Defender 130 Galvanised Bulkhead

Galvanised Bulkhead for the Defender 130: a complete bulkhead in galvanised steel.

A Defender or Discovery 1 is only as good as its chassis, and the original was painted steel that rusts from the inside out: rear crossmember first, then the outriggers, then the main rails behind the rear wheels. A galvanised replacement chassis is the permanent answer and adds decades to the vehicle. The bulkhead rusts in the footwells and along the top rail, and on a Defender it is the other half of the same decision. The 130 is the long wheelbase crew cab and pick up, and it carries its weight on the rear axle, which changes which parts wear first.

Specification and fitment

• Fits: Defender 130, chassis code LD 130
• Engine: 300Tdi, Td5, 2.4 and 2.2 Puma diesel
• Production dates: 1984 to 2016
• Quality: Galvanised or Painted
• Part number: cross referenced to the factory part number for your VIN and confirmed before dispatch, because supersessions on these vehicles are frequent and one printed number would be wrong for somebody
• The failure this addresses: footwell and top rail rot, the second most common Defender structural failure
• Labour time: a body off job
• Coding: none. This vehicle predates the modules that need it
• Also needed: new seals and fixings
• Torque: factory figures
• Weight: about 60 kg
• Warranty: lifetime against rust through on the galvanising, two years on the parts

What arrives

• Bulkhead
• Fixing kit

Fitting

Labour guide: a body off job. Land Rover changes specification mid production, often by VIN rather than by model year, so send the VIN or the registration with the order and we confirm the part against the build data before anything leaves. It takes two minutes and it is the difference between a part that fits and a return. We are an independent Land Rover specialist and parts supplier. We are not Land Rover or Jaguar Land Rover and are not appointed by them; the model names are their trademarks and are used here to describe fitment. Everything we sell is chosen for vehicles that actually get used: towed with, loaded, driven through water and parked in fields, rather than for the brochure.

Which version to buy

Galvanised is hot dip galvanised after fabrication, inside and out, which is what stops the rust that finished the original. Painted is supplied in black primer and top coat for a correct appearance, with cavity wax recommended after fitting.