As an owner of an older car, I am very aware of the damage the British roads can do.  Salty roads in the winter, trapped mud from journeys (on and off road) and rain all take their toll on a vehicle. I try to keep Larry clean, but it’s a never-ending battle and mud has a way of creeping into all those unreachable nooks and crannies.

For me, the bits of car I cannot see was where I came undone. The tell-tale orange staining had started to creep around the edges of the plastic covers of the sills. As I had picked up some rock sliders, I thought I should look behind them and make sure the metal was solid enough to take the heavy tubes of steel.

The rock sliders hid a crunchy secret!

Much to my surprise, it wasn’t as bad as I thought. The only bits of the sill that looked more like lace than metal was at the back on both sides. I was expecting some horrific damage and although it did need replacing, it could have been much worse. That good feeling did not last long.

What I did not anticipate, was the little speck of crusting at the top of the passenger side wheel arch. When asked ‘Is that hole supposed to be there?’ I could have sworn at the asker. A closer inspection with a screwdriver however, resulted in the mud that was holding the rust flakes together falling away and a hole appearing. Whoops. Well, I was going to get the sill welded anyway, what was a wheel arch to go along with it?

Back to Clasp for the day it was. I cannot assist with welding, but I was allowed to have a go with the needle gun. This amazing tool agitated the loose rust and revealed the extent of the rot. The sill hole was widened and as for the wheel arches? They were non-existent by the time I was finished. I was then put on fire watch while the wheel arches had new steel patched in – the last thing anyone needed was for the car to catch fire. This involved blowing cold air after a small bit of welding was done and extinguishing any piece of crud that dared to catch fire. The sills followed, which left the task of painting the new 6mm steel to ensure this job did not need repeating.

The wheel arches needed a bit of TLC to say the least

Since then, I have kept on top of the rust as much as possible. The yearly treatment usually happens around May, when the weather picks up and the salty roads are a distant memory. I think this year, I shall be using some Hammerite, like I did at Clasp, to try and keep ahead of the tin worms. The only question left, is what colour should I go for? Bright yellow perhaps?

I’m not sure. What I do know is that rust is an inevitability that plagues most Land Rover owners. I hear there are some fortunate ones that either don’t drive anywhere at all or live in blisteringly hot climates that receive a single raindrop a year. It’s something I am learning to keep on top of and enjoy the process of at the same time.

All this love keeps Larry looking his best!