If there's one thing that Land Rover really messed up, it's making a bulkhead or a firewall that collects water and is prone to rust. Whilst these cars do last - there's examples from the late 40's and '50's still on the road - because they're largely made of aluminium, the chassis and bulkhead are notorious for not lasting well at all. It's the first thing you check when you buy one.

Our chassis on the 2A was unusually perfect - just some surface rust and one tiny dent at the back which was not really noticeable. Jamie got it sandblasted, then he painted it and the engine is back in and back to a rolling chassis in five weeks. Nope, he definitely does not mess around!

So currently, it's looking a bit more than a rolling chassis - bulkhead in place. That's that big cream or 'limestone' coloured thing in the middle. FYI, in Australia they painted them a sandstone colour but we liked the limestone better, which is an original Landie colour. Don't even start the whole pedancy about the duckeggblue/lightadmirality grey engine.

There has been a LOT of sanding of parts and rustproofing and painting to get to this point. Lucky his mate has a sandblaster!

We also have the wiring loom, made especially with the braided tape around the wires. Expensive, but it'll look amazing under the bonnet.

We are slightly delayed because the weather has cooled down, which means it is hard to paint all the panels, which are being painfully sanded and primed one panel at a time. Still, hopeufully it'll be done by August/September!

We also worked out the budget - so far it's come in at 5k, with the car costing us 4k to begin with. We still need to get the radiator restored and pay for rego and roadworthy, but most things are paid for, so the whole car should come in at under 15K AUD, which is pretty good really. When you have your own free labour, it certainly keeps costs down.

If you're new to my blog and/or have missed what we're doing, this is the original car we bought back in February. She's all pretty original and she's going to look a dream when she's done - watch this space!