Time for a new ride.

**debruiser** · 20th February 2013, 06:54 PM

Well, I have a 2007 Ford Ranger Hi-Rider. It's been pretty good for the last 3 years i've had it (previously it was a council truck so I'd say it's seen a rough life). Unfortunately it looks like it's going to start costing me money, so I think it's time to get rid of it.

It's a pretty good ride, goes like a train and reasonably comfy. Has pretty good towing abilities (although I don't really like the geometry for towing! the tow bar is TOO far behind the rear wheels and it makes it unstable IMHO). She even towed home my 1st land rover (series 3 LW

! Should mention that it gets about 9L/100km too!

I would LOVE to replace her with a Defender.... what i've been thinking that i'd love to get my hands on would be something like a 2010-2012 90.... Loosing the ute would be to some extent a pain but realistically I don't use it for a ute very much anyway (or at least not for stuff that I couldn't just use the back of a wagon) and when I need to shift something bigger/dirty I can borrow a heavy duty trailer. ATM there is only my wife and myself, (no kids) and most of the time I drive the main car (Ranger) to work (230 - 300km per week) it goes shopping and is our primary vehicle for getting around. The old land rover is fun and emergencies. The wife walks to work 99% of the time, only when it's raining does she drive (the whole 1km).

I realise that a Defender only returns 10-11L/KM but I could live with that difference. The real question is "Is this a good idea?" I really want our main car to be reliable. I'm a practical sort of person and don't care too much about niceties like traction control, airbags, fancy lights and buzzers, stupid in car computers, etc. IF my S3 was reliable and economical I would be more than happy to burn the Ranger and just drive that! I believe a car is for getting from A to B, no matter where A and B are and with minimum fuss!

I've read on here a few horror stories on here about 90's being bad/not good. The thing is you never hear about the ones that ARE good..... so how many people have them and are happy with them? I've never spent more than $25K on a car before so spending $40K - $50k is a BIG deal to me.....

**Homestar** · 20th February 2013, 07:29 PM

I hear you mate. Before I splashed out on the L322 I had never coughed up more than $10K on a car, and that was my VN commodore when it was only a few years old and had under 80KKM on the clock...

. - Which I only just got rid of - I keep my cars for a LONG time...

My 2 cents may not help you here, but I bought the L322 with my heart, not my head. Be that as it may, and over a year later, and NOT a trouble free run I have asked myself if I had my time again, would I have bought the Mazda 3 for SWMBO instead...

Well, NO!!! Despite its issues, which have now been overcome, I LOVE this car, and I have come to the conclusion that driving a car you have a passion for and love to drive is more important (to me) than having something that is considered to be 'reliable' but doesn't bring anything to the driving experience,

Remember on a forum like this you will see the worst of the worst of a particular vehicle, while there are many happy people driving the same car, day in, day out without issue.

Personally I say go for it! You drive a Series III on the weekends, so you know you want to, and a defender drives much better than an old series and will put a smile on your face.

**** practicality, buy a vehicle you WANT TO DRIVE!

Cheers - Gav

**debruiser** · 20th February 2013, 07:40 PM

Hey Gav,

I realise that you only see the worst of the worst on these sorts of sites.... that's why I put the word out trying to get a feeler for how many people out there HAVN"T had trouble and LOVE their ride.

How about models... I know a little about the Series land rovers but not as much about the defers. Is there much differnce between say a 2010 and 2012? or 2013? would it be ok to look at an older model? say 2001-2009?

**loanrangie** · 20th February 2013, 08:02 PM

90's are thin on the ground so just get what fits the budget and condition .

**debruiser** · 20th February 2013, 08:29 PM

Yea I noticed that there doesnt' seem to be too many for sale... is there a reason for that? ie. they dont sell many for some reason?

**Cobber** · 20th February 2013, 08:50 PM

Originally Posted by bacicat

**** practicality, buy a vehicle you WANT TO DRIVE!

I echo this 110%

Originally Posted by debruiser

would it be ok to look at an older model? say 2001-2009?

Of course it would. You might have $40-50k to play with, but try looking between $30-40k - you will find some absolute gems in this range. When you do you'll have some spare cash for upgrades too

Older cars are ok, ask for service history. Obviously lower Kms is more desirable but even cars with 200000kms (which is probably about average for a ten year old vehicle?) that have been looked after might be worth a look.

Good luck!

**Psimpson7** · 20th February 2013, 08:56 PM

Remember 90's were only officially available here in:

2003-5 - td5

2010-11 - 2.4 tdci

11-current - 2.2 tdci

**Homestar** · 20th February 2013, 09:05 PM

If your worried about a new one, then what abount an older Isuzu County? - they can still be found from time to time in good nick, and still command a decent dollar, but you would have something that doesn't rely on electronics...

**debruiser** · 20th February 2013, 09:06 PM

PSimpson7 just looked at your D90! Even before the "Things getting out of hand" bit I'd love that.... Don't think i'll be needing 2 winches though....

Cobber - No I don't really have money to play with... otherwise I would never have bought the S3... would have got a new Defer in the 1st place... but that was before I realised that the ranger was getting iffy..... So cheaper is better for me, but I don't want to trade one problem for another... if you know what I mean

**Homestar** · 20th February 2013, 09:08 PM

Originally Posted by debruiser

Yea I noticed that there doesnt' seem to be too many for sale... is there a reason for that? ie. they dont sell many for some reason?

I found it hard to get one new - we looked at one for SWMBO. Not sure if they have issues, I was told by the dealer that they were popular and when any stock came in they usually sold fairly quickly.

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