Another Defender hint?

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ryanjl

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I'd say it was taken one one of the planets in Star Wars, but not being versed enough it would probably be wrong and lead to a whole new off-topic discussion about that...

The pic is from the Frankfurt Auto Show. The pic is from here:
https://www.instagram.com/landroverphotoalbum/

It is also shown at the end of this review, which is not bad - gives a nice closeup of interior bits:

Based on this video, it looks like:

You can manually lock the diffs. Either center only, or center and rear together.

Looks like a lot of the functionality is in the touchscreen. I like a clean dash, but I also like knobs. Hopefully, the screen is as intuitive as they claim.

Love the hardshell surface of the rear cargo area.

The proportions of the 90 looked better in this video than they've seemed in others, especially the one without the stupid "planted" pillar. It's just my wife and I--no kids--but we do have a 180lb dog. I'm a minimalist by nature, so the 90 appeals to me. I'd just totally rip out the rear seats and treat it like a 2-seater. Wonder if I could make it work on long camping trips, with a roof rack and some Pelicans?
 

ryanjl

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Was thinking about this last night.

I don't hate it, but I doubt I will ever break out my wallet for it. Those powertrain options leave me a little cold. People knocked the LR4 for complexity when it debuted, but this brings it to an entirely new level.

If I were starting to build another truck for my use right now, I would almost assuredly be looking at a Wrangler, Tacoma or 4Runner.

I d@mn sure wouldn't be volunteering to be an early adopter beta tester.

If you don't like bad powertrain options, stay away from the Tacoma. The engine in the latest iteration is designed for economy as a first, second, and third priority.

I'm all for economy, but Toyota really screwed it up in this case. My dad (who normally owns vehicles for 8 years or so) sold his Tacoma after a few months and bought a Wrangler instead.
 

mpinco

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Interesting discussion/summary of the technology used for MHEV engines.

MHEV - mild hybrid - does it really improve MPG

High complexity and some insight into the need for a large number of ECU's. Feels like the source of the software managed torque curve (unnaturally flat)

Are these are throw-away vehicles? Once you hit a certain mileage rebuild is out of the question.
 
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ryanjl

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It's interesting that, in the UK, the only way I see that you can option the P400 engine is to get the Defender X. All the other versions have the two diesel engines and the P300 (which is the top option).

I have read elsewhere that the U.S. getting the diesel engines may just be a matter of time as the U.S. instituted tougher diesel emission standards for 2020, and Land Rover may just need more time to get the new Ingenium diesels certified.
 

iconoclast

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I would be surprised if the diesel motor comes here. Their Td6 has experienced some dreadful sales numbers. Not sure it would be worth it for them to shove it into another product. In addition almost every other Euro Marque has discontinued their diesel motor in the North American Region.
 

catman

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Some of those Valley of the Castles Kazakhstan photos showing it dirty are coming out now, just to give a better idea of this thing out in the real world:

defender-2019-1192_0.jpg

defender-2019-1191_0.jpg

defender-2019-1190_0.jpg

defender-2019-1189_0.jpg
 

ryanjl

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Man, that roof rack is really basic. If I was ordering now, I'd hold off on that and wait for something a bit better to come along.

This angle makes the front end look very 80 series Land Cruiser-esque:

defender-2019-1192_0.jpg
 

DWillyEffect

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I would be surprised if the diesel motor comes here. Their Td6 has experienced some dreadful sales numbers. Not sure it would be worth it for them to shove it into another product. In addition almost every other Euro Marque has discontinued their diesel motor in the North American Region.

The diesel engine doesn't make sense in the D5 like it would in the Defender. The D5, while it has the ability to do some offroading, it isn't really marketed as such and there are several other products that do it better at a lower price. The benefits are more torque and longer range and most of the types that drop 70k on an SUV dont want to search for a diesel pump, worry about DEF fluid and DPF regeneration if that's still a thing. The engine would probably sell better in a vehicle that's more in the offroad lifestyle category. If they don't, maybe Ford will put the 3.0 PSD in the Bronco since I think it's very similar engines.

Now, the Defender may not turn out to be all that great offroad either despite all of the technology, IMO, it's still limited by independent suspension and if we don't even get coil springs, the people that should just quit their jobs and go bag groceries.
 

iconoclast

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It does not sell well in the Range Rover variant either. I owned a V10 TDI Touareg and Q7 TDI. Both were awesome. I loved the ranged and my only gripe ii the long wait for heat in the winter if left outside instead of garaged. Outside of that I enjoyed both but people like us are a minority and I agree most drivers in the luxury segment are not keen on diesel in general let alone a higher tier luxury product.
 

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