The day-to-day consequences of landy ownership?

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8{|> said:
If finance & reliability are your key criteria then you should buy a Japanese saloon or hatchback.
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The thing is that eventually time will take its toll on these too, and when that happens I much prefer a car that:
A) is put together in an identifiable way
B) and is possible to repair with an accepable amount of disassembly

Besides, there seems to be far less accessories in a Defender that can break to start with!

//Dabac - whose current car has taught him how to remove, resolder and reassemble an instrument panel in 20 minutes flat...
 
mate. Buying a landy is not something you 'weigh up' .
Us Landy owners did not look at the pros and cons. We just bought one. It was a natural primeval urge like having a naked Gwen Stefani in front of you - You just wanted to have it.!
If those urges dont overide all the negatives, then dont buy one.
 
I got rid of a 3 series bmw coupe for my 85' 2 1/4 petrol 90 and i have to say it likes a drink but i'm so happy i made the leap to landy ownership, i've only had it a couple of weeks and i've already had to replace the rad and the front suspension turret snapped on the way to work yesturday (and the delivery man's here as i type bringing my new parts ). Probably my fault for getting excited and buying before i researched the faults they suffer from but i'm still happy with my purchase
 
better a series 3 rather than a bmw 3 series!
and a lot cheaper than repairing, say, a 21 yr old bmw318 eh?
(assuming you could even get the parts?)
 
I love my Land Rover. Good job really as I travel 70 miles a day in it to and from work. :D

It's not comfortable, it's not fast and it's not posh but it's bluddy good fun to drive and IS reliable. Most of the time anyway... :p A colleague of mine came into the office yesterday and said he'd seen two guys looking at it in the car park wondering wtf it was. I've had my photo taken while driving along the motorway here. I've been waved at by truckers (all four fingers) and constantly have people pull up when I've had the door tops off to chat at the lights. My kids always want to ride in it despite having two other sensible vehicles to choose from. They ask to be picked up from school in it. They cried when things were looking dodgy at the back end of last year and it looked like we might have to sell it if we went home. I can fill it full of logs, wet dogs or sailing gear and hose it out later. It got me home through (quite literally) two foot of unplowed snow last winter. I can drill it, bolt it, roller paint it, fix it, dent it, bash it, submerge it and it still keeps going and going - with added character. A proper Land Rover is a member of the family. If you're making a "lifestyle choice" about owning one then maybe it's not the vehicle for you. If on the other hand you climb into the cab, love the smell of hot oil and then recognise fondly every rattle, squeak and clunk as you progress along the road, transported into another era of motoring entirely - even in the earlier 90s and 110s - then it could well be what you've been waiting for. Good luck!

Cheers
Luke
 
Well, I haven't given up on the idea yet, although restyricted availability of suitable objects and fuel consumtion are heavy considerations. And just to torment myself I bought an issue of LRO and browsed through the ads, which immediately sparked a brand new set of questions:
- vehicles for sale often state " F reg" or "W reg". I assume reg is short for registry, but what does the odd letter mean?
- there appears to be any number of companies selling "swivel kits", what are those for?
- poly bushes, soft(normal) or hard? Apparently hard are recommended for serious off-road use, but I've so far never met a car that I didn't like better with harder suspension set-up even on road. Is a landy likely to be any different?
- after-market seats, are they any good? Can any provide a considerable wider range of adjustment than the Defender original? height and/or seat tilt would be nice...
- Station wagon and County station wagon, is there any difference or is it only sloppy writing in the ads?
- Some vehicles are listed as "commercial", what does that mean?
- Some suppliers speak of "refurbished" cars, others of "renovated". Arbitrary choice of words, or is there a difference?

- with the wide selection of accessories available, aren't there any free-wheel hubs or something around to get away from the permanent 4x4 to improve fuel economy when you don't need the extra traction?

I'm currently looking at a 110 CSW from 2000, with 125 K miles on the clock. which seems fairly impressive considering the the age. Would that be a good or a bad thing? Owner claims it has been fully serviced and has had a lot of stuff replaced, wheel bearings, wataer pump, belts etc etc. Exterior looks good.
 
Hi dabac, you certainly have stirred up a whole bunch of emotions!! I'm new to the LR community - I've always been an Opel / Isuzu person, that is until I took on my '96 defender 110 300 TDi. She was a pickup that lived on a farm, had 300000+ Km (mostly hard farm work) on the clock, but was priced right for my limited buget. Since then she has been converted to a hard top and more recently a full County SW. (I've had her for about a year) To say she is a work in progress is an understatement. If I had the choice, would I do it again - absoutley!

Don't be like the kid who won't jump into the pool because the water isn't just right - take the plunge.

Cheers - Wayne
 


Folk on here are right, it isn't something you weigh up, i'm not too sure how thirsty mine is, fuel gauge has never been accurate, or more to say, working since i got it 5 years ago! its great, fun to drive, no one argues in traffic - not even posers in brand new RR's! - wouldn't want to scratch the paint now....

Not had any problems since 5 years ago when i first got it and i wasnt old enough to drive - Dad bringing it back home from where we brought it - throttle cable snapped. So we used stones to get us back! just had to anticipate traffic movements.... - see if you have any problems, you'll think of a solution yourself!

​
 
Hi, I have only recently gone into Land Rovers. I replaced my wifes Forester Turbo with an 03 V8 Discovery ES which has started a whole new hobby for me. I have just replaced my 400BHP Impreza with a 1992 110 200TDi Defender. I really cant believe how addictive they are. I have always been involved with drag racing and track days etc.. but have stripped my subaru in favour of spending the money on my 110. I have done 500 mls in the first week of owning it and wouldnt change it for anything. Its in need of lots of work and according to my kids it needs plenty of off road accesories. Just need the wife to go to the mother in laws for a few days while the bits arrive un-noticed;)
As for fuel economy the V8 is about the same as the forester, and the TDi I think does about 28MPG, against my Impreza which did about 12MPG.
I certainly wont be going back to more sensible cars, I am using the 110 as my daily driver without any problems, and yes its uncomfortable, not easy to park in a car park, noisy, cold(subliminal message.....need to fix heater), rains in, smells abit funny and terrifies people(thats a good point).
It is a car with character which 99% of modern cars simply dont have.
Jt
 
As I said, driving landy is kind of therapy, psycho... Ha, ha, ha. And yes, buy it. Than ask questions. Its better way. If You forget to be happy, to enjoy in life, dont worry. When You feel the keys in Your pocket, youll be smiling.
 
Registration Letters http://www.needforspeed.co.uk/pages/Registrations.htm
Swivel kits: Repair kits for front hub to axle mounting.
Poly bushes: Replace standard, rubber suspension bushes. Give longer life and harder/softer ride as required.
After market seats: Usually better material and comfier. Some companies offer more adjustment but don't expect miracles.
SW/CSW: Station wagon has side windows and alpine windows (in the roof sides). CSW has better trim and seat materials with more interior linings.
Commercial: Or hardtop. Van sides with no windows fitted basically.
Refurbished or renovated: Same thing basically. Sombody has done something to it.
Free wheel hubs: Yes they are available but are not required for the type of vehicle you want.

I promise you'll never regret it!

Tony
 
Thanks for the reply! English isn't my first language, but usually I get by anyhow. But there are some things my dictionaries simply doesn't cover...
 
dabac said:
So today I decided to pursue my dream a bit further and walked over to the local LR and Jag dealer(who also manages the local garage) to try to get a grip on running costs, which turned out to be interesting in a way but not particularly helpful:
Q: what are the service intervals and what does service cost?
A: every 12000 miles, dont know about cost.

.
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Yesterday I had another go at some LR reseach and managed to corner the new kid at the dealers. Apparently unaware of the policy of keeping customers clueless until contracts are signed he handed over a price list over services, labelled A, B, C. What looks a bit strange to me is that all that is listed are what liquids to be replaced, and not a word about cam belt, valves or injectors, or even checking brakes for wear. Does anyone has a better service list available, or are all other details considered as "replace when the need announces itself"? Next thing, which fluids do you guys replace, and which do you simply top up? Engine oil of course gets replaced, but who replaces the entire coolant volume as a service item?
 
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