Diesel1977 Posted August 1 Share Posted August 1 Map reading lamps for MOD spec Montego. I am guessing that these will not be easy to find, the part numbers are from the Rover parts list and an internet search came up with no results at all. The nearest number that came up was XDD100240 which is a Land Rover one which may or may not be similar. The originals are missing, so i don't even know what they looked like... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
10FM68 Posted August 1 Share Posted August 1 https://www.amazon.co.uk/HELLA-2AB-004-532-171-Reading/dp/B008VT5M4Q I think something like one of these would be about right - certainly some were Hella just like them. Not the cigar lighter version, though. A fascinating and unusual restoration, I would have thought! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diesel1977 Posted August 1 Author Share Posted August 1 18 minutes ago, 10FM68 said: https://www.amazon.co.uk/HELLA-2AB-004-532-171-Reading/dp/B008VT5M4Q I think something like one of these would be about right - certainly some were Hella just like them. Not the cigar lighter version, though. A fascinating and unusual restoration, I would have thought! That looks like the sort of thing I originally expected it to be, but the mounting hole is just above elbow height, there is a hole about 30mm diameter in the trim (which is listed as being an MOD spec part, I assume that the hole is the difference) and two fixing holes in the post behind it about 24mm centres, so I did begin to wonder if it might be something like a Wipac elbow light. The map reading lamps seem to be the only missing parts that are MOD specific, the other bits mentioned in the parts list are front seat side storage bins, which are still there. The previous owner seems to have fitted power steering, but that is easily rectified using standard parts which I have already. It will certainly be an unusual restoration, the other Montegos seem to have vanished, this one was bought from an ex MOD dealer by a farmer in Aberdeenshire and parked in a barn when he stopped using it. A lot of the other ones were used by taxi firms & when they started failing MOTs would probably be scrapped & the engines exported. So far I haven't come across anyone that has any detailed information on them, on the plus side this means that nobody will know whether or not I have fitted the correct map reading lamps😉Thanks for the link, at least I have a plan b if no genuine ones come up... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
10FM68 Posted August 1 Share Posted August 1 Hmmm! I can certainly remember the map reading lights in staff cars. I had a recollection, though, that they were generally on the rear parcel shelf overhanging, when required, the principal's shoulder! They were all the long, flixi-style ones as in the picture - and I had, until recently, a genuine military one in my Land Rover - since sold. I can't recall having ever seen a Wipac elbow lamp, but, of course, staff cars were about as personal as one can get, so it wouldn't be unheard of for a CO to add something particular of his own choice. And, of course, as with all things military, one never says never! However, I think it would be a brave man to argue against the Hella flexi. It's certainly what I'd be happy to go with. I was actually issued with a Montego, but, very unusually, it was a civilian model without such things (but it did have leather seats and a sun roof! It was quite a nice car as I recall and used to be serviced at Ashchurch for me. Made for a nice trip as, while I waited, I was able to potter round the sheds there for a nose! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diesel1977 Posted August 2 Author Share Posted August 2 Leather seats & a sunroof..very decadent! I guess it must have been a Vanden Plas? The only reason I bought this car was because it had no sunroof (I suspect that the sunroof is responsible for some of the more bizarre corrosion on these cars), it was only after I got it home that I realised it was an ex MOD car. There was a gap between date of manufacture and registration, then I found the contract plate under the bonnet & realised that I'd bought a much more interesting car than I first thought. My first thought on the map lights was exactly what you've just described, I was looking for fixing holes on the parcel shelf, but didn't find any. It was only after I trawled through the parts list that I found out that the d post trim and map lights were the only MOD specific items at the back of the car. It does seem like a strange place to put the lamps, where I guess they'd get tangled in the seat belts. This could be why they are missing, the farmer might well have taken a dislike to them quite early on! I guess I can experiment with the Hella ones & if they do get in the way of back seat passengers it won't be too annoying, as the back seats aren't going to be used much. Car Mechanics bought an ex RAF Montego in 1996, which looks very similar to this one. I got hold of the magazine with the last report on it, it was quite interesting, but mostly about how it had performed and a bit of history...no pictures of the back seats! I'll try to get hold of the earlier magazines, just in case there is more information in them. A local car dealer told me that one of his mates used to buy 'loads' of them to sell to taxi drivers, he seemed convinced that they all had pvc seats... Rover did list a pvc option, so it is possible that some did have them, fortunately mine hasn't! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
10FM68 Posted August 2 Share Posted August 2 A friend of mine used to have one as his staff car. I'll drop him a line and see whether he can remember; I'll let you know. The only thing I recall from his car was 'the brick' - a very early type of car-radio-phone which sat between the rear seats. I can't remember what the seats were - that cheap, thin cloth they used in those days, I would have thought rather than straight PVC. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diesel1977 Posted August 2 Author Share Posted August 2 That would be great, you never know, it might be his car that I've got! Mine has cloth seats & I can't think of any reason for them to specify PVC. They weren't likely to be used in the sort of places that would result in them needing to be cleaned with a hose pipe, so I haven't added the car dealer to my list of reliable witnesses. I have seen civilian Maestro vans with pvc seats and rubber carpets, but no cars. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MatchFuzee Posted August 3 Share Posted August 3 Rear reading lights discussed in this Jaguar forum:- https://forums.jag-lovers.com/t/rear-reading-lights/388190 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diesel1977 Posted August 4 Author Share Posted August 4 9 hours ago, MatchFuzee said: Rear reading lights discussed in this Jaguar forum:- https://forums.jag-lovers.com/t/rear-reading-lights/388190 Thank you, the mounting foot on that lamp does look similar to the fixing position on the car but with 3 holes rather than the two on the car. A trawl through my microfiche collection using that as a starting point came up with a similar Jaguar lamp with part number c.35055, which has a through bolt mounting and an alternative part number ukc3946.. It is possible that XDD10013 is the same lamp with a different mounting plate...XDD10014 seems as though it may be the Hella gooseneck type lamp with a similar small modification. This would fit in with Rover's policy of using their parts bin & 'making it fit' and would explain why I can't match the part numbers up! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diesel1977 Posted August 4 Author Share Posted August 4 On 8/1/2024 at 11:19 PM, 10FM68 said: https://www.amazon.co.uk/HELLA-2AB-004-532-171-Reading/dp/B008VT5M4Q I think something like one of these would be about right - certainly some were Hella just like them. Not the cigar lighter version, though. A fascinating and unusual restoration, I would have thought! It looks as though you were correct, I found a picture on an ancient thread on the Maestro/Montego forum that has a photo of what looks to be that exact lamp. The post mentions that there was a longer one 'under the front passenger seat', which explains the different part numbers. I'm glad you put the Hella link up, if I was searching for Lucas/Wipac/Butlers lamps I'd never have found one that matched the photo that I just found! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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