Nothing says “Land Rover” like the spare tire mounted on the bonnet. It’s iconic. And I was fine with keeping mine there until I discovered how difficult it was to open up the engine compartment. Something I plan to do almost daily. It was damned heavy. I did it but will I be able to in five years? Or ten?

The truck is back in San Diego where the guys at Lucra Cars are taking care of a few things they missed during the restoration, so I’m having them move the spare to a swing-out arm on the rear of the truck.

Removing the mounting bracket from the bonnet (what we call the hood) left about 20 holes. A small patch would look like a, well, a patch. So they’re fabricating a piece of aluminum that will cover most of the bonnet. (the green tape)

This will horrify Land Rover purists (sometimes known as “rivet counters”) but I’m going to be happier with the spare on the rear of the truck.

The ride up to Mr. Wolf’s shop in the Bay Area was on open transport truck. Only thing available on short notice. Last night he sent it back to Lucra Cars in an enclosed truck.

Looks like it had some pricey company. Perhaps one of you car guys can ID these high-end rides.

No idea when I’ll finally get behind the wheel but if I had to guess I’d say December. Gonna call it a Christmas present.

The Northern California Land Rover Club held a rally in Hollister, California this weekend and Mr. Wolf took The Truck down to show off and test drive. He discovered some “issues” that have to be addressed and will almost certainly delay the delivery date. But that’s why we went with Mr. Wolf in the first place. Here are some photos from the rally:

For my money, nothing captures the Land Rover mystique like this 1951 Series (1) truck. I think he said these guys drove it down from the Bay Area (with the windscreen down!)

Serious off-roaders love to make their trucks go where they shouldn’t be able to go. Mr. Wolf called these “tank traps.”

So The Great Land Rover Project has hit a bump but — as you can see — Land Rovers love bumps.

The restoration is complete and The Truck is on it’s way to the Bay Area, scheduled to arrive at 10 a.m. tomorrow. Mr. Wolf says he’s going to drive it a bit and then put it on a trailer and take it the annual get-together of the Northern California Land Rover Club. He promises some good photos.

For the next several weeks he’ll be driving the truck, looking for anything missed during the restoration and making a few modifications and additions (fire extinguisher, different rear seats, etc. The final truck ride to Missouri will be in an enclosed truck. I confess this picture makes me a little nervous.

When it rolled off the assembly line in 1979, I think there were three seats in the cab (and they weren’t comfy bucket seats like these). The middle seat has been replaced with a storage compartment.

The floor of the tub (rear part of the truck) is covered with a rubber-like material. When it gets muddy, hose it out. I’m not fond of the rear seats and will replace those with simple pads (no back).

The longer, black lever with the white tip is the parking brake. The yellow knob engages four wheel drive when you push it down. And the red shifter engages the Low Ratio gear. Also known to some as “momma low.” The black box with hoses coming out the sides is the heater. Three settings: to the windscreen; to the floor; or to both.

If that steering wheel looks bigger than what you’re used to, it is. No power steering on this baby so you need that big wheel.

Here are a few shots of the engine. No, I cannot name all of the parts –let alone work on them– but one of my goals is to be able to identify each part and understand what it does.

As for that “Overseas Land Rover Owners Club,” no idea. If I had to guess it was on the truck before restoration and the guys just put it back on.

Hope to be behind the wheel by the end of October. Description of Restoration 

It appears the interior work on the truck is complete. The door panels have been powder coated and a rubber liner added to the floor of the “tub” (rear part of the truck). In a previous post I confused “powder coating” with “rough coating” (the stuff they spray on pickup truck beds). I’m very pleased with the look of these panels.

The truck is about done. It’s getting “rough coating” applied to the footwells and the tub (the rear part of the vehicle). If I understand the procedure, rough coating is sort of spray-on bedliner. Protects the metal and less slippery. The door panel below is aluminum and they said we could cover it with vinyl; paint it the color of the exterior; or rough coat it. I went with rough coat.

Barring any problems, the truck goes to SF for break-in period and I hope to have it by mid-October.