Thread: Which Defender as long-term touring vehicle

Originally Posted by Robmacca

The Clutch's are they light or heavy style of clutch ??

The clutch in my old TD5 was measurably heavier than the clutch in my present Puma. The TD5 had a clutch replacement at 350,000 kms with a new dual mass flywheel and standard (not HD) clutch. I had to put the TD5 in neutral at the lights because after a few sets of lights in traffic i got a wobbly left leg. The Puma is still factory and is easier on the leg in traffic.

only drunks and kids sit (more accurately "can sit") in the back seat of a defender. I wouldn't subject myself to a trip longer than the local shops in the back of a defender.

MLD

I opted for a TD5 110 a 130 purely due to the size and turning circle of the 130.
Td5's have good economy and once chipped sit on the highway nicely.
The TD5 Defenders are getting on a bit but providing they have been looked after all the usual problems should be ironed out and you can pick up really nice examples in the low $20,000 with most of the stuff on them that you would need. As someone said earlier, plane flights are cheap
I can't remember if kids were involved but if they're not, rip the back seats out and bang in some storage compartments, you get heaps of room then plus it's all locked up, dunno about dry though
The good thing about these cars, Defenders in general, is you can do almost anything to them, within reason, and it won't look out of place.
Good luck

Yes, I already have a long mental list of additions and mods. in mind. The navigator wants to drive one before we buy, so that could be crunch time as she likes the auto in the Disco, so not sure how she will handle the manual.

Hey guys just a handy info graphic on how best to deal with that "heavy" clutch pedal.
Some of my friends that have driven my car complain about it and my response is always the same:

We did the northern hemisphere in a 1986 normally aspirated 2.5litre diesel defender 90 that we purchased from the Ministry of Defence. After doing 86,000 miles I can tell you that it's not fast and not quiet, but it was absolutely rock solid. In the 86k miles we had only blown a rocker cover gasket and had to replace the wheel bearings apart from the usual service stuff (timing belt, brake pads, filters etc). The upside for the 90 is that it's easier to hide when you are camping illegally (we had a board in the back that we would lay out which made a double bed, although we could not sit up in it). All the luggage, tools etc would reside below the board in the back. For two people it was excellent albeit cramped. The top speed was 60mph unless you had a tail wind and a truck pushing you along the autobahn.

After selling that we did an around the world trip on motorcycles and came to Aus where we have since done several road trips in a 2001 110 TD5. The TD5 is day and night difference to the previous engine. We have kept both serviced regularly and they keep running and running. On the Td5 we cracked the head which was an expensive exercise to fix.. (we checked the depth of the "puddle" first using sticks.. turns out the bottom was almost quick sand like and the whole car submerged while hot.. epic fail on our part and the car..). Although we are not unique a Patrol in our group also suffered a similar problem. We also blew the gearbox's 5th gear bearings while going along a motorway at 110 fully loaded for touring. That was less expensive to fix but we upgraded the gearbox and have not had any repeat issues.

Something that I will say, if you are doing many kilometres in extreme conditions (heat, dust, corrugations, etc) all cars will eventually fail. Something that I have learnt along the way is that the less complexity the car has the easier and cheaper it is to fix. Also when touring do a 5 minute check under the car, in the egine bay before you start each day.. seeing an oil leak or broken xxx.. before it becomes a critical problem can save you, and your budget.

With that in mind I currently have the TD5, and I am very happy with the engine performance, fuel efficiency, reliability etc.. If you do buy one make sure that you know the full history and see that it has been well cared for (as with any car).

Had a long conversation with a Defender owner at the Maleny growers' market on Saturday. His 04 Td5 had a few dents and scrapes, but he and his family love it for its versatility. "I had a foal in the back yesterday," he said. They had brought in a load of home-grown food from their farm to sell.


Got the wife to sit in the driver's seat and make sure she could see over the steering wheel. She seems hooked. She's on to arrange with a dealer to take one for a drive next weekend. There are several in dealers yards in Brissie, plus private ones. Thing I like is the adaptability of the vehicle, the panels riveted and everything changeable, like a Meccano set. There is also a LOT of room in the back behind the rear seats. I have already planned my drawers and luggage barrier and am thinking about gullwing side windows. There will also be a long flat roof rack with a rooftop tent, solar panel and other gear up there. Underneath will be a big fuel tank and water tank.


Money we're pulling out of savings should appear in our bank account this week so then we can start serious shopping. I want to have it for our two weeks camping this Christmas.

PM sent back to you.

Which defender for a long term touring vehicle? That's easy. Buy a disco instead. Then you'll be comfortable as well as go anywhere I'd recommend a D2. Plenty of us on here that use them as tourers. But if you want to buy an overpriced, out of date, unsafe alloy box, then go right ahead
^ducking now in readiness for the replies....