First, you should get a feel for the prices of Land Rovers through classified sections from various clubs or from Rover Parts Suppliers,such as British Pacific, Atlantic British and Rover's North. These suppliers, for example, have a complete classified section in each of their newsletters, as well as bulletin boards on their websites. Each one also has a free catalog that can be a great resource while shopping around. Many owners think they have a rare and unique vehicle, when in fact, they really do not. Series Rovers are beginning to show up on ebay. Be wary of purchasing a Series Rover sight unseen. The ebay Rovers almost always go for more than they are worth.
One important thing to remember is that these are old vehicles. Finding someone to service one may not be that difficult, but finding someone who knows what they are doing is unlikely. Be prepared to learn how to maintain your own vehicle. It is not as bad as it may appear, and is often enjoyable if approached in the correct frame of mind. No known Land Rover dealerships in the U.S. still service Series vehicles, and the "Quicky Lube" guys won't even know how to get the oil filter off, much less have it in stock. So, be prepared to get your hands dirty. If you do plan on having someone else do the work for you, be sure the mechanic is trustworthy, knows what he is doing, and won't spend hours trying to understand how the pieces are put together. Series Rovers are basically simple vehicles, designed to be kept running with a minimum of tools, and just a little know how. Farmers and archeologists have been keeping them running for years, so can you! Whether you plan to do the work yourself, or allow someone else to do the work, you need to buy the manuals. At a minimum, buy the Haynes manual fromRover's North or Atlantic British. Preferably, buy the Genuine factory manuals which are two volumes, $110 from Rover's
North or Atlantic British. They are the best investment a Rover owner can make. I also recommend 
Lindsay Porter's Series I, II, IIA, and III: Do It Yourself Guide To Restoration and Purchase from Rover's North or Atlantic British. This book will be very useful to you while you are looking at different Land Rovers, and also if you decide to restore one.
I recommend you buy the tools to do a compression test or bring it to a mechanic to have one done for you. Many Land Rovers blow smoke and leak oil which may, or may not be an indication of blown piston rings. So, be sure to do the compression check and verify it for yourself.
Lastly, if this is your first Land Rover, be sure to contact some of the suppliers and ask them to send you a catalog. Surf the Rover Web, and The Rover Ring, and ask questions. The more familiar you are with this vehicle, the better off you will be as a potential buyer and new owner.
A Series Rover is different from any other vehicle you will ever own. It is unlike other 4X4's and unlike other British cars. It will cause changes in your lifestyle, and changes in the way others see you as well as the way you see yourself. It is not unusual for a driver of the most recent SUV to pull alongside and look at my Rover with absolute envy. A Series Rover is what the SUV pretenders of today try to imitate, and when they are side by side, there is little doubt which will go farther, deeper and longer into the bush.
Prices for Land Rovers will vary depending on the model, year, location, and
obviously condition. The following bullets should give you a rough idea as to which
models and what locations cost more.
- Long Wheel Base (LWB) will be more expensive than Short Wheel Base (SWB). In restoration as well as price.
- Right Hand Drive (RHD) will be more expensive (in the U.S.) than will Left Hand Drive (LHD) Land Rovers.
- Rovers are more common in the Northeast and the far West. Therefore, you will find that
prices are generally lower in those locations than in the rest of the U.S.
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Series I Rovers are very hard to find, particularly ones in good condition. Parts for Series I's are also much harder to come by than later models. In general, Series I Rovers will carry a higher value, although finding one in good condition and worth the money is difficult.
Series II and IIA's are roughly equivalent. Both models are more practical than Series I's, but they are not as antique. They also lack some of the more modern features found in the Series III's. Many regard the Series IIA as the Classic Land Rover, as it has some of the more civilized touches to the interior not found in the Series II, yet it still holds the very rugged, classic "Rover" look. You reach the point of diminishing returns in terms of value when you cross over the 1969 year. Land Rovers became more common, production increased, and the body style lost some of the original classic "Rover" style when the headlights moved out to the wings from the grill, and plastic entered the interior to meet Government specs.
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The Series III Land-Rover is most easily identified by the plastic radiator grille and by the headlights on the wings
(late SIIA's also had headlights on the wings).
Inside, the metal parcel shelf was replaced with a "plastic one" and the gauges were moved to a position behind the steering wheel. There are other small refinements, new door and bonnet hinges for example. The main mechanical advancement was the introduction of synchromesh
on all four forward gears. However the consequent gearbox alterations make the unit less robust than that in the Series IIA.
There are a lot more Series III's on the road than there are II's and IIA's, which drives down the price of the Series III. Then again, Series III's are the most practical and comfortable to drive of the Series line.
Check the frame carefully for rust damage. The frame is a thin walled rectangular tube
shape, and is made of steel. It, along with the bulkhead, is the single, most important factor in determining a Series Rover's value. In some parts of the country, it is not uncommon to find a
Land Rover in good condition with a badly rusted frame. Take a hammer and big screwdriver with you and firmly hit all crucial areas of the frame. If the frame dents, expect future problems, maybe sooner than later. A visual inspection is often inadequate, as the frame rusts from the inside out.
At the front of the vehicle, check behind the bumper (the spring hangers rust away), the shock absorber mounts, and then the area around each of the bump stops. Check the spring shackles to make sure they pivot with spring flexion. It is usually the rear bump stops that are the worst affected... water and mud go between the chassis
and the top of the bump stop mounting plate.
Check the chassis outriggers. These are the pieces of frame extend out to the sides of the vehicle along the cab. SWB cars suffer from problems on the right hand side below the
rear edge of the door. The close proximity of the fuel tank encourages a build up of mud, which rarely dries out. This is also a difficult area to repair, with the fuel tank and
wiring loom going through the frame at this point. At the rear, your big problem is the back is the main chassis behind the spring hangers. This is a major repair job that is both difficult and time consuming. Rot in the rear cross-member is also common. This area is vital for any towing, and on a LWB repair or replacement is made more difficult as the
fuel tank must be removed.
Resale value of a car with a rusted out frame should be should be very low. However, new galvanized frames are available for around $1500-$2500 depending on the source and model. A frame swap is easier on a Rover than any other car, because you can unbolt the components and lift them away. If you are curious about the difficulty level, see the resto section of this site (click on the galvanized frame picture). If you do have time & inclination, & you stumble across a Land Rover in very good to excellent condition except for a rusted frame in the less than $1,500 range, you can add a new frame, get a great car, and save another Rover from an early demise.
The firewall, or bulkhead as the brits call it, is painted steel. Check it carefully for rust. Repair panels are available, but the repair work is exacting.
Figure repair costs into the value of the car. Check the bulkhead to chassis mounting
points, the footwells and inner sides of the lower A-posts. Pull up any floor mats, carpet, or other covering. Eyeball closely any patching in the footwells, and poke around with that screwdriver! Water from the heater and from
the front wheels can get kicked up and trapped there causing rapid deterioration. Footwell and A post replacement pieces are available and need to be welded in. 
Next, check the area
at the base of the ventilation flaps. Water gets in here and rots the lower corners of the windscreen surround. Check the metal around the top door hinge on each side. Water gets
into the door posts and the plate with the captive nuts holding the hinges rusts away, or the nuts seize and plate rips out. You should expect to find rust around the master cylinders. It is possible to repair great portions of the bulkhead, but the work is awkward, and requires quite a bit of disassembly to do right.
Oil on inside of wheels mean the inner oil seals are history and therefore so are the
brakes (oil on the outside is a minor seal problem & doesn't affect the brakes.
Next look at the body above where the drive shaft mates to the differentials (front and back). If there is a lot of oil on the body, the pinion seal is toast and should be
replaced before you accidentally run it out of oil.
There are two large swivel balls on the front axle. Inspect these joints carefully for
pitting. A pitted swivel ball will leak oil away from the front wheel bearings and steering
pivot points. The clean parts of these joints should be smooth, unpitted and rust free.
Otherwise they need to be replaced. (actually some pitting is inevitable, but they should
feel smooth to the touch.) These swivel balls are expensive & require the disassembly
of the front end. If the swivel balls are badly pitted, subtract $1000 for repairs.
Excessive oil leaks could point to potential problems with a pair of top and bottom
steering swivel pins and an ordinary Hardy Spicer-type universal joint. These run in a
protective bath of EP90 gear oil, and though some oil loss is inevitable, excessive loss
will lead to rapid wear of the swivel pins, and to a lesser extent, the universal joints. Dry
seals probably mean that the housing is empty of oil. Steering swivel bushings can be checked for wear by jacking up the front of the vehicle (with
no weight on the suspension) and attempting to move the tyre in and out sharply from the
top. Some movement is acceptable, but if excessive could mean new swivel pins and
universal joint overhauls.
Look at the drive flanges. If there are missing or broken bolts, it could mean that the
threads are shot. The threads are very awkward to fix, so it can be another bargaining
point. This is caused by owners over tightening the bolts, or forgetting to put anti-sieze
compound on the bolts.
Wheel bearings are very large and robust, but the presence of aftermarket road wheels with
different offsets could mean that the bearings could be in trouble.
Freewheeling hubs can cause problems. Unless the freewheeling hubs are engaged at least 10 miles for every 50 driven, rapid wear can occur in the steering swivels. If the vehicle is habitually run in high two or four wheel drive, and the owner tends to keep the hubs locked, all should be
well. Selecting low ratio in the transfer box for off-road automatically engages four
wheel drive in order to split the torque and avoid overloading the rear axle. If the front
hubs are disengaged, and low range is used, there is a danger of overloading the axle and damaging the rear half shaft, and possibly the main gearbox output shaft. In low range, the torque is meant to be split between the front and rear axles.
Note: Driving in four wheel drive on pavement can be damaging to the drive train. On pavement, the wheels cannot slip and adjust themselves, so you will "wind up" the drive train until it breaks. These are true four wheel drive vehicles. Plan on getting off road just so you can keep things lubed, if for no other reason!
Differentials are stong and robust units. Most problems occur in the differentials when they have been abused. (Note: the crowns and pinions are the same as in
the Rover P6 saloon) The problem at the rear is halfshaft failure (Most frequently on
Pre-1965 LWB and FC models.) Later Series models have a Salisbury axle (recognised by the
squarer casing) and the halfshafts in these are said to be basically unbreakable.
Converting between rear axles is possible if the drive shaft is shortened.
Expect the engine and gearbox to be leaking oil (The British never could seem to get the
knack of oil seals). In fact if it's not leaking, it's probably empty! Just assume that you should check fluids frequently. A leaking rear seal on the gearbox can lead to the gearbox brake drum filling up, but this should affect its operation that much. It should be noted that the vehicle will rock forward and
backwards with the gearbox brake engaged as the drive train takes up any slack.
All Land Rovers leak. You will never seal one up, either from water getting in, or oil getting out.
Heaters are optional & different heaters may have been installed. Least desirable is the Smiths type with the cylindrical core. This is the same that comes in the TR3. The
most desirable is called a Kodiak heater. It has a flat core in the firewall. This heater can quickly heat up a 109. Depending upon your location, add $100 to $200 for this heater. My heater pictured here is an "owner designed and installed" unit. I have no idea what it came out of, but it works well.
Older Land Rovers have two windshield wiper motors, each controlling one blade. They both
should work. These motors are expensive. If the motor runs slowly, the grease inside is probably dried up. Regreasing one is an easy afternoon project, so a slow motor should not be a concern. However, I would deduct about $125 for a non functioning wiper motor.