Long term cost of ownership :Discover 4 vs Prado

I don't have a D4 but do have a D3. you asked about the long term costs well this is mine, We purchased the car 2nd hand with about 45,000ks from memory and had no history but was bought from a L/R independent so assumed it was checked out by them.
Bought the car in SA and towed our camper to Vic then up to Darwin. Since then it now has 120,000ks.


Only part that has failed is the rear tailgate latch.
Replaced the gearbox oil and pan
Replaced the front lower arms
Bought a code reader for fault finding.


I service and maintain the car myself, and the gearbox and lower arms were done as preventative maintainence. The car is a daily driver but has also towed our camper trailer all over the country.


If the D4 is an improvement on the D3 then its some car cause I cant fault ours.


Cheers Ean

Did anyone see Jeremy Clarkson's review of the Prado in today's Weekend Oz? I know he has his faults and silly opinions but he can be very amusing on a rant, especially when the object is the 3 litre diesel Prado.B)

No. But this is funny...Clarkson reviews the 2014 landcruiser


...And that’s just the start of it. The steering wheel appears to be connected to the actual wheels by something made out of rubber bands and safety pins. And the brakes? At first you think nothing is happening at all, so you stand on the pedal with all your might, and then it feels as though so much energy is being used that the planet is shifting slightly in its orbit around the sun.

And now we must address the biggest problem of them all: the complete lack of comfort. A switch is provided — near the glovebox, obviously — that changes the suspension from Sport (that’s a laugh) to Auto and Normal, but in all three positions the result is the same. Deep discomfort and a sense the chassis is flexing every time you go over a pothole. You don’t drive this car. It lurches along and you sit there saying, “Ow.”...

...Yes, a Range Rover is expensive, and the current model is fitted with a security system that seemingly allows it to be stolen by anyone with a lollipop stick and five minutes to kill.

So by all means buy the half-price Land Cruiser instead. Certainly it’s extremely likely still to be on your drive in the morning. Unfortunately.
Clarkson’s verdict ★☆☆☆☆

I wouldn’t wish it on Isis...


The Clarkson review: Toyota Land Cruiser (2014) | Driving.co.uk

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Originally Posted by Bandi1950

I have always had land rovers but did have a look around at Prado's and LC200's before I bought my D4 to see if the Toyota product could win me over. Although the LC200 is no bigger than the D4 it felt very big and you did not get a lot of fruit for your money. Was not too keen on the 3l diesel in the Prado after the motor in my work Hilux self destructed at only 140,000km. approx. $10000
The D4 has done 120,000km with no problems so far. Only additional items outside of normal servicing have been a transmission sump and oil change and pads a set of brake pads. First 104,000km was free servicing and since then have serviced myself.

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Has anyone actually got a tape measure and measured the internal widths of the 200s and the D3/4 and compared them? A comparison of the 1st, 2nd row seating and then the cargo width, depth, height?
I still find it hard to believe that the disco's have more cargo space area than the lc200.

Then there's ground clearance comparisons. I realise the lc200 at the front is pretty poor but taller tyres/suspension can rectify that.
When the D3/4's are fully loaded for demoted touring, with them being all independent suspension do they keep the height as when unloaded? What's the tallest tyre that u can fit to them?
The only reason I asked this is because I've driven some outback roads where the middle section is quite high from built up rocks, etc and any vehicles that don't have good ground clearance or good underbody protection 'could' eventually suffer from some damage under their vehicles......

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Robmacca

When the D3/4's are fully loaded for demoted touring, with them being all independent suspension do they keep the height as when unloaded?
The only reason I asked this is because I've driven some outback roads where the middle section is quite high from built up rocks, etc and any vehicles that don't have good ground clearance or good underbody protection 'could' eventually suffer from some damage under their vehicles......

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The air suspension keeps the vehicle at the same height regardless of weight.

As for the high crowns on outback roads, LLAMS was developed specifically to overcome this issue. LLAMS can raise the vehicle's standard height by 30mm or 50/55mm, as selected by the driver and cancelled at any time. LLAMS has some other features too.

That's good to know.... How reliable is it (ie leaking, etc) and is it well protected from any flying stones/rocks at all ??

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Graeme

The air suspension keeps the vehicle at the same height regardless of weight.

As for the high crowns on outback roads, LLAMS was developed specifically to overcome this issue. LLAMS can raise the vehicle's standard height by 30mm or 50/55mm, as selected by the driver and cancelled at any time. LLAMS has some other features too.

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The air lines are generally well protected. The biggest issue probably has been earlier versions of the compressor that have sometimes failed seemingly prematurely, often due to a clogged air dryer not being replaced in time to avoid wearing out the compressor.

The vehicles have a 50/55mm raised off-road height but the suspension lowers to its normal height at 50 kph making for slow travel on high crown roads without a method to keep the suspension raised above this speed. Fitting LLAMS is one method, shorter or multi-hole height sensor link rods is another.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Greatsouthernland

No. But this is funny...Clarkson reviews the 2014 landcruiser


...And that’s just the start of it. The steering wheel appears to be connected to the actual wheels by something made out of rubber bands and safety pins. And the brakes? At first you think nothing is happening at all, so you stand on the pedal with all your might, and then it feels as though so much energy is being used that the planet is shifting slightly in its orbit around the sun.

And now we must address the biggest problem of them all: the complete lack of comfort. A switch is provided — near the glovebox, obviously — that changes the suspension from Sport (that’s a laugh) to Auto and Normal, but in all three positions the result is the same. Deep discomfort and a sense the chassis is flexing every time you go over a pothole. You don’t drive this car. It lurches along and you sit there saying, “Ow.”...

...Yes, a Range Rover is expensive, and the current model is fitted with a security system that seemingly allows it to be stolen by anyone with a lollipop stick and five minutes to kill.

So by all means buy the half-price Land Cruiser instead. Certainly it’s extremely likely still to be on your drive in the morning. Unfortunately.
Clarkson’s verdict ★☆☆☆☆

I wouldn’t wish it on Isis...


The Clarkson review: Toyota Land Cruiser (2014) | Driving.co.uk

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Hahaha oh god he has a way with words and i love it!!

This is another example of how over priced Toyota's re in Australia (and just about everything else). The fact that LC200 can be half the price of a "similar" spec LR product in the UK shows this. A local RR Vogue is 180k- Toyota Sahara is 120K.

The comparison with the Range Rover makes the price difference seem a lot but if you compare the UK price of the top of the range LC200 with the D4 HSE Luxury there is not much in it.

I know which i'd prefer!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by lpj

A local RR Vogue is 180k- Toyota Sahara is 120K.

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These are in a different class of vehicle - a Toyota Sahara is the equivalent of a Disco 4 HSE. If you want a comparable class as the RR Vogue then you go to the Lexus LX 570 - just a little cheaper than a fully fat RR.

We need to compare apples with apples.

Generally speaking the equivalent LC product has a similar price to the LR product - shows up the value for money of LR.

Though the LC 200 Sahara does have a lot of fruit - some of annoyingly so - it constantly gongs and cherps which drives you up the wall. Beside the size of the fuel tanks the other great accessory in the Sahara is the huge fridge in the console - three times the size of the LR offering and works really well - uses the A/c system not the cheap thermo-electric system LR uses.

Garry