LRCC

Of course Mick, myself and Alex were offering an opinion not saying it couldnt be advertised for 10k... My concern being that if a quick sale is required then the price may be optomistic, but i watch with interest.

Apologies if I mis-read the chassis, at glance it looked a little late for vehicle and appeared to be built up. No offence meant it was an unnecessary assumption. However having seen a lot of unused chassis change hands, they never make close to the Richards price. As i said, the biggest shame is you cannot keep it as you are plainly an enthusiast and they are rare vehicles.

Wildwoodflower wrote:Well, the last post by me was a little hot-headed. Sorry, Dan.
If you look at Richards' own site http://www.richardschassis.co.uk/series ... s-iia.html, it points out the difference between an early S2a and a late. The giveaway is apparently the cross bracing (which the S3 also has) and the brake relay mount, along with the splayed gearbox gusset. As far as I or indeed anyone else is aware - including the man who ordered it in the first place, it is a late S2A chassis.
I'll try and regain my composure now.

Good luck with your sale im sure the right landy for you will appear in time. i was looking for a carawagon for approx 14months.

Looking at the album of pics it certainly looks like a project for the brave Would it not be a more cost effective exercise to simply transplant the "dormobile" bits onto a good base vehicle ??

What would something like this cost in the uk ??

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Land-Rover-s ... 43ba1573c3

This is what I'd be doing, no it wouldn't be original but you'd have a dormobile at probably the third of the cost to restore the original item. You could also sell any salvageable items. Just my two cents worth

Either way good luck with it

I've some experience now of Series restoration and I don't believe a 'donor' is actually a worthwhile shortcut - unless your donor happens to be someone else's project - and even then it remains an unknown quantity with problems that may not become apparent until far too late. I don't agree that it is a project for the brave - but it certainly isn't for the inexperienced.

I don't run a Series as a pampered hobby pet - I'm a single mum, I have a demanding job and it's my only and everyday vehicle which means I'm only interested in something that is reliable and economic. Rescuing this Dormobile was a heart decision, not head - and I need to be practical. I've costed getting it back to usable condition and (for me) it would be reasonable - but it's just beyond my budget when what I was looking for - and need - is a vehicle on the road right now.

My personal plan was to lift the body off (the tub is very good), overhaul the axles and rebuild the swivels, new brakes, a set of parabolics on the galvanised chassis, bulkhead repaired and dipped and then sling in a 200tdi, taking my chances on the gearbox for now.There are two big jobs I can't/wouldn't do myself - lift off/on the body and fit the new engine - and I don't weld. But I do know folks who do and precisely what it will cost. There's plenty more, of course, but I won't go into exhaustive detail. Cosmetics - I've become pretty handy with a spraygun.

This is all standard Series stuff and I'm not a novice or a Britpart merchant. The most significant and potentially expensive aspect of this vehicle is the Dormobile fixtures and fittings - they are all present, working and are really only in need of low-cost cosmetic attention.

There is a pretty simple formula for valuing a Series restoration: value = vehicle + new parts - labour
Clearly there are variables - deduct points for a bad homebrew hybrid with chequer-plate rash, add points for galvanised chassis, rebuilt gearbox,tax exemption, professional modern diesel conversion and so on.

The formula seems true for most restorations of common Series vehicles, but there are exceptions depending on rarity - hence the higher prices commanded by Series I and forward control versions - and factory conversion campers.

There were more than a million Series vehicles produced and (I'm sure I'll be corrected if wrong on this!) only around 800 of those were factory Dormobiles. The survivors are vanishingly rare. I think mine may be the only one in the UK to go on sale in a year. I think it is worth restoring properly to a usable, everyday vehicle without losing too much of what makes it special. I also think its value when restored will fall comfortably within the formula.

It is one of those... Could be none for sale this year could be something like the five odd last year, who knows???? There is rarity value of course, I know I have one as well, but they come with a lot of expense in regards to interior! Currently I am recovering my seats £500 in materials and my time maybe, and then the sorting the rest out (and mine is in good condition). As has been generally expressed, good luck with the sale, I think you are unlikely to realise what you believe it to be worth, if you do it is Kerrrr-ching for all us Dormi owners.

I would add that nobody is questioning your knowledge of LR's, why would they??? As it is a forum, some opinions have been offered and your earlier responses were a bit abrasive..... When it comes to the value of campers, a lot of us a fairly clued up as we religiously watch every one that goes by... The value in yours is the roof and other dormi bits, I just sold a roof not long ago (very much the same situation as yours with missing glass) so know how much they are worth as well. The originality is difficult in as much as you think the chassis is toast and there have obviously been changes over time (as with most working vehicles). The long and the short being if you dropped the asking price a bit I reckon it would be gone ASAP, you might even consider selling it without your galvy chassis and marketing that separately. As I say I watch with interest.

The bay campers have a cult status that ours have not yet made, they might in due course but they will never enter popular culture (surf, beach etc..) in quite the same manner. Some of those campers have also had a small fortune lavished on them.

I understand your point, Dan. If you look at the market for VW bay campers then classic Land Rover campers are severely undervalued - but you're right to point out that they can't quite be compared like-for-like. However, there are 50 or so bay campers on eBay right now and no Carawagons or Dormobiles - and I think that says quite a lot, too. You'd be surprised at the offers I've had already.

I'm relieved to report that all the seats on mine are fine and won't need reupholstering; we have the roof glass, too. It is out - and safely stored - because the rubber seals are dodgy and need to be replaced. What most amazed me was that after all these years the roof fabric is still okay and not split or brittle. I really didn't expect that.

Hi Dan

The value in yours is the roof and other dormi bits, I just sold a roof not long ago (very much the same situation as yours with missing glass) so know how much they are worth as well. The originality is difficult in as much as you think the chassis is toast and there have obviously been changes over time (as with most working vehicles).

Surely the value of this vehicle is the fact that it is an original Martin Walters Dormobile, not a bitsa? What changes have been made? All I can see is that the door cards don't match. As for the colour of the seats, I'm not sure when Martin Walters changed from Elephant hide to Black? It probably wasn't exactly the same time as Land Rover. It would have depended on the availability of the materials. Or, have the seats been recovered by Dormobile at sometime? Apart from those items, there is not a lot I can see different from how Barney was when she arrived.

Hi Wildwoodflower

Would be very interested in what numbers you came up with in your formula for the restoration and what you think the complete restored vehicle is worth? I know how much someone would have to pay me to part with Barney and that would make your truck seam very cheap. Still cannot believe you are selling it!!

Mine is my daily driver and like you, we like our trip around Europe and beyond.

Mick,

I was working off the principle of new chassis... Maybe Engine etc., but you are probably right... Personally I would never sell mine now I have got it, so value is irrelevant. I still think there is a lot of work in that vehicle (but maybe not as much as Barney, but that is definitely and exception)...

Anyway, frankly what do I care (I am merely comparing to those that have been on the market recently, what else can you do), sorry it has to be sold, I think that will be the biggest regret here.

Well, we're all absolutely agree on this: I can't believe that I'm selling it and yes, I will DEFINITELY regret it.

Hi,

I'm late to post here but actually I'm glad I'm too far away to consider it. Because it IS a lights in the grille and it DOES have many original features and it IS a sixpot ... and has orange curtains, too. That could be dangerously tempting. But I don't need this big of a project just now!

Do the front spring hangers on the zinc-dipped chassis look One-Tonnish to anyone else? And the little cross-braces in front of the first crossmember? When I called Richard's once about rebuilding my Dormobile, they recommended a One Ton chassis.

It's the battery tray on the front that's different from SIIA sixpots, but I'd personally find this practical for a second battery. Also the left or right drive on the chassis would be practical.

My early 1969 Dormobile seats are grey elephant hide underneath and were re-covered black by a previous owner (no piping around the cushions like Barney has, and the fronts and backs were a different black from one another).

-Jeremy