Thread: Puma 2.4 Reliability

Our Puma 2.4 is a 2009 and has done 128,000 kms.
It needed a clutch replacement as the springs were rattling. This was a known problem on early ones and there is an LR upgrade.
Otherwise, mechanically its standard.
There is a minor oil leak I'm chasing (it's a Defender).
The plastic heater valve can warp and let warm water through which warms the ventilation air unless the aircon is turned on. A replacement valve is cheap - it's a Fiat part.
The wires carrying the feed through a conduit to the rear door locks can get pinched, particularly if the extended door openers are fitted. A simple fix.
I put a Mantec rear wheel carrier on to take the weight of the wheel off the door. It opens with the door and is great.
I also fitted rear drawers and have a fridge on top and a second battery hidden on its side in the space behind the rear of the drawer. There is a lot more room in the back than in a Discovery.
I recommend upgraded headlight bulbs.
Mine has a Steinbauer chip for a boost of up to 20%.
Make sure the fuel filter down the back near the fuel tank is filled with fuel when a new filter is fitted as there isn't a pump to push it through.
Check for rust in the footwell and around the opera windows. Treat, paint and oil.
The six-speed gearbox is a great improvement because mine will cruise at 100km/h at only 2000 revs in sixth gear, so cruising is very relaxed. Low gear is excellent and the low range first is really crawling. It is averaging about 11 l/100 kms and towing hardly changes that.
Defenders were already very proven and reliable and Transits have been flogged all around the world and abused, so as long as its serviced properly, it should go on for a long time. Mine is a keeper for life.
Hope that helps.

I currently own or owned all of the recent iterations of defender. the 2.2 is still in my view the best of them all (but not my favorite)

I liked the 2.4 but it's a rough engine, mine seemed to have issues with it's EGR valve every 40k, and had continual surging issues. I am sure that was a question of finding someone better to fix it than the dealer, but at the end of the day it's quite a rough engine. You won't know this until you drive a 2.2. Just turning the engine off on the 2.2 vs 2.4 is an interesting experience. One just stops quietly and silently, the other shakes the car like a wet dog.

One of my 2.2's has a tune in it, and the power difference is astonishing. (I have an untuned 2.2 to compare to.). I lunched the center diff in that, because it likes to spin the inside front wheel when you floor it around roundabouts, which of course seems to happen often. An Ashcroft ATB has fixed that issue.

The td5 is a good engine, in it's day. But it can be a fragile and very expensive pain in the arse if you are unlucky.

I have a hill that I performance test my cars on, I get a feel for power based on how fast they do at the top of the hill.
2.4 (Stock) 70kmh.
TD5 (Stock) 60kmh,
TD5 (Tuned Stage 1) 75kmh,
2.2(Stock) 75kmh,
2.2(Base Tune) 90kmh!.

That's not really a comparison of the actual power, as gearing etc comes into it. But for me the 2.2 was much more driveable. (I do a lot of heavy towing, 3000kgs often) and the power makes a big difference.)

Perhaps not mentioned too is that the 2.2 has a different ABS/Traction Control unit to the 2.4, I think it was more channels, but it does seem to operate much better than the previous.

At the end of the day - None of these points really makes a difference, your experience of your defender depends purely on the actual defender. I'd get a mint td5 over a rusted POS 2.2 any day, I'd be happy with buying one based on condition and what I can afford. I still drive all of my Defenders, but my favorite land rover to drive is my 1985 county V8...