Old Landcruisers....really worth that much ?
Old Landcruisers....really worth that much ?
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Discussion

rswift

Original Poster:

1,181 posts

204 months

Friday 25th April 2014
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A mate of mine has just bought a ver nice, fully loaded Landcruiser. Its a 4.2 diesel, 110k, everything works, loads of history. Its a 1998 car and he paid almost £9k !! WTF....did they see him coming !. When I asked him what he'd paid I expected him to say £2500 or similar.

Now I've had a quick scan on A/T .... and fully loaded top spec nice Land cruisers do appear to hold their price very well indeed !

For the last 20 years he's had a variety of Range Rovers, but eventually got fed up of the unreliability. But the same money would have bought him a 2003/4 FFRR....which no doubt would have left him stranded at some point.

Toaster Pilot

14,863 posts

187 months

Friday 25th April 2014
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They do seem to demand strong prices - the question is, are modern ones as depreciation-proof?

TurboHatchback

4,236 posts

182 months

Friday 25th April 2014
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Yes, they are epic things. They 80 series Cruiser is a proper hardcore truck designed to work in the roughest environments in the world then coated with a veneer of luxury to make it appeal to western school mums. The 4.2td is more like a HGV engine than a car engine, it may only have ~170bhp but will happily run at full load all day long whilst returning remarkable efficiency. The axles are to my knowledge the strongest axles ever fitted to a 4x4 of this size class and the uk spec ones came with triple electric locking differentials. The auto gearboxes are the same units as used in lorries and buses and the manual boxes are hugely strong too.

I love them and miss mine frown but I shall have another some day soon!

Du1point8

22,878 posts

221 months

Friday 25th April 2014
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When you said old land crusier I was thinking of this vintage

http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C467597

Truckosaurus

13,252 posts

313 months

Friday 25th April 2014
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TurboHatchback said:
Yes, they are epic things. They 80 series Cruiser is a proper hardcore truck designed to work in the roughest environments in the world ...
Indeed. And can be fixed by every shade-tree mechanic between here and Cape Town.

Also, I believe that the 80-series is also prized by off-road types as it was the last model that still had solid axles up front.

It's the vehicle the Land Rover Discovery should have been.

V8forweekends

2,501 posts

153 months

Friday 25th April 2014
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Truckosaurus said:
<snip>

It's the vehicle the Land Rover Discovery should have been.
Well.......the Disco's sales figures and values don't seem too badly dented by not being as well made as the Toyota - horses for courses really.

wisbech

4,207 posts

150 months

Friday 25th April 2014
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FIL has a 1995 turbo diesel Amazon (owned from new). Epic, but almost like a reverse Tardis - the gubbins take up so much room, the cabin is surprisingly small for such a large thing.

Dog Star

17,547 posts

197 months

Friday 25th April 2014
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V8forweekends said:
Well.......the Disco's sales figures and values don't seem too badly dented by not being as well made as the Toyota - horses for courses really.
Indeed. If travelling somewhere where your life depended on it would you be using an LR product?

I guess market share in harsh environments would be the evidence, though I have no idea what the figures are.

The Moose

23,675 posts

238 months

Friday 25th April 2014
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Truckosaurus said:
Also, I believe that the 80-series is also prized by off-road types as it was the last model that still had solid axles up front.
Not strictly true - you could get the 100-series also...but it was a bit of a faff which is why there are less around.

Dog Star said:
V8forweekends said:
Well.......the Disco's sales figures and values don't seem too badly dented by not being as well made as the Toyota - horses for courses really.
Indeed. If travelling somewhere where your life depended on it would you be using an LR product?

I guess market share in harsh environments would be the evidence, though I have no idea what the figures are.
I drove from basically Tripoli due South into the desert to Sabha (and back again) and the further South you go, the greater the %age of Land Cruisers you see.

Like the old saying goes, if you want to go into the desert/rainforest/outback/bush take anything. If you want to come back again, take a Land Cruiser.

CampDavid

9,145 posts

227 months

Friday 25th April 2014
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Anything sub £4000 will have callers from all over the world trying to buy, a lot of them end up abroad.

As for not denting land rover figures, you have to be joking, in England we still think of the Land Rover as king but around the world the Land Cruiser rips it to pieces

skyrover

12,700 posts

233 months

Friday 25th April 2014
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Yes... they hold their value because they are properly built.

Heavy duty body on frame, solid axles, locking diffs, strong reliable engines, minimal electronic crap, thick half shafts etc

This is how you build a workhorse... take note land rover wink

TurboHatchback

4,236 posts

182 months

Friday 25th April 2014
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Comparing the values of Landcruisers and Range Rovers of similar age really does say it all. Land Rover products are very shiny, appeal to rich folk who don't really need their capabilities and are quite good off road but compared to Toyotas they are shabbily made, overcomplicated, prone to rusting away and just don't last the distance. The defender is the only exception but most defenders of 20+ years of age have had major rebuilding work done at some point whereas Landcruisers just soldier on.

skyrover

12,700 posts

233 months

Friday 25th April 2014
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TurboHatchback said:
Comparing the values of Landcruisers and Range Rovers of similar age really does say it all. Land Rover products are very shiny, appeal to rich folk who don't really need their capabilities and are quite good off road but compared to Toyotas they are shabbily made, overcomplicated, prone to rusting away and just don't last the distance. The defender is the only exception but most defenders of 20+ years of age have had major rebuilding work done at some point whereas Landcruisers just soldier on.
The perfect vehicle IMO would be a defender with Toyota engine, gearbox and axles sitting on a galvanized military spec Defender chassis, with defender body plonked on top.

Bombproof mechanical's combined with modular body

soad

34,643 posts

205 months

Friday 25th April 2014
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I thought that too, OP - strong money for one.
Wasn't aware they're built like tanks.

Benbay001

5,888 posts

186 months

Friday 25th April 2014
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CampDavid said:
Anything sub £4000 will have callers from all over the world trying to buy, a lot of them end up abroad.

As for not denting land rover figures, you have to be joking, in England we still think of the Land Rover as king but around the world the Land Cruiser rips it to pieces
My dads 280000 miles example sold for £7500 and got shipped off to mongolia.

Benbay001

5,888 posts

186 months

Friday 25th April 2014
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The Moose said:
Like the old saying goes, if you want to go into the desert/rainforest/outback/bush take anything. If you want to come back again, take a Land Cruiser.
I thought it was "If you want to go into the desert, take a land rover, if you want to come back out, take a land cruiser"
Not that it matters that much, the message is the same.

Fittster

20,120 posts

242 months

Friday 25th April 2014
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It's odd the money old 4x4 go for, Merc G-Wagons seem to demand strong money.

Not sure what I'd go for if the choice was Landcruiser or G-Wagons.


Simes110

768 posts

180 months

Friday 25th April 2014
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When I lived and worked in Australia, the LC and Nissan Patrol were everywhere.

Land Rover had a surprising presence but the more remote you got, the less you saw.

But here's the thing. Every roadhouse or station we came across, there were LC remains everywhere. Spares are easy to source because of this.

I got talking to a seasoned old chap in the outback and he concluded that it's the immense spares availability (new and secondhand) that have helped Toyota thrive. You can't find a ready-scrapped Defender quite so easily. And that, so I was told, is the problem.

I've always loved the 80-Series LC. I agree the engines are what LR should have used. Massively torquey and under stressed.

But a good Tdi Defender is a hardy thing. Simple, rugged and very reliable. I've owned one for over 7 years.

A good friend of mine who knows both Defenders and LC's equally well can't separate the two. Both go wrong. Both rust. Both can be sods to fix. Both have weak points and both have their individual strengths.

Another friend of mine ran two LC's as company vehicles for over 100,000 miles each. Both without fault. A Discovery wouldn't have done that, to be fair.

An L322 is a very lovely thing. A dealer referred them as a 'four-wheel-drive Bentley'. I think he's right. I'm on my second. It's not infallible, but it's a very special way to travel.

I really want an 80-Series LC. Maybe even a 100. Prices are strong for very good ones. I ran a new Prado in Oz for a while as well as a Hilux as company vehicles. But I owned an immaculate 3.9 Discovery 1. I couldn't take my D1 into the outback because, where in went, there were no petrol supplies. Only diesel. I hired a Pajero. Nice but lacking soul. The D1 made me smile and was gorgeous. The Toyotas earnt my respect but never my affection.


Censorious

15,169 posts

263 months

Friday 25th April 2014
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I saw a fairly old one for sale the other day for £15k!


PugwasHDJ80

7,679 posts

250 months

Friday 25th April 2014
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Simes110 said:
When I lived and worked in Australia, the LC and Nissan Patrol were everywhere.

Land Rover had a surprising presence but the more remote you got, the less you saw.

But here's the thing. Every roadhouse or station we came across, there were LC remains everywhere. Spares are easy to source because of this.

I got talking to a seasoned old chap in the outback and he concluded that it's the immense spares availability (new and secondhand) that have helped Toyota thrive. You can't find a ready-scrapped Defender quite so easily. And that, so I was told, is the problem.

I've always loved the 80-Series LC. I agree the engines are what LR should have used. Massively torquey and under stressed.

But a good Tdi Defender is a hardy thing. Simple, rugged and very reliable. I've owned one for over 7 years.

A good friend of mine who knows both Defenders and LC's equally well can't separate the two. Both go wrong. Both rust. Both can be sods to fix. Both have weak points and both have their individual strengths.
I just had to pick up on this last point

After ten various LR products covering just about every model available I finally bought an 80 series cruiser.

Five years later, 80k miles, it had never let me down, never needed anything other than routine servicing and I only found one tiny bolt that was seized (on the pull dine radiator blind).

The difference in quality and engineering was substantial and very effective. After being a complete LR fan I found the difference frankly a little depressing.

It was written off whilst driving to work (a week after a 10k mile trip around North Africa). One if only two vehicles I wish I'd never sold.

The only thing they lack is the character if a landrover, although they DO have some character if their own.