between the two rear chassis arms. Not sure if it will be weldable or need replacing but I don't think it's too much of a big deal ? The chassis as a hole is bombers. No misting on the bottom of the turbo which was nice. Most of the rubber bushings all seem to have life in them too which is nice.
The engine is nice and quite even when cold but I suppose the injectors will still need doing shortly.
Has anyone ever tackled a full cleaning and rustproofing? I'm going to be taking it to a rust specialist next week but I really want to do as much work on this as possible as it's a project for me to learn and build.
I'm under no illusions that all the corroded bolts will be a right pain in the ass when it comes time to put on a lift kit haha!
Here's some photos from underneath after a jetwash.
Looking forward to speaking with you all in the future as I build this into a decent overland/greenlaner.

 

[Michael Montgomery]

Hey Dean welcome and congratulations on a nice find. The bottom looks good worth sealing with a nice black protective paint. You could likely do it yourself but the professionals take care of the hard work often being easier. This a rare sight to see with all uk vehicles.

Best wishes

 

[GeekOKent]

Congratulations on the 120.

Who is the rust specialist you are thinking about ?

Most of that is surface, as you said, and it maybe worth sending a few hours under there trying to get that back to metal before doing anything. A lot of rust converters seem like acquired taste, many swear by them, others prefer to just sand it down, add a protective layer and get on.

 

[Dean120]

Thanks guys.
I was looking at trickettweldingltd in poole as they they do the Waxyol treatments.
Yeah tbh I'd be more than happy to do that as I'm not in any rush. I was just thinking that, I plan on keeping this 120 for ever hopefully, so thought best get something like that done professionally. But also the price of 4 ko2's would probably be saved if I did it myself!

 

[GeekOKent]

Have you heard about lanoguard? Couple of people here on the forum use it and endorse it. I just got my order and intend to use it on the 120, so don't really have an opinion yet.

Krown is another product that folks on this forum rate highly. The chap who does it knows of them forum and may even discount the offering. He is known to be very thorough.

Couple more options for you to explore.

Welcome to the best forum, for the best car.

 

[chapel gate]

Have you heard about lanoguard? Couple of people here on the forum use it and endorse it. I just got my order and intend to use it on the 120, so don't really have an opinion yet.

Krown is another product that folks on this forum rate highly. The chap who does it knows of them forum and may even discount the offering. He is known to be very thorough.

Couple more options for you to explore.

Welcome to the best forum, for the best car.

got my lanoguard kit a couple of weeks ago. just waiting for it to stop raining..

 

[karl2000]

Have you heard about lanoguard? Couple of people here on the forum use it and endorse it. I just got my order and intend to use it on the 120, so don't really have an opinion yet.

I stuck that on my 120 about a month or so ago. Easy to apply, looks good, so time will tell.

 

[karl2000]

Looks like a nice car! Whatever you use to protect it, its 90% about preparation. The more of that you can do yourself the better, than you know whats been done.

Where's the bit you poked the hole in, is that in the pics? Sorry if I missed it.

I think a few hours with a wire brush (or a slow speed angle grinder with a brush attachment) would work wonders, then you can see what you're dealing with.

 

[Tractionman]

That 120 must be the only one in the UK with factory paint left on underneath, especially at that age, what a find ! As said whatever is used prep is paramount. DON'T just paint over it as it is, with anything.
A good detergent pressure/hot wash to get rid of oil, salt grime etc, will be a good start, then thoroughly dry before attacking rust.
You will need all sorts of wire brushes/drill attachments to get in the various places, so be prepared to put loads of time in and get mucky. As karl2000 said, the only way to make sure its thoroughly done. Karl and I have just spent a very long time under ours doing that, and using different metods and products.
The join on the front crossmember shown looks suspect, but may look ok on clean up, and yes, the rear crossmember needs attention/replacing, with the rot ? on the r/h side.
You may want to consider removing the rear bumper to save labour costs. Mine fittings were like yours, 2 brackets tore off, and a few bolts snapped, which involved more work and bits to get back on. You will have to put it back on to drive over there, as lights/indicators in bumper on your model ?? But it will give you access to rear crossmember, and involve minimum labour costs to you for someone else to struggle with it. These 120s seem to rot from the inside out, too many holes in chassis and floor stffeners, which run the length of the vehicle, and also sills.
I didn't realise you were over here, going by your country flag, and as you're going to Trickett, in the same part of country. I'll look out for you. Good luck.

 

[Dean120]

Thanks for all the good insightful replies! I popped over to Trickett on my lunch brake today and he's on a 2 month wait list and has a very saucey price but having spoken to him and seen the quality of work he supplies I can understand why. He also said the more work I do, the less for him so obviously it will cost less. To that end I'm going to get stuck in with the dog work and do as much as I possibly can before it gets to him. Got access to a lift thankfully so that should make things easier. Going to get an order in this week for all my wire wheels, needles gun and the likes.
Yeah the rear cross member will need welding at a bare minimum. Will report on the front when it's cleaner but did seem soild. Hopefully that's it. The hole was in the bottom right as you looked at the picture.
Il try and get some decent before and after photos to show when I get started. Good point on getting bumpers off. I see many small screws getting drilled in my future haha. I will remove both bumpers and arch liners to get as much exposed and save as much labour as possible haha. Should be able to borrow a car trailer from work if I'm lucky so I can take it to him in as striped down as possible!
Will have a look at the lanogaurd too. Thanks for the heads up. I'm Irish but been living in the uk for the last 8 years. Dorset is now my full time home. Good to know there's a friendly face in the area Tractionman!
Again I appreciate all the speedy knowledgeable replies.

 

[Tractionman]

Well done with all your pre organisation Dean, and very handy to have access for lift and trailer.
They will make life very much easier for you. Timewise with Tricketts delay, it should work out pretty good, allowing for any hold ups, weather etc, while you are doing your bit.
They seem to have a good reputation, but I thought they were a bit pricey for work too, from my enquiries when I was doing mine.
Seem to have lots of guys doing different jobs in different departments, like a factory environment, and a bit out of the way.
Check out your sills too, you may need to remove your side steps if work needed, another aggravation if bolts are seized. Try and soak everything you think is coming off before and during any dismantling, I use plus gas, but anything of that sort you favour really.
Look forward to seeing your progress.

 

[paulnanrod]

@karl2000 how has the lanoguard seemed since applying - It is on my list to do before winter so going to get some ordered over the weekend. Did you paint anything before Lanoguarding, or just clean/remove rust/dirt/debris with wire brushes/grinder?

No mention of rust on my 2007 MOTs so want to keep it that way....

thanks

 

[karl2000]

@paulnanrod I like the Lano - its easy to apply and leaves a nice coating. Still early days to tell rust wise but I think it will be good. I've washed the underneath and the stuff stays on there.

It depends how much time / effort you want to put into it. I cleaned everything, got all the surface rust off the whole chassis, treated and repainted it before I applied the sheep dip. It's a big job though - it took me weeks and it's not really the weather for it now.

If I was you I'd give it a good clean, get any flaking rust off if you have any, and apply the lano before winter....

 

[paulnanrod]

Thanks for that. Yes that’s the plan now. Do a ‘patch up job’ of cleaning it and then lanoguarding it and do a full clean/treat/paint/lano next spring.

that was the plan earlier this year but life/laziness hindered me….

 

[karl2000]

Thanks for that. Yes that’s the plan now. Do a ‘patch up job’ of cleaning it and then lanoguarding it and do a full clean/treat/paint/lano next spring.

You'll be a full member of the 120 club once you've lived under it for a month!

 

[Tractionman]

Got the t shirt for that along with you mate.
Make sure the neighbours don't grass you for the bedroom tax !

 

[Ozzy LC 2005 120 Series]

Hey mate, you mentioned in your post that the injectors might need changing. I’ve got the 2005 which is pre D4D and my understanding is that there isn’t the same issues with injectors? I am totally fresh to the world of landcruisers and Diesel engines so totally appreciate all the insights on here.

I’m also based in northern NSW in Australia where every second car is a landcruiser or hilux. I had no idea there were so many LC in the UK and the rust issues sound terrible!

Cheers