So, who’s done anything to make it more distinctive, more trail ready? Anyone out there actually own one?
2017 Discovery
- Thread starter Denny
- Start date
Yeah, he's smart tho, looking ahead and catering to the select few who can afford to throw even more duckets at a new, over-priced truck and force their way off-pavement for some selfies.. status knows no boundaries..
A person with the means AND common sense would take that $ and import a decent Defender, have it refit w/all the bells and whistles, and really have something.
It all depends on what you want the vehicle for. If you just go to a couple off road events a year but have to drive the vehicle every day, a Defender isn't the best choice. We used to only have our Defender, but summer time road trips with subpar air conditioning gets old. A Defender will never be a G Wagen.
I just spent 3 weeks driving a TD5 Defender around Lesotho and South Africa. It was fun, but honestly it was a pleasure to return to the usability of my Discovery. Everything you do in a Defender becomes an adventure, whether you are ascending Sani Pass or going to the supermarket. When I was ascending Sani Pass, it was great. When I was buying groceries, it was a pain in the ass. For daily needs the Defender is not the most user friendly vehicle. As far as off-road capability is concerned, the differences between a Defender and Discovery become almost indistiguishable at a certain point.
For some reason Landy enthusiasts in this country have an irrational hard-on for Defenders. Maybe if they had been imported and sold widely in the States the perceptions of their greatness would more closely reflect reality, which is that they are not a comfortable or easy vehicle to own or drive on a long-term basis. Instead their rarity has elevated them to mythic proportions.
After 6 years of living in Africa and logging many km in Land Rovers and Cruisers, my favorite ride remains the RRC. I would own a Defender as a third Rover after my Rangie and Disco - I will probably buy one if I move back to South Africa - but it's not the pinnacle of Roverdom that many people make it out to be.
I'm also looking forward to driving the new Discovery to see what it's like.
Agreed. I simultaneously chuckle and cry when I think about the difference in value between my Disco 1 and a Defender compared to the practical differences.
Let's not forget the Defender's unique strengths though..
Soft top - What's better than being in nature in a 4x4? Being closer to it (weather permitting).
Very enjoyable to load up a bunch of good friends/family and venture into the outdoors in an open top vehicle, which there aren't many left.
It's a box - Boxy vehicles are gone, and thus are very eye catching. Boxy vehicles hold large amounts of cargo. Boxy vehicles lend themselves well to customization. Boxy vehicles hold other smaller boxy items efficiently.
It's bolted together - When you enjoy getting hands on with a vehicle, it's refreshing in this age of bonded/robot welded/CNC cut/formed materials, to work with something that pieces together like legos.
At the perimeter, the body of a Defender sits higher from the frame than D1/RRC creating more ground clearance, access to mechanical bits, and tire clearance. The transmission tunnel unbolts for ease of drive-train access. I've wished for this many times on other vehicles.
Design - It just looks interesting. It stands out. It looks like adventure. People get tire of their endless commutes in forgettable Hondas. They welcome a bit of difficulty just to feel something.
All this boils down to fun and utility. All the classic 4x4s going up in value share these characteristics. A Jeep is not comfortable, but they sell millions because they're a hell of a lot of fun. As nice as the comfort of D1/RRC/new Rovers provide, they still enclose you in an isolated box, which isn't fun.
My 3 year old son loves that he can walk around the back of the D1 and more so the LR3 (a much bigger box) with the seats folded flat. The D5's roof is too short for this, not fun. On a Defender the hood is strong enough to sit on or become a work surface. The roofs are flat enough to walk on. In our Jeep with the half-doors and open top, he can see, hear, and smell everything, and hang off the roll bars like a jungle gym on wheels. As adults it can be difficult to immediately articulate why these vehicles are attractive but easy to quickly intuitively sense the potential fun they uniquely offer.
Soft top - What's better than being in nature in a 4x4? Being closer to it (weather permitting).
Very enjoyable to load up a bunch of good friends/family and venture into the outdoors in an open top vehicle, which there aren't many left.
It's a box - Boxy vehicles are gone, and thus are very eye catching. Boxy vehicles hold large amounts of cargo. Boxy vehicles lend themselves well to customization. Boxy vehicles hold other smaller boxy items efficiently.
It's bolted together - When you enjoy getting hands on with a vehicle, it's refreshing in this age of bonded/robot welded/CNC cut/formed materials, to work with something that pieces together like legos.
At the perimeter, the body of a Defender sits higher from the frame than D1/RRC creating more ground clearance, access to mechanical bits, and tire clearance. The transmission tunnel unbolts for ease of drive-train access. I've wished for this many times on other vehicles.
Design - It just looks interesting. It stands out. It looks like adventure. People get tire of their endless commutes in forgettable Hondas. They welcome a bit of difficulty just to feel something.
All this boils down to fun and utility. All the classic 4x4s going up in value share these characteristics. A Jeep is not comfortable, but they sell millions because they're a hell of a lot of fun. As nice as the comfort of D1/RRC/new Rovers provide, they still enclose you in an isolated box, which isn't fun.
My 3 year old son loves that he can walk around the back of the D1 and more so the LR3 (a much bigger box) with the seats folded flat. The D5's roof is too short for this, not fun. On a Defender the hood is strong enough to sit on or become a work surface. The roofs are flat enough to walk on. In our Jeep with the half-doors and open top, he can see, hear, and smell everything, and hang off the roll bars like a jungle gym on wheels. As adults it can be difficult to immediately articulate why these vehicles are attractive but easy to quickly intuitively sense the potential fun they uniquely offer.
So obviously the solution is to have one of each - three diesel Rovers
https://photos.smugmug.com/My-Cars/Land-Rovers/i-2294R2G/0/3dfccdb2/X2/3diesels2-X2.jpg
https://photos.smugmug.com/My-Cars/Land-Rovers/i-2294R2G/0/3dfccdb2/X2/3diesels2-X2.jpg
I'll X3 on Jimmy's comment. Granted I had a hard top 90 with no A/C but it was a sauna in the heat and himidity we have 6-7 months of the year. I slowly ended up driving my Disco more often for basic comforts and the 90 sat more often. I miss it and have considered getting another (110 ST) in the future but don't know how much I'd actually enjoy it. I'm past my off road park heavy wheeling stage and for most trails in the southeast you don't really need a seriously built 4x4. The Disco has fit the bill just fine for my current needs but that's not to say it won't change down the line