The 2004 came from Pennsylvania and along with it, a VERY rusted frame. I took apart the entire front end and remediated a lot of it, but was just a temporary solution. The rear is totally chowdered though and not worth trying to repair, even with partial frame replacements.

I've always worked on cars myself, but I don't have a lift, so I'm biting the bullet and paying a LR restoration shop to do it all. I'm girding myself for about a $15K bill, including the frame, but wondering if there's anything I can do myself beforehand to lower the bill even a little. It needs to be able to drive about a mile to get to the shop. The interior needs to be removed to swap the frame, right? So I can at least do all that before driving over. Anything else? Bumpers I guess... Headlights? The retracting step connected to the frame? Anything else?

And yeah, I've weighed getting a busted 2003/04 and using that frame as a donor. There are a few reasons I decided to go the direction I'm going though.

One, the paintwork, interior, body, mechanicals (only 96,XXX miles currently) and all are in excellent condition. Super nice. I love it's Giverny Green color too and finding a donor disco in that color isn't easy, especially with paintwork in 10/10 shape.

Two, not that I plan on selling this, but these will absolutely be classics in another decade, and I think giving it a brand new galvanized frame today will mean a much higher value tomorrow. I'm OK with the expense, but not quite willing to call it an 'investment'.

And third, used frames, even ones without visible exterior rust, are still full of unknowns. Cracks, stress fractures, and even internal, unseen corrosion are all possibilities. Starting with a beefed up galvanized (inside and out) frame is the silver bullet solution.

 

Good luck. Nice to see people willing to put that kind of cash on the table in order to keep their D2 on the road. Way too many D2`s end up on the scrapyard way prematurely..

 

I pulled a scrap Disco 2 body off a frame a while back. This is what I remember doing:

Body mounting bolts
The front / rear bumpers come off.
The engine wiring harness has to be unplugged from the ECU and travels with the engine.
Center console comes out so the shifters can go with the transmission. The only access I remember otherwise needing in the interior is for the body mounting bolts. Might need to pull up the carpet in a couple spots.
Brake lines have to come off / be cut near the ABS module.
ABS wires
Fuel pump and EVAP wires have to be unplugged near the fuse box.
Gas tank filler / lines has to be removed from tank.

Obviously, you wouldn't be able to pull all of this and still drive, but there are some things, like the interior covering the bolts, you could do. I remember it being a lot of work, but was not as hard as I thought.

 

Man I’m all for spending money on these things, but you can do a lot of other things with $15k. These things are really cheap down here in Florida and a largely rust free (at least in my neck of the woods).

@XRAD did a project not too long ago where swapped out all the nice stuff from his rig to a new rig that had a solid frame. Maybe he’ll chime in here.

 

TBH, in my comparison of $15K versus... fill in the blank... the blank is filled with just getting a new Defender. I enjoy this disco WAY more than I would a new Defender, so spending $15K to have a 'perfect' disco - as I would define it - is a bargain compared to the $75K my new defender build would clock in at.

 

Definitely Agree…..

 

Agree with Captain Aaron, pull the bumpers, headlights, center console, glove box (to access the ECU). rear frame mounts are easily accessible under the rear seats without removing the carpet, I would have to look at the front again don't remember cutouts for those so they probably go in from the bottom. If you haven't done it yet it would be an ideal time to do the CDL shifter, radiator, and all the hoses. They should leave the AC compressor and condenser with the body, ABS and master cylinder with the frame.

 

Did the radiator and all the hoses last summer, and of course being a 2004 it has a CDL, but I dooooo need new metal brake lines. The current ones are as rusty as the frame. Actually... any idea where to source new brake lines from?

 

ACE vehicles have parts to remove, as well. I would presume?

 

No ACE here, but I do have SLS