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MotorTranscript
00:00I'm an Anstead. I've been fixing cars since I was a teenager and I've set
00:11myself the task of restoring
00:19and selling eight crumbling old cars for profit. It's the ultimate road cruiser
00:27and the stakes are high because it's personal. The cow room is now the bathroom.
00:33Okay, everything I make is going towards this 500 year old farmhouse. She goes today
00:39which means big hammer that I bought for my mum and dad to retire in. So what's
00:44gone wrong there? But it's a total wreck.
00:49How far away from collapse is this? A really good storm could cause a problem.
00:53Let's do it. With my family by my side. Feels like a proper brake pedal now. And some
01:00help from my engineer mate Darren. Are you joining me to the right? Yeah, why not?
01:05I've got the best team around me. Ed, watch out! As I take on eight wrecks on wheels. Perfect.
01:13And a house that's falling apart. What, the whole thing is being kept up by chicken wire?
01:18Pretty much. It's a massive gamble. Come on, breathe. I am losing sleep over this. I'll be honest I have
01:25no idea what's going on.
01:34The end of the summer is fast approaching and with the concrete render off the
01:38farmhouse is dangerously open to the elements. So I'm working overtime to get it
01:43prepped for the plasterers. But being a heritage property, it's not straight forward. Where the
01:49sections filled with wattle and door, the old mud and straw, we have to salvage this. This has to be
01:53restored. Now these infills, they originally had breeze blocks in and we've been given
01:58listed building consent to fill these panels with fibre boards, which is going to be way better for
02:03insulation and you can plaster directly on top. But each one is a unique size.
02:08Once cut, I screw them into the wooden battens attached to the oak beams. I've been told to use
02:16stainless steel screws, stainless steel washers. Apparently the oak reacts with oxidisation.
02:25Doing this prep myself saves a few quid, but I'll need a specialist to do the lime plastering and
02:30that won't be cheap. So for my final classic car flip, Darren reckons he's found me a gem.
02:38Oh, you're going to love this one, Ant. Yeah? Yeah. All right. What is it? Tell me.
02:45Let's play a road trip game. Are we there yet, Dad? What's the clue? Your favourite car.
02:54Land Rover? Yep. It's a Land Rover? It's a Land Rover. Oh my God, let's go. Which Land Rover?
03:02I'm not going to, I'm not going to let on. Is it a short wheel base, a long wheel base? Has it got a roof?
03:09No roof? Like, give me, like, you have to give me something. It's, it's a rare car.
03:16Like any self-respecting Brit, I am, of course, a Land Rover fanatic. It was created in 1948 by brothers
03:27Spencer and Maurice Wilkes, the bosses at Rover Cars. They wanted a vehicle that would replace the World
03:33War II surplus Jeep that they used on their farm. Conceived as a short-term stopgap, it was made from
03:40leftover war aluminium and was easy to build and fix. Over two million were made before production
03:47ceased in 2016, but its spirit lives on in a more luxurious form. We've driven a couple of hours
03:54to rural Berkshire to meet a fellow Land Rover obsessive. Oh, hi, you must be Simon. I am. I'm Darren.
04:01Nice to meet you. Yeah, nice to meet you. It's a real pleasure to meet you, man.
04:05Who's reluctantly selling one of his most prized possessions.
04:11There she is. Wow. Yeah, she's pretty. She is, yeah. 1978 station wagon. It's got an amazing
04:18encyclopedic service history. It's had a few owners, but always been loved. But it's only done 43,000 miles.
04:24That's crazy. It's got a history log of all the miles it's done. It's unusual for a Land Rover. Mostly,
04:31you get no history. Yeah. And a V5 document. They go from hand to hand. Yeah, and that's it.
04:36Nothing. So what's your history then? I collect Land Rovers and I've got far too many of them.
04:44This is totally acceptable, by the way. But there's only so many that you can restore,
04:49hence selling. If you give us about 15 minutes, we'll just have a quick squeeze round.
04:53Fantastic. Right, let's clear this out of the way.
05:01Let's get it into the light.
05:10It's like the only Land Rover that starts on the bottom.
05:13Oh yeah, that petrol engine sounds in great shape. And this is a really rare model.
05:20You see, not many seven-seater, short-wheel-based Land Rover station wagons were actually factory-built,
05:26because they were classed as cars and not commercial vehicles, which attracted extra tax.
05:31Most were converted from regular Land Rovers aftermarket.
05:35That's awesome. Can you imagine? This is actually a genuine seven-seater.
05:47A factory genuine station wagon.
05:52But in rainy Britain, 1970s Land Rovers are prone to corrosion,
05:56and usually in the worst possible place, the bulkhead.
06:00It's a bit crusty under here.
06:02It's the structurally crucial section that bolts to the chassis and separates the engine bay from the cab.
06:09From here, it's as bad as mine. Yeah, someone's obviously lashed it over with black gloss plain.
06:15It can cost thousands to replace.
06:19Yeah, most of it is crumbling away over here.
06:24This is not good.
06:27It's basically everything. Pedals, steering, dash, wiring.
06:31It's the heart of the car.
06:34With the bulkhead this badly rusted, we're likely talking about a replacement.
06:38But that could seriously eat into the profit margin and make this unviable,
06:42which would be a shame as there's so many other positives.
06:47Yeah, it does have charm, doesn't it?
06:49Yeah, she's charming, yeah.
06:51I love the colour. I love the roof.
06:52It starts on the bottom.
06:55The seats, the dents, the dinks. It's like, oh, but the bulkhead.
07:01Do you know what? It just wants a hug.
07:03A hug?
07:04A hug.
07:05Are you getting more romantic on me?
07:07What's the right thing?
07:08This is just going to be a conversation around costs,
07:12because that bulkhead's going to be expensive to buy.
07:16A good condition Series 3 Landy should get well into the teens on the open market.
07:23All right.
07:24Right, yeah, we're buying the car.
07:26If it's the right money.
07:28Yeah, definitely.
07:29What's the right money?
07:31As is, I would go somewhere between seven and ten.
07:36As the heavens have opened, I'm hoping Simon will want to get a deal done quickly.
07:41Right, we've had a pretty good look.
07:44What is your expectation for the car?
07:46I was hoping for around sort of ten mark,
07:48but sort of nine and a half would do the deal.
07:51Come down a little bit, just a little bit.
07:52Okay, okay.
07:53Eight and a half, would that work?
07:55Six grand.
07:56I can't do that.
07:57Six thousand and fifty.
08:00No, no, we're a little bit far apart.
08:02Seven.
08:03Seven and a half.
08:05Seven and a half?
08:06Yes.
08:06Seven and a half?
08:07I would do a deal at seven and a half.
08:09Darren, say yes!
08:10It's tough, but...
08:11Yeah, okay.
08:12Yeah?
08:12Done, done.
08:13Fantastic.
08:14Seven and a half thousand pounds.
08:16Shake his hand, that's a binding deal.
08:20There's always a monumental day when you buy a Land Rover, because I'm a Land Rover guy.
08:24We know that there's going to be this monumental work in doing the bulkhead,
08:28and the risk I'm taking is that that could very quickly become a Pandora's box of problems.
08:33But if we get lucky, it doesn't need so much.
08:36Yeah, I think there's going to be margin in that car.
08:38Any profits from the Land Rover will go towards the work on the front of the house.
08:51I've been working on a heritage-approved design with carpenter Grant Norman,
08:55and it's finally ready to be assembled.
08:58Morning.
08:59Good morning.
08:59How are you doing?
09:00It's porch day.
09:00I tell you what, I am so excited.
09:03It's ultimately, that drawing we did, it's going to have a pitched roof,
09:06so it looks a bit like the dormers.
09:08Totally open.
09:09Yeah.
09:09So where's the timber for the porch come from then?
09:11It's Austrian reclaimed timber.
09:14The tie, which goes through the centre, which is slightly arched, that's actually French oak timber.
09:18The arch bit's from France, the rest of it's from Austria.
09:21That's right, yeah.
09:22How old is that wood?
09:24It's going to be a minimum of 100 years old,
09:25because they don't tend to take down any buildings before that period.
09:29They go through generations of families before they get taken down.
09:34Of the whole house build so far, this is the bit I'm most excited about,
09:38because I think it's the bit that's going to transform the street appeal of the house.
09:42It does, luckily for us.
09:43Oh yeah, you come and take the glory.
09:44Yeah, we do, yeah.
09:46The house frontage is going to look great,
09:48but between the porch and the plastering, it's costing me almost eight grand.
09:53So now my Land Rover's back at the workshop, I'm keen to get it auction ready.
09:57The elephant in the room is the bulkhead.
09:59This part between the base of the screen and the chassis rail here,
10:03it incorporates the firewall, the footwells, it mounts the pedals, the steering, the dashboard.
10:09So our most important panel is actually our rustiest.
10:14We need to find out if the bulkhead can be saved.
10:18Getting to it should be fairly easy.
10:20After all, Land Rovers are built with flat bolt-on panels and modular parts.
10:24Down you come.
10:27Darren, where'd you go?
10:29Designed to be quick to repair in rugged and remote places.
10:34This basically comes apart and back together with basic hand tools.
10:38They were go-anywhere vehicles, but most importantly, they were fix-anywhere vehicles.
10:44You know what, Ant, with this hinge off, you can really see the rust on this bulkhead.
10:48Yeah, that's pretty rusty.
10:52Rusted bolts mean we need more than screwdrivers to dismantle this Land Rover.
10:57The wings, the wings, the wing is on fire!
11:01And with its engine now exposed, we need to get it under cover.
11:05Are you joining me for the ride?
11:06Yeah, why not?
11:07What?
11:08Then remove the bulkhead to see just how bad it really is.
11:16The Land Rover isn't at home in this farm.
11:19Nothing is.
11:21Right, second wing off.
11:24And then we'll get into the bulkhead.
11:25Brand new ones can be incredibly expensive.
11:31Land Rover jigsaw.
11:33So I'm praying that this bulkhead can be saved.
11:38Oh my life!
11:41Woohoo!
11:51Yeah, there's no way we can repair that.
12:01No, I think we're going to need a new bulkhead.
12:03Oh yeah, that is absolutely toast.
12:16This 1978 Land Rover Series 3 factory-built station wagon with just 40,000 miles on the clock is a rare find.
12:25But now we know its bulkhead is irreparable.
12:27At seven and a half grand, it doesn't seem quite such a steal.
12:31Right, let's salvage dash dial steering, wiper motor pedals, and the rest of it can go to the scrap heat in the sky.
12:43Land Rovers are prone to galvanic corrosion, caused when the steel bulkhead and the aluminium floor are in contact and get wet.
12:50This creates an electric current, which makes the aluminium corrode faster.
12:55So this footwell panel here, made of aluminium, rests against the steel.
12:59And unfortunately, that's where the electrical current's created, right in there.
13:06And Land Rover actually managed to get around it and later cars were better because they were carefully sealed,
13:11carefully painted so that the bare aluminium didn't make contact with the bare steel and galvanic corrosion was avoided.
13:20But that doesn't help us now.
13:21It was such a common problem in rainy 70s Britain, very few rust-free secondhand bulkheads exist.
13:28And brand new ones can cost a fortune.
13:31Finding a suitable replacement will take time.
13:34Time that Darren and I just don't have.
13:36But I know a man who does.
13:38Yo, Dad.
13:40Hey, what is this?
13:42What a mess.
13:43Yeah, it's a mess at the moment, but this is a rather charming 1970s Series 3 Land Rover.
13:50Erm, rather rusty, I would say.
13:53This is the bulkhead.
13:53This is the steel part of the car, right in front of your feet when you're driving the Land Rover.
13:58But this is beyond economical repair.
14:00Good thing about Land Rovers, and that Land Rover community is a salvage community.
14:04The point of having a modular car is that you keep these vehicles running and you interchange and swap parts from other cars.
14:11I've text you a number of Land Rover people within the Land Rover world
14:15that are likely to have leads to go and find a new old bulkhead.
14:21Do you want me to go find a bulkhead, the right one?
14:23Okay, start at the top, call them, but you have to get the specifically correct bulkhead.
14:28You need a Type 4 bulkhead, MRC 6080.
14:32So it's only made from 1975 to 1983.
14:36If you were to get a 74 or an 84, it won't fit.
14:39So your job is to find it, go and locate it, and I'm okay if it has a little bit of tidying up to do,
14:46like the odd bit of rust.
14:47Okay.
14:48But not in structural areas, so corners.
14:51But you know, bits of rust on this flat section, that's easy.
14:53I can splice it.
14:54Can you not go?
14:55No, I'm better served just getting this work done.
14:58Okay, I'll do my best.
14:59All right.
15:00Think of it like you're picking up a Christmas present.
15:02I'll go for it, okay.
15:03You're like a courier, a package deliverer.
15:06You're basically Santa Claus.
15:09Deaf ears.
15:10Tracking down the perfect secondhand bulkhead won't be easy, but I've got every faith in my old man.
15:17Do you deal with Land Rovers?
15:19I'm looking for a Land Rover bulkhead.
15:20Um, no, I don't.
15:27I'm going to have to go away again and get some more information, aren't I?
15:30Yeah, she immediately asked me a sensible question and I really did not know the answer.
15:34So I've got to go away again.
15:36What sort of Land Rover is it?
15:38Oh, goodness me.
15:40Oh, what have I done?
15:42Anyway, the house needs my attention.
15:44Carpenter Grant has nearly finished the new porch and he wants me to approve it.
15:48You weren't messing around, were you?
15:50I know.
15:51That's incredible.
15:53And you've done that curved top.
15:55And these two are curved as well.
15:57Yeah, got to have them all matching.
15:59And each one of these is pegged.
16:02Yeah, it's all traditionally jointed.
16:04Yeah, that's a massive smile on my face.
16:07I mean, proportionally, it's perfect.
16:09It mirrors the symmetry of the house.
16:11It's now, you know, those two dormers with the V-style roof
16:16and now the porch with the V-style roof.
16:17I've already forgotten what was on there originally,
16:19which was basically an ugly white box.
16:22Salvaging the original door just blends in perfectly.
16:27I can't wait for mum and dad to see it.
16:29They're going to love it.
16:31I've got a few passing comments from the neighbours already, so...
16:35Wow.
16:38It looks like it was built a few hundred years ago.
16:40It's changed the whole feeling of the house.
16:42The whole front door, the porch with the path, the exposed beams, a new roof.
16:49Yeah, the vision for the house.
16:53Yeah, it's slowly coming together.
16:55I got handed to you, man.
16:57It's really beautiful work.
16:59This porch might be stunning, but it's set me back nearly seven grand.
17:03Any profit from the Land Rover can go towards those costs.
17:07Unlike the bulkhead, I'm hoping these original vinyl seats can be salvaged.
17:13Now, this just has a little battle scar.
17:16It's weird that the passenger seat has fared worse than the driver's seat.
17:20You'd figure it'd be the driver's seat. That's the one that always gets used.
17:23Let's get them repaired.
17:25I'll send these to my mate that fixes interiors, and with a quick patch, they'll be as good as new.
17:32It's amazing, isn't it, that black vinyl represents luxury in the Land Rover world.
17:36After many hours of phone bashing, Dad has had a breakthrough.
17:45He's got a lead on a matching second-hand bulkhead.
17:48So he's taken my wallet, with an instruction not to spend more than 800 quid,
17:53and headed off to a Land Rover salvage yard in Ware.
17:56Are you Sam?
17:57I am indeed.
17:58The Land Rover guy?
17:59I am.
18:03Well, this looks good.
18:04Yep.
18:05Has that been replaced, or is that just repaired?
18:08I would say that this has been replaced at some point. You can buy these repair panels to fix a bulkhead.
18:14Okay. I'm a bit more worried about this. This doesn't look very good at all.
18:18This isn't too bad. If you're any good with a welder, you can fix this.
18:22Well, I guess so. Can you turn it over, please, Sam?
18:25Let's have a look on the other side.
18:27That doesn't look good. What's this all about here?
18:29So that's just the foot. That goes into the chassis.
18:33Can you get a new foot?
18:34Yeah, you can buy the new foot. They slide up in here.
18:37Okay.
18:38And then that's where you bolt out to the outrigger.
18:41Okay. I mean, he explained to me about surface rust isn't such a problem. I get that.
18:44But that's got a great hole in it.
18:47So what sort of money are we looking at for this?
18:49How does 1100 sound?
18:53I'm thinking more about eight.
18:56I'd rather keep it and just fix it up.
18:59See, this is when I wish Ant was here. So would you take nine?
19:05I'd do 950.
19:08950. Thank you.
19:12I'm a bit nervous now about ringing my son, because he might go,
19:16Oh, Dad, what have you done?
19:20Hey, Dad.
19:21Hi, Ant.
19:22I don't know if I've done the right thing, but I've just bought a Land Rover bulkhead.
19:27How much was it?
19:29Well, we got 950.
19:30He wanted 11, I went 9.
19:33And we've shaken hands on 950.
19:36It needs a bit of work.
19:38One side looks really good.
19:39But the other side, you've got holes in it.
19:42But, oh, and the foot thing.
19:44The foot, one of the feet side looks a bit rubbish.
19:47But I guess we can buy a new foot, can we?
19:49Have you paid for it already?
19:51Um, yeah.
19:53Yeah, I've done the deal.
19:54I've shaken hands.
19:54I can't go back on the deal.
19:57Heaven help us.
19:58My Series 3 Landy is stripped down to its skeleton.
20:15Just the way I like it.
20:17I now have a moment to do some of the mechanical changes on the Land Rover.
20:21And that's the cool thing about Land Rovers, is that they are completely open.
20:24They explode into a million bits, so changing things like dampers from here,
20:29it's actually really accessible.
20:33Decent dampers are essential, but they tend to wear on Land Rovers,
20:37especially if they've been used on rough terrain.
20:44Good.
20:46That only solves half the problem, though.
20:48I now need to drill out the split pin.
20:50Oh, it's stuck in there.
21:15Right, well, I got my split pin out.
21:16I might have broken my drill bit, but these dampers will massively improve the body control
21:22and the way the car handles.
21:24That took longer than I thought.
21:30Fan belt, nice and easy to do when you haven't got a wing in the way.
21:38This one's all frayed and worn.
21:39Next task is a new coolant catch tank.
21:47And this bottle here, this is the just-in-case.
21:51Because if the cooling system gets too hot and wants to expand beyond,
21:56if you don't allow it to release that pressure, it will destroy the engine.
22:00So inside this cap is a spring that at the perfect amount of pressure releases,
22:06the coolant then spills out and goes into here as opposed to on the floor.
22:10It's a really cool little Land Rover trick to keep the fluids.
22:14So imagine you're in the desert somewhere, super hot, Land Rover overheats,
22:18system then releases, cap does its job, pours the extra fluid into this catch tank.
22:23You let your car cool down in the middle of the Sahara.
22:28No fluid lost.
22:33Done.
22:41With the house exterior taking shape, my green-fingered mum is itching to get her hands on a trowel.
22:46So we've headed to the local garden centre for some landscaping inspiration
22:51and matching trousers from my mum.
22:53What about an eight-foot gorilla?
22:57What about lavender?
22:59No, you have to sit on his hand.
23:00Well, shall I sit on his hand?
23:01No, no, don't sit on his hand.
23:06When we were kids, mum and dad worked as school caterers and moved around a lot.
23:10So this will be the first decent-sized garden that they can call their own.
23:15Right, well, I think if we focused on the front garden to start,
23:18we could just put a simple green manicured privet and it would frame from the brick gates all the
23:25way up to the porch.
23:27Why don't we use either lavender or heathers or put the two together?
23:31The bees love this stuff.
23:33I love the range of colours as well.
23:36You know, it's nice to take a little break, chill with mum.
23:38The vision is to try and get this front section done.
23:42Wall, gate, path, porch, render, oak, and then give mum the ability to dress it.
23:48They're not going to be able to move in for a while, so it feels like connecting mum to the house.
23:54You know, ultimately, get steps closer to moving in.
23:58Jasmine, it's perfect for climbing up the...
24:01The porch?
24:03The porch.
24:03Oh, this is my favourite, wisteria.
24:06I do love a wisteria, particularly on old buildings.
24:09You know, when I was a kid, we lived in this schoolhouse that opened up into huge fields and
24:15woods, like vast acres, and if it was dinner time, it was one whistle.
24:20My mum would come to the back door and whistle.
24:22One whistle is dinner.
24:23Two whistles is you better come home pretty quickly.
24:25Three whistles, you're in trouble.
24:28Yeah, we got three whistles a lot.
24:31I don't know where she's gone.
24:33I need one of those tracking devices, a mum tracker.
24:40With mum's wisteria addiction set to cost me a small fortune,
24:44making a profit on the Land Rover is more critical than ever.
24:47So I need to head back to the workshop sharpish, as it's the moment of truth for that secondhand bulkhead.
24:57Yo!
24:57Hi!
24:58I've got that bulkhead thing.
25:00Where is it?
25:00Come see it.
25:07You sent me out on a mission.
25:08And here it is.
25:13All right, well, it's clearly better than that one, but it's not perfect.
25:17Well, that's not hard to be better than that one, is it?
25:20Structurally, this A pillar's pretty good.
25:24Flaps are great.
25:25Rain drip's great.
25:27There's a bit of filler in there, so I'll have to cut that out and see what's going on.
25:30I mean, this section's completely gone.
25:33If you go and source a new foot...
25:36You're like I'm an expert after one purchase.
25:38That's it.
25:39Imagine after three.
25:40Yeah, right.
25:40Okay.
25:42Yeah.
25:42Are you happy?
25:43Yeah, I can work with this.
25:44Thank goodness for that.
25:46Marvellous.
25:46Well done.
25:49You know, buying car parts can be daunting for a non-car person.
25:53And actually, my dad's never really been a car guy.
25:55So, I think he smashed it.
25:58While dad looks for new feet and foot wells,
26:01I'm going to remove the old rusty ones and make some repairs.
26:04The thing about Land Rover, it's just one big metal jigsaw puzzle.
26:07Each panel is made individually with returns folded on the edge,
26:11that when they all sit together and weld together, they interlock.
26:14So, I'm trying to make cuts that leave the returns on the old Land Rover,
26:18so that when the new panel arrives, it has something to rest against, a little shelf.
26:25So, I'm just taking out areas where the rust has gone beyond the point of saving.
26:49The main areas of rust are now cut out, and it's a case of dressing the area,
26:54exposing the good metal, then making little bits of puzzle pieces to weld in the hole.
27:01Now I get to glue some metal back in.
27:04I've fabricated small steel patches to weld into the gaps.
27:08All right, that is one patch down.
27:21Grind that back, that'd be good as new.
27:23It's not just my Land Rover that's been totally rejuvenated.
27:27The council has given me permission to lime render the front of the house,
27:31and restore it back to its original exposed oak beam look.
27:34And Plaster of Duncan's made amazing progress.
27:37Wow, what a difference.
27:39Here, look at the picture.
27:42You know, it's hard to believe this entire wall was just concrete.
27:45Replacing all the concrete render with lime isn't just about the look.
27:50It'll also prolong the life of the house.
27:53With the render on there, you're probably nearly 50 kilo a metre,
27:57and this is probably less than eight.
27:59In terms of weight?
28:01Oh, so we've taken some of the pressure off this.
28:03Yeah, you've probably taken probably two and a half tonne off this wall,
28:06and that's why the building struggled,
28:08because the amount of render and it sweats,
28:10now all the timber can breathe again.
28:14I mean, this is an old traditional mix as well,
28:16so it's all lime and chalk, and it's insulated as well.
28:19So the room's going to feel warmer?
28:21Yeah.
28:22Right, so what happens next?
28:23This is a scratch coat, and then top coat, which is a lime coat,
28:27goes on the top, and then we've just got to wait a few days
28:30with some of this lovely weather.
28:32Man, it's just a completely different home.
28:34Yeah, it's going to look good.
28:37So is it going to last another 500 years?
28:38Yeah, yeah. Give me a call in 450 if it's not...
28:47My dad's been trying to track down footwells for our Series 3 Land Rover.
28:51Yep.
28:51And he's not having much luck.
28:53Bye-bye. Thank you.
28:58How's it going?
28:59So I've patched it here.
29:01With the greatest of respect to your welding,
29:03I managed to speak to a few friends,
29:06and I found a bulkhead that's new for a really good price.
29:10Oh, man, you spent 900-odd quid on this.
29:13How much?
29:13Do you know how much I've paid for the new one?
29:15How much?
29:16Um...
29:19750 quid.
29:20It was less!
29:22Less than this one.
29:23Well, being the car god he is,
29:25Darren has pulled off an incredible deal.
29:27But now?
29:29Well, we've got two bulkheads.
29:31The new one is a mechanical win,
29:32but there's still money to be made on the second-hand one that Dad bought.
29:35I am committed to finishing this,
29:37because ultimately this has substantial value in it.
29:41It does, yeah, yeah.
29:42There's over 1,000...
29:43I got you paid 750.
29:44I know.
29:45I owe the guy a really big favour.
29:51Special delivery.
29:53Oh, my gosh.
29:54That looks fantastic.
29:56So cool, isn't it?
29:57Right, go on then.
29:58It's so much better, isn't it?
30:04And I think this will really sell the vehicle.
30:08Might need a bit of mallet action.
30:09Yes!
30:10Oh, my God, look.
30:19Solid.
30:19It's pretty solid.
30:21Right.
30:23I mean, it is impressive.
30:26Don't tell my Dad.
30:27He was so proud he went and got a Series 3 bulkhead.
30:30Having fitted a new bulkhead, replacement parts and the restored seats,
30:44I'm switching focus to my Land Rover's rugged good looks.
30:48Instead of respraying it, I want to enhance and celebrate its aged bodywork.
30:54A process called patina.
30:56It makes the car unique and will hopefully raise its value.
31:00So I've called on the expertise of paintwork guru Matt Lawson.
31:04Right, well, there she is.
31:06Wow.
31:07Yeah, it's a cool, cool car.
31:09It's actually had a new bulkhead.
31:11Right, okay.
31:12There's kind of age and patina that exists on the car already, like this bit here.
31:17What if we took this type of patina and did it across the whole car?
31:22Make a 30,000, 40,000-mile car look like a 240,000-mile car.
31:29Yeah.
31:30So where there's a touch point around the handles,
31:33you know, this edge here where you would be scuffing it to get in and out,
31:36you know, the bottom of the panel, make it look like a car that's had a Land Rover's life.
31:40The new owner will have the benefit of a completely really good usable car,
31:45but have the character and patina that you'd expect from a car of this age.
31:48In the auction room, because this is an auction car,
31:51people are going to be like, oh my God, this is a properly weathered, it's a storied car.
31:55This car's been to Africa, it's been to the desert.
32:00So how long have I got on this, realistically? A week?
32:04No, no. It's today. It goes to auction tomorrow.
32:08Okay. Yeah, no problem.
32:11Right, what do you need from me?
32:11A cup of tea.
32:13White, black, sugar, no sugar.
32:15White, no sugar. I'm sweet enough. And a bit of electric.
32:19First thing I've got to do is stick with a super fine dual action oscillating sander.
32:29I don't know how thick this paint is. I don't want to chew through it too fast
32:32and leave any damage on the aluminium, so I'm going to keep it nice and fine
32:35and build it up like that.
32:39You know, the thing about patina, if you go too far, you've lost it.
32:44If you don't do enough, it doesn't make sense. We've got to find that perfect balance and
32:49yeah, I'm confident that's exactly what's going to happen today.
32:55It's got to look authentic. I don't want it to look
32:58like it's been prepped for paint. It's got to look like it's been weathered over time.
33:01Okay, so I've took what I think is enough off on this top area here with a dual action sander.
33:11Even though I've kept the grade very fine, there will still be sanding marks in the aluminium,
33:16so I'm going to go over it now with a wet and dry 2000 bit of paper and that'll help me when I
33:20come to the polishing to get a nice shine back on the panel and these areas.
33:29Now that I've sanded the panel down to where I think is acceptable, I'm going to use a
33:40medium and fine cut compound to try and get some shine to this exposed aluminium. The medium grade's
33:47got more of a grit in it, it's more like a toothpaste which will cut into the sanded areas a little bit
33:53easier and then you finish off with a finer which is a lot smoother which should hopefully put the shine
33:57back on the panel. This should have a spare wheel and tyre on the bonnet and over time you would
34:07expect it to wear around it. So what I'm going to do is I'm going to put a wear marks all the way
34:11around the circumference of where the tyres should be and hopefully it'll make it look a little bit more authentic.
34:29It's been a long day but in a matter of hours Matt's added years of history and character to my Land Rover.
34:35This is epic. I love the fact that the high traffic area of the handle.
34:45Yeah. Yeah, love it. I love it. I think that's my favourite bit. Yeah, I really like it. You think
34:53about the psychology of an auction. This is going to stand out to somebody. It's not going to be for
34:58everybody but ultimately it's a Land Rover. This says history, story. Apply this original paint to the low
35:06mileage and it's all recorded in that notebook. Right, we're here, we're committed. We are financially
35:11committed. What do you think the numbers are? I know what the numbers are. I think we've probably spent
35:21three grand. I mean, ultimately, I know we had the little bulkhead mishap, which right now we're
35:28950 quid down on. I'm not worried about it because ultimately, I mean, I've been on forums. I know I'm
35:33going to sell that bulkhead easily. Get your money back. I think we'll get a bit more back.
35:39So total, weirdly, is 3,006. And 6? And 29 pence.
35:46So yeah, you were £6.29 out. And remember, we paid seven and a half.
35:52So right here, this car owes us ten and a half grand.
35:56But before we sell out, I want to savour a moment to bond with my all-time favourite car.
36:11Now there's something really fitting about a British car boy, me, driving a British icon around the British
36:19countryside amid British summer weather. It's grey and gloomy, but I'm smiling like a lunatic because
36:28I'm beaming with pride.
36:29It's been such a wonderful build. I have loved every single moment of this. And now that I'm sitting
36:41in the car, driving her around these country lanes, going through the gears, this isn't a car to go out
36:48and get the wind in your hair, to Land Rover. It's just a car that goes from A to B and guarantees to get
36:55you there. What I love most about Land Rover is it's truly a classless vehicle. The King of England
37:02could drive this Land Rover. Or a mechanic.
37:08Love her. I love her.
37:22Wow. Wow. I mean, it's just so lovely. I sound like driving any other classic car. It's not about
37:29performance or speed or adrenaline. It's just about nostalgia. It's about reliability. It's about
37:35everything that Britain represents. You know, and on the scale of things, when you do restorations,
37:40you can get carried away with costs. To be able to put that car back on the road and only spend around
37:44three grand, that's good value. And combine that with a purchase price of seven and a half,
37:49it stands us in today at ten and a half grand. And anyone who pays ten and a half grand for that
37:56is getting an absolute bargain.
38:04Before the auction, I've arranged to meet mum and dad back at the house. Getting them moved in
38:10is my big aim. But before I can tackle the inside of the house, I needed to fix the outside. And the
38:16progress has been huge. I can't wait to show my parents how it's looking.
38:21That is amazing. So, do you like the beams look? I think it's wonderful, actually. It's not what
38:27I was expecting, but that looks like it should have been in the past. Yeah. I mean, the beams were
38:32exposed. It looks amazing. So, can you imagine moving in? I think so. I'm beginning to see it more
38:38clearly. It is amazing, Ant. A huge amount of work. I don't know how you've done it. Well,
38:44it's not me that's done it. It's actually taken a big team of people. And it's way more work than
38:51I'd thought. But ultimately, it's been fuelled by this motivation to get a home prepared for you guys.
38:57You know, it's awesome standing in front of this half because it just shows you the vision for the
39:02entire house. And if this is the benchmark for the work that we're going to do, this is going to be a
39:07sensational house. It is amazing. You can just tell by looking at that. If everything else is to the same
39:13standard as that, it's going to be absolutely eye-popping. I think, I know you've had a lot
39:19of help, but even so, I'm amazed at your vision. You've driven it. I wish I could drive it. That's
39:27why cars are cooler than houses. You have driven it, and you have been the force behind it. Well done.
39:43My grand plan to help fund the house by restoring and selling classic cars hasn't always worked.
39:50The Series 3 Land Rover market used to be really buoyant. But like the rest of the classic car
39:54market, it's suffered a dip recently. But if I make anything over ten and a half grand, it will be a
40:00win, and it will go towards the porch and the plastering. I can do no more. The car is now handed over to
40:08the auction house. It's in the room. But I think she looks great. It's a weird moment. It's like
40:14handing the child over. And there's nothing I can do now. I'm so glad I got Matt in to do the patina.
40:20The safe option was just leave it or repaint it. But this car tells a story now.
40:29I mean, I don't know whether that will translate to bidding. But Land Rover World,
40:33most people will get it. And welcome here to the classic car auctions sale.
40:41The auction has started. We've got the lot number 761, the 1978 Land Rover, the Series 3 88-inch
40:50factory station wagon, as we say. This is it.
40:54Straight in with you online then. 11,000 with you in Austria. 11,000 the opening bid.
41:00Okay, the opening bid's 11,000. That's good. That's a strong first bid.
41:04Factory station wagon with the county hog.
41:07It owes us 10 and a half. Right, we're already into the profit.
41:11We're into the profit.
41:1511,500. Any more bid then? 11,500. 12,000 online. New bet. Against you standard. Canterbury, you lead now.
41:26At 12,000. 12,200. Thank you. 12,200. 12,500. Back online, 12,500.
41:35Go another anywhere else now. At 12,500. Any further bid then? We're selling at 12,500.
41:42Go on, another 500. There's another with you waiting online then. Go 12,800 if you wish.
41:47Otherwise you'll miss it. We'll sell at 12,500. Fair warning to you all then. 12,500.
41:53Twelve and a half. All done, all sure, are we?
41:55It's two grand profit. Yep. We'll take that.
41:59Draws online, 12,500. Yes! Two grand.
42:03I've made a couple of grand profit and I did a little Google. What does Land Rover themselves make
42:13as a profit margin? Because we've made 20% on our car and Land Rover today make about 8%
42:21on their new vehicles. So we've made double the profit that Land Rover themselves make.
42:26It's such a win when you set out with this completely new business model. Fix some cars,
42:33make some profit to fix the house. And look how far it's come. And it's been made possible because
42:40we took some risks on some cars. So why doesn't it run? There's no starter motor. Some of them paid
42:47off and some of them didn't. Yeah guys, we've got a problem here. But overall, from day one of starting
42:54this project, cars and houses, the progress is visual. You can see how much we've done.
43:00They look so good. I'm so proud of everybody stepping up, pulling my family in. And it's not
43:07just about making profit and fixing homes. It's about connecting with everybody I grew up with.
43:15It's been awesome. But man, we've got so much more to do.
43:19I feel like a pint to celebrate. Yeah, I'll go with that. Yeah, but you're buying.
43:36I'm so proud of you.
43:44Yeah, you're buying.
43:53Yeah.