Late Model Defender Questions

[Dirty3]

Hi All,

I'm new to this part of AULRO, in a previous life I have had Discovery 1,2 & 3 so used to play on the other side of the forum.
For the past 2 years I've had a Ford Ranger ute, but now I want to go back to a wagon set up. Nothing interests me out in the market as they are all of the SUV (geez i hate that term) variety. I need some load carrying space of a ute but in a wagon. Need the versatility of not having to use the back seat of my current dual cab, so my gear can go in the back and not in a ute tub. I need to be able to carry long & dirty items up to about 1200mm long, so the ute was choice, but I'm tired of moving stuff in and out and not having the rear seats free all the time.

So that is why I am looking at late model Defenders at present, can't wait around for the "when it finally gets released new Defender".
I took one for a drive this past week, 2014 model 110 with 30,000km's on clock. Very tidy & clean unit, not been abused. I can't yet see service history because its all don't online or computer stored records now at LR dealers, however this should be able to get hold of.

So i called MLR here in Melbourne and asked them about gearbox & clutch sounds, clunky etc. They said that the clutches can go after 10,000km or 30,000km etc. Is this for real? They told me it was a $3000 job to replace. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So i have to ask...what am i getting myself into? Surely this can't be the case...surely this would have to be a warranty issue? I read in they forum many have had them replaced under warranty.

Are there any other known issues I could expect? I travel about 30 to 35,000km's per year. Mostly on road, country trips every few months, but love to go off road and the Defender has the goods for sure. As I mentioned mostly on road most weeks, can be up to about 1000km's per week but that is maximum.

Q. Can the Defender be a reliable daily driver?

After 3 Discovery's and lots of jibes from mates over the years about how un-reliable they are (they didn't ever own them!), I had relatively trouble free driving for many years, most i had for 4-5 years and up to 180,000kms. I service my vehicles regular (D3 was recommended every 24kms but i halved that).

Any advice or opinions are welcome.

Regards,
Neil.

[justinc]

Just ducking in to the kitchen to put the popcorn on....

😮😅

[Tote]

I've had Discos 1,2,and 3 and currently own one of the last 130s. For the money that you would pay for a good Defender 110 you could get a pretty nice D4 or older RRS, both of which would be a more pleasant daily drive. I have found the 130 harder work to drive offload than the D3, simply because the D3 with a factory locker and LLAMS made everything so easy.
If however you want a 110 because it is a unique capable platform that gets better the more you modify it and you are one of the masochists that just like them, go ahead and buy it because nothing else will suffice. There's nothing quite like hearing and admirer say "Nice Truck" just because your Defender looks so cool and isn't built like all the other whitegoods

Regards
Tote

[Marty90]

For some reason people fall in love with Defenders despite their foibles.The good thing is that as things fail you put aftermarket stuff in and make it a better Defender. Eventually you run out of crappy stuff to fix. I hope🤞

[DiscoMick]

I have read that only some of the early Puma Defenders had the clutch issue and it has since been upgraded and should not be a continuing problem. There are also AP and other clutches available. I understood the cost was around the $1500 range, but could be wrong. Mine was replaced by the previous owner under warranty at about 30,000 kms and is starting to rattle again at 90,000 kms, so at some point I may need a replacement, but it's not an issue now.
Other issues worth watching seem to be the rear axle flanges can bend under heavy usage, but replacement heavy duty flanges are cheap. Some output shafts were not properly greased on manufacture. If it fails there is a replacement output shaft with a hole to allow oil to ooze down and keep it lubricated. There are stories about the latest diff centres being not as strong as in the past, but I guess it depends on usage. A headlight wiring upgrade also seems a good idea, although my standard lights are quite good with Phillips +35 bulbs. A bit of attention with washing sand out and rust prevention seems to keep the rear cross-member and chassis in good shape.
Other than those things, they are a well-proven vehicle and seem relatively simple to maintain.
Have a look in the Defender section and you will find lots of interesting threads.

[tact]

Q. Can the Defender be a reliable daily driver?


G'day Neil (nice name).

I bought my 2.2l TDCi Defender dual cab pickup brand new from Land Rover Malaysia in 2013. It has been used as a daily driver ever since and never left me stranded, never seen the back of a tow truck.
- It has also been used for longer distance drives into Thailand and Singapore. Three to five hour highway runs at 110kmh, and lots of secondary roads.
- It has also been used for jungle camping trips. Some of that being relatively easy offroading, some pretty serious hard stuff trips.

Now it is with me and family in Sydney. Pressed back into service doing the usual daily driver routine. We plan to use it for some longer trips and more local camping outings. Four years old and business as usual.

All that said I did my research before buying and as some will point out there are some key areas that need a close eye:
- half shaft flanges . so many reports of them not greased from new and flogging out early. I proactively replaced mine with Ashcroft HD flanges. They fit nicely behind the stock Boost Alloy rim centres.
- turbo hoses. if fixed under warranty then no issue.
- clutch. If replaced under warranty then no more issue. (some later models had the better clutch from factory and so shouldn't need attention.)
- adapter shaft. so many assembled without grease from factory and flog out. If fixed under warranty then no more issue.
- diff centres. If set up correctly you may not have issues. A lot were apparently not set up right from factory. I proactively replaced my diff centres with Ashcroft ATBs and dodge that bullet.

I came to a conclusion that right from factory you either get a good one or a bad one. There are horror stories out there about people having a run of 4 or more bad diffs in a row etc. But thats an exceptionally bad run.

[edit] Should add for context that I tend to "drive it like I stole it" and for the past nearly 2yrs has had a BAS170hp AB tune and 33" tyres fitted. Only change in driving style, since arriving back in Australia, is that I still drive it hard only up to speed limits. There is a serious difference in the cost of speeding tickets here, as compared to Malaysia.

[PAT303]

The only real issue I've had with mine was the adapter shaft fixed under warranty,other than that it's absolutely rock solid,and it's done some huge outback K's in it's life. Pat

[Colmoore]

Hi All,

I'm new to this part of AULRO, in a previous life I have had Discovery 1,2 & 3 so used to play on the other side of the forum.
For the past 2 years I've had a Ford Ranger ute, but now I want to go back to a wagon set up. Nothing interests me out in the market as they are all of the SUV (geez i hate that term) variety. I need some load carrying space of a ute but in a wagon. Need the versatility of not having to use the back seat of my current dual cab, so my gear can go in the back and not in a ute tub. I need to be able to carry long & dirty items up to about 1200mm long, so the ute was choice, but I'm tired of moving stuff in and out and not having the rear seats free all the time.

So that is why I am looking at late model Defenders at present, can't wait around for the "when it finally gets released new Defender".
I took one for a drive this past week, 2014 model 110 with 30,000km's on clock. Very tidy & clean unit, not been abused. I can't yet see service history because its all don't online or computer stored records now at LR dealers, however this should be able to get hold of.

So i called MLR here in Melbourne and asked them about gearbox & clutch sounds, clunky etc. They said that the clutches can go after 10,000km or 30,000km etc. Is this for real? They told me it was a $3000 job to replace. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So i have to ask...what am i getting myself into? Surely this can't be the case...surely this would have to be a warranty issue? I read in they forum many have had them replaced under warranty.

Are there any other known issues I could expect? I travel about 30 to 35,000km's per year. Mostly on road, country trips every few months, but love to go off road and the Defender has the goods for sure. As I mentioned mostly on road most weeks, can be up to about 1000km's per week but that is maximum.

Q. Can the Defender be a reliable daily driver?

After 3 Discovery's and lots of jibes from mates over the years about how un-reliable they are (they didn't ever own them!), I had relatively trouble free driving for many years, most i had for 4-5 years and up to 180,000kms. I service my vehicles regular (D3 was recommended every 24kms but i halved that).

Any advice or opinions are welcome.

Regards,
Neil.

Hi Neil.
I have a 2010 110 with 145,000kms on it. Have the 170 BAS tune and Alisport IC & silicone hoses. I had to replace the turbo at just under 100k (cost me 2k inc hoses for a lm 2nd hand one) I've replaced the vacuum pump myself ($340 odd) twice. The clutch is still working fine but has more rattles than a babies pram. It's harder to drive smoothly than my old hilux was but then again, it's just a harder truck.
I'm a builder and regularly pull a tonne or 2 in my trailer, my driveway at home is nearly vertical with a chicane and the Landy pushes the trailer up in reverse.
Last year my family and I drove a 42k trip around Australia towing a Jayco swan much of the way. The whole setup weighed in at about 5.2t and whilst a bit underpowered with the van on the back she felt safe, strong and handled really well. I averaged a bit over 16 l/100.
I reckon I would have to spend twice as much buying a cruiser or patrol to do the same job and then have to mod them pretty hard to boot.
I also fairly easily repaired any other mechanical issues that arose in the bush with basic hand tools and only a little auto Elec knowledge.
Plus I can stand on the gaurds & bonnet (so can the missus, see below) I can hose the interior out & mod it all myself mostly and I'm getting back into doing my own mechanical work like I used to when I was under 25!
I love my Defender but I really need a ute; only problem is 130's seem out of my price range atm with all the hype. I hope to get a 130 this year and keep it going add infinitum.
Maybe they're not for everyone but I'm sold on them.
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2017/06/103.jpghttps://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2017/06/104.jpg

[JayBoRover]

G'day Neil (nice name).

I came to a conclusion that right from factory you either get a good one or a bad one. There are horror stories out there about people having a run of 4 or more bad diffs in a row etc. But thats an exceptionally bad run.


I must have got one of the good ones. I think it's done about 46,000kms and had no real issues. I did fit the 170HP BAS tune and intercooler and silicon hoses in. Never had any clutch issues. The driveline is a little clunky but you get used to it and it hasn't changed since new so doesn't seem to be a real issue. It certainly has Land Rover version of "character" (it leaks a little, is a little loud, a little clunky, a little agricultural, etc) but I have literally been stopped by people wanting to chat about it ... as recently as last Saturday when a lady boxed me in on a driveway I was visiting and came up to me gushing about how she loved it and really wants one.

[Dirty3]

Thanks to everyone for their input. I know I was missing something for the past 2 years not being active on AULRO.

I am taking one out for a second test drive tomorrow, will see how that goes and if i can live with it. I'm keen just got to convince the finance officer in the house! Seriously though its the only vehicle on the market that suits what i need for work. I need the easy access load space that is enclosed unlike my ute, can take bush work seriously when required, can tow my camper when required and an abundance of after market accessories and repairers.

Anyway, not fully decided, but thanks again for the feedback.

Cheers,
Neil.

[ATH]

You're doing the right thing Neil. I've had 3 of the bloody things and am only flogging the 2010 Puma because my damn joints are making it hard to change gear. 3 Defenders (300Tdi,Td5 and 2.4 Puma 110) 1 300Tdi Disco, 1 - 120 series Prado (OK I went mad some time back) good car, reliable but had the worst cruise control and gearbox of anything I've ever driven.
And only 1 breakdown and that was the Td5 Defender and I could apparently have driven it home slowly but LR got us back plus the camper and paid a lump towards our extra expences. I've heard all the crap from the foreign vehicle steerers including one turkey in Broome who reckoned I was brave driving the 300Tdi Disco up to Broome. He never spoke to me again after I pointed out he'd had his bonnet up for a couple of days waiting for some one to tell him what was wrong with his Tojo!!!! :-)))
Now I've got an auto D4 but the Cook complains it hasn't the character of the Defenders...... as long as she doesn't stop cooking I don't care what she says. Luckily she doesn't use a computer.....
Enjoy the ride.
AlanH.

[EastFreo]

Go for it. You won't regret it. In Oct I will have had mine for three years and I still find any excuse to jump in and go for a drive. Been a daily driver in the city and then we regularly go back to a family farm so also do a number of long trips as well. Already over 60,000km.

A while back I jinxed myself on the forum by saying nothing had gone wrong. Few days later a turbo hose fell off and it went into limp mode. All fixed no issue. LR lent my wife (as I was away and she was driving) an almost brand new Range Rover Sport. Trouble was they didn't want to hand it back!

Smart move by LR, my wife has always been a die hard Volvo fan. Now she is tossing up on whether she can aspire to the new Disco or the new RR Velar. Only one problem - we have to save a lot more cash!

[Pickles2]

Go for it. You won't regret it. In Oct I will have had mine for three years and I still find any excuse to jump in and go for a drive. Been a daily driver in the city and then we regularly go back to a family farm so also do a number of long trips as well. Already over 60,000km.

A while back I jinxed myself on the forum by saying nothing had gone wrong. Few days later a turbo hose fell off and it went into limp mode. All fixed no issue. LR lent my wife (as I was away and she was driving) an almost brand new Range Rover Sport. Trouble was they didn't want to hand it back!

Smart move by LR, my wife has always been a die hard Volvo fan. Now she is tossing up on whether she can aspire to the new Disco or the new RR Velar. Only one problem - we have to save a lot more cash!
"Disco, Velar"?...Better wait for the "new" Defender,...it could be pretty special,....a year to wait?
Pickles.

[EastFreo]

I have been trying to suggest she wait! I wish they would just release what it is going to look like.

[Pickles2]

I have been trying to suggest she wait! I wish they would just release what it is going to look like.
Be patient,....of course I have NO inside info, but as NONE of JLR's recent releases have been nothing less than, well can I just say, very well received, by the press, and by the buyer as demonstrated by sales figures, I suggest you hold back.
Pickles.

[Dirty3]

Well I've looked at a couple & test driven also. One was low k's but driveline definitely had some wear issues, lots of play in the drive shaft and clunky clutch & gear change. Went away and found another, really tidy even less k's, drives great & smooth. Put down the deposit today after a week of deciding what to do. The wife wasn't too keen but in the end she never drives my cars. My daughter is over the moon, she loves them.
Weight off the shoulders now, decision made...now I can't wait to get in it. Funny you know, I test drove a few regular current models on the market, Ford Everest, Toyota Fortuner, Mitsubishi Pajero...all good cars, nice to drive however they lack something...a soul, happy to get back into Landy after a hiatus.

[Dirty3]

Well, it's all settled, picked one up on Monday, great condition, 22k's 125998

[jon3950]

Very nice. :BigThumb:

[Pickles2]

Well, it's all settled, picked one up on Monday, great condition, 22k's 125998
Congratulations, ..looks like a new one. Is that a genuine Land Rover bullbar?
Pickles.

[Dirty3]

Congratulations, ..looks like a new one. Is that a genuine Land Rover bullbar?
Pickles.
Thanks Pickles,

Yep, genuine LR Bull bar.

[1nando]

First thing I'd do is spray inside the chassis rails, bulk head and any crevices you can get access to with some sort of rust protection. I used to use lanolin until my neighbour who is a panel beater sprayed the whole thing with a thick wax like product that drys to a firm skin. This skin is firm and flexible at the same time and doesn't Crack. He uses it in his hot rods etc so it must be good.

[Robmacca]

First thing I'd do is spray inside the chassis rails, bulk head and any crevices you can get access to with some sort of rust protection. I used to use lanolin until my neighbour who is a panel beater sprayed the whole thing with a thick wax like product that drys to a firm skin. This skin is firm and flexible at the same time and doesn't Crack. He uses it in his hot rods etc so it must be good.

Any chance of getting the name of this product??

[DiscoMick]

The son got his Hilux done with a similar product, I don't know the name, but he's happy with it. Make sure you get it cleaned thoroughly first, so no rust grows under it.

[Dirty3]

First thing I'd do is spray inside the chassis rails, bulk head and any crevices you can get access to with some sort of rust protection. I used to use lanolin until my neighbour who is a panel beater sprayed the whole thing with a thick wax like product that drys to a firm skin. This skin is firm and flexible at the same time and doesn't Crack. He uses it in his hot rods etc so it must be good.
I took a look underneath before I bought it and it's super clean, but upon closer inspection the chassis paint is quite thin, so will look into protection, thanks for the heads up.

[ozscott]

The best thing to spray in is X-troll Rust Conquerer UV. Cheers

[puppet79]

HI All,

New to the defender Scene and have got the bug... Just wondering what are the differences in the late model 90's 2010/ 2011/ 2012 2013/ 2014/ 2015/ 2016

looking to buy and haven't found to much information on this maybe because there is not to much difference..

Lastly what year model you would go for and why?

[ATH]

If I were you I'd go for a vgc. nice Fuji white 2010 110 with 175K on the clock. All upgrades to axles and output shaft done for you. And it just so happens that I have the beast waiting for you right here in the West....[bigsmile1]
AlanH.

[DiscoMick]

HI All,

New to the defender Scene and have got the bug... Just wondering what are the differences in the late model 90's 2010/ 2011/ 2012 2013/ 2014/ 2015/ 2016

looking to buy and haven't found to much information on this maybe because there is not to much difference..

Lastly what year model you would go for and why?
I guess the main difference was the change from the 2.4 to the 2.2 Puma engine.

[puppet79]

I guess the main difference was the change from the 2.4 to the 2.2 Puma engine.

thanks Disco appears the 2.2 performance is superior from some of the forums i have read? Looks like there is no real benefit of buying a newer model other than the potential for less km's and better condition.

[DiscoMick]

Similar performance, but runs cleaner, from what I have read.

[puppet79]

Similar performance, but runs cleaner, from what I have read.


with the 90 what does the XS and TD4 stand for? i take it the GT is a V8?

[DiscoMick]

XS is a trim level. The TD4 is a four cylinder engine. Don't know about GT.

[tact]

Finding that RAT in the glovebox seems to be acceleRATing alliteRATive aspiRATions, and cardiorespiRATory RATes amongst the celebRATed, liteRATe, degeneRATes in these forums.

To the OP: CongRATs & CommiseRATions

[Gordie]

Finding that RAT in the glovebox seems to be acceleRATing alliteRATive aspiRATions, and cardiorespiRATory RATes amongst the celebRATed, liteRATe, degeneRATes in these forums.

To the OP: CongRATs & CommiseRATions
Hehe, for those of you who are confused...I think Tact meant this post for another thread....namely....This is rat-ticulous (https://www.aulro.com/afvb/l319-discovery-3-and-4-a/257588-rat-ticulous.html)

[tact]

Hehe, for those of you who are confused...I think Tact meant this post for another thread....namely....This is rat-ticulous (https://www.aulro.com/afvb/l319-discovery-3-and-4-a/257588-rat-ticulous.html)


Hahahah. Oops!