Nick's Land Rover - Series III Rebuild

I have bought a new cantre dash console to better mount the stereo and to allow more auxiliary switches.

The existing centre setup carried the stereo in the sloping Tdi Defender mounting and had the two auxilliary guages and rear wash-wipe switch in the lower facia. The old stereo mount tends to creak a little and makes the display almost unreadable (LCD displays need to be read from above, and the old Defender mount displays the stereo head from below). The whole facia also lacked space for the dual circuit brake failure warning light, alternator warning light, power sockets and heated seat switches.

The new panel allows me two cigarette lighters for front power sockets, the auxiliary instruments, the warning lights and enough switches to have the heated rear screen and wing mirrors switches individually, to have a three position switch for the rear wiper giving intermittent and continuous options, rear wash on and adjacent momentary switch, roof rack lighting and individual dual setting switches for the seat heaters. It will also free up the original Defender aux switch panel to the lower right of the steering column for other functions, retaining the hazzard lights switch there but adding the fuel filter heater control and another spare function.

The new unit resembles the 2002 TD5 centre dash, though the switches and locations differ. There are two such aftermarket panels on sale. One is made in Canada by Iron Goat (sold in the UK by Scorpion Racing), and is perhaps the slightly neater of the two. The other is made and sold by Mudstuff.co.uk and allows considerably greater flexibility of fittings and a good deal more switches or instruments than the Iron Goat type. It’s also literally half the price.

I have trial fitted the dash in place and came up against an old problem which I had completely forgotten about - the gearstick top in the reverse position fouls the panel. I have removed the stick to heat the bend just above its pivot ball and increase its rearward cant to create more space between the reverse position and new centre dash.

So far, I have fitted the two guages, two cigarette lighters, CD player and seven switches. The switches all have two green bar lights - one above the centre section and another at the bottom, independently lit to serve as switch locators and status indicators.

Accessories, Electrics, Interior

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