Care of your Land Rover

A Land Rover is said to need more maintainance than a car, but repays you better for the care you put into it! The bodywork is made from an aluminium alloy called Birmabrite; although this can corrode a little in some circumstances, it doesn't rust.

What is WaxOyl?
WaxOyl is a protective coating for the underside of vehicles. You spray it on with a pressure sprayer or hand pump. It sticks to metal and protects it from rust. Because it never quite dries completely, it flows to cover small bits where it's been chipped off (or so they claim). It's very much part of the British tradition of DIY vehicle maintenance. When its manufacturers get a web site I'll link to it, but for now I provide this explanation for those from countries that don't have this stuff. I recommend the pressure spraying system for spraying WaxOyl (you use a pump screwed into the can to build up air pressure to drive the spray gun) rather than the Jumbo Sprayer (where you use a suction and pressure pump in the spray gun). Some people use old lubricant oil for similar purposes. It's a bit messy, though!

What is WaxOyl?

WaxOyl is a protective coating for the underside of vehicles. You spray it on with a pressure sprayer or hand pump. It sticks to metal and protects it from rust. Because it never quite dries completely, it flows to cover small bits where it's been chipped off (or so they claim). It's very much part of the British tradition of DIY vehicle maintenance. When its manufacturers get a web site I'll link to it, but for now I provide this explanation for those from countries that don't have this stuff. I recommend the pressure spraying system for spraying WaxOyl (you use a pump screwed into the can to build up air pressure to drive the spray gun) rather than the Jumbo Sprayer (where you use a suction and pressure pump in the spray gun). Some people use old lubricant oil for similar purposes. It's a bit messy, though!

The main regular task (apart from topping up oil and water just as on any other vehicle) is keeping the chassis rustproofed. In practice, this means adding some more WaxOyl from time to time (typically annually), and a regular patrol underneath with a wirebrush and some rust-treatment resin (such as Kurust in the UK -- I don't know the US equivalent) to treat any bits where the WaxOyl has come off (do this up to every couple of weeks, depending on the conditions).

Local contacts

See Cambridgeshire Land Rover contacts for garages etc near Cambridge UK.

John C. G. Sturdy

Last modified: Sun Jun 10 22:10:12 GMT Daylight Time 2007