LR4 vs Defender

[DirtyHal]

I don't understand your concern. My mileage is similar and I wasn't afraid to drive from Europe to Central Asia and back last year. No damage except what I broke. I will keep the truck forever!

Is yours a TDV6? Us yanks are stuck with the 5.0 V8 which has been great for people like myself but a lot of others have had pretty poor experiences...

 

[navigare]

You can "manually", via touchscreen, lock center and rear differentials (if your Defender is so equipped - only center locking diff is standard on all trims, while rear lockers and configurable Terrain Response are separate and optional packs on all trims except the loaded Defender X), but no modern Land Rover comes with a locking front diff from the factory, as far as I know.

The new Defender does have substantially better ground clearance, approach, departure and breakover angles than any other model in LR's lineup currently, and it's supposedly built on a strengthened platform that should be able to take more abuse off-road.

I am not so sure. It goes higher up, I think, but from a lower base. And certainly, if you've got an IID Tool (or another system bypassing the circuits, they all run for about $500), you can lift your LR4 to about 38 cm at the lowest point (gearbox) - 42 cm at the side ledge.

 

[navigare]

Is yours a TDV6? Us yanks are stuck with the 5.0 V8 which has been great for people like myself but a lot of others have had pretty poor experiences...

Yes, I have the 3.0-liter bi-turbo diesel. I'll grant you that, we had a crankshaft failure (a known issue) one month before the 3-year guarantee expired - got an all-new engine! But we've since put on as much mileage as before and so far, so good. I think they've started putting in shafts previously reserved for V8 engines or something (I'm no expert). But what I mostly mean is the overall durability of the vehicle. And the space of course. And there's a lot of aftermarket gear. I've geared up so dam expensive, I won't ever be able to afford a similar adventure with another car. I'll drive this car forever and will be the one to shut the lights out on this forum)).

 

[navigare]

Do you know anyone who has gotten the HD half shafts? Those are on my list too, but I don't need them yet. A bit expensive but the logical choice long term.

Wow, wow, wow, hold your horses maybe! That's what I broke - or it got broken - on a protruding train track and I did inquire about replacing with a shaft from a RR Sport, which is more muscular. But in my case at least, the damage was at the inside entry point, where the diameter has to be the same anyway, so the dealership said don't bother.

 

[PaulLR3]

Yes, I have the 3.0-liter bi-turbo diesel. I'll grant you that, we had a crankshaft failure (a known issue) one month before the 3-year guarantee expired - got an all-new engine! But we've since put on as much mileage as before and so far, so good. I think they've started putting in shafts previously reserved for V8 engines or something (I'm no expert). But what I mostly mean is the overall durability of the vehicle. And the space of course. And there's a lot of aftermarket gear. I've geared up so dam expensive, I won't ever be able to afford a similar adventure with another car. I'll drive this car forever and will be the one to shut the lights out on this forum)).

My wife has 31K miles on her 2013, so that is 15 more years before she gets to 100K miles. She doesn't want any other vehicle so I'll be here long-term as well.

 

[navigare]

RTT Look super cool, but not great option for east-coast wheeling.

Why not?

 

[navigare]

I actually looked it up, as that solution would solve several problems for me. For a custom designed, high quality lightweight hard shell tent that you can deploy in 10 seconds, the estimated price is not outrageous actually (the non-bespoke offerings from Autohome, which manufactures this one for Land Rover, start at $3,000 and go way up from there), but that's still a lot of dough for a tent, no matter how you slice it. And, you'd need the expedition roof rack - another $1850 - to fit it. And, the car would no longer fit in my garage with the tent on the roof. Even at a relatively svelte 140 lbs, I am sure it would be a 2-people job to mount and remove it before or after a camping trip. Still, it's a pretty cool setup for people like me who often primitive camp in deserts and mountains here on the West Coast.

A three-people job, more like, speaking from experience - unless the two were mighty tall and strong. The risk being not so much dropping the tent as scratching/denting the body.

 

[navigare]

Pricing - Sadly SWFL dealers are adding a 'Market Adjustment'.

LR Ft Myers - 5K
LR Naples - 10K

LR Ft. Myers added, $12k to the priced with the exp roof rack, snorkel, side box, 20 in off-road tires to a First Edition (FE) - $74 sticker - $5k MA so it was right at 90k

Does the new Def have a proper snorkel (water-proof) rather than just a "raised air intake", as in the LR4? That would be some real advantage.

 

[umbertob]

Actually, the LR4 doesn't have a raised air intake available, since the petrol engine has air intakes on both sides of the car. The LR3 did as its engine only breathed on one side. The Defender's is a RAI, not a snorkel - and it appears to be very cheaply built judging by the PowerfulUK fitting video. The aftermarket can do better (and they probably will.) The new Defender does have much better wading depth capabilities, 35.4" max vs 27.5" max for the LR3/4.

 

[avslash]

Actually, the LR4 doesn't have a raised air intake available, since the petrol engine has air intakes on both sides of the car. The LR3 did as its engine only breathed on one side. The Defender's is a RAI, not a snorkel - and it appears to be very cheaply built judging by the PowerfulUK fitting video. The aftermarket can do better (and they probably will.) The new Defender does have much better wading depth capabilities, 35.4" max vs 27.5" max for the LR3/4.

Wonder what you can get that wading depth to once there are some out there to play with in the real world

My intakes on the LR4 are at 39" at this point in offroad height, and it has been in water that deep multiple times thanks to the flooding we get in Houston.