Replacing my defender

[Hdj80 01]

Currently have a 80 series, a defender (soon to be gone) and just got rid of my mondeo. So, I need to replace the defender and the mondeo. 80 series does most of the heavy work but want something that can tow 3.5t just in case. Also want something nice for long journeys. Currently my thinking is either get a 2014 200 series to do the job of both the defender (carrying tools and light towing) and the mondeo (mainly motorway), or get an old fourtrak or patrol plus an audi a5 or something. Im a little wary of AHC, which is the only thing putting me off the 200 series. Any suggestions or decent alternatives I should consider?

[Hdj80 01]

Depends what it is, would be around £45k for a 200 series as it will hold its value, but i wouldnt want to spend that much on anything thats going to depreciate too quickly or have high maintenance costs.

[Hdj80 01]

They are good tow vehicles but tbh i don't think ill touch a land rover product ever again. Was wondering about the reliability of a grand cherokee or maybe a touareg? Would like to keep it to at least 200k, I dont mind replacing a few parts here and there but i really dont want to be having to get it plugged in to a computer.

[Hdj80 01]

Does the AHC cause many problems? We cant get the 200 series with basic suspension in the uk, and TD42s are pretty much non existent.

[Hdj80 01]

K974 said:

i don't know we don't have that on them here, was that an option and you can get without, or if that worried can you swap it out for OME or similar shouldnt be more than 1500GBP for a full kit.
either way its going to be a lot less trouble that a RR or discovery.
look up the Australian forums people do 300,000km plus no issues the 07's are getting up there now and you'll find em wiht 400km +
yes not as good as the 1HD-FTE or TD42 patrols but pretty close

i wouldn't even consider the LR offerings over one, but i know there is a bit more of a status think with the LR's in UK over the toyota and maybe resale
i don't think they are comparable tho in the real world and value for money.

Land rover dont really have any status as nowadays every man and his dog has got a rangerover of some kind. As for resale nothing touches a landcruiser, but the 200s are expensive to tax and from what ive seen they are quite a bit heavier on diesel than my 80, hence my wondering about alternatives. What sort of mpg do you get? It seems a bit the wrong way around to be getting a truck 20 years newer which is worse on diesel.

[Hdj80 01]

I think your probably right, just seems wrong going from a 1996 cruiser getting 25mpg to a 2014 cruiser getting 20mpg. Have been told reliably to expect 30mpg from a touareg, so would save about £8000+vat per 100k miles in fuel against the 200 series. But, i have just clicked over 440k miles in my 80 series and it still isnt burning any oil, and i doubt id get that service out of a volkswagen.

[Hdj80 01]

Have just picked up a fourtrak to take on the work duties for now, so just need a nice car for long journeys. Was thinking an audi a4/a5/a6 3.0 tdi manual, appreciate im probably asking in the wrong bit of the forum but any thoughts on these?

Edited by Hdj80 01 on Tuesday 12th June 11:44

[Hdj80 01]

I could be wrong but i didnt think vw/skoda made many 3.0 tdi models? especially with a manual box