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My first 101FC was this Vampire, the only one in the United States. I knew I liked it; I didn't realize how rare it was. As it became increasingly obvious that I wanted to make substantial modifications, it made sense to pass the Vampire on to someone else and look a more common truck. I really enjoyed the Vampire for 3 months, though, before passing it on to Gerald Ruderman.
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This is what I found. It may look like an ambulance, but it is really the remains of two separate vehicles. A GS rolling chassis with a blown engine has been serving as a storage platform for the ambulance body. The two have been sitting in the woods for several years. I not only got the truck, but a new friend in Jared Silbersher, the former owner. In addition to providing me with a temporary work site, he has been generous with his knowledge, skills, tools and time.
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The first step was to raise the ambulance body and build a structure to support it while we removed the chassis for modifications and restoration.
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We then pulled the chassis out from under the body.
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Working outside made removing the old engine and transmission a snap.
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Here the frame has been stripped. After modification it will be galvanized. Changes will include mounts for the following:
 300TDI with autobox
Power steering box
Second (mirror image) fuel tank
Rear motorcycle lift/rack
Air tank in front of rear axle
Fresh water tank behind rear axle
Front winch
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Jared removing the old engine mounts.
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The 300Tdi and autobox came out of a wrecked Discovery. In spite of looking pretty raw hanging here ready for fitting, the engine starts easily and seems strong.
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I took careful measurements before we removed the old engine and transmission. Still, it took a lot of manuvering to get the new engine and transmission positioned so we could design mounts.
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The chassis served as a convenient work surface during fabrication of the new mounts.
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We were somewhat hampered by not having any idea what the original engine mounts looked like in the Discovery. We designed the mounts to bolt in, though, so I can replace them easily if necessary.
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