2020 Defender

4Runner

Well-known member
May 24, 2007
660
110
Boise Idaho
There’s a person around here with a new 110 with what looks like 3 or so inches of lift, different rims and maybe 35’s. Plus a few other things. I thought it really changed things for the better. Maybe it is the 20’s on highway AT’s that bother me so. I think the looks have grown on me but all the electronics still makes me nervous.
 

Blue

Well-known member
Mar 26, 2004
10,043
856
AZ
Oh wow, the new Discovery minivan gets 22-inch diamond turned alloy wheels, new silver bumper inserts, privacy glass and a sliding panoramic roof, a head-up display, a heated steering wheel, a wireless smartphone charger, four-zone climate control and an interior cool box, while titanium trim is applied on the dashboard. Just what we've all been waiting for...
 

DiscoHasBeen

Well-known member
Aug 7, 2016
1,171
262
Indy
Oh wow, the new Discovery minivan gets 22-inch diamond turned alloy wheels, new silver bumper inserts, privacy glass and a sliding panoramic roof, a head-up display, a heated steering wheel, a wireless smartphone charger, four-zone climate control and an interior cool box, while titanium trim is applied on the dashboard. Just what we've all been waiting for...
Dude the name of this forum ought to be changed to "retro" discoweb, because this company has abandoned its past and will never go back.
 

pinkytoe69

Well-known member
Jan 14, 2012
1,689
182
minnesota
Dude the name of this forum ought to be changed to "retro" discoweb, because this company has abandoned its past and will never go back.

They haven't completely abandoned their past, as they've been trying to be somewhat of a "luxury brand" ever since the first Range Rover came out.

But yes, it's a bummer the other part of the heritage has gone from lumberjack off-road to skinny jeans off-road.
 

Blueboy

Well-known member
Apr 20, 2004
3,205
459
Back in the USA; Rockwood, PA
Not really. The first Rangies offered an alternative to the Series vehicles and still had great off road capability. Compared to a Series Rover it was luxurious yet still a functional Rover with coils / V8 / permanent 4wd drivetrain. The 90 and 110 came out using the platform as well as the Disco. The “luxury brand” concept across the board is a more recent strategy. Just my take.
They haven't completely abandoned their past, as they've been trying to be somewhat of a "luxury brand" ever since the first Range Rover came out.

But yes, it's a bummer the other part of the heritage has gone from lumberjack off-road to skinny jeans off-road.
 
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discostew

Well-known member
Sep 14, 2010
7,706
1,015
Northern Illinois
Not really. The first Rangies offered an alternative to the Series vehicles and still had great off road capability. Compared to a Series Rover it was luxurious yet still a functional Rover with coils / V8 / permanent 4wd drivetrain. The 90 and 110 came out using the platform as well as the Disco. The “luxury brand” concept across the board is a more recent strategy. Just my take.
I think it comes down to a straight axle truck vs the newer independent suspension. You can't beat the solid front axle with swivel housings. It's strong as hell. But the general public don't like it. The turning radios is a deal breaker. The general public is who decides what gets made.

I think the D90 with the 4 cylinder on steel springs and steel wheels is about as close to heritage as they got in a long time. The wheel base is the same as a Disco1, the 2.0 4 cylinder works. The other 6 cyl drivetrain with the mild hybrid shit I think is to much potential pain and suffering.
 
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DiscoHasBeen

Well-known member
Aug 7, 2016
1,171
262
Indy
The “luxury brand” concept across the board is a more recent strategy. Just my take.
I'd agree with that statement. I've watched some old Range Rover commercials and they touted it as a luxury vehicle that was also a very capable offroader. I don't think you can say that about any of their offerings now. Maybe the Defender, if you want to drop, IDK what, 70k on a rig and then spend another 30k or more to get it there.
 
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Howski

Well-known member
Oct 19, 2009
1,483
209
Alabama
I'd agree with that statement. I've watched some old Range Rover commercials and they touted it as a luxury vehicle that was also a very capable offroader. I don't think you can say that about any of their offerings now. Maybe the Defender, if you want to drop, IDK what, 70k on a rig and then spend another 30k or more to get it there.
I won’t argue the direction of their offerings but almost all cars now have got more tech and upscale interiors. It’s what sells cars these days. Most modern Rovers have similar underpinnings on the 4x4 side and are damn capable with a decent wheel/tire pairing.
 

Blueboy

Well-known member
Apr 20, 2004
3,205
459
Back in the USA; Rockwood, PA
Across the board is more recent, but the aristocrat class, and Michael Jordan's of the world have been rolling in these things since the '80s and 90s.
True, the Rangie was marketed as very capable luxury vehicle as shown in the early commercials. And a very expensive vehicle. Plus it was the must have vehicle especially in the Northeast.
 

Blueboy

Well-known member
Apr 20, 2004
3,205
459
Back in the USA; Rockwood, PA
I won’t argue the direction of their offerings but almost all cars now have got more tech and upscale interiors. It’s what sells cars these days. Most modern Rovers have similar underpinnings on the 4x4 side and are damn capable with a decent wheel/tire pairing.
Also true yet for how long? I daily drive my ‘96 D1 and would hop in the ‘94 RRC LWB and drive cross Country. We drove the Rangie all over Europe on and offroad. Not sure you will able to do that down the road in a newer Rover with all the electrical elements. The head of Rover has also commented the need to make the vehicles less complicated for better quality.
 

discostew

Well-known member
Sep 14, 2010
7,706
1,015
Northern Illinois
Also true yet for how long? I daily drive my ‘96 D1 and would hop in the ‘94 RRC LWB and drive cross Country. We drove the Rangie all over Europe on and offroad. Not sure you will able to do that down the road in a newer Rover with all the electrical elements.
I’m pretty sure the new trucks are more reliable than the old ones. The Velar is the only truck they make that off-road ability is not so great. They admit that. But I assure you a $100k full size Range would impress the shit out of you off-road. All the extra lane keep assist and adaptive cruse control , autonomous braking, blind spot monitoring, and more I’m not thinking of would make it possible to go much further each day.
I remember when Chevy was going to switch over to fuel injection in pickup trucks. I was a twenty something Oldsmobile mechanic. I had to go get one of those carbureted trucks. I thought the world was going to end cause it would take a computer to run the injection system. Well, the world didn’t end and I don’t miss carburetors at all.
 
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discostew

Well-known member
Sep 14, 2010
7,706
1,015
Northern Illinois
Across the board is more recent, but the aristocrat class, and Michael Jordan's of the world have been rolling in these things since the '80s and 90s.
I agree with all that. But the Defender is not a luxury vehicle, it’s a utility vehicle. The stripped down trucks I like have manual cloth seats and rubber floor covering instead of carpet. Not a luxury vehicle.
 

Blueboy

Well-known member
Apr 20, 2004
3,205
459
Back in the USA; Rockwood, PA
I’m pretty sure the new trucks are more reliable than the old ones. The Velar is the only truck they make that off-road ability is not so great. They admit that. But I assure you a $100k full size Range would impress the shit out of you off-road. All the extra lane keep assist and adaptive cruse control , autonomous braking, blind spot monitoring, and more I’m not thinking of would make it possible to go much further each day.
I remember when Chevy was going to switch over to fuel injection in pickup trucks. I was a twenty something Oldsmobile mechanic. I had to go get one of those carbureted trucks. I thought the world was going to end cause it would take a computer to run the injection system. Well, the world didn’t end and I don’t miss carburetors at all.
When new no doubt. And I would hope so. However how will they fair 25 years from now?
 

Spark6

Well-known member
Oct 31, 2020
127
40
New Hampshire
When new no doubt. And I would hope so. However how will they fair 25 years from now?
Get in a ten year old Audi... Or look at a ten year old iPhone. The future is not good for today’s crop of vehicles.

That’s the most frustrating thing to me about the modern car. Tech has the fastest depreciation and aging curve of anything out there. Something built five years ago looks hilariously dated. (And likely is about to be unsupported by software!) And increasingly, it’s where manufacturers are focusing their time and resources. The life cycle of vehicles will soon mimic that of cellphones.

I had hope for the Grenadier. The philosophy seemed sound… I still hold some (not all) of it. We’ll see. The details don’t seem to match the advertised philosophy though.

Maybe the Bronco will save us all…
 

DiscoHasBeen

Well-known member
Aug 7, 2016
1,171
262
Indy
Doesn’t the Bronco have a recall that’s stopped sales?
Not a recall but they had/have a problem with the hardtop models that halted deliveries. I'm not sure if they have that sorted out. And then the chip problem almost all dealers are having. The mechanic at work took his truck to the local Ford dealership to get the front end aligned. While he was waiting he walked around the lot and he said the newest vehicle he could find was a 2019.
 
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