Thread: Defender 130

I got an Ex-Telstra 2002 130 TD5 with 113,000 on the clock for $21K about a year ago. Came with a heap of extras like snorkel, Bull Bar, Dual Battery, Hi-capacity diff housing on the rear, strengthened chassis, full alloy canopy, Tacho, LongRanger fuel + 50L water tank.

Needed a seal in the transfer box fixed (small oil leak), 2 new hub flanges (to reduce the "clonk" transmission noises on gear changes) and a new diesel pump (at the back of the engine - was weeping). Body work was pretty good for a company car. Few small dings around the door handles but nothing serious.

The dealers in Adelaide all wanted $28K - $30K for similar vehicles, so I ended up flying to Melbourne to check this one out.

12 months on - not a single drama!! Watch something break over Xmas now I've uttered those words!

What year is it? Pre 2001 models had plastic head dowels which can give up, and Pre 2002 models had the occasional Oil Pump bolt with missing LocTite. Search the forum for TD5 and Oil Pump Bolt and you will find a few articles.

Some 130's end up with cracked chassis if they have had a hard life. Some articles here on that too.

HTH
Cheers
David

I dont own a 130 nor have i driven one but looking at a 130 would be no different to looking at any other fender. The only thing with an ex rail vehicle is they will have been fitted with the gear to allow them to run on the tracks (provided it was one of those) so it will have done all of those Kms with the an extra ton or more attached to it. It will have a good service history so thats a good thing, but those 120000km will have been a harder 120000km than any other 130. Have it inspected by another mechanic before you buy. Matt

Come and have a look at mine and if yours looks anything like it run.

If it looks horribly thrashed in the cab it probably will be everywhere else.

Dust.

I found too much dust in just about everything. Doesn't sound like a problem, but when none of the locks or the door handles, and the rest of it don't work 'cos they're chockablock with dust it does seem like a problem.

And, of course, if it seems cheaper than it should be or off in any way wrong, wait for something better. Major repairs are way too expensive.

Cheers
Simon.

run run like buggery i say unless you have ten grand spare to fix the blody thing i looked a a heap of em and found that the cheaper ones are all crap and the good ones are over priced i was keen but now ive drove a few im not im stickin with the rangies and if i ever have the urge to have a twin cab l/r il build a bastard outa a rangie lot more roomy than a fender and comfier seating pos

cheers

chris

If you're buying through a dealer, you should be able to get some warranty with it, they sometimes charge a bit more for extra coverage on 2nd hand vehicles. Have it checked out, if any faults are minor, buy the extra coverage and get them to fix it.

But with 120,000 on the clock, you'd better beware, it's only got about 880,000km left in it.

But $21K with $5K spent on it may still give you an infinitely better vehicle than a $30K purchase.

Hope it all goes well.

Originally Posted by Michael2

But with 120,000 on the clock, you'd better beware, it's only got about 880,000km left in it.

From my experience that's more like 8,000km.

I defy anyone to show me a high mileage Td5 that hasn't had serious issues.

Originally Posted by Frenchie

From my experience that's more like 8,000km.

I defy anyone to show me a high mileage Td5 that hasn't had serious issues.

Hey!! Steady up there. Our car has done nearly 21,000 now and not a single problem with the engine!

Originally Posted by Frenchie

From my experience that's more like 8,000km.

I defy anyone to show me a high mileage Td5 that hasn't had serious issues.

Still having issues with yours Frenchie?