Thread: Touring 4wd, what would you buy?

Originally Posted by Disco_owner

mmmm , if I had a few hundred thou lying around , I would buy a descent property and build a massive shed with a hoist , air tools etc etc, and convert my Rangie to Isuzu 4bd1T with LT95 and other military hardened components , custom build rear shelf by your truely , Rooftop tent . lockers , and have so much more satisfaction in building it than buying anything off the shelf.

That hasn't worked for me. They're all full of hay and junk.

My Idea of the ultimate tourer would be a duel cab chop on a RRC sitting on a 130 chassis with a Tray. Portaled Nissan diffs and 4BDI T with a Isuzu truck gear box.

Tony

Originally Posted by Rangier Rover

That hasn't worked for me. They're all full of hay and junk.

My Idea of the ultimate tourer would be a duel cab chop on a RRC sitting on a 130 chassis with a Tray. Portaled Nissan diffs and 4BDI T with a Isuzu truck gear box.

Tony

I know what you mean ,you'll have to clear out some of the stuff that you're hording and don't need , like the complete disco sitting in the shed

Originally Posted by drivesafe

Sclarke, what do you base this crap on. Honestly, I’m so fed up with people carrying on about how unreliable modern vehicle electronics are but what is this based on, cause it sure as hell is not based on fact.

This is like the crap that you should only jump start modern vehicles using spike suppression jumper leads or you could blow up the vehicle’s computer.

Now consider the fact that hundreds of thousands of people have jump started new vehicles with ordinary jumper leads, where are all the stuffed computers.

Like the fictitious need to use ONLY suppressed jumper leads, sorry sclarke but your sort of statement is based on nothing more than ignorance and/or jealousy because modern automotive electronics is far more likely to warn you of pending problems before it happens, rather than with older vehicles where you know you have a problem because it’s already BROKE.

As for the Money-is-no-problem scenario, while I know the TDV8 RR would be by far the most comfortable 4x4 on and off road and would easily equal a D3 off road, to be completely realistic, the D3 has one MAJOR advantage over the RR and the one thing that would easily swing me in favour of the D3 over an RR and thats the fact the the D3 has a MUCH bigger cargo area.

The ultimate choice is a D3, it’s a no brainer and the are NO rice burners that would come near the D3 for choice.

Cars that rely on heavy electrics are fantastic, while theyre under warranty. Do you honestly think someone 50 years from now is going to pull a D3 out of a barn somewhere chuck a bit of fuel in give it a push and drive away. Ooops i forgot you cant clutch start them. The reason people are gun shy is because when something simple fails it costs mega bucks to fix it. And yes i've been there and done that. Well over a thousand bucks to diagnose and replace a five dollar crank angle sensor. I wil never understand the need for a high tech multiple ECU reliant engine in vehicles designed and advertised as expedition capable. I've got no problem with fancy gear in town cars but not in 4wds that are continually exposed to harsh environments. KISS exists for a reason.

Originally Posted by Mick-Kelly

Cars that rely on heavy electrics are fantastic, while theyre under warranty. Do you honestly think someone 50 years from now is going to pull a D3 out of a barn somewhere chuck a bit of fuel in give it a push and drive away. .........

50 years you are very optimistic say 15

Originally Posted by Mick-Kelly

Cars that rely on heavy electrics are fantastic, while theyre under warranty. Do you honestly think someone 50 years from now is going to pull a D3 out of a barn somewhere chuck a bit of fuel in give it a push and drive away.

What you can or can't do with a D3 in 50 years time is totally irrelevant to the question. If I'm still around in 50 years I'll be 106 and pulling D3s out of sheds will likely be low on my list of priorities! But I reckon you might just be surprised!

I'm interested in what I can tour with now. D3s are brilliant tourers and are demonstrating their reliability consistently. There are of course, breakdowns, like any other car. But I know of no D3 that has been abandoned in the Simpson desert because of the fabled catastrophic electronic failure we hear so much about. Yes I've heard of the one that drowned its computers and couldn't proceed, but at the depth it was in not much else would have survived either - not even a Nissan Patrol.

Really, we don't have any option. Cars are going more electronic. The LC 200 shows that even Toyota has had to go down that path, and Nissan is going that way too. Land Rover has a 15 year jump on them! And as all cars go electronic, either we are going to adapt and learn the new skills required, or we are going to get stuck in some time warp nursing along some great but aging Rangie/ Series Landie/ County/ Defender/ Disco. That might suit you and that's fine, but for a tourer for the general population it just doesn't work.

A good example of this is the forum I was on a few years ago when there were rumours that the new Rangie would have independent suspension. There were many posts bemoaning the lack of off road ability this would cause. People said they would never consider a 4WD without beam axles. But when the new Rangie came out with independent suspension it had far better offroad ability than the car it superseded.

So it is with electronics. Fears of 'catastrophic failures', usually based on the experience of early electronic cars, abound. But as time goes and systems settle down and issues get sorted the electronics get more reliable and they can do things that non electronic systems can't, and they become accepted as part of the norm, with the occasional breakdown seen as just another breakdown problem to be resolved.

The future is electronic. Get used to it or you will be stuck in a time warp nursing along an aging relic.

Willem

Originally Posted by willem

The future is electronic. Get used to it or you will be stuck in a time warp nursing along an aging relic.

Willem

and thats why in ten years countys will be selling for more than your D3. Some of us dont like a throw away society and want a vehicle that actually lasts. Not talking about 'reliability' all vehicles can and will break down. The simple truth is that a simple vehicle is much simpler (cheaper) to fix. I like electronics for purely comfort items but not for vital systems. Give me a simple engine, gearbox and live axles. Something that i can service at home and not void a warranty by touching something that isnt painted yellow.
And BTW i thought the whole idea of owning a land rover was 'nursing along an aging relic' perhaps you should have bought a Toyota.

Willem, the problem with electronics today, not in 5 or 50 years time is the cost of servising them in a remote area.
A pensioner or low income earner cannot take the vehicle to a dealer and pay $80 and hour.
A non electronic diesel vehicle it is cheap and easy to repair. To me the Perkins, old Isuzus, Toyotas, etc and also the Tdi 200/300 are the way to go and also are the more popular choice of vehicles by experienced explorers world wide. If in doubt about this claim, have a look on the international forums.
Cheers

I would have to say a D3, electrics dont scare me, plenty of mechanical problems can occur to more simpler vehicles that cant be repaired on the side of the road.

I would be a D3 TDV6 SE with Terrain Response and a E-locker and then buy a new off road camper trailer to compliment it.