Disco_Mikey wrote:

You can't do a D3/4 properly for £450...

You can, however, make it look pretty

Most undersealing treatment in the South ranges between £400 - £900 depending on the extent of the work. I can afford to run at the lower end of the scale as I do not have the overheads being in a fortunate position to have a good sized set up at home. I am not into chasing money and getting cars in and out as quickly as possible, I am my 50's and now prefer to take things at a steady pace. I keep to one to two cars a week or less so the work remains enjoyeable, I am semi retired if you like as I am slowly rebuilding my own project and enjoy biking with my mates (don,t tell the wife!) and enjoy my work and life No Mickey £450 won,t get you stone blasted/dipped/galvanised chassis etc as you say but it is effective and goes a long way to make it more than pretty

For instance with a Defender for £490 treating the chassis properly is a given, i.e. Not just a quick wash and splurge with some thick bitchumen. Just cleaning the vehicle can take half a day, then dry, cure rust, treat etc etc in every nook and cranny, close up, not standing back with a wand! Engine bay brackets, to radiator surround, headlight rims, to sealing windows, to rivets, to wiper spindles, door bottoms, A Posts etc, axles, inside side steps, wing mirror arms, footwell fasteners and those down the inside of the A as well as other fastenrs that rust in the interior, the list goes on... Takes about 9 hours on average, depending on prep time. The likes of Bowler to my local Landy independent garages say it is the most comprehensive treatment process short of stripping the vehicle down. I,m not boasting just pointing out I am proud of my work, enjoy it, and very much like helping folks with the vehicles. I will do a photographic guide to treating a Discovery, similar to the Defender one so that it helps people who want to have a go and anyone can add to it with advice of course.

The below pic was one I treated where the client stripped the vehicle down himself to save my labour. I am always happy to offer this option if owners can do it themsleves. It,s nice to be involved in the work of your own vehicle. Really nice couple, he and his wife go on major offroad expeditions abroad, you will probably know the car from this forum. I did his wife's Defender as well...

kayble wrote:

I'll be the first to volunteer:

looking down the nearside sill:

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The above was after a quick wire brush to remove loose paint and surface rust. All entirely solid, but surface corrosion appearing where paint has given way and metal has been submerged in years of horse poo and mud.

I didn't get a before picture of the OS sill but it was very similar - bubbling paint and surface corrosion on areas where paintwork had been removed through chafing between the sill and the trim - slightly worse toward the rear of the sill where it had been caked in crud. Here's some after shots - after wirebrush, 3x coats of java black from a rattle can and 2x coats of hammerite stone chip shield:

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To be honest I was chuffed with mine - an early '05 car and all solid - requiring only a scrub/paint/seal.

Admin note: this post has had its images recovered from a money grabbing photo hosting site and reinstated