The product every Land Rover Defender needs - and I helped design it!

[@edhorrocks]

That first open after install would take my kids head off LOL! Glad you tweaked it down! The self close is 10/10!

[@453421abcdefg12345]

This is a much better strut than the last one I bought from you! That is almost impossible to close as I found out 10 minutes ago, not only that but the third bolt you have now incorporated is an essential addition, I watched mine today bending the plate attachment back and forth as I opened the door, I will order one right away! I thought Mantec was no longer trading? Chris B.

[@u2kjib4cjkqn]

Same here the one I bought is ridiculous ,the force needed to initially close it,wouldn’t buy again there email reply was that’s normal😡

[@Avalontranslations]

brilliant job

[@keith6360]

I thought Mantec closed shop? Good to see them still producing stuff.

[@robmurg]

I'm in the process of fitting mine. I did need to file one of the door-mounting holes oval so that the bracket would rotate far enough to bring the third hole into alignment over the frame. I also noticed that the bolts in the door have raised bosses around them so maybe larger holes would allow the bracket to sit tighter to the door. A bigger problem is that with the gas strut in place, when I come to close the door the strut reaches maximum compression and locks up so the door can't be closed. I suppose I'll have to drill a new hole in the body mounting bracket to give enough room for the strut to compress without binding. I was careful to mount the body bracket centrally even though I don't have grab-handles in my car.

[@LRLiveUK]

It is quite a precise fit but worth the effort to get it right. Make sure neither ball end joint has unscrewed slightly making the strut longer. We could look at making the door mount single hole slotted vertically to allow some adjustment. Thanks for your feedback.

[@robmurg]

@@LRLiveUK Thank you. I've now completed the installation successfully. I had to drill an 8mm hole 22mm further inboard to make room for the strut (which was indeed fully screwed onto the ball joint). The door bracket needed one of the hinge bolt holes to be extended sideways by about 5mm and that allowed the bracing hole to rotate over the door frame. The system is now working well. It opens the door with a slight cushion effect as it reaches fully open and begins applying closing effort at around 20cm. It closes fine with the weather-seal in place and with enough authority to close the latch which has always required a bit of a slam. I have left the strut at full pressure at least for now. The brackets are well made out of 3mm steel. They are very strong and sturdy. The powder coating is thick and appears good quality, it won't be exposed to weather in any case so should last forever. The door opens to 90 degrees. I'd have to disconnect the strut if I wanted to open it any wider but I would only gain about 25mm so very unlikely to ever be necessary. A good investment for £65 (by the time VAT and postage in UK are added) and this solves the swinging door annoyance that has been irritating me for the entire ten years I've owned the car.

[@453421abcdefg12345]

I have just attempted to fit this system to my Defender 90, it will not allow he door t close as the strut reaches full compression before the door closes, it will also not allow the door to fully open! reaching full extension long before the door hits it's normal stop, this means the top bracket is being torn off the door frame! I have re drilled the "L" shaped bracket 25 mm from the other edge of the bracket ,so I think the hole has been drilled 20mm from the wrong end, it will now close, but has almost no effect on door opening or closing with a swing away wheel bracket, so basically I have wasted my afternoon working in the 38 deg sun!

[@453421abcdefg12345]

@@robmurg Be very careful when opening the door fully, you will see that as the strut reaches its open limit it will try to tear the inner bracket off the inside roof, it is only retained by small self tapping screws, the door must be stopped by the normal door check limit bracket! Not by the strut reaching full length.

[@robmurg]

@@453421abcdefg12345 Thanks for the tip! My car doesn't have grab handles so I drilled and added M6 bolts instead. I will have a look at adding something to take some of the strain when the door is fully open just in case.

[@raymondallo9947]

Brilliant!

[@losibashertruro3645]

Are the fixing points or stroke adjustable as it looks like the door doesn’t fully open?

[@je6017]

Will this fit a series truck?

[@LRLiveUK]

It should, although haven't fitted one yet.

[@cameronwood1994]

Will this gas strut fit the other kit you showed on here a few months ago? I'm thinking those of us who may want to upgrade the strut. As an example, my father fell out the back of my Series III whilst trying to shut the door from the inside, because the strength of the strut pulled the door back open. It was very entertaining, mind!

[@LRLiveUK]

Unfortunately the strut is quite a bit shorter on ours. So won't fit. But I'll look into it...

[@georgepsyllides305]

Wonder how itll work with a tyre on tge door

[@johnburns748]

Indeed!!

[@453421abcdefg12345]

It will not work with a normal alloy wheel and Mantec crane, it makes the door too heavy for this strut to cope with.

[@connorefc]

I bought the one you demonstrated a few months ago. It is well too forceful. Wife cant close the door and is wary of opening it. Can struts be gas swapped over ?

[@LRLiveUK]

I'm afraid not. The set up is very different.

[@MattTester]

I like this, I could really do with one on my Disco 1 because the door on that won't stay open. The adjustable strut is brilliant, the original strut on my Freelander 1 door is worn out but I daren't replace it becuase I don't want the door to swing open under a lot of force. Are you aware of any plans to sell a kit for other vehicles?

[@LRLiveUK]

We'll have to take a look and see what's possible.

[@Absolute_Casual]

I purchased the following kit from yourselves and it opens so aggressively with no braking that it flexes the roof of the defender. "1 × JWP1205 - Top Mount Rear Tailgate Door Gas Strut Stay Kit for Land Rover Defender 1983-2016" - Is there a replacement strut that is suitable for the product since its not fit for purpose?

[@CHAGrady]

Just got my kit from mantec, I have the same rear door on my 110 1986. The holes on the door bracket don’t line up to allow the rivnut to be fitted centrally on the top frame. I also don’t have the grab handles inside and the plate doesn’t fit inside against the inner wall (hope that makes sense). Do I need to adapt my plates then to fit? Kinda frustrating

[@LRLiveUK]

Try offering the bracket up first but leave it a little loose on the hinge bolts. That allows some movement so you should be able to centralise the hole. You'll need to mount the roof bracket centrally on the lower edge of the roof above the door. It's the same way land rover fit the handles only it's covered by the trim.

[@LRLiveUK]

Shouldn't need any modifications

[@CHAGrady]

Managed to get it fitted, the door bracket for sure didn’t line up using the original bolts for the hinge. I ended up using a slightly smaller bolt to allow movement so it would allow the rivnut hole to line up. I’ll add two bolts (maybe three) through the rear cab and into the bracket above the door for strength. All in all a good addition to my 110 😎👍

[@calsurflance5598]

Do these fit a Series 2A?

[@LRLiveUK]

This should fit although I haven't tried fitting one yet.

[@kevinmole-t2c]

Hi Ive just got a Mantic strong arm from you for the rear door on my defender 90 unfortunately ive got some problems the bolts on the top hinge of the door have what look like collars which have been welded on the inside so the door plate will not sit flat and i did not want to drill bigger holes in it. also i have no handles inside so no strong points to fix to, do you have any suggestions Regards Kevin

[@LRLiveUK]

Hi Kevin, you can space the plate out from rivnut mount out to match the collars with washers. You might need some longer hinge bolts. You don't need special mounts for the roof plate. Just position it centrally and drill into the roof support edge. This is where the handles are mounted anyway.

[@kevinmole-t2c]

@@LRLiveUK Thank you for coming back to yes that all makes sense ill give that a go thanks again kevin

[@valdostube]

"A gnat's fart". Poetry...

[@stevenbignell8740]

Shame I like pizza😅, nice unit to solve an age old landy problem. 👍🏻

[@markgb]

Now put your door seal back, then show us how it doesn't close on its own.

[@LRLiveUK]

Challenge accepted!

[@u2kjib4cjkqn]

The one I bought from them needs excessive pressure to initiate the closing way more than this video shows and there reply was that’s normal.

[@LRLiveUK]

Did you buy this one or the other brand we reviewed a few months ago?

[@LRLiveUK]

Sounds like you had the older version. This is why we designed our own with an adjustable gas strut.