Questions from US D2 owner

So I'd like to pose a question to people who live where Land Rovers are domestic. Land Rover forums in the US are full of stories about blown head gaskets, cracked oil pumps, cracked flexplates, loose rockers and slipped liners. You would think that it would be unwise to take a Rover to the corner for milk. You just don't hear about US truck engines being so fragile. Granted, I think US car owners drive more miles than Europeans, but 250k miles is very doable in a Ford F150 without catastrophic failure (except for perhaps spit spark plugs). Are these Rovers as wimpy as the forums would have you believe, or are the US forums just full of the relatively few problem vehicle owners? My 99D1 logged 175k miles without a major breakdown before I sold it. Was I just lucky? My 04D2 clatters a little bit and somehow eats about a cup of coolant a year, has good oil pressure and runs cool - I don't beat it. How long should it go before it's expected to need to come apart?

I do wish we could get diesels, manual transmissions and Defenders - I suppose the first two are because, up till recently, our fuel prices at the pump have been pretty low. 15mpg and $3.50 - $4.00 for premium sure makes a diesel look appealing. It's a pity that Defenders are so rare here.

One last question, are Defenders in the UK as cheap as Jeeps in the US? I've looked at UK postings and it seems Discos are pricey and Defenders are dime-a-dozen. Seems like a good idea to do Disco/Defender swaps between countries - win-win! I saw a 110 Defender recently, It looked fantastic. There's nothing else like it here. Except for the H1, Hummers are a joke. I would buy a Defender if it weren't for the fact that 15 year old ones in good shape with 90k miles bring between $40k & $60k here! My clean 04D2 was $10 with 65k miles.

im sure we would all like to find a fender for dime a dozen

SEC-TOR! sorry just been watchin Keith Lemon.....PS Defenders or DE-FEN-DORS as you would say are really pricey over here compared to Discos - them and Rangies.

Discoverys are the cheapest entry level LR in the UK, where as Defenders are very expensive new, and hold their money well. But $40-$60 for a 15 year old Defender?!? You should look into sourcing left hand drive Defenders from Europe and bringing them into the US......If they are that rare, you should clean up.