Landrovers

[slim_boy_fat]

What Im really looking for is one like @Rannsachair has, ie cared for and big bills for new chasis paid. But cheap!

And I'd like Friday's EuroMillions numbers, but.......

Good luck with the search, sometimes the hunt is as much fun as the kill

 

[Robbie260]

Would say no later than the 300tdi a td5 aint to bad but i aint a fan of electronics. A guy that owns the local landy specilist garage to me has a 2.2 puma and has worked on many 2.4s he claims thier biggest problem is constantly having to recalibrate the injectors due to under and overfueling problems.

Will agree with the principal that defenders have become over priced status symbols i doubt i will ever be able to afford to buy one now. Always wanted one as but my series 3 will have to do me thinks.

Rangers, hiluxes, l200, Navaras, d maxes i have all seem sucmb to rust just as quick as any landy. I would not say a defender or series will be a more comfortable driving position than a d max it is cramped if you dont know how to manage it but a few mods make it pretty good now. Have to admit my series 3s interior is pretty comfortable and its bog standard and im 6'1 and have big shoulders but i wouldnt want to have any belly or unflexable leg joints and try to get in there.

Can get a decentish defender will need a bit of cosmetic tidying can be had for £10000 about £15000 will get you one that might have a galv chassis already fitted. Unfortunatley even ex millitary ones arent the bargins they use to be wanting far to much for them now for being so basic only benifit will it will have been rigerously maintained.

Wouldnt recomend anything other than a landy but tread carefully.

 

[reb78]

Main thing is being able to do maintenance yourself if you want a Land Rover. We have three - a 1989 110 with a 200tdi (owned since about 1991), a 2004 D2 (owned since about 2012) with a late TD5 and a 2007 D3 with the 2.7 V6 (only ad this one 6 months). Seems I like Land Rovers. BUT, I couldn't afford to run them if I wasn't willing to do the maintenance.

The engines in all of these are good in different ways. The D3 is the most complex and probably puts the most fear in me in case it goes wrong, but having got under it after purchase, a lot of stuff is as simple as the old 110. TD5 is old tech now and there is so much advice out there it is very DIYable. The 200tdi is bullet proof and will outlast the other two. The D2 and D3 do about 6K miles a year, the 110 does about 30K a year with our current useage - weird really, but it is cheapest to maintain and I run it on SVO which is half the price of diesel now.

Chassis with the D2 or Defenders is the most important thing when looking. If that is shot, then thats the hardest thing to replace. Mileage if well maintained and with a sound chassis should not put you off.

 

[zzr1200]

Good ol 131 or to the heathen the Lada prototype Twincam engines were actually not bad at all.

The Fiat twin can engine was brilliant engine, a true power house and very tuneable (for its day), I pulled the engine out of a 4 year old rust bucket to put into a moggy 1000 pickup, went like stink.....the fiat bodyshell just fell apart.

 

[snowcat]

Fair appraisal above...

We hate any Land Rover product in our repair workshops.

You really gotta be an enthusiast to wanna get involved...

Plus point with a Defender - they really do hold their money! I have just done - £850 of welding to a lads 110 - he paid £7500 for it it a few months ago.

That's the crux of it, they are the 4x4 equivalent of a VW camper or beetle , If you like fixing things and not bothered about comfort then there fine , However even a mediocre Japanese 4x4 will do the job better.

As others have said they hold there value incredibly though.

 

[jenki]

Having had 3 Series Landrovers (including one with a Jaguar 2.4 lump fitted) over the years I would say if you are an enthusiast go ahead but as others have said you will have to work on them to keep them going.
If you just need a backup vehicle then go Japanese, less hassle but rust is the enemy of them all.
As to prices the current wave of enthusiam is pushing all series and defender prices up I doubt this is sustainable in the long run I am old enough to remember Mk 11 Jags.

 

[CompoSimmonite]

Bit of an oxymoron wanting a Land Rover but not a project.
If you don't want a project look at virtually anything else than a Land Rover. Mate had an Isuzu Trooper and it was far nicer to drive than my Range Rover Vogue, needed just basic servicing and no serious repairs other than new fuel tank due to a leak and new alternator over around 5 year period.

 

[julianf]

If you're not doing many miles, you need to think about what you like the look of most, and go from there.

I mean, if it's (kind of) a toy, then you're buying with you're heart rather than your head to start with.

Once you've worked out what model (I mean defender, disco [which I know you say you don't want, but a 300 disco is still fairly 'proper'], range rover, some ex mod thing, etc) then you can tie up the details of what engine etc.

I mean there's a world of difference between an ex mod air portable and some footballers wives range rover (or even a modern defender!), so you really need to get a grasp of what you're after first, I think?

 

[addjunkie]

Its not me that actually wants a landrover, but my Mrs, shes a bit odd, likes old cars, old tractors, and obviously old blokes like me. Im happy enough with Jap pickups, and changing them when the warrenty expires.

Guess Im looking at a 300tdi or TD5, no bling, no discos, or other fancy stuff. We tow trailers out of fields etc, but it needs to be pre 2006 for the cheaper road tax. Dont mind maintaining it, Ive been maintaining diesel for over 40 years one way or another. But dont want to be rebuilding one or swapping Chasis. A car maintenace enthusiast Im not, I fix it if its broken.

 

[Olderisbetter]

My mate has 3 land rovers in various states of build, He loves fixing them and then he has a Toyota Surf he uses for a run around that cost him £2000 it is reliable comfortable and tows his trailer and caravan, He hates it and always slags it off...I guess when you are a fan of something you see it as a hobby or a passion, I am sure we all do it in some ways

 

[gordon stephenson]

I had an 80 series 4.2 diesel Land Cruiser for over ten years, Only thing in all those years was a leaking steering box, Ultra reliable, engine running in less than a full rev regardless of the temperature, winter and summer.three lockable diffs and an engine that would pull a house down,

 

[Tinbasherdan]

I would look for a decent 300tdi with a long service history. Everyone likes to trot out the unreliable cars guff but the failures I’ve had, have all been previous owner bodges finally letting go.
Motors still do come up for sale that have been your Chelsea tractor, dealer cared for and no expense spared , they’re the ones to look for if your budget allows.

Take not of aftermarket stickers, if it’s got anything related to mud or going anywhere written on a sticker , it’s had it’s head kicked in off-road. Ex mil are ok if you get a good one, but remember, even thought they might have been limited to 56 mph, with a squaddy in that means 56mph no matter whether it’s on tarmac or flying through the air on ex

 

[indy4x]

Don't discount the TD5 Defender, they do have some electronics but its not that complicated, cerainly simpler than the Disco TD5 and the engines are fab

Good ones can be had for not stupid money, just be prepared to travel and look at lots of rubbish to find one

Friend of mine sold his 04 plate 110 TD5 early this year, he hd had it from new and was all there just didn't look shiney, was really surprised at how little he got for it realtive to other asking prices

@Kayos I do say good things about LR's sometimes

Yes I have a dig at LR's but then as I currently own a D1 and D3 and have previously owned a P38 and D2 I think I'm realist

 

[Tinbasherdan]

Oh, early Td5 have issues, later td5 are ok but really need remapping to get the best from them, and are more complicated to look after than a tdi, and I wouldn’t touch a puma engined defender with a barge pole, poor build quality even by land rover standards, crap engine and box

 

[Happy_welder22]

Just get a defender in good order. You will sell it for the same money later if it’s kept well. Drive some, check for a solid chassis and service history and if you like one buy it.

 

[julianf]

My ideal landrover would be a 300tdi 110 with all the steel galvanised.

If you get one with a galvanised chassis there is a fair chance that, whoever did the chassis, also did all the other bits that were sensible to do when the chassis was being changed - which is an additional bonus.

Or, again, if you just want one for fun, somthing like a petrol air portable.

 

[GKQ]

Out here in New Zealand most people run Toyota Hilux or the new Ford ranger. I run a Toyota Hilux 10 years old sr5 3 litre TD tows the boat, digger, bull dozer ( not all at once ) with out a problem. Basic service each year, grease as required, 142000 miles only had one issue front bearing went. Also use it for harrowing the fields and getting the silage bales in on the trailer, with the right tyres it can do anything. I use it off road at least 4-5 times a week.
Ran Mitsubishi L200s in the UK for 15 years never let me down. I used to average 3000 miles a week towing 2.7 tons of water with fish all over Europe. Kept them for 5 years then sold them. Cheap to run comfortably, economical and can do more than 50 miles an hour !
I did borrow a defender pick up once as a test vehicle, noisy, slow, uncomfortable parts might be cheap, and you’ll need them, but why would you bother?
Just my opinion obviously.
Graham

 

[owas]

When I went to view my ex mod (Tithonus 110) I only spent about 10 mins looking at the lack of rust on pretty much everything, and handed over the money.

Everything else is easy. I had to swap a 300tdi in after a week

 

[graffian]

Had very few problems with mine. Had it since 2000. I had a 2A before it and if I was buying another, it would probably be another 2Atruck cab. But at the prices they are I can't see me getting another.

 

[aguycalledsteve]

I love my disco 2 TD5 and would trust it to take me anywhere i wanted because I have looked after it and serviced it. SWMBO keeps asking when I'll get rid of that old truck and the answer is I won't. She'll go before my LR does.