Short of swimming in the wake of the Exxon Valdez, I don’t think we could have got much oilier this week!

Whilst tackling the brakes,came up against a rusted bleed-nipple on the rear brake calliper, which refused to budge. A fair bit of colourful language and some elbow grease later, and we were the proud owners of one expertly rounded bolt.

So, whilst the new bleed-nipple is on order from the local 4×4 specialists, we cracked on with marking up the list of spares we need for the trip. As mentioned in the last blog, it’s a list that is growing by the day, much to the consternation of my beer fund.

Having examined the brake callipers, it has become clear that we might as well work back and replace the brake lines and all associated bolts, as they are all rusted tighter than a Scotsman’s wallet. Also on the oxidised hit-list are the door hinge screws.

The delightful holes left in the bodywork by the previous owner are gaping reminders that we need to find replacement reverse light units and fog light units. Also, the bulbs are set to be changed at some point.

As most Landy owners will testify, driving at night with standard bulbs is not unlike peering into the proverbial abyss holding a pair of small candles. As soon as possible, we hope to source some better bulbs, as well as fitting a pair of additional spotlights.

Unfortunately though, Carl has vetoed fitting blue neons to the underside, although I am still hopeful on the ‘La Bamba’ car horn.

I must admit, we both feel that the car is becoming ours now, since we have shed some blood and sweat on it. There was a fraught moment this week when one member of the team began calling the car ‘Bobby the truck’, clearly without following the “It’s a car, it needs a female name” protocol. More news on that soon as well as a bit on our airtime with BBC radio Berkshire. An audio file will also follow once it’s in a user friendly form.