Hey all, Andy here, a new member from New Zealand.

After a fair bit of time wasting with potential buyers of my old car, I finally got my hands on my first Range Rover.
I was quite lucky to pick it up for the price I did.

This is how it looked when I purchased it:



While doing my research I came to find that the Range Rover was no stranger to a mechanic. So I made sure to thoroughly check over the trucks I viewed (X5, Range, Nitro).

However, I managed to snap this one up with a gearbox and turbo replacement at 148,000km's (now done 188,000kms). Also, the airbags & front diff appear to be working as they should. The pre-purchase inspection I had done and computer scan came up clear also

My first views of the truck are nothing but positives. I love the overall look and feel of the L322. I have the dark blue HSE model, so it has the white/tan leather interior. The interior has been well kept and has already had a few compliments. The fuel consumption is great and the size of the truck is very handy.

I have recently started my own gym apparel business, with the name "Staunch Authority". I purchased the truck with the intention of using it as a billboard on wheels as such. As there isnt a great amount of Range Rovers in New Zealand. The dark blue looks very similar to black the majority of the time, so the dark blue on the TSW alloys helps with the "Staunch" look. I hope to achieve the 'Murdered out' look to fit the "Staunch" identity.

Since purchasing the truck I have done the following:

- Removed the OEM stereo
- Installed an aftermarket touch screen Android head unit (bluetooth, 3g, wifi, rear view cam etc) & sub
- Installed a rear view camera
- Installed some TSW 20x9.5 alloys
- Painted the front and rear Range Rover badges black
- Painted the side vents black
- Painted the OEM grille black
- Opened the factory headlights and painted the inner shrouds black
- Installed dual switchback halo's (switch back halos work as DRL and also flash in time with the indicators/hazards)
- Purchased some Pre Cut 3M window tints

I know that halo's aren't everyones cup of tea, so you are welcome to flame me for installing them. As, I am not the biggest fan myself. However, like I said, this truck is being used as an advertising tool. The lights help with this. The more people that recognise the truck, the better. I have tried to implement these in a subtle and clean manner. Let me know what you think.

The aftermarket head unit I have installed is this unit here:



Here is a video of it during installation in my previous car:



I will post up a bunch of interior shots/tips for installing an after market unit in my next post.

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Here are the TSW wheels I have fitted





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Here is the process for the headlight overhaul.

Dual halo setup from The Retrofit Source.



The front, pre installation.





Glass lens off



Glass lens off and inner shroud removed



Both headlights out. I felt a little guilty at this stage. Poor truck...



Test holes drilled for the halo fixing points



Halo's test fitted. Looking good!



Inner shrouds getting a new look.



Fixing the large halo into place on the shroud



Fitting the shroud into the headlight



Fixing point after paint. Nice and clean



Lens back on (needs a clean)



Back on the truck and wired up. This is with the headlights off. The grille + badges have been painted also. The black over the Range Rover badge has now been removed.



Halo's on. DRL style



Comparison shot. Before vs after.

After seeing this shot, I have decided to bake the indicators open and paint the inner shrouds on those also. As the silver stands out like a sore thumb to me. Kill it all!!!



And here is a small clip of how the halo's work.



So yeah. Hi! Nice to meet you all 8)

Admin note: this post has had its images recovered from a money grabbing photo hosting site and reinstated

Last edited by andy.cliff on 17th Jun 2015 2:01am. Edited 2 times in total

Looks really nice mate. Glad you found a nice FFRR as you say they hard to come by in NZ. That's why I'm hanging onto mine if we decide to move back to NZ for a while (my wife has a Kiwi passport ).

Good luck with the car, keep the gearbox well serviced and you probably enjoy it for a very long time. Any plans for a bit of off road stuff? MY 2010 5.0 SC Galway green and sand interior!!
Have the Faultmate MSV2 Extreme to be tinkering with the settings etc. !!

Looking good. Nice colour combo too.

Welcome to the forum.

 2011 Range Rover Vogue SE 4.4 TDV8

Previous cars :
2003 Range Rover Vogue TD6
1999 Discovery Td5 ES
1995 BMW M5 3.8 6 speed
1992 Range Rover 3.9 Efi Vogue
1992 BMW M5 3.8
1988 BMW 735i SE
1989 Ford Sierra XR4x4 2.9i
1981 Ford Fiesta Supersport

This is what I like about this forum; lots of different RR's. However I have one little observation Andy - it's a FFRR not a truck  Travelling around in circles again.

ebajema wrote:

Looks really nice mate. Glad you found a nice FFRR as you say they hard to come by in NZ. That's why I'm hanging onto mine if we decide to move back to NZ for a while (my wife has a Kiwi passport ).

Good luck with the car, keep the gearbox well serviced and you probably enjoy it for a very long time. Any plans for a bit of off road stuff?

Thanks ebajema There are a fair few tidy Vogue V8's for sale over here, at pretty reasonable prices, but the pickings for the TD6 model are very slim.

Oh nice! This country is very well suited for a good 4wd.
I am going to be doing a full service on the truck next month, and intend to do so very regularly. It sounds like everyone with one of these things should!

Not so much as far as the off roading is concerned. However, it will be used to tow my/my partners race karts. We go grass kart racing over here in NZ. So the truck will see paddocks on regular occasions.

mjdronfield wrote:

Looking good. Nice colour combo too.

Welcome to the forum.

Thanks mate Nice to be here!

J90 wrote:

This is what I like about this forum; lots of different RR's. However I have one little observation Andy - it's a FFRR not a truck

I did wonder what the story was with the FFRR business. I did a quick google search and found out we are the "big boys" of the squad (the old squad)

Forums are very good in that regard. Im much the same. I love seeing all the different takes people take on their vehicles.

I had a bit of time on my hands today, so I gave the old girl a clean and snapped a couple of photos of it.
Unfortunately, some of the photos were taken with some messed up settings, which I didn't realise at the time...

Ah well. Enjoy!







Dual halo's setup

Off:



Park/DRL



DRL + low beams



Low beam + Indicators





Some photos of my DIY double din install. I used a BMW E39 fascia panel & a Better BT4505 Android powered headunit + PAC adaptor to allow the use of the steering wheel controls






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Last edited by andy.cliff on 15th Jun 2015 11:50pm. Edited 2 times in total

 MY 2010 5.0 SC Galway green and sand interior!!
Have the Faultmate MSV2 Extreme to be tinkering with the settings etc. !!

that looks tidy

i sometimes wish i didnt have the denso touchscreen so that i to could upgrade to something more up to date.. ... - .- -.




Y. O. L. O.
.

Cheers stan

Im sure you could always upgrade regardless? and sell the denso unit?
This setup without the headunit cost me a measly $182 NZD. Then the Android headunit cost me another $400 NZD.
I kept the stereo from my last car, as it is a very handy wee thing. It has everything you could ever want in your car.

Radio, external hard drive port, handsfree, 3G, Wifi, Facebook?, reverse camera and the rest...It definitely helps modernise the dash of the L322.

I was fortunate to have the HSE model. As the HSE doesnt have all the wiring/loom running to the boot. There is a simple plug and play kit that connects behind the dash. From there, I needed to cut the factory stereo sleeve (dremel) and as others have posted, the air con/heater piping needed to be cut/remoulded. All really easy work, but just takes a bit of work.

I have a 12 inch 950W RMS Boschman sub in the boot, but it spends more time out of the truck, as I fill the boot for karting.

ebajema wrote:

Turns out I forgot to upload the best photo of it



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I really like the alloys, and you have my favourite tyres too. Sadly not feasible on the 5.0SC.

All looking good. Post some pics when you do the indicator units  Discovery 4 HSE
1998 110 TUM HS FFR Hard Top XD WOLF
1982 Series 3 Hard Top

*Gone:L462 D5 HSE LUX, L663 Defender 110 HSE, Discovery 3 HSE, 2014MY Range Rover Sport 5.0 Supercharged AB Dynamic; L405 Exec Vogue SE 4.4, 5.0 Supercharged Autobiography, Defender TDCi XS CSW, Defender TD5 HT, Vogue SE TDV8, Vogue TD6, RRSport SC 4.2V8, Classic 3.9 Vogue Auto, Land Rover Series 3 SWB

Stan can't do the ICE install because the later head unit controls a lot more than it does in our earlier ones and no one has come up with a solution yet.... Pete

__________________________________________________
2014 L405 Autobiography SDV8 4.4 Loire Blue Ebony interior
2011 L322 Vogue SE 4.4 TDV8 Baltic Blue. Parchment over Navy Interior. Sold
2012 L322 Autobiography 5.0 Supercharged Ipanema Sand, Jet Interior. Sold
2002 L322 Vogue 4.4 V8 Epson Green, Ivory over Aspen Interior (Fatty Offroader) Sold
-Click for Project Fatty off roader-

Mean looking rangie that with the dark alloys and headlights,very nice work and love the touch screen install..

Nice work sir

Thanks rathbran Unfortunately, I am going to ruin it by putting bold white graphics on it for my business, but I will keep it clean and mean looking

RRUK wrote:

I really like the alloys, and you have my favourite tyres too. Sadly not feasible on the 5.0SC.

All looking good. Post some pics when you do the indicator units

Haylands wrote:

Stan can't do the ICE install because the later head unit controls a lot more than it does in our earlier ones and no one has come up with a solution yet....

Superbly done project to a high standard