Very happy to host a pub meet. I'm a couple of miles from Dorking. Reasonable amount of parking space so why not?

So, it's been a while.

It's getting to that stage when I have to try and start it.

Thanks to DavidH for the supply of an early LH ride height sensor now nestled in its half a dark choocolate Easter egg.

As an excuse to buy some hog ring pliers I wrestled with the passenger seat cushion element.

The rear screen managed to break itself -- well OK I dropped a centre punch on it and the new screen from Pilkingtons was too wide and the rubber side trin caught on the E post trim. They are sending one from a different batch to see if that fits better.

Having finally got the sunroof sorted the head lining has gone back in and the grab handles relented eventually with this encouragement.

The gearbox oil cooler pipe was a saga in itself in that the LR supplied pipe had the wrong nut. I think I put that in another post. Britcar were brilliant and got the problem sorted by using part of an engine oil cooler pipe.

The underside is looking a bit tidier than when I started.

Front suspension, steering and arch guards are in.

Now we are in Tier 4 there is no reason not to get on with it and order some brave pills before turning the key. Thank you to everyone who has provided advice and answers to even the dumbest questions.

She looks mint 👍

men looks like new ... keep going when is possible!

Here we are after the first 50 yard journey.

Still a few bits to sort out. The fuel gauge is stuck on empty and the battery cover won't latch into the receptacles in the battery strap and surround.

That looks fantastic, a credit to you, congratulations Dave!

What's the plan for it now, drive it / show it / etc ?

That is concours condition. Well done David.

Shows might be back on later this year. You have got to try for a best in show certificate.

Thank you for the kind words. I'm not sure what to do next. It's the problem of making something too good to use. You end up being frightened to take it out in the rain or park in town. I'm not that keen on competitive polishing so will have to see.

wow ... stunning!
hats off to you :-)

That truly is stunning and great to read through the full thread of what has been achieved.

i say you make sure it is used and not just a show pony, the work that has gone in to it, needs to be enjoyed aswell.

I’ll drop mine round tomorrow, 🤣😂,, that is a credit to you, well done

Amazing job, well done.

How did you get all the grime off the plastic parts, like wheel arches and engine bay plastics, to such a degree that they look new? Or are they all new?

Thanks everyone,

cleaning the plastic parts was all part of the fun! Just started off scrubbing with Surfex hd and then once dry going over with Meguiar's Ultimate Black.
The occasional repair with bits of matching plastic.

Softer rubber and plastic I used Autoglym rubber and plastic cleaner.

Have you got an old bath or something? I can never find a ‘sink’ big enough , lol

Thats a very beautiful car! Job well done!

Well, I've been made an offer I can't refuse.
I'm a bit conflicted as I've enjoyed doing the work and deeply indebted to everyone here for the advice and help. When I started I didn't realise what an undertaking it was going to be.

Some people may condemn the thought of just selling it on but I'm not one for sitting in a field at a show and what do you do with it. I wouldn't want to park it in town or bury it up to the axles offroad and if someone wants it for a collection then I think that is the best place for it. I don't have room for a collection.

I'll have a lie down in a darkened room for a while and maybe tackle one just to use.

The price it is up at is not what I will get and I may just cover my costs without costing in the labour so it's been fun to do - most of the time.

This forum has saved my sanity and answered my more ridiculous questions with kindness and authority. Thank you all.

https://www.graemehunt.com/inventory/615/1994-range-rover-p38a-cvc

After all that work it seems a shame not to get some use out of it but, with an offer like that, only an idiot would refuse. Interesting that the same dealer has a 2001 Vogue up for £24k, despite it having the book showing on the HEVAC.......

So, after six months with the dealer the story gets interesting.

A few days ago the car was being driven to show a potential customer.
The driver noted that the coolant temperature gauge was reading very high so aborted the meeting. It went back to the dealers workshop and they test drove it for 10 miles and the coolant temperature was fine although there was a "popping" sound. They changed the sensor and thermostat and then found thar there was no issue with the temperature but the gauge was considered faulty.

The dealer reported that the "inlet manifold had blown up" presumably meaning the inlet manifold gasket and that it was due to excess crankcase pressure, which seems reasonable. The popping disappeared when the oil filler cap was removed.

The car is coming back to me on Thursday so I am planning the campaign.
Having had it running perfectly it seems odd that the problem has not shown up before.

I was proposing to do a compression test first and a CO2 test.
I will also check the plenum pipes to see if they have collapsed, although they were new.

Any thoughts much appreciated.

That is an absolutely stunning restoration!

My advice would be to take what everyone else has told you with a pinch of salt and do your own troubleshooting. Checking everything over first hand will give you a good idea what’s going on.

Thank you David.

The coolant issue I mentioned in another post and seems to have been an earthing problem. There was a 6.1ohm resistance between the sender and the battery earth which turned out to be at the connection from the chassis to the earth cable going to the alternator bracket. Since remedying that it seems fine.
Five minutes with a Nanocom would have shown that the actual coolant temperature was normal.

The popping was not the inlet manifold "blowing up" but the valley gasket. The vacuum connection between the fuel regulator and the ram pipe housing was disconnected and the oil seperator was damaged so there was too little vacuum to clear the crankcase.
Sorting those seems to have cleared the problem.

The suggestion by the "workshop" that the engine needed a complete rebuild seems ill founded.