NewBie : Which one ?

Ive had many hours of fun reading the messages on this forum.
Heres my question . Ive always wanted a Defender but never had one.
If I dont get one soon I will be to ooooooold ! (65 in April).
So which one ??
There is me and the wife and 4 dogs , we drive into town every day which is about 3 miles round trip. and some weekends we go to the countryside .(N Wales) (between 60 to 200 miles round trip) or the beach (about 150 miles round trip.) We visit our daughter about twice a year , she lives 240 miles away.
were talking secondhand not new ! It would need to have sliding windows in the back , dont want to roast the dogs in summer.

Which of these would you say would be the best ?
200 n/a 200 tdi 300 tdi
90 or 110
is there a great difference in mpg between any of these ?

Thank-you for your help.

Well there is as you say the 200tdi or 300tdi there is no 200 n/a, its just the 2.5N/A, then there is the 2.5TD, and the TD5, it depends if you are interested in spending any time working on it yourself or if you just want to let garages do all the work. It also really depends how much money you have to spend on it and how much money you’re looking to spend on maintenance.

I would recommend the 200 or 300tdi, they are good reliable engines, and are also easy enough to work on and they will suit your longer journeys quite well.

Regarding 90 or 110 its really up to you, the 90 is going to get a few more MPG, but the 110 is going to give you the ability to have more seats/dog space.

If you find the right vehicle but it doesn’t have the sliding windows these can be got easily enough and installed for the sake of an afternoon and a jigsaw.

Check the chassis before you buy if its over about say 10years old, in particular take a look at the rear cross member from the real wheel arch and give it a good knock about take a small screwdriver with you and make sure you can't put it through the metal anywhere. Check the outriggers which come out from the main chassis rails and support things; bulkhead, seatbelt mounts, fuel tanks etc, they usually rust out first.

As a relatively new first time owner myself I'd say the best thing to do if you're new to the whole Defender 'experience' is before you do anything try driving one first. They are very different to drive, especially if you're used to driving an ordainary car.
I agree that you don't want any engines older than a 200tdi if you're going to be making big journeys and it will make your life a lot easier for everyday driving. My 200tdi 110 varies between about 20-27mpg and obviously it really depends how you drive it. If you go to an independent dealer near you they will probably let you drive a wide range of models including older ones you probably wouldn't find in a Land Rover showroom. You need to check the chassis and bulkhead for rust, and a good service history could help - in particular the cambelt changes on tdi engines. I would shop around and buy the best you can afford, if you're patient you're bound to be able to find a Defender that suits you, if you rush you could end up with something that ends up being a bottomless money pit (speaking from experience ).

Don't let the 'strange feeling' on your first drive put you off though! I bought my first 90 in May last year and when I took it for a test drive (ie. the first time I'd ever driven a land rover) I thought bloody hell what've I bought, but now I wouldn't drive anything else, it feels right and it only took me a good week to get used to it. Imagine yourself powering a big heavy metal platform with wheels, that's kind of how it feels!

Engine wise, I have an old 1986 2.5 N/A doozil which I've just stripped down and rebuilt and it's fantastic - solid as a rock. Of course, the 200 and 300 tdi engines are a little quicker, supposedly a little better on fuel (not on the motorway though) and they will go faster than 30mph up a steep hill.

Choices, choices

pos, a tdi will be better on fuel on the motorway than your NA.

i remember adz telling me that at a steady 55-60mph in his 200, he will hit 37mpg

200 or 300 Tdi would be perfect, and a 110 ideal for you both and the dogs. The difference in mpg between 90 and 110 is negligible but the cavernous 110 rear will swallow the dogs, bags, boots, picnic, kites, dogtoys, rugs, dogfood, snow chains, spare oil, sandwiches and flask. With the 90....well you'd have to leave the four dogs at home....

its a 2.5 n/a he can only manage 45

wunntenn said:

200 or 300 Tdi would be perfect, and a 110 ideal for you both and the dogs. The difference in mpg between 90 and 110 is negligible but the cavernous 110 rear will swallow the dogs, bags, boots, picnic, kites, dogtoys, rugs, dogfood, snow chains, spare oil, sandwiches and flask. With the 90....well you'd have to leave the four dogs at home....

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ffs its 4 greyhounds he's got, not 4 st fookin bernards, you can seat 4 humans in the back of a 90 so im sure yer can get 4 greyhounds in there. go fer a 90 station wagon with a 200tdi mate, yer wint regret it

yella said:

ffs its 4 greyhounds he's got, not 4 st fookin bernards, you can seat 4 humans in the back of a 90 so im sure yer can get 4 greyhounds in there. go fer a 90 station wagon with a 200tdi mate, yer wint regret it

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Yer can git three Greyhounds side by side in the gaps by me doors.

i allus wanted ter cross americky on a greyhound bus until i found out what a **** hole it is

As the guys say drive one first, the old jaguar that morse drove on the tv series looked great but they were dreadful to drive.

When you are at it drive a disco as well. I personally found the defender too uncomfortable and basic. The disco has most if not all the capabilities of the defender but more user friendly bits.

I have a bad back and the defender killed me.

I'd also say go for a 110 over a 90. Most people choose a 90 over a 110 because of its slightly better off-road abilities and most people choose a 110 for carrying bigger loads/more people. So for your purposes I think a 110 might suit you better. You can compare the differences in capability between a 90 and a 110 on Land Rover's website:

Land Rover UK - Capabilities

tis got to be a td1200 c.s.w.

shadowster

Sparky_Plug said:

its a 2.5 n/a he can only manage 45

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Are you joking!? Had it up to 78 on the motor way before I rebuilt it, and cruised at 70 most of the way, much happier at 60 though. It did 0-60 in 19 seconds on the run to the petrol station earlier with no apparent smoke in peoples headlights - tis a good un now

BenC said:

I'd also say go for a 110 over a 90. Most people choose a 90 over a 110 because of its slightly better off-road abilities and most people choose a 110 for carrying bigger loads/more people. So for your purposes I think a 110 might suit you better. You can compare the differences in capability between a 90 and a 110 on Land Rover's website:

Land Rover UK - Capabilities

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if he gets a 110 then he wont get sliding side windows umless he goes for a 110csw, in which case he might as well go for a 90csw cos the room in the rear is exactly the same. remember this geezer is almost 65 so i reckon his days of fooking around fitting sliding windows in the side of a 110 van are long gone


no offence old chap, i dunt mean that in a past it kind of a way, more of a cant be arsed fooking around kind of a way

BenC said:

Most people choose a 90 over a 110 because of its slightly better off-road abilities

and

most people choose a 110 for carrying bigger loads/more people. :

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well which is it? the guy's 65, yule be aving em thinking he gort dementia

Sod it spend the daughters inheritance an buy a new un with a five year extended guarantee.

I'd definitely go and have a drive in a defender before you make up your mind. My mum is 70 but she's pretty sprightly for her age and she finds it a pain to climb into my 110. I'd definitely consider a disco. They pretty much go anywhere a defender will go but do it in comfort. Plus you'll get a lot more disco for your money.

yella said:

if he gets a 110 then he wont get sliding side windows umless he goes for a 110csw, in which case he might as well go for a 90csw cos the room in the rear is exactly the same. remember this geezer is almost 65 so i reckon his days of fooking around fitting sliding windows in the side of a 110 van are long gone


no offence old chap, i dunt mean that in a past it kind of a way, more of a cant be arsed fooking around kind of a way

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i thought the rear on the 110 is bigger than the 90. on the older 110s you had 6 seats in the back, and the 90s have only ever had 4.

I used to have a 90 stationwagon for my three big lurchers with sliding windows and a dog guard, but in the end it stunk and if you opened a window we'd have what we called a "furricane" where dog hair seemed to stick to every bit of your face and clothes imaginable. And its not like I didn't hoover it out once a year.

My current dog-transportation device, which I find ABSOLUTELY ideal is a defender 110 double-cab with a truckman rear canopy. Sits 5 in relative comfort, with no furcano issues and the dogs love it in the back. It's cool for them in summer too and I have the roof mounted air vent for ventilation (their sunroof) plus they have a tinted back window for privacy. The spare wheel gets pretty manky though and the cover for it lasted about a day without claw-induced-perforation-syndrome.

They are seperate from the main cab but are able to peer longingly thru the dividing window for maximum attention. They also like standing on the tailgate sniffing the air prior to a walk and generally posing.

I've seen good double cabs with truckmans going for about 8 grand, which might be dear but they hold their price well and people spend small fortunes converting regular 110s into them.

Anyway thats my thruppenceworth