Land Rover Series II, IIA and III Maintenance and Upgrades Manual E-Book

Richard Hall

• Herausgeber: Crowood
• Kategorie: Lebensstil
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2016

Beschreibung

Based on real-life experience and written by expert authors, the books in the Maintenance and Upgrades Manual series from Crowood will help owners develop the workshop skills needed for the maintenance and repair of their cars, and give guidance on possibilities for improvements and upgrades to performance. With step-by-step instructions and safety information throughout, this book is a valuable technical resource for owners of Series II, IIA and III Land Rovers. The book covers: choosing and buying a Series II or III Land Rover; maintenance and service procedures; detailed guides for repair and maintenance of each of the car's systems, including brakes, steering and suspension, engine, clutch and transmission, axles, hubs and propshafts, and electrical systems; repairing and preventing corrosion; upgrades for reliability, comfort, performance and off-roading; rebuilding a Series II or III Land Rover: things to know before you take on a project car. This practical guide and technical resource for all Series II, IIA and III owners and Land Rover enthusiasts is fully illustrated with over 280 colour photographs.

Leseprobe

MAINTENANCE AND UPGRADES MANUAL

Land Rover

Series II, IIA and III

Richard Hall

THE CROWOOD PRESS

First published in 2016 by

The Crowood Press Ltd

Ramsbury, Marlborough

Wiltshire SN8 2HR

www.crowood.com

This e-book first published in 2016

© Richard Hall 2016

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

ISBN 978 0 78500 136 9

Disclaimer

Safety is of the utmost importance in every aspect of an automotive workshop. The practical procedures and the tools and equipment used in automotive workshops are potentially dangerous. Tools should be used in strict accordance with the manufacturer’s recommended procedures and current health and safety regulations. The author and publisher cannot accept responsibility for any accident or injury caused by following the advice given in this book.

contents

1 introduction and model history

2 choosing your Land Rover

3 viewing and buying your Land Rover

4 identity issues

5 maintaining your Land Rover

6 service procedures in detail

7 brakes, steering and suspension

8 engine and related systems

9 clutch and transmission

10 axles, hubs and propshafts

11 electrical systems

12 repairing corrosion

13 improving your Land Rover: reliability and on-road performance

14 improving your Land Rover: comfort and off-road performance

15 rebuilding a Land Rover

glossary

appendix: basic service data

index

1

introduction and model history

Between 1958 and 1985, more than a million Series II, IIA and III Land Rovers rolled out of the Solihull factory. Simple, rugged and durable, they have survived in very large numbers and many are still working hard for a living in almost every country in the world. But with the oldest survivors fast approaching their sixtieth birthday, the vehicles are now rightly regarded as true classics to be cherished and admired. The aims of this book are to help you to select the Series II, IIA or III Land Rover that is right for you, to keep it running the way Solihull intended and, perhaps, to upgrade and modify it to make it more usable in modern traffic conditions. You will also learn how even the most battered and neglected old Land Rover can be restored to its former glory.

The classic Land Rover: 1964 Series IIA hard top, freshly restored in Marine Blue.

The first vehicles to bear the Land Rover badge appeared in 1948, and the range that was produced between 1948 and 1958 is now known retrospectively as ‘Series One’. The vehicle was conceived as a stop-gap model for the Rover car company in the austerity years that followed the Second World War. Materials of all kinds, and especially steel, were in short supply, and car manufacturers producing vehicles for export markets tended to be favoured by the Government when it came to allocating resources. Rover had little to sell other than large, luxurious saloon cars of pre-war design. The company needed a new product, and fast.

And so the Series One was born. Intended to supplant the cast-off wartime Jeeps that had proved so popular across the world, the new model was built along very much the same lines as the Jeep: separate chassis, strong solid axles mounted on leaf springs, four-wheel drive, plenty of ground clearance for rough terrain and the minimum of creature comforts. Rover envisaged selling just a few thousand Land Rovers to keep the factory busy until the launch of the new ‘P4’ saloon car, so the body shape was kept simple: mostly flat panels riveted together at right angles, requiring the minimum of costly press tools. Bodywork was largely aluminium, which was easier to obtain than sheet steel. Major mechanical components, including the engine and gearbox, were ‘borrowed’ from other models in the Rover range.

It is fair to say that the company underestimated the demand for its new utility vehicle. Within a year, the vehicles were being snapped up as fast as Rover could build them, and users were demanding more – more power, more reliability, more comfort, more load-carrying capacity. Solihull did its best to respond with bigger engines, stronger suspension, long wheelbase and five-door Station Wagon variants, but the essential problem remained: the Series One simply was not designed for high-volume mass production or for the kind of routine overloading and rough treatment to which it was now being subjected. The company needed to do something drastic.

In March 1958, the ‘Series II’ Land Rover was launched. It was bigger and sturdier than the Series One, with a new petrol engine giving 50 per cent more power than the old one. It had more load-carrying space, strengthened mechanicals, better brakes and a new body shape by David Bache, Rover’s in-house designer. Similar at a first glance to the Series One, the new body featured curved upper sides of much greater depth, and was so successful that the basic shape can still be seen in today’s Defender. In fact, you can take the doors from a brand new Defender and bolt them onto a 1958 Series II, if you so wish.

The Series II was available from the start in both long- and short-wheelbase variants, with a choice of petrol or diesel engine. An all-new and strikingly handsome five-door Station Wagon followed a year later, its clean lines a sharp contrast to the Series One Station Wagon, which looked as though it had been pieced together using several different vehicles and a large Meccano set. The new model was an immediate success, with annual sales climbing from around 25,000 in the last full year of Series One production to 35,000 by 1961.

That year saw the introduction of a more powerful diesel engine to replace the rather feeble Series One-derived unit, and the change (along with a few minor cosmetic improvements) was considered important enough for Solihull to designate the new model ‘Series IIA’. Sales continued to increase, helped by the addition to the range of a more powerful 6-cylinder engine option in 1967, and a round of modest (but welcome) improvements to the interior and electrical systems in the same year. In 1969, the headlights were moved out to the front wings to comply with new legislation, but further changes were just around the corner.

By the late sixties, Rover was running into problems. In overseas markets, the Toyota Land Cruiser was starting to eat away at Series IIA sales. Like the original Land Rover, the Toyota was inspired by the wartime Jeep and had many of the same attributes. It had beam axles, leaf springs, four-wheel drive and a simple, rugged construction. Its all-steel body corroded rapidly in damp climates, but in the Australian outback or the South African veldt that was of little consequence. What mattered was that it had a far more powerful engine than the Land Rover, could carry heavier loads and very rarely broke down. By 1965, Toyota had sold 50,000 ‘J’ series Land Cruisers; in 1968, total production topped 100,000. Land Rover might still be selling three Series IIAs for every Land Cruiser, but the Japanese rival was catching up fast.

A new model was needed to replace the Series IIA, but by now political events had intervened. In 1966, Rover had merged with Leyland Motors, a successful and profitable manufacturer of heavy commercial vehicles, which already owned Rover’s great car-making rival, Triumph. The Government’s policy of the time was to strongly encourage consolidation within the car industry, and so when British Motor Holdings (owners of Jaguar, Austin and Morris among others) ran into financial trouble two years later, Leyland was prevailed upon to combine with the loss-making giant to form British Leyland.

Red knob, yellow knob: astonishing off-road performance on demand.

Made in Solihull and proud of it.

From now on, any new Land Rover product development would have to compete for limited funds with the high-volume car makers, Austin and Morris. With Series IIA sales still climbing and much of the Austin–Morris range desperately overdue for replacement, this was a competition Rover was never likely to win. To make matters worse, whatever funding was available to the Land Rover division would have to be shared with the revolutionary new Range Rover, scheduled for launch in 1970.

And so the Land Rover Series III quietly entered the market in 1971 to a distinctly lukewarm reception. It was little more than a Series IIA with a cosmetic makeover. Outside it sported a moulded plastic grille panel and less obtrusive door and windscreen hinges. Inside there was a plastic dashboard with the instruments positioned in front of the driver and more modern switchgear. (Even the instruments were carried over unchanged from the Series IIA.) Underneath, Rover’s engineers had managed to cram a few more components into the 1937-design gearbox, now giving synchromesh on all four forward gears. The long-wheelbase version acquired a stronger rear axle. And at that point the money must have run out: engines, suspension, steering and most of the body and interior were carried over unchanged from the old model.

Handsome beast: five-door Station Wagon in side profile.

‘If it ain’t broke…’, etc. And at first the philosophy of changing as little as possible seemed to pay off. Sales continued to hold up at around the 50,000 a year mark, but by the end of the seventies it was obvious that all was far from well. In 1977, the company sold 42,000 Series IIIs; four years later that number had halved. The Series III soldiered on, largely unchanged and increasingly obsolete. But amid the gloom of power cuts, wildcat strikes and the three-day week, the engineers at Solihull were working hard to turn the Series III into the vehicle it should have been from the start. The result was the 109 V8.

The V8 (known unofficially as the ‘Stage One’ as it was the first part of a long-term plan to turn Land Rover’s fortunes around) was a fine example of what can be done by a small group of determined engineers working on a limited budget. They took a standard long-wheelbase Series III, reworked the chassis to take the 3.5-litre V8 engine and gearbox from the Range Rover, redesigned the front axle to cope with permanent four-wheel drive (as opposed to the part-time system of all previous Series vehicles) and moved the radiator forwards so that the front panel was flush with the wings.

Finally, Solihull had a Land Rover with power and load-hauling ability to match its rivals, and a gearbox that would stand up to any amount of abuse. The marketing department came up with a range of bright new colours (actually ‘borrowed’ from the Triumph sports car range) and some large ‘Land Rover V8’ stickers along the sides, and set out to reclaim the overseas markets that Land Rover had lost. But it was too little, too late. Sales stabilized for a while, and the new ‘High Capacity Pickup’ body option from 1982, with enough space to fit an 8 × 4ft board flat between the wheelarches, did a little to help stop the rot.

But all the Series III could do now was to limp along for a couple more years. The last few (military specification) vehicles left Solihull in 1985. At the time, few mourned the end of the traditional leaf-sprung Land Rover because by now the extensively redesigned Ninety and One Ten were in full production, arguably ten years later than they should have been, but providing a far more comfortable and usable vehicle for the diminishing number of customers who had not already been lost to Land Rover’s Japanese rivals. Did anyone then imagine that thirty years later, people would be extracting beaten-up old Series III Land Rovers from barns and farmyards and restoring them to better-thannew condition?

Optional power take-off added to the versatility of these vehicles.

The mighty V8: a very early 109 V8 soft top in Masai Red.

Enter the Series III: here we have one of the first off the production line, bristling with dealer-fitted options, including capstan winch and rear-mounted power take-off.

Timeline: Series II, IIA and III, 1958–85

1958

Series II launched

1959

2286cc petrol engine now available in 88in models. Five-door Station Wagon introduced.

1960

Aluminium underseat tool locker replaced with steel.

1961

Series IIA launched with new 2286cc diesel engine option and minor electrical changes.

1962

Headlamps now mounted flush with grille panel. Flat front valance replaced with curved one.

1967

Dashboard redesigned with new switchgear and single wiper motor. Solid-spoke steering wheel instead of sprung-spoke, 2625cc petrol engine option, Zenith carburettor replaced Solex on 2286cc petrol engine.

1969

Headlamps moved out to the front wings. Shallower side sills.

1971

Series III launched – new dashboard, all synchromesh gearbox, stronger rear axle on 109in models.

1979

109 V8 launched.

1980

New five-bearing engine block for 2286cc models. Larger front brakes on 88in vehicles.

1981

2625cc engine option discontinued.

1982

High Capacity Pickup launched. Station Wagons now available in ‘County’ trim.

1983

Civilian production of 109in vehicles ended, replaced by new One Ten.

1984

Production of 88in vehicles ended, replaced by new Ninety.

1985

The last military 109in vehicles left the production line.

Main dimensions for 4-cylinder petrol vehicles, taken from the Series III owner’s manual (1978 edition) – weights for earlier and later models, and variants with different engines, may vary slightly

88in Regular

88in Station Wagon

109in Regular

109in Station Wagon

Length (mm)

3,620

3,620

4,440

4,440

Width (mm)

1,680

1,680

1,680

1,680

Height (mm)

1,950

1,980

2,060

2,070

Weight (kg)

1,339

1,488

1,497

1,702

Payload (kg)

454 (1)

45 (2)

908 (1)

181 (3)

Floor length (mm)

1,206

–

1,850

–

Floor width (mm)

921

–

921

–

(1) Plus driver and two passengers.

(2) Plus driver and six passengers.

(3) Plus driver and nine passengers.

2

choosing your Land Rover

Series II, IIA and III Land Rovers were available in a large number of different configurations and the complexity of the range can seem baffling to the novice. Long or short wheelbase, petrol or diesel, hard top, soft top, truck cab, Station Wagon – each model was built to do a different job, and in choosing your vehicle you must first ask yourself what job you want it to do for you. This chapter will guide you through the main options.

Series IIA hard top from 1964 in very clean, original condition.

Series III five-door Station Wagon in Limestone.

LONG VERSUS SHORT WHEELBASE

These vehicles come in two lengths: short wheelbase or ‘88’ (88in between axle centres); and long wheelbase or ‘109’ (109in between axle centres). The 109 obviously has far more room in the back than the 88, which will just about cope with a couple of small straw bales. It also has more room for the driver as the seat can be moved further back: an 88 can be very cramped for anyone above average height. A 109 is a fair bit heavier than an 88, accelerates more slowly, uses more fuel and has a much larger turning circle, which can make manoeuvring difficult in crowded car parks. On the other hand, the ride is far less choppy and if you need forward-facing seats in the back to accommodate young children, only a 109 (in Station Wagon form) will provide this as standard. 4-cylinder engines were available across the range throughout the production run, but 6- cylinder and V8 engines were only offered in 109in variants.