Is this thing legal?

[xcmountain80]

If right hand drive was ilegal, you wouldn't get any mail.

Always one to point out the obvious! I love it, this brought a smile to my face as I was like uh yeah thats true. Though where my office is it's kinda rural and the mail lady drive a honda element from the passenger seat.

Aaron

 

[LJRockstar]

When I bought my LJ, I was seriously considering getting a RHD model. Just to be different. But when faced with the price difference of ordering the rig and the one they had on the lot... well... No RHD for me! Woulda been fun though, the way people look and can't understand why no one is driving! lol

 

[DaveInDenver]

It is true that passing on a two-lane road is a bit more dangerous in a RHD vehicle, but I find that in a Land Rover the frequency of this need doesn't occur very often. When you are on a 4 or 6 lane highway or when you are off in the woods, the RHD is not an issue at all.

I was sort of thinking this. The trucks we're talking about are old Rovers, Land Cruiser and the like that are old enough to invoke the 15 or 25 year old grandfather clause in the registration laws. This means usually naturally aspirated, pretty old technology diesels...S L O W. Heck, my relatively young gasoline powered truck is slow. My point is how often is passing on a 2 lane really going to be a problem? It's usually me that's holding up traffic!

 

[overlander]

Of course there are RHD vehicle in the states that are legally registered. it's a lot easier to drive a RHD vehicle across the border from canada, and then register it here in the states, then having it come out of a shipping connex in the sphere of influence of customs and federal DOT, that will whip out there magnifying glass and clipboards and have at anything with tires on it before it leaves the dock.

If you want to understand the risks and dark side, here is an excellent thread from D90 that illustrates those risks, appropriately entitled "Some guy's importation horror story: "

http://www.d-90.com/forum/showthread.php?t=11894&highlight=rhd

We are all just putting forward information to make sure anyone considering this is making an informed decision. The buyer is the one bearing all the risk.

 

[Bruce Behnfeldt]

That's a good point on passing. Anyone else have any insight on driving a rhd vehicle?
josh

ya, toll booths and the drive thru are a pain in the butt. as far as passing...

...given this bad boy's power to weight ratio who am i going to pass.

 

[The Swiss]

I was under the impression it was pretty easy to import anything over 15 years old.

There is no law against right-hand-drive. Driving one may not be a good idea. Makes it hard to pass on the freeway, for one thing, since you have to pull all the way into the other lane before you can see if it's clear to pull into the other lane...

15 years for CANADA, 25 for the US. Except if it is on the famous eligibility list, which actually the 1993 Defender 110 is.

On a side note: There is no such thing as a 1980 Defender 110, the 110 production started in 1984, and they were not called Defenders until 1991!

 

[stevenmd]

After having read through "most" of this thread... if you really want a decent Defender 110, check out www.lrx.com. Great selection.

OK, now having said that... I have a hard time fathoming why someone would want to pay that type of money for a 110. Yeah, you can get them sometimes for around $40,000 but even those need a lot of work. You can import them from the UK but unless they are sitting on a new chassis, you are looking at a ton of rust.

What I would do... buy a 109 2a for around $5000 - 6000 that is already here and LEGALLY registered. Then put $35,000 into a complete rebuild, picking the type of engine you want, etc. and viola! you have a pretty near new vehicle built the way you want down to a tee. And you have the same amount of money sunk into it that you would have into a 1993 110 that still needs work.

In fact, there is a 109 2a an hour away from me that is not together albeit it is complete, sitting on a brand new ECR coil sprung frame for $5000... Hmmmmm, I'll be back in an hour....

 

[Winky]

In fact, there is a 109 2a an hour away from me that is not together albeit it is complete, sitting on a brand new ECR coil sprung frame for $5000... Hmmmmm, I'll be back in an hour....

SWEET! DO IT! Build thread time!:jumping:

 

[stevenmd]

SWEET! DO IT! Build thread time!:jumping:

Got to build up that 1994 RRC LWB that I just bought first. If I grabbed that 109, it would sit in the garage for a few years before I got to it!:shakin:

 

[overlander]

luckily that's what I did. I waited about a year until a engine fire NAS 110 came up, then bought it for $20k, and fully restored the front end and interior, and dropped the 2.8 powerstroke diesel into it for a total of $50k, and had EXACTLY what I wanted. Mine spent it's life in california, so there is zero rust on the frame and chassis, and I have a fully blasted and painted vented bulkhead, and late model A/C. I love my truck.

 

[viatierra]

luckily that's what I did. I waited about a year until a engine fire NAS 110 came up, then bought it for $20k, and fully restored the front end and interior, and dropped the 2.8 powerstroke diesel into it for a total of $50k, and had EXACTLY what I wanted. Mine spent it's life in california, so there is zero rust on the frame and chassis, and I have a fully blasted and painted vented bulkhead, and late model A/C. I love my truck.

Weren't you at the 2005 Nevada Trophy? A burnt & recovered 110 was there. Either way, you've got a sweet ride!

 

[overlander]

Thank you. But that wasn't me.

 

[Lynn]

Yeah, I was probably wrong when I said that there is nothing illegal about RHD.

All I really know is that after driving a 110 while stationed for two years in Spain, then a 110 and a 130? (crew cab truck) while working for a year in Turkey, Land Rovers suck. But this isn't the tread for that, is it?

 

[Andrew Walcker]

All I really know is that after driving a 110 while stationed for two years in Spain, then a 110 and a 130? (crew cab truck) while working for a year in Turkey, Land Rovers suck.

Glad that is just your opinion!

But this isn't the tread for that, is it?

This is probably not the web site for that thread!

 

[Lynn]

Glad that is just your opinion!



This is probably not the web site for that thread!

Oops. Guess I forgot the 'IMHO.'