DAN'S DAD'S DAKAR

As you will have read a few pages back, I had a thoroughly enjoyable day out driving some lovely green lanes with Dan in his, and his Dad’s Dakar.

But, what is a Dakar?

As we all know, older Range Rovers and Discoverys rust. Their inner wings, sills and pretty much everything structural that’s made of steel will slowly and surely disintegrate - it’s the way of the world and over the years it’s what we come to expect.

Back in the day, when your old Rover had aspirations of becoming a sieve you had three options - get the welder out and repair it, chop the chassis and make it into a 90 hybrid (like I did), or simply scrap it.

But there was also a fourth option, and that was to throw away the rusty shell and replace it with a brand new shiny fibreglass one, thus making into a kit-car. One such manufacturer is Dakar 4x4, obviously.

As Dan told me, it was well over a decade ago when his Dad, Michael, bit the bullet and decided that Dan’s grandmother’s 1990 Range Rover was due for the Dakar 4x4 treatment, and drove it down to the Dakar 4x4 workshop in Leicestershire for the chop.

Obviously, building a kit-car is a tad more involved than simply removing the old body and replacing it with a new one, so I’ll skip over this part and just say that Dakar 4x4 removed the old body, replaced it with a new one whilst performing some involved surgery.

Probably because the donor Range Rover was a 3.9 litre with a more complex wiring harness, Dan told me that almost immediately after the conversion, not only would it not run properly, but it wouldn’t hold a charge. Later he discovered that the latter was due to having a constant live earth.

Sadly, because it wasn’t very reliable, it wasn’t long after that when the family lost interest in the Dakar, and it sat dormant gathering dust and grime for a good few years

It wasn’t until around 5 years ago, when Dan looked at the Dakar and decided something had to be done about it.

Eager to get it running again he found a donor Range Rover with a 300Tdi and automatic gearbox. It was actually a 1995 ‘Softdash’ model, and to this day Dan wishes he’d found another donor vehicle and repaired it!

We live and learn.

Due to other commitments it was a long project, but whenever he could, he would tinker away until eventually it ran and was ready for an MOT.

Like any kit-car it’s quite unique, and Dan had fun finding and fabricating parts. As a temporary measure, Dan built the wooden transmission tunnel, which is on the list to be replaced with a neater one.

The custom fuel tank was replaced, and as the windscreen wipers wouldn’t work properly, he adapted the mechanism from a Defender.

He also liked the idea of keeping warm, so he bought a new heater from carbuilder. com and plumbed it in.

The solid front plastic seats are Ebay specials, but he said are surprisingly comfortable, and it doesn’t matter if they get wet.

After many years sat outside, the Dakar’s body was looking a bit worse for wear, so a trip to AutoModz over in Blackpool was booked. The team spent a whole day on the Dakar, and did such a fantastic job of revitalising the paint work that it looks like new again.

Next, a replacement hood was bought from Amtrim, a local company over in Preston that specialises in boat covers, canopies and marine upholstery. It was expensive, and they kept the Dakar for a whole week, but the end result was certainly worth it, Dan said.

As Dakar 4x4 intended, it’s a serious 4x4 that uses the tried and tested mechanics of a Range Rover Classic, and therefore will take you pretty much anywhere you point it.

Dan regaled me with numerous tales of adventures, and laughed at the times he’s nearly floated away during deep river crossings.

There are plenty more modifications on the horizon, from a new centre console to new headlights and light bars. One thing’s for sure, the Dakar ain’t pretty, but who cares when you have such a capable vehicle that’s this much fun?

Kits are still available from Dakar 4x4, for full details and prices, check out their website - www.dakar4x4.me.uk