71.4% of you asked for it! living with an L663

mikerajjers said:

After the overwhelmingly positive response in my poll... here it is... living with an L663! I think you lot on here secretly love the new defender... just don´t want to admit it

Before I get started and so that I can show my credibility.... here is my 'proper' Defender!

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mikerajjers said:

I haven't actually driven it much... we are in lockdown here in Slovakia at the moment.

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Turboman said:

I don't love em, and I don't much like old Defenders either. My interest in Land Rovers is strictly Series.

But I am interested in the development of vehicles, and also just why people buy new cars, of any kind, because I have never felt any urge to do so, despite being easily able to afford it.

So thanks for posting the pics.

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mikerajjers said:

I had an ex military Series 3 FFR 109 around five years ago but had to sell it as I needed the money at the time to fund my house build. It was very rare over here. It was a weekend car for me, I couldn't imagine living with it a a daily.

There were many reasons for me buying the Defender. I have some back problems and I find it a lot more comfortable getting in and out of taller cars with a more upright seating position. I toyed with getting a Land Cruiser but I knew that I would always regret that decision whenever I saw another Land Rover.... I really like Land Rovers, even with all their faults. I had a 2016MY Discovery 4, which I had purchased used. I really liked it but couldn't live with not knowing when the crank may fail. It was also beginning to need a little servicing in the next year or so such as cambelts, etc, so I thought I'd try selling it. I did and actually got more for it than I payed originally. The D4 was a private car and I had set up my own company in the meantime, which allowed me to claim back the VAT on the new Defender. So effectively the Defender cost me around 14,000EUR to buy with a 3 year warranty and peace of mind (I'll extend the warranty later). As I plan on keeping it for a long time peace of mind is important for me. I thought about waiting for an Ineos, but as that project progressed I became more and more dissapointed with it. I also do a lot of motorway driving so the Defender seemed a logical decision. As it is good offroad I can still enjoy it when I get the time to do a little exploring. Plus it was considerably cheaper than similar SUVs... and they were just SUVs. My main reason for buying new is peace of mind.

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Turboman said:

I wouldn't have a Series as a daily drive either, and haven't done for 20 years. When I had Land Rovers since, I always had a car as well.
Same as you, they were a business expense at the time, so the costs of running them just came off my tax.

Nothing wrong with it if you like them, but I much prefer to drive a car these days, I do a lot of mileage, and never go off tarmac. I also have to go into London, and old Defenders aren't ULEZ compliant, although I guess new ones are.

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Western Slope Rover said:

I'll admit it. Mine is a daily driver. Plus it's 26 years old. I live on the edge.

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Turboman said:

My car is 21 years old. But it is in near perfect mechanical condition, and I am not concerned about it breaking down. It is also fairly comfortable, and does about 50 to the gallon on unleaded.

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Western Slope Rover said:

Mine gets about 13-15 mph a gallon and it's a Range Rover. That's all I've got.

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Turboman said:

I imagine fuel is cheap where you are, and that you don't have to go into the ULEZ, so that is probably fine for you.

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Western Slope Rover said:

But I'm always concerned about it breaking down. Fortunately it only happens around once a month.

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