The one to get, discovery or defender?

[sidekickdmr]

Hey all,

This will be my first land rover ownership, my first 4x4 ownership actually.

I have a weekend toy (the Clio V6) and we have a motorway mile muncher.

This will be used for weekends away, dogs, and getting too/from work when the weather turns.

Guess about 10,000 miles a year?

I'm 6'6 tall, no kids, just me the OH and 2 dogs.

We may be looking into a business in the near future that will involve some towing too.

Which to get? A discovery like this one?

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2014...

Or a defender like this one?

http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&alt=...

Thanks

[foliedouce]

The Disco will be more comfortable but personally I'd buy the Defender - much more of a classic LR with heaps of personality, but then Discovery's have never done anything for me.

I'd suggest you drive both of them and then decide.

[skyrover]

The Defender will be a better long term investment.

Be prepared to take it completely to pieces at least once, although ultimately you can build yourself a car for life with a bit of time, money and skill.

As for motorway driving... it will be like this as standard.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_EO5rr02K20

[Jamesgt]

skyrover said:

As for motorway driving... it will be like this as standard.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_EO5rr02K20

Stuck in the middle lane with daft stickers on your window.

[tight fart]

The Disco is a better car in every respect, I'd buy the Defender.

[anonymous-user]

skyrover said:

As for motorway driving... it will be like this as standard.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_EO5rr02K20

Oh FFS. Can someone please track down that Northern monkey and shove his video camera up his Yorkshire arse.
Seen more than enough if his ttting around to last me a lifetime.
"Ehhh.....Tom, by 'eck Tom, in't that reet Tom?"
fk off

[camel_landy]

Discovery Auto...

Better tow car, more comfortable and more capable.

M

[fredd1e]

At 6'6" have you sat in and driven a defender? I wasn't that bothered by the reported lack of elbow room, I'm 5'11" and a large I wasn't that troubled by the narrowness but my right knee always felt like it didn't have anywhere natural to be . I had the seat back so far I was looking at door jams when looking right so that may be an issue to work around. Mine was a '08 TDCI XS station wagon and it was a trip back in time even with all its "mod cons" which weren't all that modern. Ps approved used Landover extended warranty doesn't cover Defender electrics which is a pain given they are no more reliable than other flunky LR products. Mine melted 3 sets of interior heater Resistor packs and it was likely to continue to do so according to the techs that swapped them out. Best bet to familiarise yourself with defender ownership is to get on to defender2.net.

[2 5HAN]

Defender's are noisy, slow and handle poorly

They have the aerodynamics of a brick and shake and rattle as you drive along.

Regardless of new or old you will need to be prepared to repair it yourself or pay for it to be repaired.

The Discovery however handles much better, will be smoother and more comfy for long journeys.

Get the Defender you will love it

Re the height issue you need to get yourself some of these bits and pieces to help

http://www.mudstuff.co.uk/products/rails-and-bars....

[2 5HAN]

Defender's are noisy, slow and handle poorly

They have the aerodynamics of a brick and shake and rattle as you drive along.

Regardless of new or old you will need to be prepared to repair it yourself or pay for it to be repaired.

The Discovery however handles much better, will be smoother and more comfy for long journeys.

Get the Defender you will love it

Re the height issue you need to get yourself some of these bits and pieces to help

http://www.mudstuff.co.uk/products/rails-and-bars....

[sidekickdmr]

Ok so the general consensus is the discovery is better in every way, better built, more comfy , more economical, more reliable etc

And for that reason I should get the Defender?

I like it

Might go see the defender listed above this week, any thoughts on it?

Spec/engine etc?

[anonymous-user]

Define "better".....been round this cone time and time again. The Defender is much more basic, in every way, but from a certain point of view that makes it the better car and a more involved drive.
It's the Caterham 7 of the 4x4 world.

[skyrover]

sidekickdmr said:

Ok so the general consensus is the discovery is better in every way, better built, more comfy , more economical, more reliable etc

And for that reason I should get the Defender?

I like it

Might go see the defender listed above this week, any thoughts on it?

Spec/engine etc?

Listing ended so can't comment on the one you specified, but some things to remember about Defenders.

The Chassis and Bulkhead WILL rust, badly, so every single Defender on the road will at some point need a galvanised replacement.

Once these have been replaced, the car will last nigh on forever, it will just be the oily bits to worry about.

Thankfully electrics are minimal, so no expensive circuitry to go wrong... just a soldering iron and some wire will sort about 90% of problems.

Buy on condition, not age or mileage... It might have 200 thousand miles on it, but have a recently installed engine and gearbox. What's the bodywork like?, has it been abused... does it smoke badly?

Think of it as a piece of utility equipment, not a car...

Would you buy a new, but battered lathe? Or an old but carefully looked after or restored one? Same principle.

As for engines... the best models to go for are 300tdi. The engine is well supported, reliable, economical and simple.

Most of these car's will be near 20 years old by now, so watch for rust.

[anonymous-user]

skyrover said:

Thankfully electrics are minimal, so no expensive circuitry to go wrong... just a soldering iron and some wire will sort about 90% of problems.

Not entirely accurate any more. From Td5 onwards there are far more ECU-controlled aspects to the car with a lot of it lifted from Disco 2.
I had a random rear wash/wipe activation thing going on for months. Though it'd be something simple like moisture in a relay, but nope......ECU fault.
Likewise I've just done a bulkhead swap as you mention, and that now requires a Testbook to bleed the reinstalled ABS modulator.

[skyrover]

Crossflow Kid said:

Not entirely accurate any more. From Td5 onwards there are far more ECU-controlled aspects to the car with a lot of it lifted from Disco 2.
I had a random rear wash/wipe activation thing going on for months. Though it'd be something simple like moisture in a relay, but nope......ECU fault.
Likewise I've just done a bulkhead swap as you mention, and that now requires a Testbook to bleed the reinstalled ABS modulator.

I don't recommend the TD5 or newer Defender for this reason

[anonymous-user]

Yeah but the trade off is stuff like traction controll, mapping and faster fault finding.

[skyrover]

Countered with, a skilled right food, a fuel screw and simple/no faults

[yellowbentines]

skyrover said:

The Chassis and Bulkhead WILL rust, badly, so every single Defender on the road will at some point need a galvanised replacement.

Assuming you bought a fairly new Defender, and cleaned and waxoyled/dinitroled the chassis, I assume the only worry is then the bulkhead - how long do they last, or is that a question of how long is a piece of string?

[sidekickdmr]

Here is the one I'm considering:

http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&alt=...

Thoughts?

[anonymous-user]

String.
Mine was quite good all the time the car was being used.
Left standing for longer periods, rain runs down off the roof, floods over the useless gutter at the base of the windscreen, and runs down the bulkhead collecting in all the water traps on the way.

Edited by anonymous-user on Monday 10th November 11:06