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1998 Defender 110 Pick-Up Color Change to Wolf Green,
3 door conversion and Upgrades
This Defender 110 Pick Up has come to us from the point of purchase for a transformation into exactly what the customer wants it to be. That transformation will include a full color change paint job from the factory white to a custom Wolf Green color, the installation of a full length hardtop and more. As with any 110 that arrives at ECR, the first step is to fully evaluate the vehicle from top to bottom. Then we discuss that evaluation with the customer and go over what he/she does and does not want done to the vehicle. In this 110s case the basic truck is on good shape, so we just need to get some mechanical items taken care of and service the 300 Tdi engine. Once the truck is brought up to snuff and runs and drives correctly we can begin with the paint work.
The 110 will be going from a pick-up to a full hard top and will be getting a full and correct ECR color change paint job, so that means everything comes apart. Here you can see the 110 is coming apart and body parts are going to our in house paint department for prep and paint.
The only way to do a correct color change paint job on a Defender is to take the body part. It isn't like painting a Corvette where you can just paint the jams and the exterior and call it good. In a Defender you see the exterior body color everywhere, in the cargo area, under the seats, on the bulkhead by your feet... everywhere. So they don't lend themselves to an easy color change, but it can be done, it just takes a little effort.
The frame and the running gear on the 110 are in great shape, so those items will stay as they are and stay in place.
This image shows the 110 almost completely stripped down. The bulkhead is the last piece of the puzzle and it will be stripped down shortly.
While the rest of the parts are being taken apart the rear tub has been taken to our fabrication department. The 110 Pick-up is a cool truck, but it has very limited interior room and can seem small even for those drivers who are not that tall. The cure for this problem in this 110 will be to convert it to a full length hard top and remove the bulkhead behind the seats so that the seats will travel rearwards more, making a much more comfortable interior. A nice by-product of these changes will be that the full roof will give more lockable storage space.
Here you can see the rear tub after the basic modifications have been made. It is a simple change that makes worlds of difference in the day to day driving of a 110 3 door.
Since we have removed the support that the behind the seat bulkhead offers we need to put some structure back in so that the doors work correctly and so that the body holds its shape. Our relationship with Safety Devices in the UK means that we no longer have to fabricate all these cool brackets and support bars here at ECR, we can now just order up the parts we need and install them. Here you can see that a new Safety Devices support bar has been installed so that everything can be test fit before the new paint goes on.
The side braces ensure that everything stays in place and it is even bolted to a frame mounted cross bar underneath the tub that adds another element of security to the rear body structure. You also see that we have modified the tub's capping to remove the remnants of the old bulkhead and smoothed everything out. Once the cappings are painted and the full roof goes on all this will look factory built. Next up we will get the tub stripped and ready for layers of primer and the customers choice of Wolf Green.
Here you can see all the needed body work has been done on the tub and it has been put under numerous coats of epoxy prime. This 110 pick up tub, turned NAS style 3 door tub, is now ready for its final coats of color.
Along with the rear tub all the other panels have been sorted and primed. The 110 had a fair amount of dings and dents and all those have been taken care of and almost everything is now under epoxy primer.
The seat box had a lot of rust and corrosion, but we have removed all the mess and coated it in epoxy primer. This will not only help the paint application process for the new color, but will also help keep the seat box rust free for as long as possible. In the background of this shot you can see the new 3 door roof sides that have been modified for the African spec. side windows and already epoxy primed, now ready for top coats of Wolf Green.
Here you can see the wheels for the 110, now under top coat. The fluorescent lights in the paint shop do not do this cool color justice, for that you'll have to wait until we roll the truck outside. The satin military style finish along with the cool custom color will make this 110 a really cool looking rig once it is back together. The rims went from having white factory paint, to be media blasted back to white metal, then coated in numerous coats of epoxy primer and then multiple coats of the custom Wolf Green color top coat. These are just out of the bake booth. Once they harden up more we will re-mount the Michelin tires and get them back on the rolling chassis.
Here you can see the 110's rear body tub being unloaded after its trip to the Rhino-Liner. The interior of the tub has been shot with ultra tough bed liner that will not only hold up to whatever happens in the back of the 110, but will also help keep the road noise down a little.
This image shows the tub after getting its numerous layers of top coat. The new paint and the Rhino-Lining look great and will work well together. The tub on this 110 had lots of hidden damage, so it took a lot of metal work in order to get it straight, and now it finally looks factory straight sitting under the new Wolf Green color.
The new hood is also now under color. The original hood and RH fender had been in an accident and were filled with bad patches and body filler.
The other parts, some new and some old refurbished units are all starting to get color as well. Once everything is painted we will start the re-assembly.
The last piece of the puzzle is the bulkhead. Here you can see the bulkhead has been removed from the chassis and is in the process of being stripped down. Once it is fully stripped it too will get prep'd and painted.
This image show the rolling chassis, as it sits now, awaiting the freshly painted body parts from our paint department. The freshly painted rims have been set up with the original Michelin tires for a nice military look. Next up the bulkhead will be painted then the body will start to be assembled.
Here you can see more parts now in the Wolf Green top coat. These doors will now get their "guts" re-installed so that they will be ready for the body assembly. The new rear door is also shown above and it will get set up with all the parts that will make this pick up, now turned 3 door, nice to drive... like a rear wiper washer system and a rear window defroster.
The bulkhead is now ready for reassembly as well. It has been seam sealed and epoxy primed so that it will last a long time and then top coated in the custom Wolf Green. As you can see in an ECR color change we do a complete and correct job. Everything is degreased and there are no ugly tape lines. Once complete, no one will be able to tell that this truck didn't leave the factory in this custom Wolf Green color.
As the paint work gets finished up it is time to start assembling the body. Here you can see the rear body starting to come together and you can start to see how cool this color and finish combination is going to look.
Here you can see the front tub structure coming together. The freshly powder coated tub brace bars are loosely installed (they will be tightened when we line up the body) and connected to the frame mounts. This set up will not only make the truck feel more open, but will allow the front seats to move further back and recline more for a much more comfortable driving position.
This image shows the roof sides going into place with the African spec. windows in place. The windows were also disassembled and painted in Wolf Green because the customer wants a military look, and that means everything is as green as possible. The bulkhead is also in place now and the systems are starting to be hooked back up.
Here you can see the roof panel and other panels have been installed and the truck is starting to look like a truck again. The conversion from pick-up to 3 door means wiring modifications as well in order to run the rear defroster, rear washer and rear wiper and such. So we will now make those sub-harnesses so that all the additional systems can hooked up and made to work as the factory intended... if this had been built as a 3 door.
This image shows one of the front doors all built up and ready to go on the truck. The doors are painted and built up on our door jigs so that no harm comes to the paint when things are put back together. Once the fully built up door is ready it goes on the truck and the risk of any paint damage is greatly reduced, therefore making a better job for the customer.
Here you can seethe 110 coming together a little more. We have started to make the modifications to install the new stereo in a new cubby box and install some speakers in the doors. The doors have been hung and the hydraulics have all been bled and tested.
Inside the 110 is coming together as well. Next up we will install the new jump seats and get the seats and dash installed.
The rear of the Rover is coming together as well. The new rear door is installed and things are looking good.
Here you can see the front clip is back on and the wiring and mechanical systems are back in place. Next up we will charge the AC system and get ready for some road tests to make sure everything is functioning correctly.
This image shows the 110 out for short road test. The new raised air intake is now in place and all the mechanical systems check out.
Next up we will install the headliners and start to button up the interior. Then we will be fabricating ECR ROX sliders and a Camel Trophy style bumper that will hold a Warn 8274 winch.
Here you can see the winch and bumper assembly that we fabricated has returned from powder coat and has been installed. It has the look of the Camel Trophy set up, but instead is made from much stronger materials and houses the customers desired 8274 winch.
In the cargo area of the 110 we have installed 4 jump seats with seat belts so the 110 can now be a complete party-mobile with seating for 10.
The headliners and sunroof give a nice finished feel to the interior of the "military look" 110.
The dash has been altered to house the switches for the rear door items. Factory switches and wiring connectors have been used to install the heated rear glass, rear washer and rear wiper functions.
The radio, that used to be in the dash, has been moved to the new Tuffy center cubby box to allow for the switches and to make it more secure in the locking Tuffy box.
Here you can see the truck nearly complete and looking very military in its overall look. The ECR ROX sliders have been fabricated and installed for added sill protection and after some test miles and a good cleaning the 110 pick-up, now unique 3 door will be ready to head out west to its new owner.
This image shows the 110 white pick-up, now custom Wolf Green 3 door ready to head out west. This is one very unique Defender and it has some very traditional and military aspects of it that make it look great overall. This project shows just how far you can take a Defender, they are one of the greatest vehicles to customize and change the configuration of.
If you have needs for your Defender, from routine service to wild modifications, contact ECR. We'll be happy to help you customize your Defender in any way you can imagine.