Thread: Defender Owners with 3+kids who go touring.....

Originally Posted by Robmacca

This is mainly aimed at those Defender owners who do a fair bit of touring and who have 3+Kids &/or Teenagers.....
I'm slowly researching for our next touring vehicle and would like to hear from other owners who go touring with their kids, their experiences, etc,

Things I'm interested in is:

1. Comfort for the 2nd row passengers, especially when there's a least 3 kids onboard....
2. Leg room for the 2nd row passengers
3. Room between each child in the 2nd row (ie: Their not squeeshed together touching each other)
4. Overall room when touring into remote areas... I'm assuming there is enough room for all your gear + spare parts, etc
5. When not touring - how is the Defender being used as a daily driver to/from work?


Do others have any helpful advice or info that would help me in my research (ie: Reliability / Towing - Campertrailer &/or Caravan / Remote Servicing, etc?)

I'm mainly interested in the Defender (110 Wgn or 130 Dual Cab) comments and not any D3>D4 comments at the moment.....


I started out originally focusing on going back to the last of the Toyota Factory TD 100's as I thought this would best cater for both the remote touring & then also for the times we wanted to tow our Caravan, but since coming across a few Defenders now and reading some Trip Reports, I find myself a little bit hooked on them now and their icon status.....


cheers....
rob

I have just purchased a 110 with the extra seats and plan on doing touring however my kids are young (under 5). So I asked a mate who has one and older kids (3 under 12, plus his niece and nephew come on holidays with them). He's bought all leather seats because he felt that they would be more comfortable on long trips.

His feedback is as follows
* feels that it is quieter when full of people and seats.
* he's had to up grade the suspension to a higher rating because of the luggage on the roof racks and 7 people so that it doesn't scrape over rocks etc
* the kids always have arguments as to who sits in the rear row. His 12 year old kid is about 5ft11 and says that's near the limit.

We have 5 girls aged 5,7,8,11 and 16 and I've just bought a 10 seater. I can see the front middle seat being used a lot as there is usually no shotgun when mum is in the car. The back side facers are going to be popular, at least at first. We will have room for two in the back and the fridge and some soft gear, plus lots of stuff under 2nd row seats.

I was thinking of a DVD player mounted on the roof but the head rest ones might be a better idea. The car has lots of ciggy lighter sockets so recharging iPads etc won;t be a problem. Just need to make some cup holders!

I will buy a roof rack and put a ladder up the back, the kids will love climbing that, plus up the bullbar, across the wing and onto the roof from the front... but only when in low range, of course.

Thanks guys for all the replies..... I've taken the plunge and gotten ourselves a '96 Defender...... Just got to figure out which one of our other 4cars goes.....

Originally Posted by Robmacca

Thanks guys for all the replies..... I've taken the plunge and gotten ourselves a '96 Defender...... Just got to figure out which one of our other 4cars goes.....

An excellent choice. None of the electronics to worry about in the Td5 and Puma Defenders and all the same timeless elegance and esoteric charm. The wonderful thing about the Defender is you can do so much to it if you choose.

I will be paring down our camping gear to the bare minimum to keep mum happy. That means she has to have a decent folding chair and a table to work on. I'm considering setting up five day packs containing a small stove, mess kit and what have you, probably use ex-army bum packs or large ammo pouches. Let them do their own cooking and they store the packs under the seat or hang them off the spare wheel, whatever.

We stop every 2-3 hours and let them explore, run a round and so on. Then heard back into the vehicle, tie them down, increase sedation if necessary and check for any improvised weapons collected during the halt. Its all about having a routine, sticking to it, being firm and never, ever showing fear.

I think, in practical terms, the backseats of our 2009 Defender and our 1995 Disco 1 were pretty similar - that is, comfortable for two, a bit squeezy for three. That said, we managed last weekend to get two child seats and an adult in the back seat and they all survived. We also did long trips in the D1 with three in the back.
Our Defender has headrests and the upgraded aircon.
I got extended front seat runners from the Expedition Centre for the front seats and they go in next week when I'm on holiday, so I expect that to give more leg room in the front, which will be welcome. I also got the extended bolts so the rear doors can be opened to 90 degrees to make entry exit easier.
Visibility is good from the rear seats with the windows plus the opera windows, so that can reduce claustrophobia. Window tinting would also be a good idea and I will be getting it done early in the New Year. Something I also plan is to get a little drinks cooler to sit on the floor behind the cubby so cool drinks are available while driving, which could keep the passengers happier.
There is heaps of room in the back, particularly if you put in a single central drawer giving a flat platform extending over the wheel arches.
Make sure you budget to add a rear wheel carrier and take the spare off the back door so the door doesn't warp or rattle.
If the interior isn't enough, the roof is suitable for a VERY LONG roof rack.

Originally Posted by perrygamsby

We have 5 girls aged 5,7,8,11 and 16...

All the best mate!!! 😮

I'm hoping to be able to keep the standard suspension and just add airbags for when towing or if necessary with heavy loads.

Originally Posted by DiscoMick

There is heaps of room in the back, particularly if you put in a single central drawer giving a flat platform extending over the wheel arches.
Make sure you budget to add a rear wheel carrier and take the spare off the back door so the door doesn't warp or rattle.
If the interior isn't enough, the roof is suitable for a VERY LONG roof rack.

I'm lucky in that the Spare Wheel is already mounted to a Kaymar Rear Tyre Carrier

Yes, I definitely want to utilise the roof to its full extent, just got to find a 2nd hand one, but currently there's no rush as it's not registered and probably won't be until sometime next year....