KNOWING WHERE TO STOP

THE CHASSIS rebuild is such a great opportunity for tackling other work at the same time that it’s easy to end up doing a full-scale restoration that costs far more and takes far longer than initially planned.

So how do you decide what to tackle now, and what’s safe to leave for next time?

Don’t put off anything which has an impact on safety or immediate reliability.

Other jobs to tackle are the ones that are made significantly easier by the increased access you have when the body is removed. Examples on our Defender were the new clutch and timing belt. New brake pipes are an obvious no-brainer.

The jobs to consider putting off until later should be the non-essential ones which can just as easily be tackled after the rebuild is complete.

So, for example, we chose not to fit a new radiator on our Defender even though the original item is showing some signs of corrosion and will need replacing fairly soon. Because the radiator is one of the last components to be refitted after the chassis swap, there’s no advantage in replacing it as part of this rebuild – it’s just as easy to change later.

Make a thorough inspection of the vehicle before you begin and decide which jobs you plan to tackle as part of the rebuild, and which can wait for another time.

If you’re rebuilding after an MOT failure, as we were, the failure sheet will guide you. You can then order appropriate replacement parts before you begin, and you will have a much better idea of the likely total cost of the rebuild.