74 LANDROVER MONTHLY
oftenstay ing two or three hours afterwork and most of the
weekends, while Iwas bolting all of it back together.
“I had one nerve-wracking moment on the day that the
remains of what used to be the Discovery body had to be
dropped onto the chassis. Because the body mounts had to
be welded to the new part of the frame, Iwas ne ver 100 per
cent sure ifeverythingwould match up – but it did!
“The Longranger body kit was then bolted and glued
together, making the cabwatertight again.It was very easy to
fit it on.
“I decided that Iwould respray the car in its original
colour, Aegean Blue, with theexception of the roof and
bonnet, whichwere painted in Raptor black, to give a bit
more protection.To keep costs down I sprayed it myself – it
doesn’t look too bad considering I was working in dusty
conditions on a busy farm.
“It was then time to make up therear. The framewas made
from 50x50 mm 3 mm thick box section painted with black
Raptor then covere d in 3 mm aluminium chequer plate. The
framewas bolted to the chassis in six places (and can be
removed if needed in ten minutes).New mudguardswere
added, together withstorage boxes and new back lights, then
two planks ofwood were sanded and painted to give a nice
finish to the drop sides.
“The entire project took about four months to finish, but
you ha ve to remember that itwas a spare-time project, nota
full-time job. I did it allmyself, apart from when five-year-
old Lily ‘helped’ me!It was fun for her – and she did paint the
drop sides.
“I will be using the car asmy daily run-around.With a flat
bed of 5 x 7 ft it’s so handy just to be able to chuck things in
the back. I’m hoping to do a little bit ofoverlanding around
Scotland at some point.
“Future plans also include making an aluminium box for
it, and maybe getting aroof tent – but I haven’t decidedyet.
“It’s only been back on theroad for a fewweeks, so it’s too
early to say what sort of mpg I am getting, but it’s very fast–
removing all thatsteel and glass, together with therear seats,
has made it a lot lighter.
“It’sa realhead-turnerandIgetalotofattentionwherever
I go. Some people call it the ultimate farmvehicle, while
others just say: ‘That looks great! What is it?’
“Would I do it again? Definitely,yes! I always say that life
is too short to be driving boring cars.Just make them how
you like them and don’tworry what other people say.”
Here at LRMwe say it’s an inspired project that breathes
new life into a rusty Discovery. And, as they say in Oz, it’s a
beaut ute!
Not manyAussie utes get weather like this (but what doyou expect inScotland?)DIY DISCOVERY 1 UTE
Michal is proud
of his DIY
creationMichal’s Disco
got a second
chance