Hi all, obviously new here. I'm looking at possibly getting a 79 Santana Series III thats listed on ebay for $5500 (I suspect the reserve is only slightly below the BIN price). Of course I know nothing about old Land Cruisers so I'm trying to determine if he is overpricing it or if the asking price is valid. I'm working on getting more pics to get a better judgement of condition (interior, frame). Based on just the description tho, would I be walking into a trap or a deal? I'm not looking at this as a restore for now. I like it for the utility and uniqueness. Just want to get it running well.
Well, you may not know much about Land Cruisers, but do you know much about Land Rovers?
Colin
GAH! I spent the last year driving a land cruiser in Afghanistan so I guess I left my mind back there. Yea...unfortunately I don't know much about land rovers either.
Frame rot is common on these. Bulkhead rot, and rust on the outriggers. Basically, rust is very common all over the important parts. Rot on the bottom of the doors, too. His price seems a bit high to me especially since it isn't running and he admits to it needing work.
Says it runs but injector pump needs work. Rust is the word on these. A typical pre-purchase inspection is performed on your back with ball-peen hammer. Hit the frame everwhere. To aquaint yourself with the standard Series Rover restoration/repair do a quick search on this forum. Someone from BC is currently eyeball deep in a frame rebuild and has been kind enough to post pictures for all of us that are thinking of getting one of these!
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2004 DII SE7, OME Lift, ARB Bumper, 265/75-16's, The Family Car
1999 P38 4.6 HSE, 128,800 miles, working EAS, Sold!
OK how different are the santana land rovers vs a standard land rover. I've read that there are various mods they made to suit the Spanish market but I don't know how much they change the nature of the suv. Would a service manual for a regular series III even apply? For instance the leaf springs or other suspension stuff. Also specifically what kind of diesel might they have used? From the extra pics I got, a friend thinks the rear springs may need replacing, and also I determined that the engine uses a Lucas CAV Injector Pump, but I can't determine the exact type. Been trying to find any info specific to Santanas but aside from the broad info I've come up blank. I've attached the extra pics I got.
Santana entered into an agreement with Rover to build their vehicles for the Spanish and Latin American markets. They made improvements to suit the needs of the market and ended up making vehicles that were in some ways better than the parent vehicles! They offered a 6 cylinder diesel and in later years put a turbo on the 4 cylinder diesel before Rover did. Looks like you have the 4 cylinder version there. Should be mostly interchangeable with other Series, so if it is solid and you dig it why not go for it? Do you have any competent Rover mechanics nearby to tackle the pump setup?
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2004 DII SE7, OME Lift, ARB Bumper, 265/75-16's, The Family Car
1999 P38 4.6 HSE, 128,800 miles, working EAS, Sold!
Most everything is interchangeable. The lights, rear door and top are the two most obvious things that aren't. A 79 might have the 5 main bearing 2.25 Rover diesel, but more than likely it's the 3 main.
The price isn't bad for a Santana if it's not rusted out and/or parts are missing.
Can you shrink your photos? They make it hard to read the thread.
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Tom Rowe
Atlanta, GA
Four wheel drive allows you to get stuck
in places even more inaccessible.
Well I went ahead and took the plunge. I'm now just working to get the PO his cash and get the rover here. Then the fun (cash eating black hole) begins
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Looking at 79 Santana on ebay...need advice
Matt.
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