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- Sydney, Australia
My 1976 Range Rover has evolved over the years into something a little different.
I started life as a 4 speed manual 3.5litre V8 powered 2 door Range Rover.
Somewhere in it's past it was written off and parted out.
In 1994 we happened to be selling a 4 door Range Rover that had fallen in a river. When at the Range Rover workshop my wife saw a brochure for a new vehicle being built in the UK on a Range Rover chassis. The previous year I had written off our Porsche 911 we used off road during a rally so she laid down some specifications for a new race car she wanted. You can't get a better wife than that?
What eventuated was a Range Rover DAKAR built to the following specs:
Engine
4.1litres Range Rover engine
Cosworth pistons
Chev stainless valves
Monster cam
Heads ported to the limit
1.5" headers
supposedly good for 350hp but perhaps 225-250 on a good day.
Tansmission
LT77 5 speed manual
LT230 2 speed transfer case with manual 4wd lockout.
Maxidrive rear diff
Reinforced axle housings with diff hat protectors
Steering arm protection
Chassis
Gussetted and reinforced
Twin engine mounts
reinforced CAMS approved roll cage
180 litre fuel tank
Twin batteries
Extra spare mounted in rear of cab
Suspension
4 wheel coil
Rover self levelling rear suspension
Late model trailing arms
4 Bilstein lengthened shocks per axle
Bilstein steering damper
Ventilated front discs and solid rear discs.
33x12.5x15 Mud Terrain tyres
8" x 15" wheels with an additional 2" offset
Body
One piece Fibreglass DAKAR body kit
2 seater configuration
soft roof and sides (to save weight)
Alloy bumpers
Cibie Oscar plus headlights
Cibie Super Oscar driving lights (on spread one pencil)
Cibie Oscar plus reversing light
Bracketed windscreen to stop it falling out in the event of a roll over or excessive body twist
7 mud flaps to protect shocks, self leveling unit and air locker.
Additional tow points front and rear
Battery isolating switches
Additional fuse board on independent circuit
Interior
Cobra race seats
Luke 4 point harnesses
UHF CB Radio
Intercom
Air compressor
additional instruments
Terra Trip navigation gear
enclosed security cage behind crew
The car was raced once and retired (victorious) and sold in 2000 as surplus to needs.
Re-purchased in 2003 as we missed it.
1UZ-FE conversion had been at the back of my mind since the mid '90's but it always looked too hard. I had never worked on EFI and didn't trust it.
After purchase stripped car to re-build due to poor storage by last owner and use on the beach.
Whilst Surfing the Net came across the Website www.lextreme.com Now I was in trouble. There was no longer any reason to not do the swap.
I obtained a half cut and proceeded to install the engine.
I made the followig adaptors to fit the engine:
Engine mounts
Engine/transmission adaptor. The car still has the Range Rover 5 speed transmission.
Carrier to re-locate the alternator to the opposite side
Oil filter support
Air intake
Adaptor plate to move the oil pan aft and to one side
Starter carrier (it's under the sump)
I had the Range Rover flywheel modified to suit and a custom single plate clutch assembled to suit.
Photos show car in form when re-purchased plus the completed vehicle.
Total cost of conversion was around $5,000.00 although a lot of the cost was to re-build parts of the vehicle not associated with the conversion.
I started life as a 4 speed manual 3.5litre V8 powered 2 door Range Rover.
Somewhere in it's past it was written off and parted out.
In 1994 we happened to be selling a 4 door Range Rover that had fallen in a river. When at the Range Rover workshop my wife saw a brochure for a new vehicle being built in the UK on a Range Rover chassis. The previous year I had written off our Porsche 911 we used off road during a rally so she laid down some specifications for a new race car she wanted. You can't get a better wife than that?
What eventuated was a Range Rover DAKAR built to the following specs:
Engine
4.1litres Range Rover engine
Cosworth pistons
Chev stainless valves
Monster cam
Heads ported to the limit
1.5" headers
supposedly good for 350hp but perhaps 225-250 on a good day.
Tansmission
LT77 5 speed manual
LT230 2 speed transfer case with manual 4wd lockout.
Maxidrive rear diff
Reinforced axle housings with diff hat protectors
Steering arm protection
Chassis
Gussetted and reinforced
Twin engine mounts
reinforced CAMS approved roll cage
180 litre fuel tank
Twin batteries
Extra spare mounted in rear of cab
Suspension
4 wheel coil
Rover self levelling rear suspension
Late model trailing arms
4 Bilstein lengthened shocks per axle
Bilstein steering damper
Ventilated front discs and solid rear discs.
33x12.5x15 Mud Terrain tyres
8" x 15" wheels with an additional 2" offset
Body
One piece Fibreglass DAKAR body kit
2 seater configuration
soft roof and sides (to save weight)
Alloy bumpers
Cibie Oscar plus headlights
Cibie Super Oscar driving lights (on spread one pencil)
Cibie Oscar plus reversing light
Bracketed windscreen to stop it falling out in the event of a roll over or excessive body twist
7 mud flaps to protect shocks, self leveling unit and air locker.
Additional tow points front and rear
Battery isolating switches
Additional fuse board on independent circuit
Interior
Cobra race seats
Luke 4 point harnesses
UHF CB Radio
Intercom
Air compressor
additional instruments
Terra Trip navigation gear
enclosed security cage behind crew
The car was raced once and retired (victorious) and sold in 2000 as surplus to needs.
Re-purchased in 2003 as we missed it.
1UZ-FE conversion had been at the back of my mind since the mid '90's but it always looked too hard. I had never worked on EFI and didn't trust it.
After purchase stripped car to re-build due to poor storage by last owner and use on the beach.
Whilst Surfing the Net came across the Website www.lextreme.com Now I was in trouble. There was no longer any reason to not do the swap.
I obtained a half cut and proceeded to install the engine.
I made the followig adaptors to fit the engine:
Engine mounts
Engine/transmission adaptor. The car still has the Range Rover 5 speed transmission.
Carrier to re-locate the alternator to the opposite side
Oil filter support
Air intake
Adaptor plate to move the oil pan aft and to one side
Starter carrier (it's under the sump)
I had the Range Rover flywheel modified to suit and a custom single plate clutch assembled to suit.
Photos show car in form when re-purchased plus the completed vehicle.
Total cost of conversion was around $5,000.00 although a lot of the cost was to re-build parts of the vehicle not associated with the conversion.