Well,
Dropped mine in at the Local Dealer to check out a cooling problem (they need it cold Monday morning) and they lent me a new one !
Wow - what a difference eh ? Same classic Landie shape, but a completely new everything else (well almost), the bonnet looks a bit odd as it has increased in height to accommodate the Transit lump, the doors now shut with a BMW type clunk rather than a Landie shake, rattle and draught. As stated in the press the front vents have gone (would I miss them - don't think so), the dash looks a little bit strange (almost like a latter version of the Rover 25) but its actually ok, everything else seems a little. a lot of the rivets seem to have gone as well in the process and the thing looks a lot more complete. Gearbox is pretty good.
May go for a play off road tomorrow....
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...but do you still need your knees round your ears to sit and the drive it with ramrod back?
dvd
6ft 2"
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Yes - but I left that bit out.
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Yes but does it have the old TD5 problem of poor low end torque and constant need to shift to low gear ad nauseum. I am going to get a new Defender but am torn between old and new.
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dodo
a lot of the improvements on the new 'un will make a difference, took it it tonight on a 20 mile hike on a theatre trip, it was a part dual carriageway and part urban hike, it handled it with an aplomb that was a stranger to any previous Landie. I like it a lot, it still retains character. MrsP didn't complain either (much).
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MrsP didn't complain either (much).
With that much approval, it's a green light for a new one........and just think, you'll always have customers in your trade...:-)
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Had a couple of hours first thing and md-afternoon roaming my favourite bits. Yes it works off road, it tows well, its a jolly good Landie seems far better built than of old, but there you Its a Land Rover and it does Land Rover things without making a fuss or getting stuck. Good vehicle - buy one !
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Company I work for uses defenders in quarries, and newer Land rovers have suffered problems with grit/dust etc messing up the electronics.
On the old basic Landies (c.1980's-early 90s models) there were no problems with electronics.
Be interested to know if the electronic sensors etc on the new one have been better protected.
S.
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The archetypal quarry vehicle in Australia is the Toyota Troopie pickup and troop carrier versions using the totally non-electronic 4.2 litre six-pot diesel. However, Toyota have just released a new version Troopie in Oz with a 4.5 litre V8 turbo-diesel and the bad news for Land Rover is that this engine is apparently capable of meeting Euro 4 emissions unlike the six cylinder which is no longer legally importable in basic HZ1 form in the EU. The new Defender -- unlike the Freelander 2 -- has not yet made it on to the UN Development Programme's buying list since it and the rest of the world seem to be staying with the old TDi (not even the TD5 any more). That makes me wonder if Land Rover are not that confident yet of the long-term durability of their breathed-upon Transit engine in truly harsh conditions and routine neglect. I await with interest to see which of the Toyota/LR newcomers gets on the UN-approved list first.
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