Things you wish you knew when you purchased your first Land Rover

[AxelR]

When I purchased my first Land Rover (a Sport, back in 2005) I wish I had known I was going to fall in love with off-roading. At the time, I just lusted after the look of the RRS - which was new to the market - and had to have her, I didn't have a clue about Land Rover's rich heritage, no idea what a locking rear differential was or why I would want it (I got it anyway, but only because the color I wanted was only available with it...) I would have saved myself a ridiculous amount of money buying expensive 21" German rims with low-profile tires, "performance" exhaust, and other bling that I now could care less about.

Since I knew what I was going to do with my almost new LR4 (other than getting myself to and from work daily and the occasional family trips and soccer dad duties), my mods have been far more focused this time. I go off road as much as I can (not as much as I'd like, but that's a different story), with friends or with my local club.

In addition to rubber mats for passenger and cargo areas, I got 18" wheels and beefier all-terrain tires, rock sliders and a skid plate to protect my baby from the rocks that, here in Southern Cal, are nearly impossible to avoid if you step off the beaten path. I installed a second battery to have more juice available in the boonies for fridge, chargers, etc.

Even when I am not off road, I always carry with me what I think is necessary equipment, even on the road - if that road takes you far away from help or a cell phone signal:

- A fire extinguisher (mounted on a bracket on the front passenger seat);
- A flashlight (mounted under my legs on the driver's seat);
- Jump start cables, a decent air compressor, an ARB tire repair kit, a full set of spare fuses, and a high quality tire pressure gauge / deflator (all in a gym bag stashed under the folded third row seats);
- An IIDTool, a diagnostic tool to read and clear fault codes and modify suspensions height, best gizmo I ever got for my car;
- A SPOT Connect satellite communicator (with a fresh set of spare batteries in the glove box);
- A First-Aid kit, the best I could find at REI that still fits in the cubby on one side of the cargo area;
- A box of baby wipes in the other cubby - laugh all you want, those things are great, they clean your hands from grease and dust, your face from food and sunscreen, they are soft and super strong, fully biodegradable and unscented.
- A Leatherman multi-tool;
- A D-ring hanging from the rear bumper's recovery point.

When I go wheeling with friends I throw in the trunk another big duffel bag with less essential stuff, including several ****** straps, Staun tire deflators set at 32 psi, couple more D-rings, an air jack, several hand tools, zip ties, FRS radio, bug spray, sunscreen, folding shovel, lantern, windproof matches, emergency shelter, a compass, a BIG scuba knife, etc. Of course, my fridge / freezer. And if I go camping for more than a day... Watch out! I can even produce a portable shower WITH full privacy enclosure on request.

The beauty of the LR4 is that all this crap fits and the trunk still looks half empty.

Hey Umberto,

I am interested in understanding how you mounted both the extinguisher and the flash light.
I've seen picture of your RRS installation on another thread but I can't really grasp how you worked out the installation.
Could you please post a few pictures and a guide (steps) on how to do it?
It would be greatly appreciate and very useful.

Axel

 

[umbertob]

Axel, it's real easy actually, all you need is a handful of skinny bolts or metal screws, nuts, washers and a drill. You need to pull hard and remove the trim cover(s) in front of each seat (be prepared to fish for 1 or more of the 4 metal clips that hold each of them in place on the seat frame, those covers are in super tight and when they finally release one or more of those clips may fall behind the frame they were clipped on...), take some measurements and drill a couple of holes for the extinguisher bracket, 4 for the flashlight brackets.

The fire extinguisher is a small Kidde unit you can get at any auto parts store, it includes the mounting bracket in the box. Since it's kind of bulky, I mounted it low on the cover, off the floor so that it won't interfere with the seat movement, but low enough so as not to get in the way of passenger legs when they are sitting there. There is a single quick release buckle, visible in the pictures, which I can reach and unbuckle from the driver's seat should I, God Forbid, be unable to move and need to reach the extinguisher in an emergency.

 

[umbertob]

The flashlight is a 3 D-cell LED Maglite. I got the mounting brackets on Amazon for about 6 bucks. I mounted that one higher on the cover of the driver's seat to make it easy to reach by feel, grab the middle, pull forward and it snaps off. Again, just measure, drill and install the screws, washers and nuts. Only precaution with these two brackets is that they need to be aligned straight to securely snap the flashlight in. As you can see in the last photo, I added 3 small washers on the outer mounting screw of each bracket to make up for the tapering plastic cover.

 

[AxelR]

Umberto,

Thank you very much for this detailed explanation.
I'm going the same exact thing than you did as soon as I come back from France.
It seems that these two addons make the most sense. There should be a priority before doing anything else. As I grew up in Germany (and got my license there) most cars were equipped with a fire extinguisher, flash light, jumper cables and tow bar as well as the most important first aid kit (on top of it, in order to get your license you must have passed a 18 hours first aid training course and exam).
This may never have to be used but if one ever needs them they need to be really well located and easy to access. Back of the truck seems a little far in any situations.
Again thank you for the explanation and pictures. I'm looking forward to "copy" your work

 

[Finlayforprez]

Umberto,

Thank you very much for this detailed explanation.
I'm going the same exact thing than you did as soon as I come back from France.
It seems that these two addons make the most sense. There should be a priority before doing anything else. As I grew up in Germany (and got my license there) most cars were equipped with a fire extinguisher, flash light, jumper cables and tow bar as well as the most important first aid kit (on top of it, in order to get your license you must have passed a 18 hours first aid training course and exam).
This may never have to be used but if one ever needs them they need to be really well located and easy to access. Back of the truck seems a little far in any situations.
Again thank you for the explanation and pictures. I'm looking forward to "copy" your work

I am also going to add this modification! I have a great flashlight in the cigarette lighter charger location, but it's quite small and would like a bigger battery-powered light. I also need a fire extinguisher.

Umberto is beyond helpful!

Safe travels Axel.

 

[costelj]

That is a great how-to and the pictures are hugely helpful. I was taught by a police officer in New York City that a Maglite 6-D Cell flashlight should be part of any car, so I always carry one. But I never thought to mount it. In my current car it fits nicely under the front seat; I'll have to consider mounting when I get my LR4.

Is it October yet?

 

[AxelR]

I am also going to add this modification! I have a great flashlight in the cigarette lighter charger location, but it's quite small and would like a bigger battery-powered light. I also need a fire extinguisher.

Umberto is beyond helpful!

Safe travels Axel.

Thank you David.

 

[mbw]

I will never buy maglights again. I now keep a Surefire LX2 Lumamax in the car. Its tiny and way more powerful than even a huge 4 d cell mag lite.

People say it also doubles as a hammer or defensive weapon, but its a horrible hammer (really, try to use it for that) and my Glock is a better weapon.

 

[Count Laszlo]

You could really screw someone up with a Maglite.

I have four of them. The big one sits under our bed...

 

[umbertob]

I wasn't impressed with older, regular Maglites, but their 2nd generation LED version is pretty darn bright and very focused, lasts forever even in the relatively "short" 3 D-cell format (the largest I was willing to fit down there), and appears to be pretty indestructible. I have used it for several hours on a couple of camping trips and a blackout at the house, and it's as bright as the first day. For less than 25 bucks, I am a big fan. The Surefire LX2 is a spectacular flashlight of course, but for $150 it better be.