Thread: Disco vs. Defender?

haha, that would explain it then.

This conversation is actually making me rethink alot of my opinions on the subject and the list of mods I want now has these at the top of the list.;

Defender cages by Safety Devices



Of the two major accidents I've walked away from, one was a rollover, and the defender doesn't look like it does well at all.

Still, I'll stick by my basic 'it's the driver' more than the vehicle most of the time determining safety.

Originally Posted by goingbush

This might help explain



Hmm, Smart Crash test dummy

He's no dummy, he just doesn't want to see a perfectly good Defender with another 50 years left in it smashed up.

Originally Posted by TerryO

... then judge for yourself whether you would rather be in (and have your family in) a Disco 3/4 or your Defender in a similar situation.

http://www.aulro.com/afvb/d3-d4-rrs/...-africa-4.html

Unless we could compare the defender in the same accident you can't use this to prove anything other than a head on collision between an Audi traveling much faster than a Disco = Disco Win.

What if two cars are heading for a head on collision both traveling at 100kph. One is a D3 with its crumple zones, monoqoque body and bull bar the other a defender 110 with a steel ladder chassis anchored bull bar. Which one would you rather be in? You wouldn't want to be in either of course, and personally I would have to flip a coin. A solid defender would use the disco as a crumple zone and could rip through the disco, mount it and decapitate it - you just don't know.

I like isuzurovers graph showing driver protection from real world data, it seems like a more informed way to choose a safe car.

Originally Posted by TerryO

Try lifting the body off of your Defender in one piece and see what happens.

Its a common way to do a chassis swap on defenders. A damn sight easier than on a disco. The owner of this vehicle has gone with the optional roll cage safety feature. .




I do not only own a Defender, for the majority of drives that involve 100% tarmac I have no reason to use a disco or any other big 4x4. But that's just me. And that is why this thread is redonk, completely futile. Let's start a new thread in the general section 'Whats better, a pen or a pencil?'

Pencil, they work in space. Although I've always fancied a pen, for the weekends......

Its a common way to do a chassis swap on defenders. A damn sight easier than on a disco. The owner of this vehicle has gone with the optional roll cage safety feature. .




I do not only own a Defender, for the majority of drives that involve 100% tarmac I have no reason to use a disco or any other big 4x4. But that's just me. And that is why this thread is redonk, completely futile. Let's start a new thread in the general section 'Whats better, a pen or a pencil?'

Am I the only one that had to look twice at this picture because it looked like the body had been lifted with a toilet roll

Originally Posted by Rohan

Pencil, they work in space. Although I've always fancied a pen, for the weekends......

ahem

I have a Fisher Space Pen, it works in space, writes underwater and writes on oily paper - try doing that with a pencil.

Perfect for my Defender, it even writes on damp / dusty / oily paper.

Personally I don't like the feel of a pencil when writing, it has a strange textured feeling and makes a scrape/squealing sound that I find uncomfortable. A luxury pen on the other hand, well it just glides!

Originally Posted by rick130

A quick Q re wheel travel (please, no references to elicktickery eliminating the need for any vertical wheel movement at all )

How much actual travel is there in bump and droop in a D3/4 ?

The reason I ask is that I have about 110mm travel in bump at the bump stop in the front end ( more at the rear) meaning there's well, well in excess of 110mm of bump travel at the wheel yet routinely use all of that in day to day driving around here.

I'n not talking off road, just the normal secondary bitumen and dirt roads and tracks I run around on.

If a car has less travel than that it would have to be driven at a much lower speed so that you aren't crashing hard into the bump stops continually (as I need to do when drving the Patrol)

Also, while the elecktrickery is obviously brilliant, ultimately more wheel travel equates to greater stability when crawling too, especially when roll/wheel and damping rates are optimised and balanced and this increased stability allows you to drive and place wheels much more assuredly/precisely and dare I say it, safely

Sorry I can't remember how much travel with the shocks set on standard a D3/4 has.
But I can and have directly compared my Bilstein fitted D1 with 2" body lift and 2" suspension lift and 33" A/T's and how it drives on rough roads to the D3 and even the D2a.

The D1 does roll over some smaller stuff at slower speeds very easy compared to the standard D2a and even better in some cases than the D3, but for ride, handling and control there is little comparision the D3 wins hands down especially as speed picks up.

And having compared my D1 to a few other D1's it handles very well considering the mods it has.

I'm not comparing cabin noise or driver seat comfort in this either, as the D2a HSE has the most comfortable seats by far and makes the D3's seats feel like rubbish.

The air suspenion on the D3 is far superior to any coil sprung suspended 4x4 I have driven by far, including late model Patrols and 100 and 200 series Cruisers.

The only 4x4 I have driven that gives you a similar feeling of security in its handling is the new Jeep Grand Cherokee that has a similar gas (in the Jeeps case nitrogen) suspension to the D3/4. Actually having driven several of the new Jeeps I would have to say as a daily driver the new Jeep is actually a nicer drive then either the D3 or D4 I'm sorry to say. ...

cheers,
Terry