I finally got the sound dampening up on the ceiling! That means I can move the headliner from Ol Blue (the parts truck) over this weekend or next. Been a long time coming, but it'll be worth the extra noise reduction.
In other news, I am about to jump into another extraordinarily poor financial decision. I've got my first kid on the way and that means I need a vehicle that is much safer and more comfortable than the Disco. I also have a Miata and Toyota HDJ81, which is a beast, but it's pretty impractical and also built out as a rig, not a family vehicle. While most would say I should dump the Disco and keep the Cruiser, my heart is with the Rover. I don't know if its because I have had such a bad experience with the Cruiser, but the Rover just hits all the right spots: tons of character, easy to work on, unique, and very capable off road. Plus, the Cruiser will bring in a lot more cash than the Rover ever would...
So what to do?
I spent a lot of time considering my options. There's the new Landcruiser and Lexus-Cruiser coming out shortly. There's also the Bronco, used G-Wagens, LC200s, and my personal favorite, the LR4. All would be great vehicles, but I think I would really only enjoy the LR4, which provides the right mix of comfort, safety, modern convenience, and looks. The Lexus-Cruiser is great too, but at a built price of low $80s, i'd be better served buying something better. I have been leaning a little toward the LC200, but it's a bit long in the tooth now and i've always been iffy with the look.
Which leads me to what I am about to do today...
The Ineos Grenadier checks all the boxes: incredibly performant, amazing style, safe, luxurious, and modern. I mean, it's hard to say there is a better off-road vehicle that can also be used as a family rig.
I've been to the dealer 3 times now and every time I've changed my mind on the color. At first, the Slate Blue caught my eye, then the Eldoret (light) Blue w/ White Top. And finally, yesterday, after seeing the Sterling Silver, it was a hands down favorite.
Silver is so boring normally, but this paint has a beautiful blue hue to it when the sun hits it. It's really striking and apparently one of the least picked colors.
Almost looks blue in the sun.
Normally, I try to avoid metallic paints due to the challenges with repair and upkeep. In this case, im willing to take the risk.
Since I am customizing this from scratch, the wait time is about 8 months. That means plenty of time to really push the Rover and get my Mazda + Toyota sold.
The build is fully kitted out: front and rear lockers, factory winch (ya ya, lots of debate on this one), safari windows, dual battery system, cloth seats (better with kids), and so on. The price is crazy and I can't believe im actually going to dump this kind of money into a new vehicle, but if you guys only knew what I have sunk into the Cruiser and Rover, this wouldn't be seen as such a bad decision.
With that said, the plan is to keep the Ineos factory for a few years before the build actually begins. The Rover will be my main camping rig and will undoubtedly keep me busy with repairs for many more years.
Now if I just had a garage to keep these trucks in...