Thread: New member needs Defender answers

Welcome to the forum mate there are heaps of information here from owners of the new Defender and few of them have done extensive trips on them.
Cheers

Engine is fantastic. Drives like a 'chipped' TD5. 6-speed is brilliant as 1st is lower than usual and 6th is higher than usual. I get about 11L/100, but others who have more Kms on than me say it gets better once the engine goes past 20,000Km or so.

Dustproofing is better than previous models, but that may not be saying too much!! Actually, I reckon the dustproofing is OK myself.

Generally much quieter than previous models, and comes with a Tacho as standard (OMG!). They must have more soundproofing etc.

Will be less luxurious than your Jackaroo, but it will go for 30 years, unlike any other 4x4 around. You'll get everywhere slower. Not sure what to 0-100 time is but probably 15 seconds.

From what I read,,,
Like all defenders(and landrovers in general--), its a lifestyle purchase.
Dont expect toyota panel fit,
Dont expect mitsubishi-like ads telling you what a GREAT decision you made,

what you can expect is envy from the rest of us,,
you can expect 30 odd years ownership,,
you can expect remote travel in an off the line production vehicle,,

fuel economy will blow your mind,
cargo ability will also,,
towing capacity ditto,,

service it at Landrover,
take out extended warranty if available,

let us know how the demo goes,,,

What you need to appreciate is that the Defender is just about unique. It is probably the only mass produced car today that is essentially assembled by hand, being held together largely by bolts and nuts and rivets, where almost all others are welded together. Further, the body dimensions and styling last had a major revision in 1958, over fifty years ago (some panels are still interchangeable!).

The method of assembly means that fit of panels will not be up to modern standards, and this may or may not result in water or dust leaks. But it does mean that additions and modifications are easy compared to any other model.

In 1958 the dimensions were fixed, but they were set for a working utility vehicle, and fifty years ago people driving these types did not expect much comfort. Furthermore, it was designed around Englishmen who had grown up half starved through the depression and wartime rationing - the average Australian, fifty years later, is much bigger. But if you fit and are comfortable, well and good. The driving position, much more upright than most cars, many drivers find more comfortable, especially on long trips, although it does take some getting used to.

The engine and gearbox are well tested in the Ford Transit, and seem to have a good reputation, although in common with any other modern unit injector designs, problems from contaminated fuel can be ridiculously expensive. Again, in common with other modern diesels (and petrol engines) problems with the engine are likely to be difficult to diagnose without a dealer - and these are few and far between in Australia.

The chassis and the rest of the drive train are well tested, having had progressive development over the last 25 years without major redesign - many parts are either the same or interchangeable. Looking to the future, it is likely that parts to keep it going will still be available long after most competitors are off the road. There are a significant number of people, including myself, using forty year old Landrovers as a daily driver - you can still get parts, largely because they are longlived both in the sense of the individual vehicles tend to last, and the sense that the design remains unchanged over long periods.
Offroad performance is second to none, and on-road performance is comparable to most large four wheel drives except for those with large petrol engines. Fuel economy is better than most. Load carrying capability is better than almost any comparable vehicle, both in terms of volume and mass, although access is not as good as some - but height is just about the best.

Hope this helps,

John

you should work for LR marketing

I made the move to a Defender after owning a Discovery. So probably a similar sort of transition to the one that you are considering making.

For me the change has been easy with the new model having a more car like dash and airconditioning and heating that works. The seats at least for me are firmer than the Disco but more comfortable.

The new motor and gearbox combination makes the Defender easy to drive slowly or at freeway speeds.

My fuel economy at 20000 km is about 11 l/100 km around the city and the engine has loosened up so that now it pulls quite well from low revs.

I don't know what a service costs as I am covered under a corporate fleet deal.

The most recent model will probably have had most of the initial design problems sorted out by now.

But typical of Land Rovers and probably Defenders in particular the quality of the build will vary from vehicle to vehicle...probably due to the archaic method of production described by JD above.

The great thing is that there is a 3 year warranty and when that fails a great bunch of knowledgable people here.

The best thing about LR's is that even though there is less dealer support the private sector is alive and kicking and to a degree know more and do better work than any dealer could hope to do,another point is you don't need a LR dealer as the motor is straight ford so any ford dealer could service it.I serviced tojo's and owned LR's for a long time and LR parts are far more readily available and cheaper than any japanese make,there is enough rumours about LR's to fill a book and all of them are made up by people who have never driven a Land Rover let alone owned one.The only trouble with defenders is that once you have owned one you don't really care for much else. Pat

Originally Posted by spudboy

Not sure what to 0-100 time is but probably 15 seconds.

Hi,
the kinderbeasts reckon it can't be measured with a digital stop watch - some thing to do with the life of button cell batteries used in digital stop watches.
But then they give me heaps about other stuff too.

cheers