Disco beats the Cr4P out of Jeep

[HangOver]

Check it out:
http://www.4wdmonthly.com.au/tourists.php

No suprise really ;)

[Martin]

However twice went crazy and went to lowest suspension setting. Turning on and off fixed, but does not inspire confidence needed for serious outback trips.

:(

At least the transmission didn't overheat like the Jeep...

[Ace]

The disco is fine for outback trips, i wouldnt hesitate if i had one. So they had to reset the suspension settings, big deal. I would rather have an electronic glich than have the front wheel fall off a cruiser or crack a chassis on a patrol. Matt

[Quiggers]

Back in about 1993 I made a tv commercial for the Daihatsu Rocky.

The example supplied (less than 2,000 ks) had been a tester for the motoring journo crew and was filthy, we couldn't find the donk for the mud...

It had to perform a small jump... the guys custom made a ramp which was about 3 feet high at launch.

We stopped launching it after about five or six takes - it was bending.

The big guy at Daihatsu went off his nut about its condition, reckoned we'd stuffed it... but he approved the concept.

It was good ad, tho'.....

(Funnily enough, we had the same experience with a NIssan Pulsar Q some years earlier...)

Seen that Jeep video where the guts falls out having tried to climb a small berm? It was around here somewhere a while ago.

Cheers, GQ

[Jamo]

However twice went crazy and went to lowest suspension setting. Turning on and off fixed, but does not inspire confidence needed for serious outback trips.

:(

At least the transmission didn't overheat like the Jeep...

If you want to go on a 'serious outback trip' then no matter what car you have, LEARN HOW TO BLOODY WELL OPERATE IT AND FIX IT!

Repairing diffs and welding up chassis rails on tojos/nissans...or cycling the ignition to correct a problem! I know which car inspires me with more confidence!

[Martin]

I agree with you Jamo - knowing how to operate and fix a vehicle properly is very important for real bush work. However, I reckon it would be a problem servicing the D3, let alone fixing it without some diagnostic computer. I am not sure that in the test there was evidence that the car had not been treated properly, but maybe they did thrash the hell out of it.

I have a 99 Defender and have never had a problem; a good friend drives a D3, and after 18 months owning it from new, it has been in the garage more time for repairs than for services, including the full replacement of the transmission, and full electrical failure. No amount of cycling the ignition fixed these problems. In the same time, I have done twice the Ks, and my defender has not had a single issue, apart from loosing a suspension stop.

I stand by my comment, that my confidence is not inspired by the D3. This is of course just MHO. I love the vehicle, think they are awesome, amazed at there capability, but I would still not feel comfortable taking it far off road.

For the record, I am not a fan of Toyotas or Nissans for 4X4 work either.

[Jamo]

Well, I've never owned a Fender, Toyota or Nissan. But I know people who've had significant problems with all three; and the current probs with the latter two are well documented.

On the other hand, I have owned a Discovery 3 for over a year, doing an average of 1000km a week of which 400km is on rough gravel roads.

I had a compressor failure after three months, but this was fixed by LR and indeed LR has a programme of repairing/replacing the compressors on all models at either the next service or when the customer brings the vehicle in.

Over 40000km since and I have had no problems. I would take this car anywhere with near-total confidence.

BTW, 4WD monthly refer to Landies as 'foreign' and consider Jap 4WD local. I'd love to tell that to Ernie down the road from me who spent 2 years on the Thai/Burma Railway and 1 more in a Jap coalmine from '42-'45.

[Martin]

Jamo, I too thought that was a wierd comment about Japanese cars being local. What did John Clese in Faulty Towers say? Oh yes that's it... "Don't mention the war...."

[Quiggers]

Stevo68 recently posted a video about a South African D3 at play, find it guys.

Those Afrikaans didn't seem to have any probs with their D3.... despite what they did to it....

GQ

[Turtle61]

Guys,

Just reading about the electronics problems with the D3 reminds me of what happened to my (company) Golf a couple of months ago. Driving at a nice highway speed the car flashes at me with all its lights, flashes some message in French (this is the French speaking part of Switzerland) and decides to kill the engine to minimum and tell me to stop. So I pull over and stop. Turn the engine off and then on. No problems since... and this was not an Outback drive under normal (severe for the Euro) conditions - a simple Sunday arvo drive. Conclusion: if it's electronic it will go nuts and some point regrdless of the manufacturer. The only difference is our Outback not a place where you wanna take too many chances...

[p38arover]

I have a 99 Defender and have never had a problem

Which is the total opposite of a bloke on the Overlander forum whose Defender had 63 warranty claims.

Ron

[DirtyDawg]

You get good and bad cars..tis fact of life..you will allways hear the negs and little from those who have nothing to complain about.. In 1984 on Exercise perentie.. the jeep entrant spent most of its trial being towed by a 110 on a trailer doing its trials sometimed with the jeep still on tow..:D:D:D;)
I would have a D3 if the price was a little more reasonable but at the moment the money is going towards house number 3, gearing up for a healthy retirement;).. if I won lotto I would buy a RR3 and fullybomb it up for hard core bush trips, scatched and dented just to see the faces of people in shock:D:D

[Pedro_The_Swift]

Dont you just hate coils?
injection is the devils work!
A Radio!?! (gasp!)

Bring back wooden wheels and the guy with the red flag I say!!

[boggo]

I wonder if this is the disco they took up to the cape?

[Wortho]

Pedro_The_SwiftDont you just hate coils?
injection is the devils work!
A Radio!?! (gasp!)

Bring back wooden wheels and the guy with the red flag I say!!



The red flag guy never really left, apparently the law was never changed or remmoved it just became obsolete. Technically we all should have a person with a red flag walking in front of our vehicle's in built up areas.
I think theres another one where all cabs must carry a bale of hay, from when we had a different kind of horse power.

[Wortho]

I wonder if this is the disco they took up to the cape?



Well it's the same colour, could be. If it is then that particular vehicle has a history of the same kind of faults.
If so then two points:
1: Land rover should have sent a different car, one that didn't have a reaccuring problem to cape york or fixed the problem first!

2: 4wd monthly should have realised that it was the same vehicle (wasn't that long ago) and either asked for a different one or at least accept in the write up that this particular D3 has a history and the problem may not affect all D3's as they would if the Patrol or Crusier had a problem!.

[Wortho]

Hi just did some looking and no it's not the same car.
However the same D3 in the Foreigner's comparo with the Jeep also was last years 4wd monthly 4wd of the year winner and Overlander took it on a "6,000k torture test" through the outback with a Patrol and Cruiser in October 05. So it's been a busey little beaver. I'd love to know where else the D3 that failed at the cape has been?, and if that vehicle has any prior faults.
On a tanjent here the D3 that is the subject of this thread beat the Landcruiser hands down for wheel travel last year. However landcruiser wins this year against a D3 that goes on to have suspension failure.

[Ace]

I think what Wortho said deserves some consideration. What the public dont get to know is how many Journo's have flogged the **** out of these vehicles before one unlucky journo gets it and it finally says its had enough. If this D3 was your car you wouldnt be driving it through rivers over the windscreen flat out, or through 4 foot deep mud and then complaining about it getting stuck. You would know the vehicles history, who has driven it and where and you would have had it fully checked and be prepared for an outback trip. We can whinge and moan about electronics all we like but its a fact of life, in ten years even patrols will have it, probaly not as much as the D3 does now, dont rush them, it takes time to steel other manufacturers ideas. God when LR introduced traction control we all paniced, now its common place, even the fender has that. Matt

[Jamo]

Yeah, around here there are plenty of farmers who've whinged about how Patrols aren't strong enough.

It's seems that they've been twisting the chassis.

Of course, they claim that there's no way it could have been caused by towing an 8tn seeder around a paddock!

[Ace]

Yeah, around here there are plenty of farmers who've whinged about how Patrols aren't strong enough.

It's seems that they've been twisting the chassis.

Of course, they claim that there's no way it could have been caused by towing an 8tn seeder around a paddock!

Thats it, if you abuse a vehicle you cant really complain when it gives up the ghost, they might be able to do it, but for how long? Matt