Factory Options/Accessories

Drew,I've ordered an X tech defender and haven't got any factory options as I have to pay Luxury car tax on them.I'm getting all my gear fitted at Central 4wd in Perth as they are the fitters that the dealer use's and the gear can be from any maker they use and all the work is covered by the dealers warranty.I'm getting long range tanks,dual batteries,driving lights etc and having it covered and being cheaper than factory fitted is a good thing. Pat

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Originally Posted by Loubrey

LRA makes it very clear that it's a "Raised Air Intake" not a Snorkel. You would have very little chance of warranty if there is any indication that you went beyond the 500mm wading depth in the specification.

That said, they are not very consistent and there has been cases of them honoring warranty with clear watermarks inside the cab!

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I haven't had any issue with LR as far as warranty goes and my Tdi was repaired well outside it's warranty period,saying that it was the dealers fault but LR for me has been very good.Toyota on the other hand were a pack of lying bastards that did everything they could to get out of anything. Pat

Not meaning to divert this thread but if the bottom of your raised air intake is at the level of the waters surface (~90 cm deep) then you passenger and driver seat boxes are under the water. Your electrics are then cactus. That is deep water, and you MAY be able to get through it for a shortish distance but you MUST NOT STOP. At that depth you should use some sort of sheet over the front of your vehicle to make a bow wave and to keep the water out of the engine bay. In water crossing, the raised air intake is not a snorkel as some call them. However they are useful to keep splashing, trailing edge of the bow wave, etc. from getting in. The officially recommended max wading depth of 500 mm is just below the sills. At 600 mm your feet are starting to get wet and at 750 mm every thing in the back is getting wet. Any serious water crossing must be dynamic (ie you must keep moving) and this necessitates careful checking of the the traction surface for obvious hazards such as boulders and holes that would impede your progress. I have, like others, been in water where the bow wave has come over the bonnet, but there is no way I would want to stop, turn round or reverse, in water that is deep enough to create such a bow wave. Another important consideration in deep water is flotation where your vehicle starts to be buoyed by the water and you consequently start to lose traction. Exactly what you don't want in a water crossing, particularly if there is any significant movement or flow in the water.

Cheers
KarlB
:)

Well said.I got my SWB S3 almost floating and it stopped forward progress and swamped,much later the same thing happened in my defender and after lots of $$$$'s and time changing oils and stripping regreasing everything I've decided in future when it comes to deep water to use a boat. . Pat

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Originally Posted by PAT303

Well said.I got my SWB S3 almost floating and it stopped forward progress and swamped,much later the same thing happened in my defender and after lots of $$$$'s and time changing oils and stripping regreasing everything I've decided in future when it comes to deep water to use a boat. . Pat

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Hahahaha

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Originally Posted by Drew90

Hey Guys,

New to this forum, so hello! Just bought a 90 and am in love! Signed for it yesterday but am trying to work out what extras I should get from factory and what to get later. From what I have seen things like bull bars, side steps snorkels are VERY expensive from the dealerships and all those can be fitted later and with better quality parts etc. Things I have thought to get are;

- Defender pack - Electric rust proofing, Paint protection, Sound deadening underbody Protection & insulation all for $1970

- Tint - $550

- Front mud Flaps - $ 495 ! Expensive?

- Rear worklight - not sure on price

- Change Tyres from the Continental AT to the Goodyear MT? Or should I keep the AT for general Road driving and Buy bigger MT for when I go 4wd. my intentions are to do a fair bit of 4wd with lift and bigger tyres on the cards in the near future. How do the Goodyear MT's rate, I have heard mixed reviews.

Thank you all for your help, Cheers :)

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First - You don't need to modify a standard Defender to take it off road, period. Probably not a good idea while under warranty anyway. You certainly don't need a lift (ever) and IMHO bigger tyres are a hindrance rather than a help. You'll be reminded of this when you get a puncture and need to lift the extremely heavy, wet and dirty spare off the back door, never mind the increased turning circle everyday. If it needed wider tyres LR would have fitted them 20 years ago. Oh, they already did. Went from 7.50 to 235's. :) I'm very happy with the original Continentals and would buy again when it comes time to renew.

Second - Don't buy any accessories from the Dealer. You pay an extremely high price including extra tax for the convenience and will do much better aftermarket if you really must add some baubles.

The only extras you really need are a towbar and front mudlaps. A stereo upgrade with bluetooth is also worthwhile. (To add some bass you WILL need to fit a subwoofer.) Also, throw some sound deadening matting in the back and you're done.

See here for my experience with mudlaps http://www.aulro.com/afvb/90-110-130...electrics.html Try Karcraft in Sydney for pricing.

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Originally Posted by P38ace

First - You don't need to modify a standard Defender to take it off road, period. Probably not a good idea while under warranty anyway. You certainly don't need a lift (ever) and IMHO bigger tyres are a hindrance rather than a help. You'll be reminded of this when you get a puncture and need to lift the extremely heavy, wet and dirty spare off the back door, never mind the increased turning circle everyday. If it needed wider tyres LR would have fitted them 20 years ago. Oh, they already did. Went from 7.50 to 235's. :) I'm very happy with the original Continentals and would buy again when it comes time to renew.

Second - Don't buy any accessories from the Dealer. You pay an extremely high price including extra tax for the convenience and will do much better aftermarket if you really must add some baubles.

The only extras you really need are a towbar and front mudlaps. A stereo upgrade with bluetooth is also worthwhile. (To add some bass you WILL need to fit a subwoofer.) Also, throw some sound deadening matting in the back and you're done.

See here for my experience with mudlaps http://www.aulro.com/afvb/90-110-130...electrics.html Try Karcraft in Sydney for pricing.

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Great advice, thank you. After studying this site and speaking to a lot of very nice Defender drivers on this forum, I have come to the same conclusions.

Thanks everyone :) I'll post some Pics as soon as I get her. I'm trying to come up with a name for her? Any ideas?

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Originally Posted by P38ace

If it needed wider tyres LR would have fitted them 20 years ago. Oh, they already did. Went from 7.50 to 235's. :)

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Which is why some defender models were fitted with 265s (and possibly 285s?), and until 27 years ago (or even more recently) you could get 9.00x16s as an option ;)

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Originally Posted by P38ace

First - You don't need to modify a standard Defender to take it off road, period. Probably not a good idea while under warranty anyway. You certainly don't need a lift (ever) and IMHO bigger tyres are a hindrance rather than a help.
.

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Lol :D, I find my big tyres an absoloute nightmare off road... personally I would see if you can get downgraded to the 205's ;)

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Originally Posted by Psimpson7

Lol :D, I find my big tyres an absoloute nightmare off road... personally I would see if you can get downgraded to the 205's ;)

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Why is this? What size do you use? Any lift? OR am I not picking up on your sarcasm?