Good Morning all... This is harder than I thought!
So... A wee bit about me
My wife and I used to change cars about as often as we changed socks and over last few years we've have had a fair cross section of the motoring genres (2x S-Class, a C-Class, an A-Class, 3 Smart cars, a new Mini, a Polo, a transit, 2 GTis... The list goes on.
3 years ago we moved to a village in Warwickshire and a few things became apparent. Neither of our daily drivers were suitable, nor could cope with:
- Collecting logs in quantity (we don't have central heating, just 2 log burners)
- Flooded roads (this has been a regular winter 'joy' since we moved in.
- Whilst the view where we live is stunning, when it snows you need to walk to see it because your 2wd car will be stuck at the bottom of the hill.
- Buying a shell of a house and rebuilding it creates mountains of rubbish and you will be at the tip every weekend of your life with a car full of rubbish that will destroy your interior.
- Rural train stations are just rebranded breakers yards who's only purpose is to fill your car with more dents than the average taxi in a developing country.
I thought I found the perfect solution (no laughing please)... I bought a poverty spec TD4 Freelander with 38k on the clock that had been left standing for a few years and have suffered from some graffiti carved into the paint, plus some huge dents and scrapes (in every panel) all for the price of a tank of diesel.
It needed a some work to get it running (new tyres, rebuilt the starter, new battery, clean the EGR valve) but for very little money I thought I was on to a winner. I didn't care about getting it dented, nor the state of the interior and it could haul a few logs with the back seats removed.
However, all was not so rosey. EVERYTHING that can go wrong on a Freelander has gone wrong or is in the process of going wrong as I type this.
I have thought about this long and hard and for a while I considered getting a Defender. They are plentiful and have a huge following, but 5 minutes on an owners forum has brought me to the conclusion that part of the charm of Defender ownership is fixing the thing, unless you buy a Puma engined one, then that charm is replaced with trips to the dealers to get niggles fixed.
I then stumbled across LHD ex military GD240s and GD250s and it got me thinking. Potentially here's a vehicle that could tick all my boxes and I could have a bit of fun with at the same time. I don't have to be precious with it, I used to restore cars as a hobby and still have all my gear (welding, spraying, grit blasting, lifting etc) so buying a 25-30 year old vehicle doesn't scare me (Its a whole lot newer than my 1934 Austin).
So what's the rub? I can't find very much information about the ex-military Gs or where to buy them. My first thought was L Jackson as they have them listed on all of there various websites. A quick email later revealed they don't actually have any in stock, nor do they know when they are getting any more (they have 5 coming in but they are all sold already)
A quick scan of the web and I found a few people sites overseas selling them such as http://www.lys-tout-terrain.com http://www.mercedes-wolf.pl/ but it seems a bit of a crap shoot and I can't find any details of what's involved in buying a military G, where to buy them in the UK, what to look for, how any parts are interchangeable with the civilian version of the same era, nor can I find any websites that detail a ground up rebuild (which is odd because the web has details of people restoring just about everything)
I know they are old, slow, noisy, lacking all creature comforts and a potential can of worms but I am prepared for that. I only do limited mileage (never motorways, I use the other car for that) but as a pure workhorse this looks like it could fit the bill.
So... where do I go from here? Does anyone have any experience of ex-military G's? Where should I look next?
Silas
Defender 110 3.5 V8 are a good strong combo! Some people convert these to LPG's I've heard.
Military Jeeps - I can't help you on as I know nothing about them ones.
THX.
Do you specifically want a military model? Plenty of civilian G's around.
First - Hi and welcome to you and your wife!
Second - As Mark has posted, some nice civvi G's about, some in great conditions some , and be warned, are a pile of poo waiting for some unsuspecting person to fall in love and buy them.
Some questions:
get a French P4
Just who is that young, handsome man with his son? Face looks familiar......
Spider1V
Such publicity may MORTify him.....
Such publicity may MORTify him.....
Jesus...... do you think so? (+1 on yours Ian )
Spider1V
Hello Silas,
I was surprised to learn from your thread that L. Jacksons have no G-Wagens in stock. If it is a military version you are after; there a couple of dealers in Europe and prices for these start from around €7,000 averaging €10,000 for not very much.
Civilian soft tops are very rare in the UK in RHD, there are more available across the water but in LHD. Most will need restoration work or to that extent. The civilian and military versions have little difference in terms of mechanical components; the electrics could be a problem but starters and alternators could be worked by local auto electricians shops. I do not know how dealers stand in supplying military vehicle parts. If these are available it would from a few days to a week for supply.
Start off by establishing the mileage you realistically expecting to be doing? What is your budget?
Generally a fair G-Wagen could be in the region of £7,500 plus. Do you want to tie up that sort of sum in a vehicle you will not do much mileage in?
Do think carefully, as nice as these vehicles are if you choose a 'pup' it will cost you dear. And we do not want that for you.
This place still seems to have them 508D's, or at least they don't say sold out. Very cool van.
Hello Silas,
You are right in stating L. Jacksons have no G-Wagens left, apparently a buyer is buying everything they can get hold off from them. They did however mention that they have two special forces versions for sale which come without windscreen and doors, this one has a high sill; if you are interested in this version. Asking price around £6,000. Please double check that.
There are a few places in Europe to get Wolf models (Miltary G-Wagen soft tops) in either Petrol 230GE or Diesel 240GD or 250GD.
Average price is €10,000. Thinking out side the box, have you considered VW - Itlis? I don't know much about them but they do look like a G-Wagen, much smaller and is a 4 X 4. Alternatively; I know its not what you are looking for but some of the prices could change your mind.
http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/mercedes-benz/g-class/m...
http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/mercedes-benz/g-class/m...
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/search/used/cars/mercedes-benz/g_class
http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/mercedes-benz/g-class/m... Seeing this; your wife may just want to hang over it.
Please seek advice and have the vehicle you want inspected . I have been meaning to write about vehicle inspection but don't seem to get around writing about it.
Iltis great little thing and I think beat MB on a miltary contract once but that may have been political, most have rear diff lock, very rare to get front diff lock as well. Very nice suspension for road use being independent, one I went in quiet also for a soft top.
Downside is they low 20's MPG, no rear tailgate so hard to load with wood and they fairly rare in this country, but very unique.
Hi Mark, I do like military kit, but if the right civilian G came up I would be tempted. RHD would obviously be an advantage over a LHD military G.
The other draw for me is I really like the rag top on the Military Gs