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Any complaints 🤬 from ulez whining wallflowers and I'll take the exhaust manifold off.
 
The new Defender also had to be a marketing success in USA which the old one wasn’t as that’s a major Land Rover market, the old Defender simply didn’t sell enough units even in Europe to be viable.
Grenadier have tried going down that route and it will be interesting to see how many sales they make.
Also who knows if they’ll still be around in 10 years time.
The old Defender would have been successful here in the US had government mandates allowed it to be sold here. Emissions and the lack of passive restraints kept it off our market, same as the Jimny (Samurai).

We liked 'em, but couldn't buy 'em. They still go for crazy money, if you can find one.
 
You should be able to import TD5's now, as the first ones were made in 1998. As these are plentiful in the U.K. l would expect prices over in the USA to fall.
 
Series one, two, three, ninety, one ten and defender models were mostly steady improvements for what was [ is for those still running] a pretty basic working truck that some choose for every day transport or other fun uses.
 
There's a gap in the market for someone to produce a working vehicle for around ÂŁ30,000

lf Suzuki can do it for ÂŁ20,000 then surely a larger version is possible at under ÂŁ30,000

The Suzuki has a separate chassis with the same drivetrain as an old Defender, with a five speed manual transmission with a mechanical low range selector. The interior is plastic with no fancy trim materials that will look manky after a couple of years on the farm.

But it still incorporates all the safety features demanded by law today. ÂŁ20,000 was the top "XS" specification and there was a cheaper one (like the old Defender County) for around ÂŁ17,000

The "Commercial" version is still available but it's too small to be a serious contender. lt's currently around ÂŁ21,000 including VAT
 
Well, let's see your ideas for a simple functional vehicle then, that Land Rover should have produced.

lneos went for it with the Grenadier and largely succeeded, although it's out of reach for most at over ÂŁ70,000.

What you need is a back to basics vehicle for ÂŁ30,000

But don't forget, the platform has to support an electric option. And you need Stabilty control, lane departure warning, ABS, collision avoidance technology and it has to be Euro 6+ compliance.

And customers will whinge if you specify recirculating ball steering

You'll have to incorporate a media screen somewhere on the dash. And you'll need at least mild hybrid technology, so a second battery will be required for that.

Your design will have to pass all the latest collision tests including all the NCAP requirements, so those thin, flat doors you were thinking of incorporating just won't do.

And emissions will need to be low, or your company will get fined for every vehicle they produce. Your back to basics interior can't have any sharp edges or parts that could injure or impale occupants in a crash, and it has to survive a rollover without the roof collapsing. So forget the old Defender type A and B pillars, they just won't be strong enough.

Still think you can do it?
I'd have thought the Ford Bronco would be a reasonable vehicle that more of us might have been able to afford, capable too.

Pity its not UK available
 
Yeah the Bronco looks great, reasonably priced as well.
Wonder why Ford isn't marketing it in the U.K.
 
Yeah the Bronco looks great, reasonably priced as well.
Wonder why Ford isn't marketing it in the U.K.
The Bronco is not designed to meet EU Type Approval. And would require lots of changes to be compatible. Ford have previously said they have no intention to bring it to Europe.

If you look at Wrangler sales in the EU you can it may not be worth it for Ford. I think they have been selling 150,000 - 200,000 Broncos a year in the USA. For all of Europe they’d probably do well to shift 10,000 - 15,000 units. The sums probably don’t add up. It’s not as if the U.K. or EU is a big market for “proper” 4x4’s. We tend to like crossovers and SUVs or posh posing wagons if you have a bit more to spend.

I’d also guess that if they did bring it over here. It would no longer be affordable and good value for money. Just look at how Ford price the Mustang over here and how Jeep price the Wrangler.

I am surprised the Bronco Sport hasn’t made its way here though. But again maybe the Americans think it is just too much fun and exciting type of vehicle to really interest many EU/UK buyers.
 

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