Before: '99 Eddie Bauer; After: Modern '61 Land Rover

My dad and I have been working on this for about three years, and its finally pretty much finished except for some detail work and a full interior. I'm not sure if this is exactly the right place to post it, but figured it was as good as any to show what can be done with an Explorer.

Before...

After...

In between...

-justin

 

[BrianDye]

Wow! That is awesome!

 

[Turdle]

Whoa--I wasn't expecting that-

 

[SilverSwagSurfer]

now that's pretteh

 

[sport97]

Wow. Now that is cool. I'd love to see more pics, like how the engine bay and interior look...

 

[arkansas]

The interior isn't finished, but I am going to stick with the explorer seats - they're still heated after all! I need to do door panels and the dash is still a work in progress. The engine bay is awfully crowded with how the fenders hang over, but its still user friendly with most things left in their original location. It needs a good bath and some detail work as well.

-justin

 

[GJarrett]

That is an incredible Before and After!

 

[Joe Dirt]

Oh Good Lord that's cool...

 

[Heath]

Wow...

 

[IAmTodd]

That is most excellent! I think I should change the direction I'm heading with my '94!

 

[Trckmagik]

Looks Great.

 

[Flounder]

That. Is. Awesome!

 

[Keeper0311]

Oh man was not expecting that in the slightest! Wish there were some more of the "during" pictures, good stuff.

 

[arkansas]

Sadly, I really didn't take all that many during pics. The first pic below was the last Sunday of my spring break after I had just driven it down the road as a Rover for the first time. We had started a week before with the wrecked Explorer and original Rover from scratch.

-justin

 

[Trckmagik]

That is so awesome how you all grafted the two trucks together. How does it drive?

 

[DominicanX]

Ridculously awesome.

 

[Rick]

Very cool and very creative!!

 

[arkansas]

That is so awesome how you all grafted the two trucks together. How does it drive?

It drives pretty much just like a stock explorer. It was a good low mileage truck before being wrecked and the drivetrain was in good shape still. It catches a bit more wind than original, but otherwise no real difference. The Rover body is all aluminum except for the cowl, so it should be a bit lighter. I'll put it on a scale one of these days. I think my average mpg has dropped 1-2 mpg max. Needless to say, I couldn't be happier!

-justin

 

[MONMIX]

ummmmm,
wow.
That is pretty mind blowing.

 

[MONMIX]

okay, how did you register it ?
What VIN did you use ?
What is the vehicle name on the insurance card ?

This project is nuts.