New Defender? After thoughts and ownership details

[ReformedPistonhead]

I am 4 months in on my [second] 110 V8.

Love it, especially in the winter with its proper wheels and boots on.

Comfy, fast, well equipped but thirsty.

[Clivey]

jonesey said:

Mark V GTD said:

JLR really dropped the style and taste ball with that special edition in all over green. At least the black wheels are a big improvement and might sell the car.

Agreed, i just had one for a month as a courtesy car and it definitely isn't popular! Perhaps it would look better on white or green steelies.

I'm actually considering a 110 D300 75th Limited Edition at the moment. The green wasn't initially my first choice, especially with the green wheels, but then I saw what they looked like with the wheels and trim painted black:



Add to that the fact that they're specced like an 'X' model and they start to look very attractive IMO. When we visited the dealer on Sunday, almost all of the Defenders they had on the premises were either black or dark grey and although I do like the black, it loses some of it's appeal for me personally when almost every other one you see looks identical.

[Phooey]

I've not paid any attention to the commercial (hard top) for a few months but had 10 mins to kill last night. There's a lot for sale at the upper price bracket!

[Rufus Stone]

Mine goes in for its first service on Friday. A couple of months early but a convenient time.

15 months in and still loving it.

[M1K3]

My 5month old 110 and 11,000km trouble free.

[elise2000]

After starting this thread in March and purchasing in May, it seems time for an update:
No issues whatsoever
Have put around 6k miles on it, including a return trip to Croatia.
Only negative is the insurance cost!

[Mikebentley]

I’ve said this on other threads please don’t post factually accurate reports of JLR reliability. It’s just unacceptable. Mines been perfect in 18 months and to my shame only 12k miles.

[Leithen]

Just to provide some balance, mine is due in for some kind of EV cooling part replacement (hybrid not working correctly) and a headlight was replaced previously (fogged).

Great service though and enjoying the car a lot. Might cheekily ask if the dealership want to put me in a new Range Rover for the same business lease price when it’s in for the work…

[LRDefender]

The Defender is a terrible car & is owned by folks that only drive Ciara & Sebastian to the lacrosse courts. Plus I see more Defenders on the hard shoulder than any other car because they are so very unreliable.

Now we've got that out of the way.

I am very happy with my D300 and on a recent trip to the ice & snow covered Caucasus Mountains it behaved impeccably. It handled everything that we encountered with aplomb, it's incredibly comfortable and just works. Even on an ice & snow covered landscape the Defender was very reassuring & confidence inspiring, even with the standard tyres on.

I can't think of another vehicle that would provide what my Defender has, I'm totally won over (sorry haters).

[Gummi]

The Caucuses sounds very cool!!

I’m very excited for my upcoming Defender. Estimated delivery is early March. It’s a Pangea green 110 D300 HSE with 7 seats. Looking forward to some fun trips with it!

[Coxey]

Are dealerships now quoting 3 month lead times? I was previously told 6-9 months which putting me off?

[Mikebentley]

Most on the configurator are 3/6 months. I was on there last night building a 130 HSE in the metallic red. Quite tempted to upgrade ours.

[LooneyTunes]

Coxey said:

Are dealerships now quoting 3 month lead times? I was previously told 6-9 months which putting me off?

It depends a bit on spec and engine. Took delivery of one last month and it was less than six months from order. Ordered late June, delivered to dealer early Nov. Not sure if there’s a summer factory shutdown.

When we ordered some dealers were being a bit disingenuous about lead times, seemingly wanting to push pre-owned stock at ambitious prices on the basis that you “can’t” get new ones for 12-18 months.

Only annoyance is that the choice of colours is a bit limited and varies by model. For example, metallic red available on the 130 isn’t available on the 110. Have seen it in the showroom and would have ordered it if we could.

Some dealer fit accessories are taking a bit longer to come through.

Although it’s MrsLT’s daily, I quite like it and have already driven it more times than her last (a Taycan). Completely different beast to the older ones and hasn’t converted MrsLT to those.

[justin220]

We are considering a move back into Land Rover, used to own a Discovery Sport which my wife loved, which we traded in for a Cayenne. I prefer the Cayenne to the Disco Sport, but my wife really misses the Disco.

We both really like the Defender but I'm completely lost in all the engine specs and options. Is there a must have set of options or engine? I do quite like the idea of the hybrid as a lot of our miles are a 10 mile round trip daily.

[LooneyTunes]

Air suspension, active rear diff, and the matrix lighting were the only options that I nudged MrsLT towards. Beyond that I think they’re mainly cosmetic/comfort.

The air suspension in particular means that you can have the car lower automatically when parked, which is useful for loading (stuff into the boot, children, ageing parents) and helps with trailer hookup.

[Rufus Stone]

Mikebentley said:

Most on the configurator are 3/6 months. I was on there last night building a 130 HSE in the metallic red. Quite tempted to upgrade ours.

I had a look at a 130 when I dropped off my 90 for a service. The proportions really suit the new defenders I feel, better than the 110.

[Ed Moses]

Has anybody got/seen the new flat floor load tray for the Defender 90 yet? I have seen some pictures and the YouTube video but no evidence of it in the wild yet.

[Joscal]

justin220 said:

We are considering a move back into Land Rover, used to own a Discovery Sport which my wife loved, which we traded in for a Cayenne. I prefer the Cayenne to the Disco Sport, but my wife really misses the Disco.

We both really like the Defender but I'm completely lost in all the engine specs and options. Is there a must have set of options or engine? I do quite like the idea of the hybrid as a lot of our miles are a 10 mile round trip daily.

Mines the bog standard diesel 90 hardtop and it’s a fantastic engine really smooth and punchy. Not once have I thought it could do with more power.

[jon-yprpe]

I’m looking at a 110 now to replace our Disco 5 - 3 months delivery, about 5% discount willingly offered if you take finance, and a 5.9% apr.

So things are returning to normal in JLR land.

[tescorank]

Have a friend who loves his, says the only thing he doesn’t like is checking it’s still on his drive first thing in the morning from the bedroom window, as he acknowledges one day it’s going to disappear.