McVick’s Land Rover DII

[Brian McVickers]

With several recent modifications and planned additions to the vehicle it is time for a thread. Many of these projects are on their second or third rendition as I am constantly, but slowly, working to make the vehicle perfect for our family.

First off I'll introduce our Jeep the DII replaced. (Note, wife and dog were not replaced!)

Our 1990 Jeep Wrangler (with the high output 4.0 inline 6 cylinder engine)
We purchased the Wrangler as our exploration vehicle while living on the island of St. Croix for a year. It was the perfect island Jeep complete with a Fred Flintstone hole in the floorboard! We sold the Jeep before leaving the island since the holes and raggedy top would not have done well in the Connecticut winters we were about to experience in 2004. Sure we could have fixed it up but some Jeeps are just meant to live in the islands!

I was sold on getting another Jeep but back in 2004 they had not come up with the 4door JK yet and we were planning ahead for a vehicle that could accommodate kids, a dog and the occasional trip to Costco while still keeping up with our adventures. So, I went looking for a Land Rover Defender 90 only to find out that they had actually appreciated in value as used vehicles!

Ultimately our search found us our
2001 Land Rover Discovery II SE7

White with Tan interior
Purchased used from original owner in spring 2005 with 45,000 miles.
Modifications included:
• ARB front bumper
• ARB Safari Snorkel and extended breather tubes all around
• Warn XD9000 self recovery winch
• Center Locking Differential activated with a solenoid
• Two IPF fog lights
• Two rear spot lights
• Front recovery points
• Rear recovery point
• Hi-Lift Jack
• A few D-Shackles
• Cargo Master roof rack
• Optima Blue Top battery
• CB Radio

 

[RussRover]

Your truck looks great! Cool that those mods were there! :wings:

 

[Brian McVickers]

Thanks,
That picture was taken in the spring of 2005 so almost five years ago now.
Here is a recent picture from last week:

And every once in a while it gets to look like this:

Since I first got the vehicle, changes have included:
Diff Guards
Two sets of tires
Fuel tank skid
New Front Bumper
New Rear Bumper
New Aux Lighting
Storage solutions
Roof Top Tent
2-meter Radio
Toddler seating
Awning
and several others that I'll cover in this thread.

 

[RussRover]

Sweet! Still running the same tires?

 

[Brian McVickers]

No,
It came with a set of Goodyear Wranglers from way back when in 265/75 R16
By the time I had been in Arizona for a year they began to dry rot so I replaced them with a set of Yokohama Geolander AT+II in the same size. The Geolander tires proved to be extremely stiff and would hardly deform when aired down.

Now I am running, and liking very much, a set of Toyo Open Country All Terrains in 265/75 R16.

I had them mounted onto my original 16"x8" alloy rims at Discount Tire

They have an aggressive tread design for an AT and they deform well when aired down. In fact I get much better traction on the trail even at street pressure compared to the Yokohamas. One of the reasons I went with these is that they balance very well.
This pic was at street pressure of 35 front 45 rear:

This pic was aired down to 15psi:

 

[michaels]

what front and rear bumpers did you change to?

 

[Brian McVickers]

Brakes

Shortly after purchasing our DII we were having a hard time getting used to the "soft" brake pedal that is common in some of the earlier DIIs. We later learned that it has to do with the brake calipers and the issue was eventually addressed in the 2003 and 2004 models with different calipers.

Since the vehicle was still under warranty at the time we had the ABS modulator and the master brake cylinder replaced in order to try and improve the soft pedal. In addition we installed a set of EBC brake rotors and Ferodo pads.

About 40,000 miles late and a second set of Ferodo pads we decided to replace all four rotors and sets of pads again. Expedition Exchange had turned me on to the combination of DBA rotors and LR Genuine pads as a good replacement option. The install went well and they have been performing well for the last 25 thousand miles or so.

 

[flyingwil]

You're just now starting a build up thread?

Super cool Brian! :victory:

 

[Brian McVickers]

what front and rear bumpers did you change to?

I changed to front and rear bumpers from HiCountry Offroad in Evergreen Colorado. The front bumper provides an improved approach angle and is a bit lighter while the rear bumper provides quarter panel protection and a swing away carrier that will accommodate a full size spare and up to three five gallon cans. I currently have it setup to hold two cans, one water and one fuel.

Here is a picture of the front bumper, note that the winch and the lights had not been installed yet.

Here is the rear bumper, about 85% installed, it was waiting for the tire carrier, lights and cans:

Here it is almost completed with the tire and lights mounted:

I need to download some new pictures and I will post up about the complete install process.

Brian

 

[Brian McVickers]

You're just now starting a build up thread?

Super cool Brian! :victory:

Ha! I figured it was about time.:smiley_drive:

 

[grasshopper104]

I am really liking that rear bumper from HiCountry. How is structure wise? Did yours come with the compartment added?

 

[Brian McVickers]

I am really liking that rear bumper from HiCountry. How is structure wise? Did yours come with the compartment added?

It is very stout. Full box construction. There are vertical plates or walls welded in on either side of each tail light as well as on each end and I believe in the middle. It mounts using all four holes from the frame ends as well as using two cross supports to the frame rails from the quarter panel protection.

Here is a picture of one of the side supports, they are adjustable to allow for the small discrepancies from vehicle to vehicle:

One of the features I like best is the connection between the carrier and the door. It is similar to the genuine D90 mount so the carrier can open with the door.

Brian

 

[Lichen]

I'm really liking that rear bumper too. On an off-note, the caption for your first pic could imply that the jeep, wife, and dog were replaced.

 

[Brian McVickers]

I'm really liking that rear bumper too. On an off-note, the caption for your first pic could imply that the jeep, wife, and dog were replaced.

Ha, fixed that one in a hurry!
Thanks

 

[jham]

I like that rear bumper. I just had rovertym build me one, but I'm jealous of that swing away.

Nice truck. Always love a white disco.