Range Rover Outfitting and Accessories

Brush Bars and Bumpers

Perhaps the most popular 4X4 accessory, the brush bar's practical utility may be questioned, but its rugged image appeal cannot. A number of companies supply bumpers incorporating brush bars and/or winch mounts, and some even supply strengthened rear bumpers. The following is a brief summary of options available for the different models, with references to the appropriate paes on Rangerovers.net.

Classic Range Rover:
Many shapes and sizes have appeared and disappeared over the years for the Classic Range Rover, from an 18 lb aluminum version made by Bearmach to a 120 lb steel combination bumper/brush bar from TJM. Some of the options are detailed on the Classic Brush Bar, Bullbar and Winch Bumper page. There are two main types of design; those which retain and those which replace the factory bumper. Among the former are a variety of steel and aluminum designs, several incorporating lamp guards and mountings for auxiliary lighting. Two variants available in the US through Atlantic British and British Pacific respecctively, are even designed to protect the driving/fog lights mounted in the spoiler. Another, available from D.A.P. Enterprises, includes an energy absorbing feature for minor collisions. Virtually every aftermarket supplier of Range Rover parts and accessories has one or more of these types available. The combination bumper/brushbar designs are described in the Classic Brush Bar, Bullbar and Winch Bumper page and the "Range Rover Winch Mount Options" page.

Range Rover 4.0/4.6:
An expanded range of bumpers and brushbars, some incorporating winch mounts, is finally becoming available for these models and is detailed in the 4.0/4.6 Brush Bar, Bumper and Winch Mount Pages. Briefly, a brushbar made of plastic-coated steel is available as a factory option, and is fully airbag compatible. It is available through both dealers and aftermarket suppliers such as Atlantic British and Rovers North. The basic brush guard covers the central radiator area, while optional wrap-around wings cover the headlights. Optional light guards are available to fit the brush bar. The factory winch mount option requires at least the basic brush bar to be fitted. A less costly but stronger option is a tubular steel brush bar design available from Atlantic British. A new custom winch bumper designed by Alan Bates is now available and features an excellent approach angle. For more information on these and other designs for the 4.0/4.6 see the 4.0/4.6 Brush Bar and Bumper Page.

Range Rover Mk III:
Two versions of fitted brush bars, with or without a winch, are available for the Range Rover Mk III. See the RR Mk III Bumper & Brushbar page.

Range Rover Sport:
Brushbars and winch mounts are available; see the Range Rover Sport accessory page.

Rear Bumpers/Brushbars:
Rear bumper replacements can be especially good accessories on the Classic for owners who are tired of replacing the plastic rear bumper end caps that seem to get destroyed on every second trail ride. See the Classic Bumper/Bullbar page for details, including a sturdy rear step bumper made by ARB and available in the US from British Pacific. Also, East Coast Rovers supplies a 3/16" steel rear bumper for the Classic that bolts to the frame and has 2 recovery points. This version leaves the factory trailer hitch in place and is said to increase departure angle.

For the 4.0/4.6 models, rear bumper a dntire carrier options are illustrated on the 4.0/4.6 rear bumper page.

Fuel Tanks, Long Range

Ron Beckett has found a long range fuel tank for the 4.0/4.6 Range Rover (see pictures below -- taken with the vehicle in low or standard profile). The tank is made in Melbourne, Australia, by Brown Davis Automotive, and costs A$798. Capacity is 155 litres (41 US gallons or 34 Imperial gallons) -- a substantial increase over the 100 litre stock tank. If you are interested, email David Brown for more details. Please mention you saw the information on Rangerovers.net. Also, please email me if you know more details of this or other long range tanks.

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Being designed for wet off-road expeditions, the Classic Range Rover comes with a sturdy set of rubber mats which can be accessed by removing the top layer of carpets (no doubt added in later years to dress up the interior). If you go off road a lot you can leave these carpets out to preserve them for some future, less adventurous, owner.

The more common alternative for either Classic or new models is to add yet another layer of mats by putting rubber mats over the carpets. The dealer supplied custom fitted accessory versions are especially nice, although almost the same effect can be achieved at lower cost by obtaining a set of the "one size fits all" rubber mats available at auto supply stores.

Another handy accessory for protecting the interior is a set of waterproof seat covers, readily available for all Range Rover models.

Since Range Rovers come with auxiliary lights, their lighting is already fairly good for off road expeditions. The 4.0/4.6 model really excels in this regard, with incredibly bright headlights incorporating two main beam 60 watt bulbs as well as auxiliary headlights, under-bumper fog lights and rear auxiliary fog lights. Another boost to the lighting situation comes from the air suspension, which keeps all beams correctly aimed regardless of vehicle load.

On the Classic, however, the lights are less satisfactory. I find that the beam pattern from the spoiler-mounted lights jiggles annoyingly on rough roads and trails. Like other owners who frequently use their Rovers off-road, I later removed the spoiler altogether, leaving only the standard headlights. On US models these are old-fashioned sealed beam units that are not too impressive. I highly recommend replacing them, as I did, with street-legal Hella replaceable-bulb halogens. Although the wattage is similar, the very precise beam patterns give a major boost in effective illumination, almost equivalent to the standard headlights and fog/driving lights combined.

Beyond that, a broad array of aftermarket lights are available to mount on the bumper or roof rack of all Range Rover models. Some owners encumber the area above the bumper in front of the radiator with such items as a winch, control box, and large diameter driving lights; for desert exploration the resulting obstruction to airflow to the radiator may not be a good idea!

These items are very popular but are mainly for looks, since they cost more than the lamps they are designed to protect. However they possibly have some functional value on expeditions through the forest where collisions with tree branches are a possibility. Most Range Rover parts suppliers offer one version or another for both Classic and new models.

Late model Range Rover have traction control, but some owners feel there is no substitute for mechanical lockers. Lockers have long been available for Classic Range Rovers; for example Granville Pool has installed a Quaiffe locker in the rear of his and a Detroit locker in the front. David Giller reports contacting Ashcroft Transmissions in the UK. They have, for 25 British Pounds (about $47USD) 'ring spacers' for using some (as yet unknown) model of TrueTrac limited-slip differential in the 4.0/4.6/P38. These should soon be available -- please let me know if you find out any mor info. Incidentally, David was alerted to the need for lockers on a steep hill that his friend's Discovery II was barely able to surmount after several tries, even with its 4 wheel traction control. David's Range Rover made it up more easily, even though it has only rear wheel traction control, but he felt that lockers would further extend its capabilities.

John Purnell offers the following tip if you are putting a locker in the front of your Classic: "I'm redoing my front axle right now, replaced my center diff with an ARB locker unit. I was getting mad because I could not remove the diff from the axle case because the head of the bolt that connects the sway bar to the frame mount was interfering. I had visions of having to remove the sway bar. Then I took a large C clamp and slightly pulled the right side sway bar mount towards the right side of the truck by using the front radius arm as a leverage point. That is, I used the Clamp on the sway bar mount and the radius arm, and pulled it slightly to the right. This gave me all the needed clearance to remove the diff."

Wayne Hubbell reports: "Great Basin Rovers in Utah has ARB units for the P38 Rover differentials. Maybe this could be mentioned on Rangerovers.net/outfitting/index.html#lockers web site. I may not do this just yet, but people at West Cost Rovers in Irvine said they have installed several with great success and happy owners who claim improvements". I recently found the British Pacific also offers ARB lockers for Classic and 4.0/4.6 Range Rovers; their prices are usually the lowest and they offer expert personal service as well.

Picnic Baskets

It is a firm tradition for Range Rovers to have a traditional English picnic basket aboard -- mine came with one from the dealer! The best one I have found so far on the web is from Tabletools.com -- click on the link below to go directly to this item on their site. They also have a selection of other options.

One of the few amenities not provided as standard equipment on Range Rovers is the hot shower. Most off road enthusiasts, collectively known as "the great unwashed", may sneer at the thought of having a shower, but those accustomed to the civilized Range Rover approach to conquering severe terrain know that the worst thing about camping out is crawling into a sleeping bag feeling sweaty and dirty.

Fortunately, a heated windshield washer system is standard on Range Rovers, so if you use pure water in it rather than special washer fluid you can hook it up to a small shower head which can be roof mounted at the appropriate spot and provided with suitable controls. A second alternative, which I have found to be easier, is to purchase a 5 gallon solar shower and carry it on the roof (see photo). This heats up amazingly well during the day, and provides two long showers in the evening. Don't take any notice of the taunts and jibes you may receive from fellow off-roaders when using the system -- they are merely jealous.

Another option for hot showers it a system made by premier power welder that connects a heat exchanger to one of the heater hoses in the engine bay. An electric pump draws water from any convenient source -- even a nearby stream -- and the heat exchanger warms it up as it goes through. Details of this "Underhood Shower" system, which sells for about $340, are shown at this link.

All Range Rovers have a certain amount of good British wood trim -- but most models could use more. There are official Land Rover wood trim kits that you can get from any dealer for about $1000, but I have also found aftermarket sources charging about a quarter of the price, making this a really affordable addition. For example SUVXccessory.com who have a wide selection of wood trim kits for the Range Rover 4.0/4.6 for $25 to $300. To find them, go to SUVXccessory.com and select your model and year.

The new Mk III Range Rover is a bit short on interior trim by past standards, but recently Special Vehicle Concepts has come up with a number of interior and exterior upgrades that really customize your Range Rover.