ChrisJB Posted January 31, 2008 Report Share Posted January 31, 2008 So I have a good friend who unfortunately is the owner of a BMW X5. After a year of jealousy and envy watching me hit up trails that he can't (which is any dirt trail), he decided to sell it and get something a little more off-road capable instead of another oversized station wagon. So basically he has his eye on a Defender and tonight while browsing ebay, we found a really nice Defender 90. He liked this particular model because it's not a soft top, automatic for ease of crawling over difficult terrain, it has fairly low miles, and a lot of the accessories that he would want already installed. So the question we have is what are some of the common mechanical/electrical issues, also with an aluminum body is it still fairly strong? Also is the price fairly reasonable? 1997 Land Rover Defender D90 LE Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevenmd Posted January 31, 2008 Report Share Posted January 31, 2008 That particular rover is from the stable of ECR - East Coast Rovers. They are always way overpriced but they are also the cleanest rovers you can buy used. Tell your friend to keep searching and he will find one cheaper AND have money left over for mods before he reaches the $48K they want for that one from ECR. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ROVRMAN2 Posted January 31, 2008 Report Share Posted January 31, 2008 The beauty of aluminum bodies is after damage you can actually beat it back into shape. Not to same shape b4 damage, but shows you've been off-roading or a very poor driver. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PCRover Posted January 31, 2008 Report Share Posted January 31, 2008 You can get a decent Defender with 70k miles or so for under $30k if you look around. Mine was super clean at $20k and had just under 100k miles. Watch out for RUST and corrosion as that is the worst enemy of a Defender. The Defender is one of the best off road vehicles ever made, you just have to accept there quirkiness and there Lucas electrical systems... For $44k you can own a Camel Trophy D110! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LandRonB Posted January 31, 2008 Report Share Posted January 31, 2008 If you can find one! But good point Gary; for their 48k asking price, your friend can find better deals out there. Like I did w/brand new engine, transmission, transfer case, etc... Have your friend shop around; check out Craigslist; And D90, Dweb for sale by owner. Had have your friend test drive one; it's cool that he's been watching you and now wants to buy a Land Rover. Potential NCLR member! Copley Motors is in MA. My brother lives there and if your friend buys it, I could ask my bro to CA. Road trip! I went to visit him in MA last year and wanted to visit Copley's but ran out of time. So much to see and do over there! Post back on what your friend ends up getting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisJB Posted January 31, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 31, 2008 We did some discussing over breakfast this morning and looks like his wife wont let him get a defender because she thinks it's too small and unsafe for a kid seat in the back....(anyone with a wife or g/f knows if she aint happy, you aint happy) She really likes the Range Rover Supercharged, but he doesnt want to go that route because dropping 100k on a SUV pretty much guarantees he wont be touching dirt with it (Money isn't really an issue since his weekend car is a 08 Audi R8 and his commuter car is a 07 Audi RS4.....lucky bastard) So we are hoping the compromise would be a LR3. He would prefer to buy used so he wont be afraid to hit the trails with it. He has definitley been interested in joining this club. Him and I have been long time members of the Audi Quattro Club North America (13 years myself and him 10 years) but due to no club social events or activities in this area, he will be willing to jump ship like I did. We checked out Fremont Motors and didnt see any used LR3's for sale. Need to surf ebay Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PCRover Posted January 31, 2008 Report Share Posted January 31, 2008 A defender 110 is fine for kids and car seats, a D90 not so good...There are lots of used LR3's around, check craigslist, there were several on there from dealers a while back. LR3's are great off road, but do have there limitations in rocks and mud. Not enough clearance for big rocks and to much electrical crap underneath for deep mud. They are great for 80% of the trails we run. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disco12 Posted January 31, 2008 Report Share Posted January 31, 2008 The bodies of the Land Rover are quite strong and solid for a aluminum truck and is what makes the land rover very appealing. It is aluminum. but is alloyed with magneseum and other metals resulting in a lighter weight body but that is equally as strong as a steel body vehicle. from what I've seen Defenders can take alot of abuse and dish it out as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisJB Posted January 31, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 31, 2008 I have been checking online and it appears that D110 is much harder to come by then a D90 which I can see plenty for sale. I did find one on eBay but the buy now price is almost $75K. At that price you can buy a really nice LR3 and a D90. He's pretty much settled on the LR3 to at least get him going while looking for a defender. Even though there are limitations as what Gary stated but I think his and I's in-experience is more of a limitation. So as time goes on and we learn and get better then I am sure the both of us will be driving a defender of some sort in the future. After looking online. I found some really nice D90's for around 20K which is very reasonable, so of course thats got me thinking lol Honda civic hybrid or defender, Honda civic hybrid or defender lol decisions... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevenmd Posted January 31, 2008 Report Share Posted January 31, 2008 you need to spend some time checking out http://www.lrx.com you can search for specific vehicles in specific states. if a d90 is what you are after, there are a ton of them on there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PCRover Posted February 1, 2008 Report Share Posted February 1, 2008 A super clean 110 will cost you over $40k but a "used" one can be had for under 30k. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisJB Posted March 7, 2008 Author Report Share Posted March 7, 2008 Looks like we may have found his LR. We found this Disco II on ebay: 2003 Land Rover Discovery II Trek Competition Vehicle Has low miles, but right now he is working with the owner on price as the 29k buy it now is way too much IMHO, 19k starting bid is reasonable, but doesnt hurt to try to work the price down especially since no one has bid on the vehicle. Also the seller is looking for pickup only, trying to get the okay for a shipping company to come pick up the vehicle. Really it has just about everything he needs and more. The only thing I think he would want to do is upgrade the rear airbag susp for coil springs and possibly replace the headlamp housings (I had the same problem with condensation inside my headlamp housing when washing or rain, replacing them was the only thing that fixed it) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LandRonB Posted March 7, 2008 Report Share Posted March 7, 2008 Chris, Check or have your friend check with Tom from SCLR. Tom was selling his G4 Special Trek Edition for $19,900 out the door early Jan this year; price is the starting bid of what you saw on eBay! Before I bought my 04 D2 last month, I was talking to Tom about his special vehicle for sale; really neat! He really would like to sell it to another LR enthusiast. I would have like to, but already have a special vehicle and wanted a standard 04 D2 that I can do slight mods and for DD use! Hope it's still available for your friend; Tangier Orange is sharp looking color on any modern LR! - - - AD on SCLR Board - - - Hi everybody, I have for sale my orange LR DISCO G4 SPECIAL TREK EDITION. It's model 2004 (year made 2003) with CENTRAL DIFFLOCK. Customized by Land Rover only 8 cars on the world: - 59 000 miles- extended warranty up to 75000 miles- recently done 60 000 miles service by Thousand Oaks LR dealer- a lot of extras:- Locking Differential- Traction control- winter package-heated seats,heated windows- dog guard- extra set of highway tires - offroad BLACK wheels and tires- 3" lift with OME heavy duty springs / available rear air suspension/- front & rear difguards- steering guard plate- ARB front bumper+ WARN 9000 winch + 2 LR driving lights- genuine LR Roof Rack + 4 WARN driving lights with high/low bean - working light on the back of roofrack...etc. Sticker price was 60 000$!!!!! SPECIAL PRICE FOR SCLR $ 19.900,- CALL TOM 818 585 6258 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DiscoChef Posted March 9, 2008 Report Share Posted March 9, 2008 This would be a steal if it's still available. check this D90 outhttp://sfbay.craigslist.org/sby/car/599990150.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisJB Posted March 9, 2008 Author Report Share Posted March 9, 2008 Well thank you so much for the leads! Hope to follow up on them soon and hurry up and get him in some type of LR. I need a wheeling partner over here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jantiz Posted March 9, 2008 Report Share Posted March 9, 2008 If you guys will allow my 2 cents and somewhat biased opinion, I'd like to add my thoughts on that. I love the LR3 but of course that's what I drive. I think if you are looking for a rover that is going to be PRIMARILY an off road toy, then go D90 or Disco. However, if your rover is primarily your daily commuter and occasionally your off road toy, I think you'll find the LR3 extremely hard to beat. I believe you will get very little argument that the LR3 embodies the plush ride, safety features, comfort features and overall luxury stand of its bigger sister, the Range Rover. It will keep up with the off road big boys in stride limited only by how much body damage you want to take when the clearance at exit angle are surpassed, yet at the end of the day of hard off roading, a quick run through the car wash will give you back a vehicle that you're daughter would feel proud getting dropped of at the prom in. And with the used 05's getting close to the 25k price tag, I would predict that more and more LR3s will find their way into the heart of off road enthusiasts as the "best of both worlds" vehicle. That’s my thought on that, but then again, I'm the new kid on the block. So maybe this is more like my 1 cent worth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisJB Posted March 10, 2008 Author Report Share Posted March 10, 2008 He pretty much has his heart set on a DII now. The D90 wouldn't be safe to ride a baby seat in the back because of the non-forward facing rear seats. The D110, in this area we are not lucky enough to have a repair shop/mechanic thats familiar with Defender's. He contacted our local LR dealer and none of the mechanics have never seen a defender in person before. And as of now we are having a difficult time finding a reasonably priced D110 and also one thats not a gray market vehicle. The reason why he didn't consider the LR3 is this wouldn't be a daily driver, he wants something that he can mod and use strickly for 4 wheeling. What he liked about the DII was the amount of visibility. You sit a little bit higher then the LR3. You can pretty much hang your upper body outside of the window (for big guys like myself, the window opening is big enough so you wont get stuck) to get a better look of the trail/rocks your trying to traverse. The DII stock has a little bit higher ground clearance and a little bit more room in the wheel wells for better articulation. The LR3 is a great vehicle for dual purpose. He wants a vehicle that wouldn't make him cry if he got a scratch as he is looking to spend about 20k max. This has been our thoughts on the right vehicle for him, but I appreciate all the feedback from everyone! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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