Yep, they're up to the task.
No way, not safe enough for precious cargo.
Moderator
Had an interesting discussion with a mate (who likes Land Rovers) that got me thinking.
I was discussing the possibility of selling my 110 to buy a 130, and he asked if I had kids. When I told him I did, he shook his head and said he wouldn't carry his kids in a Defender, and suggested I look for a Disco instead.
Whilst I now the Defender doesn't have all the mod-cons (and I don't care), he got me feeling a bit guilty about safety concerns, particularly not having air-bags. He also mentioned lack of side-impact and roll-over protection to be a concern.
Now I'm starting to second-guess myself. Perhaps I would be better off with a Disco, but I really love the look and feel of a Defender, and really would like a dual-cab ute.
YarnMaster
G'day mate, the only down side to a 130 is the lack of child restraint hooks. I have seen them made up, search the aulro threads for some ideas/ answers as this has come up before.
I'd get a photo of the child restraints I have fitted in my 130 but there are 3 car seats in the way.
Easo
Wizard
or just dont crash
there are kits made for the restraints but need mod plated,
and roll over,, well theres nothing a full internal cage can't fix, or a exo cage,oh i mean ladder rack
Swaggie
Aside from not having airbags, I do have serious reservations about the strength (or lack of) from the bottom of the windows upto and including the roof. Are pulling down and rebuilding Series Landys, and I don't think that LandRover have made improvements since then, there isn't a lot of structural design in that area. Actually, its quite scary to see how much isn't there and how the whole lot hangs together.
You could probably drop a Disco3/4 on its roof, open the door and get out.
Cheers
Slunnie
~ Discovery II Td5 ~ Discovery 3dr V8 ~ Series IIa 6cyl ute ~ Series II V8 ute ~
Wizard
Originally Posted by stig0000
or just dont crash
there are kits made for the restraints but need mod plated,
and roll over,, well theres nothing a full internal cage can't fix, or a exo cage,oh i mean ladder rack
like my HD ladder rack, nic
Master
Earlier in the year I had me bit of a traffic incident where I rear ended a subaru liberty wagon. I demolished the rear end of this poor guys car and all I had to do was pick off a small bit of white paint off my bullbar.
The only thing I dont like is the lack of head rests on the rear seat so I am going to make up some cushions to go on the cargo barrier for their heads.
ChatterBox
I rolled this at around 70km/h, it bounced once on its roof.
Maybe a stock standard Defender would crumple, but I had a solid cargo barrier fitted and a full length rack. Both of which helped
A Disco (I or II) I imagine would be just as bad; in a side on collision
I'd keep the Defender and look into roll over protection and decent rear seats
Master
SupporterI have three boys (3,7,10) and have no qualms and my wife uses the defender as a daily driver as it will not fit in my inner city underground carpark.
She was recently in an accident and the other car was written off. The defender had no damage. In the past, she has had another 2 vehicles run up the back of her, also with no damage.
I advocate a cargo barrier and I have added rock sliders as extra protection in case of a t bone accident.
'95 110 300TDI, F&R ARB Lockers, Twine Shower, Aux Sill Tank, Snorkel, Cargo barrier, 9 seats, swingaway wheel carrier, MadMan EMS2
'85 110 Isuzu NA 4BE1 3.6l Diesel, 0.996 LT-95, Rear Maxi (SOLD)
'76 SIII 109" Nissan ED33 5-SP Nissan GBox (SOLD)
OldBushie
It doesn't matter what you drive and it doesn't matter what safety is built in because there is a million different ways to crash and you can't cover them all.I pulled a couple out of a wreck on the way to work once and the vehicle was so badly damaged I still to this day don't know what make it was,my cousin who I grew up with died instantly in a crash that only broke the door handle on his door.I made and fitted a roll over hoop in the rear of my defender but I personally think it's better not to find out the safety limits on vehicles. Pat
ChatterBox
How funny, I was just thinking about safety today whilst driving home in the rain.
I was pondering about the lack of side impact bars, air bags (front and side), abs, traction control, stability control, electronic brake force distribution.
I concluded maybe modern safety features lull drivers into a false sense of security, perhaps making them lazy or blase drivers. Is that why they all speed by in the rain?
My new 130 has nothing, 4 wheel discs and constant 4 wheel drive, that's all I need.
If a car hits my side I'm sitting higher than 90% of cars on the road anyway. If a truck or another 4x4 hits me hard, no curtain airbag or side impact bar will save me anyway.
I'm sitting on probably the strongest chase on the market, so I'll let the other cars crumple zones do there thing.
As for a roll over, well the centre of gravity is low on a Defer. With all that light alloy up top and steel under me, I'm not concerned with a roll over.
We had child restraints fitted to our new 130, so it's all compliant and legal. I feel safer in this than my last Japanese wonder truck. I have more faith in this car with my family than any of the cars I have driven lately.
I have never driven slower than now, I never have enjoyed doing so as much either.
funny what you ponder on driving home in the rain.
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