5 best upgrades you have done to your defender

golfobx

Active member
figured this would be a fun way to get ideas on more things to do to our rides.

list your 5 favorite upgrades
 

1of40

Well-known member
Winch bumper, winch and synthetic line. Nothing else has saved my ass and gotten me out of a more compromising positions.
 

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JimC

Super Moderator
Staff member
Ebersparcher (webasto) engine heater
Heated windshield
Puma doors w/newest sill weatherstripping
VDO gauges
Long range fuel tanks
 

waveridin1959

Well-known member
These are not sexy, but great mods. These make it more livable.

1. VDO Temp Gauge.
2. Tuffy Center Console.
3. Convex Mirrors.
4. Exmoor Seats with risers
5. Badger Top for STs w Drop Curtain for cabin
 

NPT90

Well-known member
Hands down the SDO rocker switch upgrade and the autosparks new harness (took care of so many electrical issues).

Rear terminal bars instead of bullet rat's nest connections, made adding trailing lights and other mods straightforward.

Running a dedicated ground loop apart from the engine grounds was a smart move, isolated the lighting system and made the LEDs reliable

TD5 gauge swap is much better on the 300TDI

Glow plug relay vs hold to start
Headlamp relay for obvious reasons

Ignition module with matching door cylinders (because who wants 3 different keys)

Rigid 'Chase light' which added a third brake light, reverse lamp, and an extra plate night I needed (did I mention the terminal bars where a awesome addition, made adding these ancillary lights a breeze).

Denali Sound Bomb horn. Denali Sound bomb, Fit great on the radiator support brackets, really put some serious noise in front the the vehicle and due to it's modular design I was able to locate the unit in the engine bay.
 

Red90

Well-known member
Which tank did you end up going with? I presume you added a rear.

I built one. Nothing wrong with other options, but this let me get maximum capacity, clearance and strength. That, and it was free other than the plumbing. I used the later 300TDI rear exhaust which is intended for a rear tank.
 

acheck

Well-known member
Slickshift

terrible modification. all that i have driven with the slickshift are impossibly tight and tedious to drive. i suspect most all "positive" benefits of the slickshift are realized by those with badly worn gearboxes/shifting mechanisms. in a properly set up and adjusted gearbox, they are horrible.
 

CDN38

Well-known member
Heated windshield
Puma doors
Heated Puma seats (no heat in the rears, hell, I never sit there!)
Adjustable time pulse wiper relay
JW Speaker headlights
 

RDavisinVA

Technical Excellence Contributor
Chevy inline 6 (292 in one vehicle & 250 in another), Holley Sniper EFI, Saignaw PS pump with pressure reduction kit mated to an R380 stumpy, 1.22 LT230 with rear disc brakes and AC.
In the camping 110: 6 of the SX-Power D5100 batteries with the AIMs 3000 Watt Pure Sine Inverter Charger 12 VDC TO 120 VAC.
RedArc DC to DC charger with the single battery gauge that monitors both battery banks concurrently and lets you see your charging input AMPS from the 140 Watt Solar Panel and the alternator.
You can run an air fryer, induction cook-top, George Foreman, and plug in any 120V appliance or tool.
Last weekend was way back in the woods running a 120 volt grinder to cut through rusted bolts while removing parts from an 88 and them moved vehicles around with a 120V Warn hand winch.

Next upgrade will be to install a radio that you can actually hear because you cannot hear any noise from the Chevy inline 6.
 
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meatblanket

Well-known member
Replacing the 2.5na with a 200tdi is number 1 for me.

After that, then maybe acoustic floor mats, VDO gauges, LED headlights, 300w amplifier, blah blah blah. But being able to cruise at highway speeds and pull a trailer is kind of a big deal.
 

Parrie

Well-known member
terrible modification. all that i have driven with the slickshift are impossibly tight and tedious to drive. i suspect most all "positive" benefits of the slickshift are realized by those with badly worn gearboxes/shifting mechanisms. in a properly set up and adjusted gearbox, they are horrible.
Upgrade, not modification. Unfortunate you had bad experiences, actually the first time I've heard a negative description. My LT77 is not worn out and it was/is properly set up...the shift throws are much shorter and much smoother...extremely pleased with the results here.
 

Red90

Well-known member
Upgrade, not modification. Unfortunate you had bad experiences, actually the first time I've heard a negative description. My LT77 is not worn out and it was/is properly set up...the shift throws are much shorter and much smoother...extremely pleased with the results here.

I agree. People have bad gearboxes they are fixing. The stock shifting should be as tight and smooth as any other car out there. I guess it helps if you want shorter throws, but I can't understand why anyone would want that. I'm a short guy and the throws are not too long for my reach.
 

Parrie

Well-known member
I agree. People have bad gearboxes they are fixing. The stock shifting should be as tight and smooth as any other car out there. I guess it helps if you want shorter throws, but I can't understand why anyone would want that. I'm a short guy and the throws are not too long for my reach.
My original shifter was a little out of whack but adjusting the bias spring fixed it. I also am short and it wasn't that the throws were too long, I just prefer a shorter shift especially off-road. I'm also in a RHD so something just didn't feel comfortable to me even after repositioning the shift lever...or maybe it was all in my head.
 
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