Ep. 9 / Defender Td5 Dismantling / Nothing Left From My Military Defender / Engine Is Out /

Lot of progress in one video, but as real time situation is far ahead, I needed to catch up.
Dismantling rear axle was something new for me. And I had a friend mechanic coming over later on to evaluate condition of the parts. Verdict was, that all new parts. Some may still last, but easier to replace now.

Also I upgraded to blowtorch in some parts. Mostly around A-frame. So far solid solution if nothing else works.

Wiring loom and getting it out in a way I can put it back is still questionable.
Label went on most of the ends of wires. Still there was so much loose ends, that originally were just hanging there. Dashboard is heavily damaged and cracked. Decided not to put that one back there. Still thinking about Puma dash conversion.

Steering wheel - No idea how it was so stuck. I even sold the unit beforehand, but now I need to make a refund as I destroyed it in final end. Created different pulley systems to pull the steering wheel off with smaller bolts next to main shaft. In final end in to the garbage it went.

Some obstacles were removing ignition, but I made some calls. Everybody confirmed, that bolds are snapped of during assembly and I just need to creative to remove them.

The more I reached to the point, were I needed to lift the engine out together with gearbox and transfer box, the more exited I was. Went and barrowed lift for that and randomly found a centre, were to lift. Took this process step by step to be sure not to drop something. Still with this excitement forgot or overlooked the fact, that power steering was still connected. By the time I noticed, just cut the hose.

For heads up, that big part of parts and modifications are ordered and arriving around 10 days. Had different offers, but as volume of parts I need is enormous, I established my own connections in UK as every other local distributor plus used own transport connections who organize my parts trough customs and deal with the paperwork. In my calculations I saved close to 2000€ already on first shipment. Downside is , that I need to order lot of parts in one order. Meaning I need to put a lot of money under parts right away. Not to split it during the whole build progress.
In conclusion - There will be soon Mods and parts unboxing episode :) I like shiny new things.