Decided to get the wheels refurbed in Black Powdercoat or Black/Chrome finish before putting the new tyres on....

Gazellio wrote:

LR Parts

Rack £1161 fitting kit £192
Snorkel £405
Spots £369 Bracket £110
Skid Pan £539
Protection Bar £453 Fitting Kit £58
Winch £2380

That winch is a real comedy price.

When I think that I paid 16.5k for the Camel... and got back nearly £1.5k on the rooftent.
And that had all the full event gear, twin tanks, cage, Warn 8274 etc... it looks like a bargain!

Could have a look here for info / bits:

http://www.g4ownersclub.com/forum/Default.aspx

I have a set of D3 HSE wheels like the ones you are about to paint, complete with GY MTRs, only done 500 miles, mostly offroad on a D3, I bought them for my RRS and was going try them on the FFRR but would be willing to part with them................ as in 13 months of ownership they have only come out of the garage to see what they might looklike on the FFRR and I never fitted them. The G4 D3 has the GY MTRs on it - all the G4's (except Freelander) had them out of the factory 2018 Mini Countryman Cooper S E All4 PHEV in Melting Silver - it’s whisper quiet in EV and polluter modes

The reason I have multiple RR's and no Defenders is because we often travel quite some distance on road before off roading. I just assumed that I'd have to live with the lack of comfort on road to be able to do what I wanted off road - but after my first several thousand km on/off road trip in a RR (pop-in-laws 1987 RRC), I realized I could have my cake and eat it, too. If you drive off road properly, you will damage the car at some point - and with that in mind, the size difference is of no real issue to me (I don't do trials, tho). Tree branches scratching down the side of the car, well... And the L322 is amazing off road. Just wanted to explain my preference for RRs over Defenders even for more serious off-roading.

All that said, the D3/4 is basically the same off road and comfort wise you lose net to nothing too, so good choice Gaz.

I really like the discreet winch mounts avail for the D3/4 like this one from Devon 4x4:

Click image to enlarge

Tim in Scotland wrote:

The original G4 Exped roof rack was made by Safety Devices IIRC - looks like marine ply treated with rubber compound paint and the 3M nonslip treads we use onboard for the pilot ladder treads and are also available from good yottie shops.

The proper LR/ safety devices racks also have a foam rubber seal that effectively closes any gap between the front solid edge of the rack and the car's roof and stops the headache inducing whistle above 50. Don't know how good it really is but a friend of my has an LR Exped rack for his RRS and drives it from Hasselt in belgium to Wick in the north of Scotalnd frequently and claims there is no extra noise.............

I wasn't sure about the marine plywood - it looks so plastic-y especially around the edges. Over here they use whats called screen printing plate (translated literally - is this right?) on applications such as this or trailer flooring. Absolutely waterproof, very tough and no paint needed - but even heavier than marine ply...

Tim, do you have any pics of the foam piece? Mine's an OEM LR safari rack which I'm relatively sure was made by SD too. I don't have any foam, tho, and the fitting instructions make no mention of it either. I was going to try experimenting with wind deflectors. 
RRC 2Dr, RRC 4Dr,
P38, and 2 L322s
(wife thinks I'm nuts - prob right, too)

Quote:

BTW, as far as tires go, the Cooper Discoverer STT has gotten good reviews from all sorts of sources. One of the more positive items seems to be that the road noise is relatively low for a MT tire. And it's avail in numerous 17, 18 and 20 in sizes.

SteveMFr wrote:

The reason I have multiple RR's and no Defenders is because we often travel quite some distance on road before off roading. I just assumed that I'd have to live with the lack of comfort on road to be able to do what I wanted off road - but after my first several thousand km on/off road trip in a RR (pop-in-laws 1987 RRC), I realized I could have my cake and eat it, too. If you drive off road properly, you will damage the car at some point - and with that in mind, the size difference is of no real issue to me (I don't do trials, tho). Tree branches scratching down the side of the car, well... And the L322 is amazing off road. Just wanted to explain my preference for RRs over Defenders even for more serious off-roading.

All that said, the D3/4 is basically the same off road and comfort wise you lose net to nothing too, so good choice Gaz.

I really like the discreet winch mounts avail for the D3/4 like this one from Devon 4x4:

BTW, as far as tires go, the Cooper Discoverer STT has gotten good reviews from all sorts of sources. One of the more positive items seems to be that the road noise is relatively low for a MT tire. And it's avail in numerous 17, 18 and 20 in sizes.

Click image to enlarge

Thanks thats top advice I really both winch kit and tyres...

I have just collected the D3 so will start collecting bits asap.

OK it was not easy getting the job done in one afternnon but after a lot of blood sweet and tears the Black G4 is nearly ready:

In 28 hours you have bought it, had the stickers put on, plus a rack, lights, Snorkle, foam bullbar and a winch?
That's going some.

 
RRC 2Dr, RRC 4Dr,
P38, and 2 L322s
(wife thinks I'm nuts - prob right, too)

The little Natwest sign on the roof finishes it off.

OOps I must be getting carried away dreaming on the dark side - but that's what I want it to look like but with black wheels and minus the chrome and Nat West sign.....

May have found a genuine rack - that's a start but I cannot decide on the tyres???????????

Just kidding with you. Looks great.

Last edited by Royle on 12th Jan 2011 9:50pm. Edited 1 time in total