110 as the main family car.

Hi,

Was just after some general advice, whilst I don't post much I have become an expert with the search function of the website!

My last dabble with a Landrover was a Freelander several years ago, and as many forum members advised then the biggest mistake was letting the wife make the final decision. I wanted a Defender then and I want one now, I guess of all places this is likely to be populated with many like minded folk who know that that is justification enough to go ahead and purchase!

Whilst I had always wanted a 90 I have done enough research to realise that with a 9 month old little girl and another one on the way its just never going to be practical.

So instead of looking elsewhere my idea of a comprimise this time will be in the form of a 110, with the two rows of forward facing seats and 4 facing fold downs in the rear for occasional use and never by the kids (based on findings in other postings) mainly it'll have the dog wedged in the back and anything to valuable to risk getting wet on the roof rack!

However, my dilema this time is will the 110 cut it as a main family vehicle, is anyone out there trying it and wishing they hadn't or got any useful pointers?

If I can get away with just the 110 then I'll be spending between 10 and 15k and looking to get something half decent, which based on my searches on autotrader along with a few dealers websites seems realistic.

The alternative would be to get a reasonable 2nd hand family car and spend the remainder on either a 90 or 110 with the comprimises that would entail.

As a bit of background, as well as using it for the day to day commute to work of about 30 miles round trip, I'd be looking to do 15 to 20k a year mileage max, with two or three 210 mile each way trips to the South West and nothing brutal off road, but would be looking to some green laning every now and again.

Thanks if you've read this far, I appreciate I've gone on a bit but wanted to get as much detail down as possible up front!

hi shrek
My 110 is family car too...only downside is...a lil noisy hence cant really hear the stereo..needs normal regular maintainence...and downside is it lets us(ie driver and co-dirver) also in on the taste of lil rain water.
It doesnt go too fast...so i guess should be good with ur with kids on board.
cheers
Adi

Another plus point is you cant get it in multistorey car parks with a roof rack on so less shopping. and its a bitch getting them into the new car parks as they dont make the spaces wide enough or long enough.

I'd get a sensible family car and a 110 for playing with.

I have a 110 12 seater with 200Tdi for the family weekend runabout and green laning. The 3 kids are in the second row in kids seats and rear facing baby carrier. It's used for holiday camping as well. No way I'd use it as the only family car and for commuting as there are just too many bits to go wrong/break/fail/wear out/scream at and it's stupidly noisy on motorways. When you most want to use it, i.e. for work, it will fail at some point especially doing 20,000 miles a year.
Get a small cheap high mpg commuter (motorbike) and have the 110 to get dirty in.

I swapped my BMW 530D Msport for a 110 XS Puma diesel. the strangest looks from the neighbours - mostly understanding why i swapped from the B.M. to the landy.

As my main car, it works. enough room to bung in the mountain bikes for the weekends (days) out. enough room to sort out four people's lunch out of the wind and rain when needed.

The wife drives it without an issue - even likes the driving position and the fact that everyone lets her out with out hassles from junctions!

Having had VW's, L200, S2 Disco, a test drive in a S3 discovery, BMW 5 series its the most entertaining and versatile vehicle i have ever had.

most folks rave about the3 TD5, if you want to over land go for a normally aspirated Diesel 200.

If you expect a refined, quiet frugal motorway miel muncher then this is NOT the vehicle for you.

as a by note, we also have a VW for those journeys and times we dont want to use the landy - few and far between - but parking in multi storey car parks is the biggest limitation. but if you buy a 110, why would you ever want to spend your weekends in town?

In short, while there will always be compromises, if you get aircon, a good stereo and need the 4x4 capability plus the space or the functionality that a large box on wheels gives you wont go wrong. if you want a car, buy a car, but be realistic as to your needs.

I've got the best of both worlds.
Wife has a Disco 300tdi and i have 90 200tdi and we can all get in them both with the muddy dog !

Thanks for the replies.

I probably should have mentioned the wife will be keeping her car, currently a Focus, the most biege of biege small family cars!

So there'll always be 2 in the family, but I'd really like to avoid having 3 if I can help it and I know as soon as I splash out on a defender, she'll have her eye on getting something herself, no doubt from the "super mini" category so no good for all of us, but ideal for her and the kids.

From a size point of view, I was guessing from rough estimates with the naked eye, the length and width of a 110 is going to be similar to that of your average family estate, the height and multistory point is noted, and I see that as being a bonus!

I certainly wasn't after frugal or refined, and neither is the wife, I offered up the option of a Discovery if comprimise was needed but she dismissed it, hopefully enthused by my romantic notions of kids in the back, canoe and tent on the roof and off we go, rather than as part of a cunning sub plot of her own..............

We have an Astra for the missus to get to work in and visit her mum (The landys too high to get on the drive). We both prefer to use the landy when going out on day trips or on holiday. Unfortunately my dad likes his creature comforts so when we take him on his annual holiday we need to use the car. As you already have one vehicle I would say the landy should be fine for the rest of the roles.

weve got our 110 and my works van, we all enjoy driving about in the landy although we don't have any multi-storey car parks here so not that problem. i don't foresee myself selling it in the near future and would recommend a 110 as a family vehicle.LEE

i use my 110 csw as main family car and it works out great, i dont use the rear benches at all just the front two rows, plenty of room for the misses and me plus 2 kids and huge amount of shopping space. plus roof rack for big stuff.
mines a 1990 td and its perfectly refined enough for everyday use, not noisy, can hear the stereo, comfortable and generally usable. could do with central locking but that aint the end of the world
had a mazda double cab before hand and just as nice to use every day as that was.
tbh its the only practical choice for a family motor if you want a defender.
the misses has a small peugeot for day time running about but this is my daily drive and if we go anywhere its in the landy, plus the boy wont go in the car if theres a choice
go for it fella you cant go wrong

Sirus said:

I'd get a sensible family car and a 110 for playing with.

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Now why would you want a sensible car, wheres the fun it that.... and most dont come with a smoke screen

You'll be fine with a 110, especially as you've already got another car.
My wife did have one for her dailly driver, but when she was pregnant she had problems getting in, so we let it go. After the little un came we got a 90, but that was a mistake as they're just not practical. We've now bought another 110, which I'm currently rebuilding.

Just bought my Lannie 110 and haven't looked back. Got a Nissan Skyline as the fast mover (although fairly capable its too attention drawing) and now use the lannie as the main machine for jobs.

Go for it - I use mine for work, and everything else besides, certainly don't regret it

We've got a 2006 90TD5 CSW as our main car, the only other vehicle we own is a van.
I must admit that next time we'd go for the 110 for the extra room though. Mainly as there's no boot of course, so if you've got people in the back there's nowhere for luggage/bikes etc.
Having said that we've been to Scotland, Norfolk, and St Ives (Cornwall) on holiday in it and it's fine for that. Makes what was a dull journey feel like an adventure. We don't find the TD5 noisy, as long as you are prepared to sit at about 65mph. At that speed ours does about 30mpg. It will do over 90mph (standard engine, not chipped etc), which surprises a few other makes of 4x4, but to be honest there's really nothing to prove with a Defender. Your vehicle is better, you know it, they know it, so let them overtake.
My wife swapped her Mini Cooper for the Defender and loves it, she can't see herself buying another car. We have yet to find a single person who genuinely does not like the Defender. Most would not actually buy one, but they say things like "I love Defenders" and "can we have a go in it".
Actually there is one. Our posh neighbour with her BMW convertible "doesn't understand" why we drive that "truck" instead of a car.

lightning said:

We've got a 2006 90TD5 CSW as our main car, the only other vehicle we own is a van.
I must admit that next time we'd go for the 110 for the extra room though. Mainly as there's no boot of course, so if you've got people in the back there's nowhere for luggage/bikes etc.
Having said that we've been to Scotland, Norfolk, and St Ives (Cornwall) on holiday in it and it's fine for that. Makes what was a dull journey feel like an adventure. We don't find the TD5 noisy, as long as you are prepared to sit at about 65mph. At that speed ours does about 30mpg. It will do over 90mph (standard engine, not chipped etc), which surprises a few other makes of 4x4, but to be honest there's really nothing to prove with a Defender. Your vehicle is better, you know it, they know it, so let them overtake.
My wife swapped her Mini Cooper for the Defender and loves it, she can't see herself buying another car. We have yet to find a single person who genuinely does not like the Defender. Most would not actually buy one, but they say things like "I love Defenders" and "can we have a go in it".
Actually there is one. Our posh neighbour with her BMW convertible "doesn't understand" why we drive that "truck" instead of a car.

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Yeah I agree, but some folk are not cut out for driving a lannie. It's big, heavy and handles totally different. You might say you drive a car, but pilot a landrover.
I've seen reviews on some websites and it has had people run a mile. They are either too used to conventional compact cars or cannot handle a bigger, heavier 4x4 that takes a steady hand at the tiller.
You've got be on top of it for maintenance bodywork wise but the engine is (usually) rock solid thanks to it being a big clunker

We have a 2007 110 XS with three rows of forward facing seats and it's a super family car. Had it fitted with parking sensors front and rear as well as Bluetooth to make it a bit more user friendly. As it's an XS it also has aircon which is excellent. The Puma engine in it is quiet and it has ABS and ETC too. All in all I am delighted and strongly recommend it.

Hi Shrek,
I exchanged my Volvo C70 for my 90 TD5 CSW and my kids of 12 and 14 absolutely love it. We've been pounding the school run in it at 60 miles a day since January with all its foibals like no heating etc they still think its the coolest motor on the lot and so do all their friends. A 90 with a 2" lift and no roof rack will still go in multi-storey car parks but only just. You can get fwd facing seats for the back from Exmoor cost you around £500, these are child friendly, or buy the newer XS model where they are fitted as std.
I thoughly recommend NoiseKiller sound deadening which I'm fine tuning now. It transforms the vehicle and ours is pretty quiet now, just don't open the bulkhead vents.

Also unless you are planning on towing a herd of horses or a massive caravan dont get heavy duty springs, they make the ride too harsh and reduce the axle articulation off road.

Also get rid of the General Grabber tyres as soon as you can. They have very little grip and you'll be needing the ABS when those tricky moments come up.

In short great family car if a bit thirsty at around 35 mpg, just kit it out right. And with two kids dont feel forced into a 110, a 90 can hack it.