Landy Defender 90 at about £5-7K... what could go wrong?

[Kaelic]

So pondering a Defender 90 as a truck and weekend toy for outdoor type stuff.

Looking at spending £5-7K

Couple I have looked at are 30 year old dogs painted in hammerite with all sorts of rubbish bolted on.

Am I really onto a hiding buying one? Or do I need to raise my budget significantly?

Only want it as a car to haul kit and people around to events so max 4 passengers, and use it off road now and again (fields not like rock crawling) but need a tough truck which can be abused some and still be able to take me home after the weekend.

I know the chasis can rot big time but if I get a galvanised one it should be ok shouldn't it?

Would get another Cherokee but I have the need for a Defender in my life for a couple of years!

[kinghottinger]

You'd be better off posting this in the Land Rover section, but as a general rule, anything and everything can be fixed on them, and for 7k you should be getting better examples than 30 year old dogs.

[bobtail4x4]

the hardest part is keeping hold of them,

certain sections of the populace like to nick them,
good luck finding a nice one with galv chassis for £5k

[lostkiwi]

Just sold my 300TDi converted '92 110 with a galv chassis for £6k.
It was a bit tatty in places but was generally in good fettle and been reliable (most reliable car in the house aside from the 14 plate Cooper S).

They are out there but be prepared to hunt around and also be prepared to do some work on one to get it up to scratch.

[stichill99]

Watch out for the oil leak from the wiring loom that runs through the engine cover. The oil leaks down the loom to the ecu which is below the drivers seat and can render it useless. Very common fault!

[nyt]

How about ex-MOD?
They are very well maintained if you can live with a sparse interior and mud-green paint

http://www.mod-sales.com/direct/vehicle/,25,/73313...

[mcbook]

Do you have your heart set on a Defender? I think they're pretty cool but don't think I could pay that kind of money for one when you can get a far more modern pick-up like the Mitsubishi L200 for the same money.

Here's a 2008 model (120k miles) for £5,500
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2008-MITSUBISHI-L200-WAR...

Would you really rather have a 20 year old Defender?

[Cfnteabag]

stichill99 said:

Watch out for the oil leak from the wiring loom that runs through the engine cover. The oil leaks down the loom to the ecu which is below the drivers seat and can render it useless. Very common fault!

only on the TD5 models, the earlier models dont have any nonsense like ECU's!(except the EGR ECU on 300TDI's but we wont mention that!)

Most common issues are rust and corrosion. plus the theft issue.

plenty around for that price level, consider a 110 as a 90 is really quite small inside especially if you have forward facing seats in the back. even the 110 isnt as big as you would expect on the outside, mine is shorter than my wife's V70.

[Charlie1986]

nyt said:

How about ex-MOD?
They are very well maintained if you can live with a sparse interior and mud-green paint

http://www.mod-sales.com/direct/vehicle/,25,/73313...

Haha Well maintained except from hammered form start and generally abused for its entire life. Then look at the suspension faults on vehicles that have been Fit for Radioed (FFR) as a full rack on one side can weigh up to 850kg. I've seen many rolled on the side with damaged wheels suspension then driven back to camp.

No matter what the fault you did not want to be recovered if you were in a MT troop

[300bhp/ton]

Kaelic said:

So pondering a Defender 90 as a truck and weekend toy for outdoor type stuff.

Looking at spending £5-7K

Couple I have looked at are 30 year old dogs painted in hammerite with all sorts of rubbish bolted on.

Am I really onto a hiding buying one? Or do I need to raise my budget significantly?

Only want it as a car to haul kit and people around to events so max 4 passengers, and use it off road now and again (fields not like rock crawling) but need a tough truck which can be abused some and still be able to take me home after the weekend.

I know the chasis can rot big time but if I get a galvanised one it should be ok shouldn't it?

Would get another Cherokee but I have the need for a Defender in my life for a couple of years!

Defenders are easy to maintain as everything is replaceable on them. Buying newer or more expensive won't guarantee a better vehicle. Condition is key.

Trouble is, the Defender has suddenly become the shiny trinket for the rich and stupid. So plenty of massively over priced ones and ones tarted up to be something they aren't.


Don't get me wrong - I love Defenders. My first car was a 300Tdi 90

But unless you really need the compact size of a 90 or the seating ability of a 110. Then you are way better off buying a Discovery or Range Rover.


A Discovery 1 is 90% the same as a Defender. Only differences are wheelbase, body style and interior for the most part. It'll do anything a Defender will, but do it in more comfort and for a much lower entry price.

[300bhp/ton]

stichill99 said:

Watch out for the oil leak from the wiring loom that runs through the engine cover. The oil leaks down the loom to the ecu which is below the drivers seat and can render it useless. Very common fault!

Well no, not very common at all. Seeing as it only affected the Td5 and then not all Td5's. It's also a very easy fix as a rule.

[300bhp/ton]

nyt said:

How about ex-MOD?
They are very well maintained if you can live with a sparse interior and mud-green paint

http://www.mod-sales.com/direct/vehicle/,25,/73313...

Well maintained yes, although most have had a hard life. But ex-MoD offerings are usually very expensive for what you actually get. Not saying you shouldn't, but you should research first and really work out the total budget for getting it the way you want.

The ones you've linked too is a spartan full tilt vehicles with no power steering and a 67bhp 2.5NAD motor. A far cry from a Td5 county station wagon.

[300bhp/ton]

mcbook said:

Do you have your heart set on a Defender? I think they're pretty cool but don't think I could pay that kind of money for one when you can get a far more modern pick-up like the Mitsubishi L200 for the same money.

Here's a 2008 model (120k miles) for £5,500
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2008-MITSUBISHI-L200-WAR...

Would you really rather have a 20 year old Defender?

I quite like the modern Jap trucks. Not sure they are really any better though. Most use leaf rear suspension vs the coil springs the Defender uses and all are generally far inferior off road and often have lower tow ratings too.

Defenders are also 4wd all the time with a locking centre diff, while most Jap trucks can only run 2wd on the road.

There might be a big difference in registration plate age, and maybe even interior (Jap trucks are often car like inside). But from a dynamic point of view they are often inferior in a capability sense.

[Kaelic]

Cheers guys

Considered the L200 also as its a pretty good platform for what I want it for, just the offroad capabilites are a question for me and if it's any good.
But yes its more car-like inside etc...

I love the idea of the defender, being able to upgrade bits as an when I need to and not having to worry about over complex systems, as I say this will be a weekend truck and not something I will have to rely on, except when I am down in the hills trying to get home after a knackering weekend!

[mcbook]

300bhp/ton said:

I quite like the modern Jap trucks. Not sure they are really any better though. Most use leaf rear suspension vs the coil springs the Defender uses and all are generally far inferior off road and often have lower tow ratings too.

Defenders are also 4wd all the time with a locking centre diff, while most Jap trucks can only run 2wd on the road.

There might be a big difference in registration plate age, and maybe even interior (Jap trucks are often car like inside). But from a dynamic point of view they are often inferior in a capability sense.

Yeh, I don't doubt the defender is better off-road but judging from the number of L200s (and the like) I see being driven by farmers, they can't be too bad for pottering around the fields.

I drove a mate's L200 a while back and was surprised at how 'agricultural' it was. But if it was my money I'd still have it over a much older Defender. However, if you must scratch the itch...

[DonkeyApple]

mcbook said:

Do you have your heart set on a Defender? I think they're pretty cool but don't think I could pay that kind of money for one when you can get a far more modern pick-up like the Mitsubishi L200 for the same money.

Here's a 2008 model (120k miles) for £5,500
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2008-MITSUBISHI-L200-WAR...

Would you really rather have a 20 year old Defender?

I'd rather staple my testicles to a passing bus.

[LordJammy]

nyt said:

How about ex-MOD?
They are very well maintained if you can live with a sparse interior and mud-green paint

http://www.mod-sales.com/direct/vehicle/,25,/73313...

My Dad has one, 1986 90. It's not needed anything at all in 3 years.

[300bhp/ton]

mcbook said:

Yeh, I don't doubt the defender is better off-road but judging from the number of L200s (and the like) I see being driven by farmers, they can't be too bad for pottering around the fields.

I drove a mate's L200 a while back and was surprised at how 'agricultural' it was. But if it was my money I'd still have it over a much older Defender. However, if you must scratch the itch...

Coming from a farming background I think many of the Jap trucks fall well short. However pricing can and does influence people and not too mention people are often very sheep like and simply follow the flock.