Conflicted

[Bess]

Hello D3 & 4 owners,
I have a decision to make but feeling conflicted! I have moved permanently to Sydney & our MY11 Defender 110 is probably not ideal for the city grind. So do I trade her on a D4 or D3 series. I have never owned an auto but feel the added comforts & ergonomics of the Discovery would be a real pleasure for city driving but still give me a great tourer. This decision is harder because I have put a lot of time,effort & money into the Defender to get her how I like her.
I know that it's a personal thing but is a newer Discovery a vehicle that I will form a bond to?
Thoughts?

Regards Chris.

[Fred Nerk]

I think you should be able to predict the likely responses. Have you considered posting the same question on a Nissan or Toyota or Jeep etc site? We all (or nearly all) have bonded. I suggest it is a decision only you can make for yourself.

[TerryO]

The only way to find out if you are likely to build a bond with a Disco is to drive a D3 and a D4. While they are very similar vehicles made on the same platform and body they still are quite different and you would need to drive both.

A D4 would be my choice, mainly because the earlier D3's are getting old and they seem to have in the D4 ironed out many of the bugs the earlier models had.

Good luck and let us know how you go.

[Plane Fixer]

Chris, coming from a Patrol, which was not a great city car, I have a D4 which to me fulfills all functions for me.
They are a fantastic tourer and as I often have to drive through Sydney or Brisbane for business or pleasure the auto makes light work of it, and the comfort sitting in traffic eases the pain a lot.
It will be a personal choice, but from my perspective, you will not regret a D4.

[jon3950]

Yes it is possible to bond with a Disco. I have with all of mine, but I think it's a bit different to a Defender.

A Disco is still a Land Rover so it has plenty of character, but it doesn't have the quirks and personality traits the way a Defender does. However, when you set it up the way you want it and start going places in it, it will amaze you with its breadth of capability - it just does stuff. And so you will grow to love it and respect it - Permagrin is a genuine phenomena.

As an example, I still haven't cleaned the inside of mine since our last trip, so there is red dust everywhere. It's a wonderful feeling sitting in Sydney traffic, in absolute comfort, looking at that dust and remembering where it came from and how well the Disco performed in all the conditions we encountered. This is how you will bond with your Disco - the shared memories.

Of course, if you still can't bear to part with the Defender, the other option is to buy a small car for running around town in.

Cheers,
Jon

[Bess]

Thanks to everybody for the comments so far, I have owned two Discovery 2s before & this is my 2nd Defender.

Before buying this last Defender I was looking at a late model D3 & managed to test drive both D3 & a lovely D4 3ltr.

The D4 was a revelation to drive & so far above any Land Rover I had driven before that I think I was a little spooked ( if that's the right term ) by its technology & wondered if it would still have that LR character;). I guess I should have known better because it's still a Landy after all.

Your right about building that feeling for the car by using it & learning its character.

I will test drive a couple more but I really appreciate hearing from people who own & use there D3 & 4's.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts & experience
Regards Chris.
Ps , if I win lotto I'll just keep Bess as well! ;)

[Crimdog]

Hey mate,

That bond is usually forms by getting out there and making some good memories with it. I've had mine a year, coming from a soulless VW (which I had for 3 years and only had a slight bond with) I have formed a great with my disco. It will suit your city driving needs and still get you where you want to go on weekends and holidays.

[Bess]

Thanks again, so the next question I guess is 3 ltr. Or 2.7 ltr diesel of course. I was thinking that the 2.7 might be struggling just a little with so much weight?
But then compared to my 2.4ltr either would seem fairly strong I guess.
Regards Chris.

[jon3950]

The 2.7 certainly doesn't struggle. While the 3.0 is clearly better the 2.7 is still very good. I often jump into a 2.7 from my 3.0 and while I notice a difference, after while it doesn't bother me.

The decision really comes down to the dollars. If you can justify the additonal cost of the 3.0 then go for it, otherwise just get the 2.7. Either way you won't be disappointed with the perfomance.

Cheers,
Jon

[scarry]

The 2.7 certainly doesn't struggle. While the 3.0 is clearly better the 2.7 is still very good. I often jump into a 2.7 from my 3.0 and while I notice a difference, after while it doesn't bother me.

The decision really comes down to the dollars. If you can justify the additonal cost of the 3.0 then go for it, otherwise just get the 2.7. Either way you won't be disappointed with the perfomance.

Cheers,
Jon


X2

And there are heaps of D3s around towing big vans,they all have the 2.7,unless of course they are petrols.

[theresanothersteve]

My wife forms an illogical bond with every car she owns, although all her cars have been not the sort of things you'd expect a professional person to drive. She's howled her eyes out every time one has gone...

She had a D1, late model, manual transmission that she though was the best thing in the world. When it started to become unreliable (she drags a horse float, last thing we want is her broken down on the side of the road at night) we sold it and bought a D3.

She could not believe how much better it is, and its her first auto (although most of her company cars were autos). It is quiet, easy to drive, keeps up with traffic effortlessly. In other words it is relaxing to drive in stop start traffic, unlike the D1.

She looks fondly at D4s occasionally, but she still washes the D3 far more than any other car she owned. She loves it...

And yes, I think she's bonded with it.

[Bess]

Thanks again for all the imput guys, I might seem easy to some but I like to have all the info I can when making these decisions. The 2.7 ltr in a D4 should be a good thing Iam sure & it certainly helps with the purchase price.

Cam belts changed around the 80k mark I assume? Your right about plenty of 2.7s towing large vans & doing it easy, I could always do a remap for more grunt also.:D

How does the auto tranny hold up? I have read some horror stories about the tranny in the L322 Rangies.

Regards Chris

[sheerluck]

Thanks again for all the imput guys, I might seem easy to some but I like to have all the info I can when making these decisions. The 2.7 ltr in a D4 should be a good thing Iam sure & it certainly helps with the purchase price.

Cam belts changed around the 80k mark I assume? Your right about plenty of 2.7s towing large vans & doing it easy, I could always do a remap for more grunt also.:D

How does the auto tranny hold up? I have read some horror stories about the tranny in the L322 Rangies.

Regards Chris

Belt change at 7 years/168,000.

Auto tranny will hold up perfectly if you service it in accordance with the manufacturer's (ZF not LR) recommendations. The L322 tranny is a different box altogether (assuming you're thinking of the GM box behind the diesel 6).

[lpj]

I spent a few hours on the phone to a mate who has come from Touregs and into an LC200. He had a tinge of regret driving it out of the dealer and now avoids driving it because its "hard work".

On a big trip, towing a big van, he's very happy with it, and its holding its value very well. It also gives him a sense of comfort as he feels he can "trust" it but doesn't like it as a daily driver.

I don't think D4 drivers need to make that compromise. Its a beautiful tourer, tows very well from all accounts and is a pleasure to live with on a daily basis.

It's also a very very capable off road vehicle.