If someones wants a Land Rover then there's nothing that'll change he's/she's mind... such is the power of the Landy brand in peoples brain (me included on my first overlanding trip, must admit), but of course after you try a Landcruiser then there's no way back...

3. If you've never had a Land Rover you have no heart, if you still have it then you have no brain.

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Mario T. - southing

I have read the ongoing debate about Landy vs the Toyota and can understand both sides... however!
This Overlanding is a one chance in a lifetime, dream come true adventure for me and the missus. The experience of the journey is as important as the getting there...
There is (for some unknown reason) no vehicle that excites me as much as turning the key and sitting behind the wheel of a Landy.
In life we are constantly making sacrifices and being ruled by the brain - this is a mission for the heart. Sure we know the stats and opinions for the Toyota but it lacks the edge of romance and adventure.
Toyota make the ultimate in cars - but the Landy have soul, heart and a dreamer's appeal that money and logic can't buy...
Mad? Possibly, but you watch my smile when I turn the key!

Get a mercedes G wagen
Star-Motoring: Have Wagen, will travel

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Chris
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"Never have a stupid argument with an idiot - he gets a lot more practice than you"
there I go again
not too hard really

I fully agree, the romance factor is undeniable. I did not want to start a landrover vs landcruiser debate but was only interested in your reasons... Pretty much what I suspected, and I still think the 110/Defender/Series landrovers will never be replaced in terms of emotive 4x4s. If there is no time pressure and you know the vehicle there is something really satisfying about an old landy onto less travelled areas. I never regretted buying my ex-Ghana secret police Defender, and then spending many hours kitting it out. Living in Ghana all my mods had to be planned months in advance, and I learnt masses from rebuilding the vehicle with a really good local mechanic. The vehicle broke down numerous times, but then which 250,000km car won't? Unlike other LRvLC experiences I ended up leaving an 80 series in Mali and making it home in the 'rover - but the 80 was to be fair a totally under prepared company hack! I ended up buying a new 78 (last of the "old shape") 'cause I was in the fortunate position to get one at a super price and due to work pressures I needed a vehicle for short camping trips and occasional longer ones within Ghana/BF/Mali where I could be fairly confident of being back for work in time... If it wasn't for that I would never have changed! Having said that the troopy is also turning into a labour of love and could do everything I want "out of the tin", but that hasn't stopped me modifying! So I say go for the landy - you already know why you want it and the V8 looks great if you can handle the fuel bills and not expect earth moving power!
Gil

,
,
,
Hi Gil,

As far as "Which 250,000km vehicle wont break down"

Well I hope I don't jinx my LC120, D4d, but at just 30 months old, she has 320,000km under her reliable belt.

It's when I get questions as to weather I park it on a rolling road at night, that brings a smile to my face.

Another "smile bringer" is when the Land Rover owners know the price of all the parts !

Yes, I just got a big grin.

G.

Trust me the Prado driven hard has its fair share of problems as well, but kept mainly on the road it will outlast a LR any day, and will not have all the oil leaks and other niggling LR problems. When push comes to shove you cannot beat a beam axle over IFS for hard offroad use, be it LR or Toyota. In saying that if anything ever happens to my wifes series II Disco I think we will replace it with a Prado as her car does not get driven hard off road just touring, dirt roads etc.





Here is a picture or what happens when the bottom ball joint lets go on a prado, this one had to go home on the back of a recovery truck.

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An aussie escaped from london, now in Dubai.

Lets face it any car can have problems with off road use .
The main thing has to be preparation , loads of checks of known faults of what ever type of car you use .
The other thing worth concidering has to be depending where your going is can I repair it in the bush ? lots of modern cars most people cant ..
In landrovers favour in the UK anyway parts are cheap , and the knowledge base is huge .
Having said all that I for one would still stick to my G wagen ..
Twodogs

Attached Images

 

With all respect but a Prado is not a real Landcruiser, its basically a Hilux with a hardbody.
The real Landcruisers have beam axles in front, even the very modern and up to date 100 series still has a beam axle. So I think the Prado should not be dragged into the comparison between LC and the Defender.

Cheers,
Noel

exploreafrica.web-log.nl

My Toyota HZJ75 didn't !!!

Started of at 265.000 km Netherlands to Capetown, got home with 325.000 km after 1 year, 30 countries AND IT DIDN'T BREAK DOWN ONCE!!! Got a couple of broken leaf springs after driving with 70kph in a meter wide half meter deep pothole, but they were not original Toyota parts

Cheers,

Noel
exploreafrica.web-log.nl

Land Rover or Land Cruiser? The arguments are more hackneyed than a cab. You buy what you want to buy for the reasons that are best for you. If I wanted reliability then a Land Cruiser wouldn't come close: it would be a G wagon every time. But then I didn't buy my truck for reliability. I was under it again this afternoon.

I bought my truck because I love it and because so does everyone else we ever meet on the road. We have a 101. Thirty years old, ex-military so god knows what it's history is, with less parts availability than even a series 3. I can't count the number of people we meet just because they come over with a smile on their face to ask questions about the truck. What's travelling about if it's not about meeting people?

I don't care how many times I break down. Each time I do I meet even more interesting people. Every time I drive it I fall in love with it all over again. That’s the point though isn't it? I have valid reasons to justify the pain, money, time and hassle that even a 101 can bring, so 110? G Wagon? Land Cruiser? Who cares? As long as you have your own reasons and they bring you pleasure then any other talk is tantamount to immature boys comparing dick size.

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Brighton to Cape Town (we think!) leaving Feb 2010.
http://www.thelongandwinding.co.uk

having expeditioned a 101 for 10 years i'd have to agree with you, they are great vehicles, best of the lr stable - huw is yours the one with the extended ambi body and poptop


for 110's i'd probabily go for a station waggon but fill in the back windows, extra doors give easier access, no windows for more security

Although if i needed a smaller expedition vehicle i think i'd go for a disco from the lr stable and pack light, the extra comfort would be worth it - and discos are cheap too

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Rich

Iveco Turbo Daily 4x4 40-10
Ex Owner LR101 300Tdi Ambi 'Tiggurr'

Hi Rich
Yes ours is the one with the extended back. Hope you aren't missing Tiguur to much! Wouldn't mind picking your overlanding brains - is that OK? Will pm you my email address so you can cantact me if you are happy to talk
Best
Huw

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Brighton to Cape Town (we think!) leaving Feb 2010.
http://www.thelongandwinding.co.uk

Our landy is a 300 TDi 110 Hard Top (van) ex-Environment Agency 1997 plate. We did 48,361km through Africa 2010-11. We averaged 28 mpg, never had a puncture, had a few minor mechanical issues but that was it.

Our Landy got us there. We did one year on the road and some "good" African off-road (dunes, rock, deserts, mud) and needed to use the winch several times. When we finished, we did some mods and changes from all the mistakes we made and things we learnt (see link)

Langebaan Sunset: Land Rover Upgrades 2.0 - Part B

We found that 2 extra seats is a defo plus for guides or giving lifts. Sitting inside was also good for privacy and warmth in mountains and African winter at altitude. We can now sleep inside if needed - also a few times when we could have done with that as a fall back plan.

Bottom line on choosing a Land Rover or any vehicle (bike, truck, car, Land Rover or Toyota) is determined by:

1) How far "OFF" road do you really want to go, might go or end up going?
2) Compromise - There is no perfect vehicle as you will find that you will make mistakes, learn what works for you and your kind of traveling style and will probably change a few things if you do it again
3) A lot of roads in many developing countries (and I can speak for many in Africa) are having their main roads tarred..... in reality a serious 4x4 is not needed much of the time but it does give you options.
4) What kind of trip are you going on....slow and plenty of time or time limited and need to motor.....this has an impact on what route you might choose and thus the vehicle you drive.
5) The van varient gives you plenty of options for rear fit out. We opted for a rear seating / sleeping and storage area...... a result of living on the road for 366 days and mainly camping / bush camping.

We like Land Rovers, other people like Toyotas, but in the end the choice is yours. Our 110 300 TDi lived up to its trademark reliability and we are on 190,000+ miles and she is still going strong.

HTH

Nick

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Langebaan Sunset - Africa Overland
http://langebaan-sunset.blogspot.co.za/

Depending on your budget I would recommend a TD5 if your were planning on spending this amount of money, it is by far the most refined defender, body style is personal choice between CSW or hardtop.

I have previously owned a V8 and 200tdi 110s and now have a TD5 and would not go back again it is so much nicer to drive especially after having had the ECU tweaked.

Another reason for the TD5 is they are newer and by rights you should not have as many problems compared to buying an older TDI or V8 110, the youngest TDI will be an R reg and buy now most R regs will have quite a few miles on the clock, and the chances of running into reliability problems will be increased.

A newer TD5 defender on a trip like you are planning will not be any more unreliable than any other make of vehicle, there are a few known issues but most vehicles of any make have one or two issues as well.

Even the mightly toyotas have their problems as well, apart from the HZJ cruisers which are pretty well bullet proof, but ride like a pig on std suspension and drink like a fish compared to the defender, the non turbo versions are not particularly powerfull either, but with an after market turbo or the later turboed ones they are great engines but still drink like a fish.

The 80 series are good, but lack a decent engine, the 4.5 petrol 6 is nice but drinks to much fuel for use in Europe, the 80 series are also getting on a bit as well so some age related problems are staring to come their way, 100 series are very nice to drive but are still not anywhere near as strong as their reputation or the 80/105 series, the IFS has problems when used hard and gearboxs problems with both autos and manual crop up from time to time as well.

My pick for a jap vehicle would be a HZJ 79 or a Nissan Patrol, the Patrol is no where near as refined as the 100 series but it is dam near bullet proof and rides on coils unlke the rear end of the HZJ cruiser so still gives a nice ride, the 3.0lt diesel is OK on fuel but its bigger 4.8lt brother is nice big lazy engine, the 4.8 petrol is a power house but is incredably thirsty on fuel.

But at the end of the day if you want a defender buy one, they are not as bad as the doom mungers say for what you are planning, but in saying that if I was doing a trans africa I would also look long and hard at a HZJ 79 cruiser.

If you are planning a lot of sand driving on your trip you will really have to wring the neck out of a TDI especially when heavily loaded, the TD5 is much nicer in the sand, but still needs to be driven quite hard if you are getting serious in the dunes.

If it has to be a LR do yourself a favour and take a series II disco for a spin as well, the body style is not a mod friendly as the 110s and it does not have the defenders no sh1t looks, but they are a fantastic touring vehicle and with their 90lt fuel tank they also have a much better range than the defender does, remove the rear seats upgrade the suspension and fit a CDL and you will have a great vehicle for the trip you have planned. Getting out of a disco at the end of a long days driving will leave you more refreshed than getting out of the defender. I have a 2002 TD5 110 and my wife has a 2004 V8 disco and I am considering a trip to Jordan from Dubai in the next year or two and if I go I will take the disco as it is a much nicer cruising vehicle and still very capable off road. I just completed a 3700km trip around Oman in 11 days earlier this month in my defender as it was a very off road orientated trip and my 110 is better set up for the driving we were doing, on the offroad part of the trip is was a pleasure to drive but for the 1500 km drive home on the tar I would have killed for our disco, as the temp was in the mid 40s, the 110s A/C works as a chiller at best and will only bring the cab temp down to the low 30s at best where as the discos is very good, coupled with being able to sit on 120-140kph with the cruise control etc makes driving the long distance miles a pleasure. A trip from the UK to Egypt will involve a lot of road miles, thats why I would recommend seriously considering a TD5 series II disco.

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An aussie escaped from london, now in Dubai.