RE: Land Rover Defender production ceases
Discussion
harleywilma said:
Dont know what all the fuss is about,They drive like s
t and are really uncomfortable and made out of bean cans..
Totally unreliable ,Toyota landcruiser does the job better..
Think of it as less about a car and more about something that we might call British soul. Of course you know this already, and I'm not saying anything new.t and are really uncomfortable and made out of bean cans..Totally unreliable ,Toyota landcruiser does the job better..
I have to admit that I, too, have sometimes struggled with the fanatical devotion that some have for the Defender.
I might have chosen words different to yours, but my general opinion would be similar. I remember conversations with current and former Defender owners where you couldn't speak the truth about Japanese competitors, much less Jeeps and 4x4 pickups. It was like visiting a cult. Or talking with those people who insist that the moon landings were faked.
And, yes, I've driven one and I've been a passenger in several. And it's all very charming and with loads of character. Desirable for what it is. I simply felt that the affection was more of an affectation.
However... When viewed as an artifact of nationhood and culture... and perhaps that bit of shorthand that conjures the adventurism and enterprise of The Rhodes Colossus... Well, you had better believe that we're looking deep into the British soul.
Just my two cents.
jamespink said:
I cant help thinking that LR have missed most of the tricks in the book to have only sold 2M units in 68 years with almost no meaningful competition... 30,000 a year could easily have been quadrupled with timely redesigns. In truth this moment should have occurred in 1968...
I believe that the Wilkes brothers were unwilling to accept that expansion of capacity had to be where the government of the day directed them to go, rather than at Solihull where they already owned the space to expand, apart from the relatively small component factory established in South Wales. Such expansion as did occur in the late 1960s after the Rover company decided to merge with the Leyland group, was achieved by buying existing, second hand factories in Birmingham. These were certainly not purpose built. They resulted in a very inefficient production process scattered over multiple sites; but it did increase capacity from c30k to 50k units a year. In the early 1970s the order book stretched for c2 years. There was absolutely no product development of either the Land Rover or the Range Rover between 1973 and 1978. The policy seems to have been to avoid any possibility of disruption of production caused by the need to negotiate changes in working practices - a point once made to me by Spen King. More significant changes occurred after Land Rover was made a separate business within BL, including the 90 and 110 (later Defender), 4 dooor Range Rover and its push up market. But Land Rover Defender product development then appears to have stalled because of successive changes of ownership - BAe, BMW and Ford - which put greater priority on other products such as the Freelander. At least JLRs current Director of Engineering understands, or should understand, the product as he joined Land Rover c1983 and is now in pole position to ensure the eventual replacement will live up to expectations.harleywilma said:
Dont know what all the fuss is about,They drive like st and are really uncomfortable and made out of bean cans..
Totally unreliable ,Toyota landcruiser does the job better..
it's been in movies, wars, had jobs from ice cream vans , chauffeuring royals to a fire engine, ambulance and even dumper truck in its 67 year career and best of all its British! t and are really uncomfortable and made out of bean cans..Totally unreliable ,Toyota landcruiser does the job better..
Sure the Japanese were better in some respects but they don't/didn't have nearly the same soul/charm the defender has
sheepman said:
harleywilma said:
Dont know what all the fuss is about,They drive like st and are really uncomfortable and made out of bean cans..
Totally unreliable ,Toyota landcruiser does the job better..
it's been in movies, wars, had jobs from ice cream vans , chauffeuring royals to a fire engine, ambulance and even dumper truck in its 67 year career and best of all its British! t and are really uncomfortable and made out of bean cans..Totally unreliable ,Toyota landcruiser does the job better..
Sure the Japanese were better in some respects but they don't/didn't have nearly the same soul/charm the defender has
When you see ISIS and the Taliban on the telly they have their missile launchers in the back of Hiluxs and L200's, not Defenders, there's a reason for that. The Defender brand itself is strong, so keep that and build a vehicle as good.
However "superior" the Japanese competitors were, they never endeared people in the same way and whilst they might be more reliable, they were infinitely more expensive to fix. I'll be having a celebratory drink to the Landy tonight - I have the series set; 1951 S1 80", 1961 S2 88" and 1978 S3 109", plus have owned several Defenders.
The Heritage Restoration dept is a fantastic idea. Unfortunately, the team of extremely enthusiastic and well meaning chaps have spent the last 12 months checking up on key parts history with the people who have shouted the loudest that they are the leading Land Rover specialists on the planet. Unfortunately this means key bits of history are being rewritten to suit the unoriginal stock and incorrect writings of those chaps.
They've been doing it for Rangies also and being told complete bks by the loud mouths.
They've been doing it for Rangies also and being told complete b
ks by the loud mouths. DonkeyApple said:
The Heritage Restoration dept is a fantastic idea. Unfortunately, the team of extremely enthusiastic and well meaning chaps have spent the last 12 months checking up on key parts history with the people who have shouted the loudest that they are the leading Land Rover specialists on the planet. Unfortunately this means key bits of history are being rewritten to suit the unoriginal stock and incorrect writings of those chaps.
They've been doing it for Rangies also and being told complete bks by the loud mouths.
Who's that then?They've been doing it for Rangies also and being told complete b
ks by the loud mouths. maxc said:
However "superior" the Japanese competitors were, they never endeared people in the same way and whilst they might be more reliable, they were infinitely more expensive to fix. I'll be having a celebratory drink to the Landy tonight - I have the series set; 1951 S1 80", 1961 S2 88" and 1978 S3 109", plus have owned several Defenders.
a Hilux might not be endearing, but Toyota have built 11 million of them if my sources are correct and I interpreted the data properly and endearing doesn't pay the bills. No matter how British it is, no matter how cool and no matter how endearing, the Defender is well past its sell by date and it needs to be replaced with a better vehicle. The gypos nicked our Hilux leaving the Defender behind, we have kept the Ranger and f
ked the LR off. 
Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff