L322 Ability Off Road

Hi, could i just ask, what is wrong with the TDV8?

I'm either going L322 leased via work (second hand) or P38 outright with own funds soon, ive been thinking the TDV6 might be underpowered, but im open to actual owners opinions.

I do plan on going to some tough places with which ever RR i get, to be honest though ive been studying P38s for over 12mths now, been close to handing over cash twice, but im still a bit nervous about them, love the way they look, feel and drive but...heart says yes, brain says no lol.

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Originally Posted by Fish78

Hi, could i just ask, what is wrong with the TDV8?

I'm either going L322 leased via work (second hand) or P38 outright with own funds soon, ive been thinking the TDV6 might be underpowered, but im open to actual owners opinions.

I do plan on going to some tough places with which ever RR i get, to be honest though ive been studying P38s for over 12mths now, been close to handing over cash twice, but im still a bit nervous about them, love the way they look, feel and drive but...heart says yes, brain says no lol.

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If you are actually going to seriously use the L322 off road you will need to do something with those exhausts and the spare tire, i hate the way they look under the rear end, all exposed to damage as far as i can see.
The P38 on the other had as you say is a nice drive and very comfy and when you consider the entry price of the new Vs the old model the P38 comes out a winner i think. If money is not an option i would get the L322 though.
Stock rims(16") are the go on a price/range basis yep Land rover are just pimping their cars up to appeal to the masses now as well, If it looks good it must have capability, not always practical and often doesnt work.
Just look at all the bits available for TOJO`s at ARB.
Most of that stuff is shiny and MIGHT get used once a year, i have followed TOJO`s into pretty rough terrain in my stock standard P38 and come out with no problems.
Sure good tires for the terrain you are entering are important, but there is no substitute for drive skill/experience.

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Originally Posted by Fish78

Hi, could i just ask, what is wrong with the TDV8?

I'm either going L322 leased via work (second hand) or P38 outright with own funds soon, ive been thinking the TDV6 might be underpowered, but im open to actual owners opinions.

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As far as I know the L322 never had the TDV6 which is in the RRS and Discovery. I think you are thinking of the TD6 which was only in the RR. The TD6 is not as powerful or have as much torque as the TDV6 (either the 2.7 or 3litre)

There is nothing wrong with a RR TDV8 but as this replaced the TD6 in the RR (2006/7) it is far more expensive in the used car market. However as mentioned there were some serious upgrades at that time that some think were downgrades as far as the car overall was concerned.

Garry

Garry

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Originally Posted by Fish78

ive been studying P38s for over 12mths now, been close to handing over cash twice, but im still a bit nervous about them, love the way they look, feel and drive but...heart says yes, brain says no lol.

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I don't think you are alone there. :confused: :D

There is nothing wrong with the Td6,TDV6 or TDV8,it's the 19-20'' rims that they have which is the problem.Only LR would make the best offroad vehicles in the world and then completely ruin that ability by then fitting them with boy racer rims/tyres. Pat

Having now owned every version of the RR, taken a stock 2009 patrol and cruiser sahara off road too, my opinion is that, stock, Range Rovers are the best performers of the lot. The P38A is the best of the three generations, followed by the classic, then the L322 last. I have the V8, so can;t vouvh for the performance of that. You can't get away from the fact that RAngies have softened over the years. It's a inevitable trade off between on road and off road performance, it's physics. While the differential decreases over time, it is obvious having taken all three genreations both on and off road that this where the vehicle is going. If you want to increase your clearance, you can buy a system that wires in the cruise control system which can be independently adjusted at all four corners and will give you another 30mm I think above the highest factory setting setting. That and a set of A/T's / Muddies on a spare set of rims would probably be all you'd want to do to and L322 - if you want a serious off roader, get something older that you can mod and thrash.

Some further questions:

On the L322 TD6, what suspension settings are there - e.g. does it have Access Height; normal Height and Off Road height (like the Rangie Sport and the D3)?

If it has it, what is the off road height?

Also does the TD6 have the extended mode like the Rangie Sport and D3 when it bottoms out?

Lastly did the TD6 L322 have an e Diff option or similar?

No an L322 expert, but have a 2003 TD6, and yes it has 3 ride heights + a very low entry/access height. I reckon it has:
- very low for entry/egress
- low for highway over 80 KM/h
- normal
- High for offroad

No idea if there is a super high once you get stuck, as I've never had it that stuck to find out! Probably has it though as the FFRR is always the leader of the pack for innovation, which then flows down to Disco etc.

Not ever heard of a eDiff on L322, at least of my vintage. It's all done with traction control.

HTH
David

Access = 1820mm (5ft 11.7")
Motorway = 1840mm (6ft 0.4")
Standard = 1863mm (6ft 1.3")
Off road = 1913mm (6ft 3.3")

Not sure how this equates to ground clearance. I know there is a beached recovery mode, this adds another 30mm to off road. Apologies for the inconsistent measurements - this is plagarised from landyzone.co.uk

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Originally Posted by RR P38

If you are actually going to seriously use the L322 off road you will need to do something with those exhausts and the spare tire, i hate the way they look under the rear end, all exposed to damage as far as i can see.

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Hey?? The spare tyre for L322 is in the boot - and the exhaust is not visible from behind other than the pipe tips. I assume you’re thinking of Range Rover Sport.

Comments about the staying away from the TDV8 actually refer to MY06 and later, the first of these (diesel variants) actually have the TD6 engine, petrol variants have the Jag V8 and 6 speed auto.
1. Prior to MY06 the L322 can take 18” wheels, MY06 on are 19 or 20 depending on brake spec.
2. The front end was updated and there aren’t any 4x4 accessories available for the later model (winch bar ect)

There is no e-diff in the earlier L322

According to the shop manual the suspension does have a Super High setting that is automatically selected when the vehicle decides it is stuck. Something along the lines of no forward (or reverse) motion and reduced weight detected (via individual suspension pressure and height) on some wheels, with some complicated algorithm… Like Highway mode, This height is not selectable by the driver but can be activated by TestBook (or similar) and will return to Off Road height as soon as forward motion is detected.

Highway mode (height) is automatic after 30 sec at 100+km/h.

Given the P38a runs on 16 wheels, has a shorter wheelbase and is considerably lighter it has to get a big tick on it’s side…