Thread: Is the original 4wd now the best?

Doesnt anybody else think that 4wds have evolved beyond the word useful? I mean some of the 4wds are nice looking and very well appointed but my 3 will leave em for dead with ability, ok she may not ride that well or give u a comfy ride and if want aircon u have open the cowls, windows and back tailgate but isnt this the essence of a 4wd, we used to have a 94 Patrol, big motor at 4.2 7 seats but u had enuff room in the back for the family cat or a small bag so taking a trailer was essential if u didnt have racks,it still didnt drive that well and the economy was rotton and wasnt especially brilliant in the bush, I enjoy hunting so withthe landy I can pop the door tops off and have plenty of room to wave the old Lee Enfield around at the roos, it doesnt matter if I scratch the landy I wont cry over it, if it breaks down I generally get it going fairly quickly, whereas if u have a computor flake out or your EFI gives u drama out in the scrub u are done for, the current batch of 4wds look good on the suburban rodes and thats where most stay, I see plenty of Discos being used as shopping trolleys, who else thinks 4 wds have peaked and should Landy follow down the same path. Maybe I just dont like evolution, but far as crawling around the sticks of outback South Oz deserts or Cape York or toddling around the highways taking in the sights I am happy to do so in the old Antichrist, least I own it LOL!

That's almost $10,000 cheaper than a new Defender, which has no diff locks, etc etc. Pretty good value.

You're not alone, I thought they looked good on paper too. My only dislikes were the wheelbase a shade too long and it just doesn't quite look right, maybe it would grow on you though.

I guess it's all about economics, most people who buy 4wd's live in big cities and expect all the comfort fruit that comes in a 2wd so things like lokkers etc dont come into the equasion.

I think Jeep is unique in that they recognise they have a hard core following and produce a vehicle for them, wouldnt it be lovely if Landrover did the same and at a competitive price - all the off road fruit with enough comfort to get the missus / girlfriend in as well

Blythe

There's only one problem, the top of the range Rubicon isn't available in diesel only petrol.

Diesel CRDi is only available on the standard Wrangler.

Baz.

Ah a Darwin boy, my old trotting ground, my missus I admit doesnt like rocking and rolling in the landy but she understands the capabilities of it and sacrifces the comforts, its all part of the ride being thrown around and swimming through rivers upto the tops of the gaurds may god bless snorkels personally? u can swim around in the landy but she dries out, she has room to burm inside, I have own 2 jeeps both early 80s cherokees 1 was a 6 1 was a v8, these I think are some of the best 4wds made, handle like a car, go like a flamin rocket and good in the scrub with some comfort, old landys, patrols and cruisers are from a different era when they were built for a purpose and they fulfilled that purpose and still are 40 years later, think how many cureent plastic wonders will be giving faithfull service 40 years down the track, this is a funy topic its like the holden and ford camp.

Landyf.a.l., the Wrangers are, in theory, direct competitors to the Defender 90's, and IMHO they are the reason the D90 never went well here - you could get a more Series-like experience with a Jeep than with a Defender

With the long wheelbase Wrangler now available, it's a direct head-to-head. The Defender is a better load-hauler. The Wrangler (in Rubicon form) is probably (dare I say it) a more capable off-road machine out-of-the-box.

I own, and drive daily, a Series 3. I have a Jap 4wd for taking the family on trips, and I'll look seriously at the Wrangler, because I can either save $15,000 and get a diesel Jeep comparable to a Defender, or $5000 and get a petrol with all the off-road fruit a man could desire. And that's comparing apples with apples, without getting into how much you save compared to a Flandie!

In my opinion, Landrover should keep the Defender as far away from the Wrangler as possible. It was conceived as a utility vehicle and should remain such. The Wrangler is ONLY a recreation vehicle - can't tow much and can't carry much (even less with the roof down). From what I've seen too, the components are a notch below the design durability of the Defender, again due to the recreation bias.

The Toyota Troopie is and has always been the Defender's direct competitor. Until Landrover do something about matching Toyota's reliability and service support in rural areas, the Defender is a no-market offering which really only has us, emotional, hard-core nuts keeping it on sale at all.

The only way a D90 would ever really be considered as an alternative to a Wrangler is if they marketed a soft-top county spec. Even then I suspect people would still opt for the cheaper one.

You're right, though, the long wheelbase Wrangler just doesn't look quite right.