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1993 NAS Defender 110
refurbishing with galvanized frame and
Camper conversion
This NAS (North American Specification) Defender 110 has come to us for a complete re-power and a conversion into an expedition beast with everything from bulletproof electronics to a fridge and a stove. The 110 will be getting a new engine, a new galvanized chassis, a folding top with 2 bunks for sleeping on board, as well as a hot water system and all the latest off road upgrades. This 110 will be a real work horse and be comfortable to boot.
First step in installing the new galv. frame is to put the 110 through the ECR frame swap system. This frame swap system allows us to remove the chassis without spending hundreds of hours taking the Rover apart. We pioneered the use of this system in the USA more than a decade ago, and here we are taking it to new levels by using the system on NAS Defenders! We can use this system to change the chassis in your D90 or your D110, so if you really want your Defender to last forever, call ECR we can help you with a galv. chassis so that you can make that wish a reality. In the image above you can see the 110 body fully removed from its frame and running gear. We can get to this point in a number of hours, not weeks, and that is what makes the frame swap system so unique and efficient.
Here you can see the old chassis with the 3.9 EFI V8 and 5 speed gearbox is ready to be rolled out. The frame will be stripped of its needed parts, all new bushings will be installed in the suspension pieces that we transfer to the new galv. frame, and the V8 and its LT77 gearbox will be removed.
In this image you can see the new galv. frame has been set up with the 110s suspension and axles and all the needed changes for the engine install have been made (fuel tank changes, removal of the in tank EFI fuel pump, stainless exhaust and more). You can also see the new engine and new R380 gearbox has been installed in the new chassis and it is ready to have the body re-installed around the new frame and turbo diesel engine.
Here you can see the body and front clip of the 110 have been mated to the new galv. chassis. The needed plumbing and wiring has been done to make the NAS 110 operate and it runs and functions as a 110. Now onto the expedition conversion.
With the running gear sorted, we have removed the safari cage and the rear body. This 110 will be fully custom built from the bulkhead back with a unique custom body that allows for extra gear storage AND passenger comfort. How do you do that you ask? We will make a 4 door 110, not a 5 door.
In this image you can see the beginnings of our creation, the blending of a 110 3 door and a 110 5 door to make the best possible set up for the customer's needs. Access to the rear will still be easy through the rear and right hand side door, but that area that is a blind spot behind the driver will be converted into a 3 door type of arrangement for gear storage and the ability to fit in most of the customer's desires that include a stove and an ARB fridge system.
A custom floor section was made and a new take off 5 door tub and a new take off 3 door tub have been crafted together by the staff of ECR.
Here is the 110 (in mock up mode, prior to paint) from the left... looks like a Defender 3 door. A small side window will be added later to get extra light inside the cabin.
In this image you can see the right side of the 110... looks like a standard 5 door, this gives easy access and the ability of 3 door storage, with 5 door passenger access. The exterior roll cage of the 110 has been removed and will not be reinstalled due to the upcoming elevating roof system. We will however make a NAS looking front windscreen hoop that connects to a new interior frame mounted roll bar to protect the passengers. This will also be combined with a "shorty" NAS looking roof basket that extends slightly over the front. Combine that with diff guards, upgraded brakes, a Safari Gard bumper, limb risers, new paint and more, and this will be one unstoppable expedition 110.
The 3 door tub side allowed us to find room for a stainless steel water tank, with an exterior fill that will give the 110 some interior "washing up" water for longer trips. We'll also be installing a hot water shower system as well as pressurized cold water from the storage tank.
As we upgrade this Defender 110, we are also taking care of the typical 110 problems, so that this ECR built 110 will last a good long time. In the image above you can see the T support from the 110. It looked good from the outside, but look at all that hidden rust. Once again this is because Land Rover didn't paint or prime these areas, but thankfully ECR does. We fully strip the T support and remove all the rust and then epoxy prime it and paint it inside and out, so that rust can't return anytime soon.
Now fully primed and painted, the body will start to go back together and the interior upgrades will start to take shape. Our unique 3/5 door rear body can bee seen in Alpine White in the image above. We'll be fitting everything from a hot water shower system to on board 115 volt AC power after the body is built.
Along with all the expedition gear we also look into making the running and driving of this 1993 110 better. In this image you can see that we have upgraded the front brakes to vented performance rotors. The rear axle was previously upgraded to disc brakes. We also upgraded the front axle from 10 spline to 24 spline with our heavy duty 1 ton CV joints and heavy duty axles. That way the running gear won't let the owners down on or off road.
For more information on the 10 spline to 24 spline conversion go here.
Here you can see that the freshly painted parts are starting to look like a 110 again. True, they don't look like any 110 you've ever seen before, but that is the beauty of ECR. We can do the stuff that others say can't be done. This image shows the "3 door" side of our 4 door creation. The black material taped to the body is protection for the new paint as we continue to work on the vehicle. We go to great lengths to make sure everything is 110%.
This image shows the "5 door" side of our 4 door creation. This truly gives the best of both worlds, with 3 or 4 passengers in comfort, and tons of storage room for gear! Also notice that the electrical system is starting to go back in, the tail lights, rear step bumper and such are all making there way back to the 110.
In this image you can see just how far the 110 was torn down. Everything was removed and we started over from the ground up. This gives us a chance to fix all the rust, install sound down products were we can and make sure that all the systems from the engine to the hood release cable (we had to change that too) are up and running. Keep in mind that the 1993 NAS Defender 110s were actually built in early 1992, so they are getting older, but the good news is we can keep them going for a long time with updates from ECR.
This expedition 110 is also getting a host of off road goodies. Here you can see the Safari Gard front bumper with the Warn 9000 winch. We also installed 3 Hella 4000 lights to see the trail at night. We used a pencil beam in the middle, flanked by 2 driving beams for maximum distance and a full width pattern so that everything in the path of the 110 can be seen. The 110 will also get a skid plate and more. It already has a diff. guard, ARB lockers, and steering guard, so it will be ready for anything.
Here you can see that the body of the 110 is coming together. The unique elevating roof system makes a great addition to the Defender 110. It gives you full standing headroom and bunks for 2. This means that you no longer have to drag that bulky tent around, worry about setting it up, or where to store your gear. The expedition style ECR 110 means that the 110 is your tent as well as your trusted expedition vehicle!
This image shows the side of the roof system we installed on the NAS 110. With 2 large windows and a pop open roof vent the 110 is now truly ready for anything. At this point we'll start fitting the interior and adding things like the propane stove, ARB fridge system and adding even more off road goodies like ECR ROX sliders, rear fuel can mounts, limb risers, a front roll cage and much more.
Here you can see the ECR ROX sliders that we added to this 110. These are frame mounted and very tough. They'll be able to stand up to any of the expedition needs of this 110.
Another cool upgrade to this 110 is a hot pressurized hot water shower system. The water comes either from the 110's on board fresh water tank, or from an outside source like a hose or stream. The system plugs into the side of the 110 via this neat little input/output set up that we built into the vehicle to be easily accessible, but also protected from on and off road hazards. The engine's heat warms the water through a heat exchanger in the 110s cooling system, and an on board built in pressure system gives you a full shower no matter where in the world this ECR 110 takes you.
Still lots of work to go, but the 110 is now road ready and undergoing on road tests prior to its first expedition. In this image you can see the exterior of the 110 is almost complete. Notice that although this 110 has been built from the frame up by ECR, we use all the styling points from the original NAS Defender 110s to make it look even better.
The custom installed tire carrier from Safari Gard has been installed as has all the external body work, lights and logos. We had to fabricate special braces to support the weight of the 2 extra fuel cans, Hi-Lift jack, spare tire and propane tank (still to come). The swing out carrier is now frame mounted top and bottom and we made this Defender 90 soft top tire carrier work perfectly with the NAS Defender Station Wagon's rear door system. This unit can carry 10 more gallons of diesel, and because this 110 is diesel it really won't ever need more reserve fuel thank that, The 10 gallons it carries gives it another 270 mile range, along with the nearly 600 mile range in the main fuel tank! That means at typical road speeds you could drive for nearly 18 hours without stopping to buy fuel!
Here you can see the roof rack and roll cage system we are building. The roof rack is a production unit we custom mounted to the ECR custom built safari cage. We wanted to keep the driver and passenger protected, but had to remove the NAS 110 safari cage to accommodate the elevating roof system. The answer was to custom make a safari cage that covered the driver and passenger areas, but we wanted to keep the NAS Defender look, but make the system from better and stronger materials. In this image you can see the system partially complete. We still have to install the windscreen cross bar and paint the system. The exterior cage you see here is connected to a fully frame mounted internal cage for added support and safety, giving a true frame mounted 4 point safari cage over the driver and passenger.
Here you can see the 110 with the elevating roof up. You can also see some of our other tricks. We painted the hood flat black so that eye strain is less when the sun reflects off the body. You can also see the diamond plate wing top guards, the lower section of the raised air intake, our turn signal conversion kit (for use with the Safari Gard front bumper) and more. This image and the one below it really show off the "4 door" creation from ECR, and just how "custom" we can make your Rover. Mild or Wild, ECR is your only source.
Looking good from all angles this ECR Expedition 110 is coming together nicely.