Replacing body with Defender wagon

[RAR110]

I have a personnel carrier that was wrecked years ago, and BOR fitted a county body (lift up door handles etc).  I have a 1992 Defender with a blown motor.  I have done a wagon conversion previously and about to do another.  Last time I pulled it all apart which was too time consuming.  This time Im looking at raising the body off each chassis intact including fire wall and swapping them over by rolling out/in the chassis and re-attaching.

Has anyone done a body swap this way?

Also, the compliance plate of the perentie was lost before I bought it.  Im looking to use the 1992 defender compliance plate.  Is there any issues with this?  It will be registered as a Defender 1992 model rather than a 1988 II0.

Thanks

[303Gunner]

I'm not sure if Qld rules are any different, but usually the Compliance Place refers/relates to the Chassis and the number stamped into both, and will describe the engine originally fitted to that chassis.

If you want to use the 1992 Def Compliance plate on the Perentie chassis, you could stamp that number into the new chassis (and you should check the possibility of doing that in Qld), but you WILL need to certify the "New" Isuzu engine that is going into the "1992 Defender", despite the fact that the chassis is certainly designed around that engine. You might run into issues in that the Defender was never available with the Isuzu engine, and you will be going backwards in engine emissions using a 1987 complied engine in a 1992 vehicle.

Usually not permitted elsewhere, but Qld lets some funny stuff through.

[fc101]

If you want to use the 1992 Def Compliance plate on the Perentie chassis, you could stamp that number into the new chassis (and you should check the possibility of doing that in Qld),

That is called rebirthing and is highly illegal - the cops have special squads to ferret out such actions.

[RAR110]

If you want to use the 1992 Def Compliance plate on the Perentie chassis, you could stamp that number into the new chassis (and you should check the possibility of doing that in Qld),

That is called rebirthing and is highly illegal - the cops have special squads to ferret out such actions.

Thanks Garry, I’m not rebirthing or reidentifying a stolen vehicle or written off vehicle.

I know there are some rules to prevent unscruplious operators.

[Dervish]

I have seen a Defender body lifted off the chassis with a two post hoist like you would a D4. Would I do it? No. Think of how flimsy the attachment of the windscreen surround to the roof is - for example - and it has the weight of the bulkhead on it.

I have lifted from the bulkhead back off a chassis (not including windscreen surround) with long tines on a forklift through the rear door with a sleeper above the tines and out through the second row passenger doors (trans tunnel and front floor panels removed). I was fairly happy doing that, but that would be about my limit.

This is how it was done on my vehicle. The more disassembled, the better.

[fc101]

Thanks Garry, I’m not rebirthing or reidentifying a stolen vehicle or written off vehicle.

It may not be stolen or a written off vehicle but as the vehicle identity is taken from its chassis, by putting on a body and trying to pass off the compliance plate as the new vehicle's you are rebirthing the vehicle.

No issue with the Defender body, the issue is the inclusion of the compliance plate.  If you have a previous registration document for the old perentie chassis then put the Defender body on, remove the compliance plate and register it as the Perentie that is already in the system.  If you have old rego docs a compliance plate is not needed. 3 of my vehicles do not have compliance plates and all three have been moved between states no problems.

You can ask you rego authority/engineer to restamp the Defender VIN on the perentie chassis (I would tell them it is a Land Rover 110 chassis which it is rather than a Perentie) - I doubt they will agree but if you dont ask you dont know.  Then the compliance plate stays and the chassis matches the compliance plate.

Good luck with it.

Garry

[RAR110]

Thanks Dervish. I was looking at disconnecting the chassis and steering for a start. And lifting from the back, a support under the tub, then lifting at each end of the firewall. When high enough, remove all wheels, fit wheels without tyres and drag out the chassis. Do the reverse with replacement chassis.

Thanks Garry. I get your point on the chassis being the point of truth. Interestingly I deregistered my other perentie for a couple of years and went back into transport dept to re-register and they had all the Land Rover model data on the system. The compliance plate didn’t seem to mean much.

[RAR110]

I was also going to remove the radiator/intercooler. So motor could easily clear the front.