Thread: New Landy - Disco or Defender

Originally Posted by cripesamighty

Depending on how you crunch the numbers, have you thought about a petrol (V6 or V8) Disco instead of the TDV6? There are a few threads on AULRO that compare both and it might be another option.

Im by no means a car expert but from my understanding when it comes to very high K's (150k+) Diesel engines last a lot longer than petrol ones don't they? (Presuming the car is regularly maintained)

Also, there are no Petrol D4's in my price range at all. In fact I can only see 1 listed on car sales in all of Australia!

First thought I have is , if you have to ask then you are not ready for a Defender

It looks like you are looking at recent models and if that is correct make sure you get one with some useable remaining warranty.

D4 is a modern vehicle - aircon works and much like a car to drive.
Early 2000's Defender is a dinosaur. Hot, noisy, likely leaks, and drives like a real 4WD.

I don't think you can get a real appreciation of what a Defender is like until you own one, but since you're already driving a Freelander you know what a modern vehicle is like.
Buy a Defender, experience it, then if you don't like it sell it and buy a D4. If you buy well you're unlikely to lose much on the sale if it happens.
If you buy a D4 straight up you're always going to think "what if I'd bought a Defender"

BTW - a 20min commute is neither here or there in either vehicle IMO. Once you get over about 30mins (my commute is 45-75mins) with stop-start traffic then an auto is much more pleasant.

Steve

The old conventional wisdom about the longevity of diesel vs petrol engines doesn't really hold true anymore. Modern diesels are now very sophisticated, highly stressed engines and really if anything the opposite is now true - in light vehicles anyway.

If you find driving old vehicles fun, then a Defender is for you. The Disco is a brilliant vehicle and was a joy to own, but there is a simple pleasure I get from driving the Defender that's like no other vehicle I've owned.

A well maintained D4 with 120k on the clock would be a good thing to buy. A poorly maintained one with 180k would be a disaster. If you are on a tight budget maintenance will be the issue. A D4 is not expensive to maintain for what it is, but it is a sophisticated, luxury vehicle so you need to be prepared to look after it. At that age I'd say the biggest issues are replacing shock absorbers, servicing the transmission and maybe lower control arms. There is a lot of good information in the D3/D4/RRS section and some very knowledgeable people frequent it, so do some reading in there.

It's been a long time since I've had a Td5 so can't comment on problems with it as it has aged. I did like it as an engine though, it was a nice drive. Have a look in the D2 section as that's where most of the Td5s went. The rest of the Defender is very simple and simple to maintain but at that age I would expect to have a few wear related problems such as suspension bushes. You'll need to spend a bit of time fettling it. Again, it really all comes down to the condition of the individual vehicle.

A big hidden cost of Defender ownership is you'll be constantly wanting to buy stuff to bolt onto it - don't ever look at the Mud Stuff website in the UK. I've spent far more on my Defender than any previous Disco in this respect and I've still got a long way to go.

Cheers,
Jon

Originally Posted by steveG

Buy a Defender, experience it, then if you don't like it sell it and buy a D4. If you buy well you're unlikely to lose much on the sale if it happens.
If you buy a D4 straight up you're always going to think "what if I'd bought a Defender"

Wise words, sometimes its an itch you just have to scratch. It was for me, but I got thoroughly hooked.

Cheers,
Jon

Why a D4?
Why not a D3 with good service history & lots of extras.
The D3 is not as flash inside as a D4 but that can be a good thing if you are using it for camping.
A D3 has Ex A/C, is great to drive anywhere, very, very capable off the black top & pretty good on it.
The TDV6 has a bit of turbo lag but will sit on 110kph all day (or a bit more) & you won't get a sore bum.
Just a thought.
Jonesfam

My thoughts are similar to Jonesfam. Since you won't doing anything too strenuous with it (relatively speaking), you could get a cracker D3 (petrol or diesel) with really low Km's for that sort of money. A quick look on carsales shows at least half a dozen petrol and diesel D3's for sale with between 70,000 to 100,000km for sale in your price range. Worth a thought.

Firstly can I thank everyone for your replies so far! Amazing input with lots of good info and genuine opinions, way better than I expected!

Originally Posted by steveG

Buy a Defender, experience it, then if you don't like it sell it and buy a D4. If you buy well you're unlikely to lose much on the sale if it happens.
If you buy a D4 straight up you're always going to think "what if I'd bought a Defender"
Steve

The more I look at my options the more I am leaning this way!

Originally Posted by jon3950

A big hidden cost of Defender ownership is you'll be constantly wanting to buy stuff to bolt onto it - don't ever look at the Mud Stuff website in the UK. I've spent far more on my Defender than any previous Disco in this respect and I've still got a long way to go.

I think regardless of what I choose im going to get trigger happy on accessories.....but spending money on mods is much more fun than repairs

Originally Posted by jonesfam

Why a D4?
Why not a D3 with good service history & lots of extras.
Jonesfam

Originally Posted by cripesamighty

My thoughts are similar to Jonesfam. Since you won't doing anything too strenuous with it (relatively speaking), you could get a cracker D3 (petrol or diesel) with really low Km's for that sort of money. A quick look on carsales shows at least half a dozen petrol and diesel D3's for sale with between 70,000 to 100,000km for sale in your price range. Worth a thought.

I have considered the petrol versions due to buy price, but setting everything else aside and solely looking at the 'fuel cost per 1000k's' (which may be a ludicrous way to evaluate 'running costs') driving 20k's a year is an additional $1,900 a year in fuel alone.....which is a decent amount over a few years!