We’ve entered the penultimate phase of The Great Land Rover Project. The final phase being me driving it back and forth to the coffee shop every day. The restoration phase (parts 1 and 2) are done and now Mr. Wolf drives the truck until he’s found and fixed all those little things that show up after a frame-off restoration. While this is underway I plan to go out to SF for a weekend to finally meet Mr. Wolf and discuss care and feeding. Then its one final trip from the Left Coast to Hooterville. To be continued.

Very pleased with the spare tire mounted in the “tub” of the Land Rover. The bottom photo makes it appear to take up more space than it does. It was either here or on a swing-arm at the back of the truck. I prefer this. And the rear seats will be replaced with a couple of custom cushions (and no back).

Everyone agreed having the spare tire on the bonnet (hood) of the Land Rover looked cool… but it was just too heavy (for me). But removing the mount left some ugly holes. I’m pleased to report the guys at Lucra Cars came up with a nice solution.

If some future owner (assuming I won’t live forever) wants to put the spare back on the bonnet, he/she can remove these six bolts, attach the mount, and put the spare back where the Land Rover gods intended.

Nothing says “Land Rover” like the spare tire mounted on the bonnet. It’s iconic. And I was fine with keeping mine there until I discovered how difficult it was to open up the engine compartment. Something I plan to do almost daily. It was damned heavy. I did it but will I be able to in five years? Or ten?

The truck is back in San Diego where the guys at Lucra Cars are taking care of a few things they missed during the restoration, so I’m having them move the spare to a swing-out arm on the rear of the truck.

Removing the mounting bracket from the bonnet (what we call the hood) left about 20 holes. A small patch would look like a, well, a patch. So they’re fabricating a piece of aluminum that will cover most of the bonnet. (the green tape)

This will horrify Land Rover purists (sometimes known as “rivet counters”) but I’m going to be happier with the spare on the rear of the truck.