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Had 2 jlr vehicles - never again. Always on the garage with repairs to various things. Have a mitsubishi and it's been back to the garage once in 4 yes (loose window behind door card)
Still at least the jlr dealerships have great coffee and they fully valet your car each time they take it in. I didn't wash either of the 2 jlr cars once in 5 yrs
Still at least the jlr dealerships have great coffee and they fully valet your car each time they take it in. I didn’t wash either of the 2 jlr cars once in 5 yrs
If it gets cleaned every time it goes into the dealer they’ll have pressure-washed it back to bare rust by the time the warranty is up.
Mostly seem to be bought as a status symbol, driven aggressively by mums on the school run ferrying Tarquin to polo practice. Don’t forget to attach a BO55 number plate as well…
I get driven in one quite regularly. It's a V8, the new Defender.
From a passenger's point of view, it's quite comfortable in the front seat. Quiet enough to chat at motorway speeds and a nice stereo that sounds good at a volume where you can talk about the music without shouting.
The owner can afford to change his cars on a regular basis (and his daily drivers prior to getting this car were mostly Lamborghinis - Aventador, Huracans Uruss (Urii?)) This one is now over 3 years old - unheard of for him but he loves it and has no desire to change. I'm assuming his muttering about booking a test drive in a Purosangue yesterday is just a tyre kicking exercise.
I actually asked him about reliability last week. His family own another two, a Velar hybrid and Evoque. None have given any trouble.
The only downside is the spare wheel on the back door which means that standard tow bar bike racks don't fit - or if they do, you can't fit many bikes on. The Thule rack that does fit weighs a ton and costs a fortune. But we did manage to fit 3 bikes on when we went to BPW.
We had a Discovery Sport for 4 years from new. It was lovely and never put a foot wrong.
Not even oil dilution ? I had one and it was plagued with it - 2 year servicing (the promise) was more like oil change every 8 months
They make the grenadier look good
I live completely surrounded by farms and crofts. There's one defender, a swb of the type we all love. I only ever see it off road although it is road legal, it is regularly in the fields around my gaff and on our track, checking livestock or repairing fences
Every other farm 4x4 around here is a Hilux style pick up of one type or another, bar none.
Every other farm 4×4 around here is a Hilux style pick up of one type or another, bar none.
They’re going through with the BIK changes on the dual cab pickups too next year , so might see a few less of them as well
I had a defender 110 at work when it was launched. I put it on the lifts and laughed; the underbody is chaos. I remember thinking that it must be a nightmare to service and repair. It was nice to drive on the local roads and test track.
I would happily rent one, but never buy. I would happily buy or rent a land cruiser.
they’ve got a wardrobe full of Thrudark tactical stealth clothing
LOL.... Could have spent more cash on their 4by's rather than 900 quid on a softshell.
Does it have to be a Landy? I mean is it 4 wheel driving you like? Have you considered anything other than a Landy??
Mate of mine's currently pondering his options following a £15,000 quote (from the local indy garage, not main dealer) to replace the seized Ingenium engine on his 5 year old, 55,000 Ingenium. Unsure what model but suspect it's the 2l one that another friend of mine had the exact same issue with.
Bring me the longest barge pole you have and then extend it please.
My mate has two, a 70 year old one and a 30 year old. Needless to say they are the proper ones. He does his own spannering and does 4x4 courses in them.
My brother in law restores original defenders. Has done everything down to a Series 2. Loves them with a passion. His daily drive is a Landcruiser. My stepfather has three Jaguars. Including a Mk2. After scratching the Range Rover itch, watching the engine fail and waiting two years without progress, his daily dog car is a Kia Sportage. Buy the Porsche!
I come from a farming area, we had a volvo and a tractor.
Richer folks than us had range rovers or discos. Everyone else had mitsubishi pick ups (other japanese brands are available)
OP, have you heard of the climate crisis?
OP, have you heard of the climate crisis?
This. There are many aspect of our lives that can be quite challenging to change when trying to reduce our climate impacts. But unless you need a big 4x4 for farm, forestry or site work, surely not buying a big SUV is one decision that is easy to make.
I'm a lifelong Land Rover fanatic (i've had a series 2a, series 3, two 3 door Range rovers, a 200TDI ninety, a 300TDI 110, a v8 Disco 2, two 200TDI Discos, a 300TDI Disco and probably some more i've forgotten!) If you keep up on the maintenance then they are very reliable and easy to live with ( I put 140 thousand miles on my 300 TDI Discovery and then sold it to a friend who put another 110 thousand on it. Other than consumables all it ever had go wrong was the power steering pump and that was about £60 for a new one). That being said you couldn't give me a new one! A friends Father got one when they first came out (he was on a waiting list ever since they were announced) and eventually got so sick of it that Land Rover had to have it back and refund his money.
The saddle bags look ideal for a box of washing powder or a bumper box of rice krispies
I always assumed they were just a lightweight foam wrapped in fibreglass and didn't function other than to confirm the fact a walloper was driving it?
What kind of driving do you do OP, that the Defender sounds like the car for you?
And 5 or 3 door?
Genuine question.
They only want an SUV, it’s not like they are planning to get a dog ffs
I know from another thread that you have had a few Land Rovers in your time, so I'm not surprised that comment touched a nerve. The trouble though, is that all these individual choices do start to add up. And to @intheborders question, if this is somehow necessary because your work requires it or something then fine but personally I don't think posing around town really justifies it, which is what I see a lot of where I live.
I know from another thread that you have had a few Land Rovers in your time, so I’m not surprised that comment touched a nerve
Um... As a climate change believer and hand wringing lefty.
I can only applaud STR's excellent cross thread humour.
Um… As a climate change believer and hand wringing lefty.
I can only applaud STR’s excellent cross thread humour.
Hah well in which case it all went right over my head and I can only apologise!
On the subject of the new defenders, what's with the pointless 'widdle wadder' and sandwich boxes I see on the sides? Is it just to look more utilitarian? They really don't. They look like Barbie accessories.
Who is STR?
Artist formally known as...
I have to admit that I quite like the look of the new Defender. I'd never buy one in a million years, though, as I don't need a huge vehicle with fuel consumption figures around 30mpg at the very best, with around town figures sub-20mpg combined with dreadful reliability. And, as already said above, Wallopers drive them.
@joshvegas - how much I care about the environment has increased over the years so there's definitely things I've done in the past I wouldn't do anymore and if you keep on stalking my life, you'll see that. I certainly care about it more now than when I owned the Porsche, and wouldn't do that again. Unfortunately, I'm bound to fly to the USA because my wife's American and that's where her parents are. And until the train reaches Torridon, there's not much that can be done to get there without driving.
We live in a society that requires people to travel places, but doesn't provide them with a carbon neutral public transport to do that. In the meantime, driving is a necessity. I catch a train or the bus to ride my bike where I can (if I'm not riding from the doorstep), and car share if there's no other option. My carbon footprint for getting to bike rides this year is less than a 5th of the annual carbon footprint of a dog, and bike riding comes with benefits that help everyone like improved fitness. And I've offset every gram of carbon my entire life has contributed to the atmosphere this year anyway.
Dog ownership is entirely optional (you don't HAVE to buy a dog, but regardless of what you're likely to respond to this, you do HAVE to see your family), and has a massive environmental impact that you don't seem willing to face up to, and it doesn't really have any upsides for society. Just like SUV owners aren't willing to face up to their responsibilities and not own an SUV (although there are, in the society we live in, people who do HAVE to own an SUV, like STR, so unlike dogs occassionally they're essential).
...you could have married a local lass!
And the massive upside of owning a dog is improved mental health and the fitness of the owners. Responsible owners will walk their dog two or three times a day. It's also social as I chat to many people on my dog walks.
you do HAVE to see your family
...you really don't - and not seeing half of my family again improves my mental health! 🙂
Does mental health outweigh the importance of the climate crisis?
I'll give you a clue. It doesn't.
So we've ended up playing Climate Crisis Top Trumps now then.
Dogs trump people BTW. 😉
We have two dogs and we have their dog crates in the back of a Discovery 5 commercial, which means low benefit in kind tax. How many points does that score me?
Back to the OP's question.
I've driven short and long wheelbase new Defenders as well as the Disco, on road and at Eastnor. All were options when we came to buy a commercial vehicle for our business.
My thought before buying was that I would like the Defender 90 best, but it really is quite tight in there.
We bought (well leased to be fair) the Disco 5 as the interior is nicer, I prefer the exterior too as it seems a little less contrived than the new Defenders. All have sufficient off road and towing capability for our needs.
So, from my experience I'd say try a Disco as well as a Defender, buy the one you like best and don't bother with the prejudice on here.
My dad had a v8 discovery 1 in the early 2000s and it cost him about 3 grand a year in repairs back then. At todays labour rates it would be impossible to run sensibly.
Landrover is nice but is it a workhorse?
Friend has Landrover Discovery and a Landrover 90 in the Far East, but both require more maintenance by comparison the local favourite there of various Japanese 4x4.
Get a Defender Octa. It’s got a reliable BMW engine from the M5. A bit quick too!
It always surprises me that people on here always pile in on a 4x4 thread with the sanctimonious bs but swap it for a camper van tread and you are good to crack on (generally same mpg an most SUV’s.) most campervans are used for school drop off as far as I see. Topped up with beds, furniture, roof boxes and stuff ready for that 1 night stop in a pub car park every few months!
Each to their own, I suppose.
One thing in common of having a 4x4 in the UK and the Far East is the high possibility it getting stolen.
In UK, thieves like to steal Landrover but in the Far East it is Landcruiser / Hilux.
@wheelsonfire1 some of it has. A lot of it hasn’t.
bit pushed for time to respond in full. But unless I’m missing something and it’s possible - no one on this thread ACTUALLY has a new defender ? I saw one person would like one, one has it on their wish list, and several have demo’ed them.
From the few that have LR’s that commented thanks, it is actually helpful.
as I stated up front, I’m not new to LR. I currently enjoy my disco 4, that has been faultless and taken us all over Europe multiple times, often at great pace too. It’s a lovely place to be for a car. It would be my 4th disco. Loved all of them. I’ve tried the disco 5 several times and just don’t like it. I can’t fathom why, but I don’t.
When I did my landy off road course the instructor did tell me the disco is nearly as capable as the defender and would be better on road. I have taken mine off (light ish) road and it’s pretty bloody good. Once you get past the fear of damaging it that is.
And as a nod to all the nay sayers, I personally know two friends that one put 250k miles on a D3, the other has done 180k miles on his D4. No drama on either.
as for LR being shite, my last VW golf crept breaking down costing loads and huge inconvenience when it did so abroad, as did each and every friggin’ new style mini, as did the super expensive BMW we had. There seems to be niggles across most brands of car, obviously not Toyota (apart from the self drive incident in the US recently) - I’m sure it was Toyota - I should check I’ve remembered that correctly). Probably not Honda and to be fair if Honda did a Defender style car I’d buy it.
as for the new Toyota Land Cruiser, it looks amazing, but only a diesel ? And prices are insane for one on auto trader 80k, 100k ! Nuts.
and no I don’t have a scooby what the side sandwich boxes are for - unusual design decision. They look like the first thing that will get knocked off. Don’t like them at all.