Fuelled by luck more than judgement
ALTHOUGH I’VE
carried out basic servicing on the 107 since buying it at auction two years ago, it’s still running on the original (I think) SU electric fuel pump. Every time I take PDF 666 for a long run I’m slightly surprised that it reaches its destination, especially given the diaphragm-destroying properties of modern petrol.
The solution to range anxiety, old Land-Rover style, is to buy a modern replica of the SU pump that has solid-state internals. I bought mine from Dunsfold DLR (www.dunsfold.com) some time ago – only I’ve not yet fitted it, which ensured the traditional anxiety of ‘will it, won’t it?’ when I set out on an 80-mile journey to home in Gloucestershire from the Landy’s winter storage near the
Octane office in Bedfordshire. Pre-trip preparation consisted of taking out the plugs and turning over the engine to get the oil pressure up, checking fluid levels (chiefly, radiator and overdrive), and a quick oil and filter change once the engine had warmed through. After that, it was straight onto the open road. As usual, PDF didn’t miss a beat and we collected a friendly wave from the driver of a Defender en route.
The 107 was something of an impulse purchase two years ago but I’d never forgotten my love affair with GAP 772 (right), a 1951 80in that I owned c19972003. We went through a lot together, including a trip to Iceland – the country, not the frozen food store – and I always regretted GAP’s enforced sale due to a looming tax bill. A dealer up in the north-east bought her, after which she seemed to disappear off the scene. She no longer appeared on the Series One Club’s register and there was a rumour that she might have been sold abroad.
Not so, as I recently found out: the dealer had simply parked GAP in a shipping container and made a tasty six-fold profit when he exhumed her some 14 years later!
Fortunately, GAP has now found an appreciative new owner. Thomas Robinson has invited me to bring PDF up to his North Yorkshire base for some trundling around the local lanes together. It’s an invitation I’m keen to accept – but only once I’ve fitted that new fuel pump.