Indy - yes! Perhaps a schwimmwagen, and I could commute to work across the river in it!

David R..Jane is perhaps undeserving of the Roberts Radio/Aga/Holidays in the hebrides image that she might attract! Landies and her go way back..I truthfully considered a red 90 instead of an engagement ring! So this is 'her Porsche'..and I am intrigued, too: there's something attractive about a vehicle that stays true to its brief over several decades, even if it remains flawed as result.

I am the inverse snob, if anyone, not being the biggest fan of off roaders in general. I couldn't do a Shogun..but a newish 110 with aircon and chipped for the motorway, to me is one solution for getting out of my wetsuit in the back of, and putting in and out my speedboat that I might still yet buy! We're expecting number 2, and I expect another dog will follow..
..and a good tow vehicle for our track car..

I'll let you know when we have one for the day.

 

Get a LC, or a Surf good cheap imports available everywhere. Spares readily available, but you won't need them! We have a 2003 Mitsi L200 4live at work,
had a good look at the underside/drive train when replacing the exhaust. Not in the same league as a Toyota. We also have a 85 Toy Hilux 2L petrol with over 375K on it! Not one major component replaced! Stolen recovered twice, crashed 3 times! You just can't kill it!

My LC spends it's life laden with 350KG of equipment. Used as a recovery vehicle for the rest of the fleet, and spends its 'time off' playing as below:
P.s the tow rope was to recover other vehicles (I like to tow them out backwards!)

 

The defender is not actually flawed for the purpose designed. I've driven several off road (and the 90 is of course the best) and they are superb! As a sheep / hay bale / muddy field device they are peerless - if only they were more dependable they would be all over the globe in greater numbers (rather than that awful toyota)

You have stumbled upon the ideal solution though... 90 + freestyles +snorkel and ladder for weekends, 540i touring as a wifey daily driver... If you can have 2 cars!.. (hope she doesn't read the forum)

Have fun (get the salesman to take you up to strahmiglo / muchty for the off road course too!)

David.

 

Do excuse my outspoken friend, Robbed - he has a 993, poor thing. And he doesn't know what job you do..

Saw a 1st generation Toyota L/C t'other day - silver with the orange side stripes (and some rust). Pretty groovy. Can't argue with 375k miles, either..but I'm .just not into modern off roaders.

 

What's awful about Toyota ?

Reliability ?
Quality ?
Equipment levels ?

Or by stating "that awful Toyota" were you refering to my Toyota LC personally ?

 

Actually, I wasn't referring to your L/C specifically Rob, in fact, I hadn't read your post prior to posting mine(but thanks to Johnny for making my inadvertent faux pas so obvious!)

I just can't really get on with most japanese cars. I dislike what many find the best features as you list - overall though, the somewhat bland but ruthless efficiency of them all.

The 911 and Landie are excellent examples of character over practicality and that wins me over. I can cope with the uncertain reliablilty, moody ergonimics for the love that they can instill. I tend not to think of the things that make my life easy - i don't covet the fact that my bath runs every morning and my roof (mostly) keeps the rain out - but driving is different, even if it's a-b commuting rather than back road hooning. And driving a rather bland tool is awful to me - especially if you can make a dull commute more interesting by careful selection of steed.

I ran a Subaru Legacy for a couple of years as a daily beater and it was dull as hell, boring and I guess awful (using my personal definition).... but, it was old, rattly and scruffy but never let me down. Only a blown brake light bulb troubled the MOT man and he perennially ignored the green stuff growing in the rain gutters! It was, I guess, the ideal car - assuming you take a somewhat disspassionate view of such a thing, whereas the much less reliable but infinately more quirky 200,000 mile audi avant that has replaced it gives me so much more...

Maybe I'm the cliche and not Mrs G-pipe after all...

Best wishes!

 

I have to recognise that Rob's Land Cruiser VX is probably the most robust and reliable off-roader money can buy, I even prefer them to the new version. It's the preferred large off-roader of the local farmers and forrest workers. It looks good too but it's in a completely different league than the Defender, size and money wise.

 

Owned two L/R Petrol disco 2's here in the Sierra's and found them to be first class in the terrible weather we have here for 6 months of the year. Am looking for a 99 Range Rover. Just wish they brought the diesel over here. No serious issues in the four Land Rovers I have had over the past 15 years...
Tobago Bob

 

Yes, and, oh dear. Sorry you had your collar felt, Dave. Must read previous posts before posting...

We don't need off road ability, much as we might like to think that we do, more than beach tracks and machair.
Jane likes a bit of off-roading, right enough, but not so that we'd buy a car to do it in at weekends. What we need in cold reality is a 3 year old Xsara Picasso diesel with a a tow bar, probably in that pale mint blue they all come in..
..over my cold dead body, by the way.

 

Hi Johnny,

I was almost forgetting that there is another back yard genius in your neck of the woods relevant to this thread. There is a farmer somewhere near Strathkinness who has a sideline in nicely restored old range Rovers mostly, but would probably have a line on some decent older Defenders too. Mate of mine once bought a really serviceable old Range Rover V8 from this chap, which had Koni suspension on it, and it was an absolute hoot to drive on the road.

PM me if you are interested and I'll grub up the details from said friend (who is the Doc with the 996 btw!)

McJohn

 

That's exactly what I thought till I got into the first real blizzard I've ever seen right in the heart of the Ardennes. I had to to leave for a night duty and the snow was blown onto 3 feet high heaps on the small roads. People just left their cars in the middle of the road, felt really happy to sit in the RR, with a pale mint blue Picasso I would probably still be standing there

 

Kris, there's nothing worse than the smug face of a 4x4 driver when its snowing!

John, yes a proper old rangey on LPG would do nicely! Or as I had suggested to Her Indoors, a LWB that some poor soul has put Months of graft into derusting and rebuilding with a Mitsubishi diesel engine.. So, is she convinced?

At the risk of using you as a kind of 'kingdom of fife auto-cottage industry yellow pages', John, I would be indeed interested in considering this chap.

This is sooo O/T..

 

Johnny,

No worries mate, I'll find you the address.

McJ

 

Interesting thread: I owned a '94 D90 for many years. It was one of only 40 or so that they imported with an Aluminum hardtop.
I very much enjoyed the vehicle, but there are a lot of issues with the truck:

- The canvas top is very difficult to take off: it takes some time to enjoy the great out doors. Getting it back on is silly as well.

- Switching between the canvas top and the hardtop, at least on the aluminum version, was a nightmare, and I had to mod the roll bars for roll-over protection.

- They leak in the rain, often copious amounts.

- The cars "brain" is in the passenger footwell, right where the water leaks in. Make sure the mods kit has been installed.

- Parking garages with the hardtop became problemmatic: didn't fit in many in the DC/Crystal City area.

I did love the truck, though, even as a daily driver given the harsh, noisy ride.
I honestly sold it because of the parking garage issue! It simply became a huge PITA to find parking in the various office complexes I ended up having to visit in DC and Crystal City. Good news is that it has been the only vehicle I have owned that I bought used, drove for more than three years and sold at a profit!