Thread: Next tow vehicle after sdv6 D4

My 2c worth having gone from D4 to L663 recently

Barn door is fine with me as reaching over the drop down D4 for load carrying was a pain
Fitting out the D4 for touring - the 3rd row seats we never used and were a waste of space and weight
L663 has useful space under the cargo floor for my battery and inverter
Spare wheel under the car in the D4 compromised cargo space fitout for access to that horrible wind down thing - which failed and was only used twice in 5 years.
L663 2nd row seats fold completely flat giving a huge, flat cargo space
We tow a 5m boat which either vehicle hardly know it's on the back
Not denying the D4 was a superb touring and offroad vehicle we are finding the Defender a notch better.

Originally Posted by scarry

As for the rear door on the new Defender,many complain about it as well.
An option for a split tailgate would have been a great idea,but no such luck,probably too difficult to do.
Having the spare hanging off the rear,one would think a larger fuel tank would be the go,if not the 110, maybe the 130,anyway,as with the European trend,it is still smallish.

Cant really complain on the rear door of L663, its well balanced, you can open or close it with a soft push, it stays where you leave it, and the soft close is also nice, no need to slam it at all. The reverse camera is well calibrated so you can reverse into a bay and using the first marker, still open the door if needed, if you need to back in more, the second marker on the screeen lets you know the minimum to avoid hitting thr tyre cover. Would a split door work? Horizontally split no, but a vertical split with the spare mounted off centre to the passenger side, with the option to fit a second on the other door, now theres an idea...

You can sit on the fold out board no problem. I have many times. I reckon you could stand on it too but you'd have to be < 1m tall due to the tail gate.

Originally Posted by Eric SDV6SE

The D5 has a single lift up tailgate and a little fold up end board, that you cant sit or stand on..............

Originally Posted by SimmAus

A quick summary of these posts so far:
The D4 provided most of what people wanted

So, the question:
Why did you change and do you regret it?

I’m holding onto my D4 for dear life. Not complaining about maintenance, actively looking to stay ahead of anything that may break. Understanding that a few $k in maintenance (that I luckily can afford) is cheaper than the depreciation on a $140k new vehicle.

I also appreciate that the above story has been replayed since the very first vehicle produced…but I’m interested in other’s opinions on the change.

This is where I am at, trade the perfect D4 because its 10 years old, all be it well serviced and so far, touch wood, faultless , or keep and repair as requireds
But the real question is trade to what?
200 cruiser, to expensive, thirsty and in reality no more reliable than a good Disco
300 cruiser, good power, good economy, would be good on road and excellent off road, the flex in them is exceptional but new and unproven so given Toyota's and new models, pass
Grenadier, just to many issues and faults, no service manuals as promised and stuff all service / dealer network
Defender, take a punt on another LR, possible nightmare, possibly the best car ever, guaranteed huge depreciation
Range Rover V8 diesel, second hand not new, low load capacity, stuff all aftermarket gear like bar work, long range tanks etc

Originally Posted by discomatt69

This is where I am at, trade the perfect D4 because its 10 years old, all be it well serviced and so far, touch wood, faultless , or keep and repair as requireds
But the real question is trade to what?
200 cruiser, to expensive, thirsty and in reality no more reliable than a good Disco
300 cruiser, good power, good economy, would be good on road and excellent off road, the flex in them is exceptional but new and unproven so given Toyota's and new models, pass
Grenadier, just to many issues and faults, no service manuals as promised and stuff all service / dealer network
Defender, take a punt on another LR, possible nightmare, possibly the best car ever, guaranteed huge depreciation
Range Rover V8 diesel, second hand not new, low load capacity, stuff all aftermarket gear like bar work, long range tanks etc

Had the D4(2.7L),for almost 10 yrs,and the LC200 for almost 4.
Fuel economy for both is almost exactly the same,yet the 200 is faster,heavier,and has a heap more torque.Not that were are particularly fixated on fuel economy like some,but both vehicles were/are company owned so all fuel and mileage are logged.We don’t tow,but do often run fully loaded.The 3L and 8speed would be better on fuel as it is lighter and possibly quicker, at a guess.
Reliability wise,the D4 had 11 issues during the warranty period,and issues continued out of warranty.
The LC,not a single issue,and it has done almost 50% more Ks a year than the D4 did.
And a heap of off road work.
But agree,second hand prices are absolutely rediculous,I would rather pay more and get a 300,but I would miss the rear tailgate setup,it is so handy,particularly for touring,camping,etc.
Looking at the forums,thev300 has very few issues,particularly if you look at the huge nunber being sold,compared to say Defender.
Anyway,as I have said before each to their own,everyone has different needs.

I heard the 300's were having trouble making the service intervals.... yoyata's solution was "add oil"....

claims fuel economy is the same or almost the same between the 200 and a D3 or 4 are open to perception and interpretation
Our last big trip was with friends who own a 200 and exactly same van as ours, both cars have pretty much same mods except I run a bigger tire, he runs standard size
over 16000km I averaged 14.7. he averaged low 18's and up to low 20's at times, ours never went above 18's

yep small difference where perception and interpretation comes in, 2 , 3 or 4l per 100 isn't much, over a 16000km trip its a significant difference, over a years driving a big difference, over the life of the vehicle a huge difference

Whilst discussing the last trip I will also mention we did a fair amount of rough dirt roads and a very small amount of 4wding, the Disco didn't have one issue or fault, the 200 sat in a caravan park in Geraldton for a week which included 2 days at the Toyota dealer for a ABS / TC fault which they couldn't fix in their available time frame, a independent and recommended auto elec found a broken cable in the front loom that runs between the wheel hub speed sensor and the main loom in half an hour