Land Cruisers...any good ?
Discussion
Anyone have any experience with the giant 4.2 Land cruiser ? they all seem to have done stratospheric mileage but are still 12 grand ? Am looking for a motorway munching, trailer pulling comfy reliable all terrain motor... Land Rovers seem expensive and rubbish reliability...Disco TD5 gets rubbished but looks good ? is it ? P38 rangie cheap but fragile...new rangie scares the shizzer out of me and Dico 3 too spensive ..not sure of Land cruiser 3.0 ???I got 10K Any ideas ????
The 80 series 4.2td is the daddy of off-roaders, they are proper old school, heavy duty 4x4s with massively strong live axles front and rear, coild spring suspension, triple locking differentials etc. I loved mine, they are fantastic vehicles but I would point out they aren't the best motorway cars. The gearing is quite short so more than 65mph makes your ears bleed and the heavy duty off road underpinnings make the ride a tad bumpy. Off road or in the snow they are unstoppable, a defender 90 can manage better approach and departure angles and hump clearance but the traction and power of a triple locked cruiser is mightily impressive.
In terms of running costs they are quite reasonable, mine (a manual 12V) did around 30mpg, cost £225 to tax and was fairly cheap to insure. They do take 9.5l of oil and over 10l of coolant so servicing is a bit more than some other vehicles. Parts from Toyota are hideously expensive but thankfully there is a large aftermarket for pretty much everything you need.
Here's my old one:
The 100 series Amazon is quite a different vehicle (I've driven but not owned one). Still hugely strong, capable and reliable but much quieter, more refined and comfortable. They have independent front suspension which gives better ride and handling on the road but sacrifices some extreme off-roading capability (also they don't have a locking front diff).
The downside of them being awesome is that they are pricey compared to other 4x4s. Decent 80 series cruisers with 150k+ start at ~£5k, decent 100 series Amazons nearly double that but they are built like nothing else on the road. I will own another 80 series at some point, I have promised myself
.
In terms of running costs they are quite reasonable, mine (a manual 12V) did around 30mpg, cost £225 to tax and was fairly cheap to insure. They do take 9.5l of oil and over 10l of coolant so servicing is a bit more than some other vehicles. Parts from Toyota are hideously expensive but thankfully there is a large aftermarket for pretty much everything you need.
Here's my old one:
The 100 series Amazon is quite a different vehicle (I've driven but not owned one). Still hugely strong, capable and reliable but much quieter, more refined and comfortable. They have independent front suspension which gives better ride and handling on the road but sacrifices some extreme off-roading capability (also they don't have a locking front diff).
The downside of them being awesome is that they are pricey compared to other 4x4s. Decent 80 series cruisers with 150k+ start at ~£5k, decent 100 series Amazons nearly double that but they are built like nothing else on the road. I will own another 80 series at some point, I have promised myself
.Brilliant, 4.5L petrol & LPG 80 series for me. Never let me down in 4 years of ownership. All the rest has been said above.
Take a look at www.overland-cruisers.co.uk he sometimes suggests decent 80 series when they come up for sale and his Facebook page has info on common issues, mods etc..
Take a look at www.overland-cruisers.co.uk he sometimes suggests decent 80 series when they come up for sale and his Facebook page has info on common issues, mods etc..
Edited by andysgriff on Thursday 25th September 18:19
blackwater said:
I can see there is a lot of love fore the older models..what about the more recent ....say 02 - 07 models ?
There was a facelift in 04 which made the interior a much nicer place to be.We've had one from new (2004) and it's now over 110k. Just about run in and should do another 110k+++ without much hassle.
What are they like as motorway mile munchers? ..and can you tow with the later models ? Thanks BTW for the response...We want a LR but the Disco 2 has rust issues, the others all have issues...and plenty of folks say nah they are bullet prooof...so its a minefield I am on my second jap car and so far (touch wood ) its been as reliable as my old merc estate...so apart from all the usual requirements reliability is a main driver...and the japs seem to be ahead of the pack....never considered a big Toyota...will need to pull a trailor / horsebox often 4 up.
My boss has one of these:
Although his has an extended front bumper for holding the long-range arial - useful for pushing his way through gridlocked traffic in downtown Dar. 10-a-penny out here in Africa and hundreds of the older variants as well. They retain their value despite sky-high mileage mainly because they are bombproof and in very high demand. My neighbours back in the UK sold their 2000 Amazon and the buyer was from the UAE and shipped it back there.
Although his has an extended front bumper for holding the long-range arial - useful for pushing his way through gridlocked traffic in downtown Dar. 10-a-penny out here in Africa and hundreds of the older variants as well. They retain their value despite sky-high mileage mainly because they are bombproof and in very high demand. My neighbours back in the UK sold their 2000 Amazon and the buyer was from the UAE and shipped it back there.
Impasse said:
I've seen more than one report on PH giving a different ownership experience of Land Cruisers. Their reputation is good, but not flawless.
Thing about Landcruisers is that is more then one type of them - the 80 series being discussed here - and the Amazon are both a completely different breed of machine to the smaller* normal Landcruiser 3 litre Colorado/Prado types.The smaller* Landcruiser does have some issues - 97 to around 99 had issues with Head gaskets - the post 03s had some issues with injectors or injector seals - and that messed up some of the engines - think Toyota fixed that issue but not sure
- relatively speaking
What about a patrol? I love the look of the old school ones but here is a newer one http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/n...
Okay saying they are a completely different machine is a bit misleading - but I suppose I mean that although both are badged Landcruiser - a 3.0 and a 4.2 are different models imo - a bit like comparing a Nissan Patrol to a Nissan Terrano really (imo).
Landcruisers are probably as good as you will get tbh - all the options have their faults - 3.0 Troopers had engine issues, Terranos have a good reputation but aren't perfect either.
Shoguns - hard to say really - one of my neighbours has had issues with headgasket/cooling related issues with a Mk 3* which while an early Mk 3 - was a well minded "like a baby" example with low miles from the previous owner - and my neighbour doesn't abuse it - or rather DIDN'T. Not sure what they are like normally though.
Discoverys as mentioned do have reliability issues - I thought of buying one around nearly 2 and a half years ago. I mentioned this on a forum (may have being this one - can't be bothered remembering) and had a Land Rover fan throwing a hissy fit at his or her keyboard saying something along the lines of the issues with Land Rovers being overhyped.
BUT I was seeing them being advertised with lists of work having being done - and heres the thing - its fine to buy one with work being done - but when you see stuff that's probably amounting to 2 k being done in recent past - your thinking that's great - but imagine if id bought that exact same Disco 12 months earlier.
The chassis of the series 2 Disco suffers from rust too
Landcruisers are probably as good as you will get tbh - all the options have their faults - 3.0 Troopers had engine issues, Terranos have a good reputation but aren't perfect either.
Shoguns - hard to say really - one of my neighbours has had issues with headgasket/cooling related issues with a Mk 3* which while an early Mk 3 - was a well minded "like a baby" example with low miles from the previous owner - and my neighbour doesn't abuse it - or rather DIDN'T. Not sure what they are like normally though.
Discoverys as mentioned do have reliability issues - I thought of buying one around nearly 2 and a half years ago. I mentioned this on a forum (may have being this one - can't be bothered remembering) and had a Land Rover fan throwing a hissy fit at his or her keyboard saying something along the lines of the issues with Land Rovers being overhyped.
BUT I was seeing them being advertised with lists of work having being done - and heres the thing - its fine to buy one with work being done - but when you see stuff that's probably amounting to 2 k being done in recent past - your thinking that's great - but imagine if id bought that exact same Disco 12 months earlier.
The chassis of the series 2 Disco suffers from rust too
- Its an irish one so actually badged Pajero.
blackwater said:
so TD5 Disco (with a decent chassis) or LC ?
Landcruiser - yes theres a chance it may give issues as Bill alludes to - but imo - they are far less likely to give issues then a Discovery series 2.Obviously on any vehicle of this type - previous owner history is important - vehicles like Landcruisers and Discoveries are used for working purposes like farming or those who need to drive onto sites every day or for (obviously) towing.
And why you might ask don't we have a Landcruiser on the farm here if I think they are THAT good.
Well the tax on a 3 litre 4 x 4 is ridiculous in the republic of Ireland if using as a car - hence a lot of Landcruisers over here are commercials - basically the 4 x 4 converted into a van - meaning cheaper tax.
But you can't drive a commercial in Ireland if on commercial tax for private use - only business.
And they are expensive over in Ireland due to their reputation....
Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff