New chassis - paperwork fun?
 

Maybe time for a new chassis for my 1991 Defender, or more likely time to swap all my mechanics over to a new chassis on a dead Defender as a rebuild.

How does it all work with the DVLA, UK insurance and Carnets when you have swapped the chassis?

Any major stumbling blocks to worry about? You keep the original chassis number on all the paperwork, swap over the silver plates showing this number on them and hope nobody ever actually checks the chassis itself for the number?

Or can you change it via the dvla?

Depends how you do it

New chassis - thats just a spare part, no DVLA interest, given the time & trouble I'd swap for a new (galvanized) chassis , swap with a old one and you may be doing it all again in a few years

If you use 2 old defenders then you have a bitza car so you may have to go thru a vehicle identity check and end up with a Q plate (if you do it legally and properly)

Thanks Rich,

I thought the chassis number was stamped onto the chassis somewhere? Stories of people at Egyptian borders crawling around underneath finding it etc?
This seems to suggest so as well...

chassis number info - Land Rover Zone

But I guess there is nothing you can do about it if you want to swap the chassis? Write it on in marker felt?

Talk to the chassis people - its probabily not an issue with a non galvi chassis as you could get it stamped, but I guess the galvanising process would hide it

Good luck with it though - probabily a can of worms cos you'll probabily want to repace mounts, brake lines etc while you are doing it, will give you a good solid truck though

Not advocating breaking the law, as I am sure nobody on this forum would, but I have come across instances of people transferring everything from the original chassis of their post-1973 LR onto a pre-1973 chassis and ending up with a vehicle that's (allegedly) exempt from UK road tax bier

VIN
 

If you are worried about the ID being an issue I would ask the manufacturer to weld a laser cut plate with your vin on it to the chassis prior to it being galved. most manufacturers normally put an id plate on the chassis anyway.

regards

Gren

As was said up there ^^^^^, if you change the chassis for a like-for-like unit, even if it's galvanised, then the chassis number (VIN) just gets transferred over.

Speak to the supplying company and see if they can stamp your old number into the new chassis in a "professional" way so it looks authentic.

The VIN number on a Defender is found on an aluminium plate rivetted to the brake master cylinder/pedal assembly under the bonnet, and also stamped into the chassis on the right hand side, outside of the chassis rail just behind the bumper. The ally plate will transfer to the new chassis with the rest of the bulkhead. Galvanizing will actually pick up on the stamped numbers on the chassis causing the digits to be raised above the surrounding surface. Very odd. Something to do with surface tension in the hot zinc? Fitting a NEW chassis causes no issues with identity, but if you find a good used one, the identity of the vehicle becomes suspect in the eyes of the authorities. Grinding off the old number and stamping a new one over it is detectable. Cutting off the bracket to which it is stamped, and welding on the one from your old chassis is not (if the welding is good), but be aware that Land Rover chassis' have date stamps elsewhere which can be found by those that know!
As far as border checks go, the vin plate on the brake pedal box is usually enough, but sometimes a stamped chassis is all they will accept.
Hope this helps someone, probly a bit late for Roamingyak though.