Discovery vs. Challenger
Submitted: Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 20:01
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dennisV
Hello all,
I am going to be looking for a 4WD soon, and after many considerations I've narrowed it down to either a LR Discovery or MMC Challenger - they both have their ups and downs, but a Challenger seems to be more "beefed up" inside (the PA model) and is more economic fuel-wise. I'm looking at cars around 1997-2000 no more than $24K (Vic).
Now, I am not going to go into the real bush, but would like to try out some 4WD tracks - what are your opinions on the 2 cars when they're off road? What about on road? Also, I'm looking only at Automatic, since my wife will need to drive it sometimes too and I can't imagine teaching her to drive manual ;-)
If you have owned at least one of them - could you please share your experience? If you owner both - it's even better! Could you compare? And which was your favorite?
Thanks in advance!
Reply By: Member - Eskimo - Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 20:28
Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 20:28
yep! from experience with auto's the best is toyata 80 or 100 series
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Follow Up By: dennisV - Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 20:36
Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 20:36
Hmm, I did hear about that before, but they're fuel monsters and the 100 series (Prado?) is a bit over the budget (or at least what I could find). This will be an 80% city car and only on the weekends it will get to go into the 4WD mode.
Thanks for the reply though!
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Follow Up By: Member - Sparky - Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 20:52
Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 20:52
Eskimo -
I thought the question was comparing Dicovery v Challenger? We all know that Toyota is the way to go...but read the question...EG ;) But, now you have brought the topic up, a decent 80 series can be bought in the early 20's and are still OK for driving in town...much smoother that the truck I drive!
Sparky
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Follow Up By: dennisV - Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 20:57
Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 20:57
Right, Sparky, but it has a huge engine which is totally inefficient in city conditions and would probably eat around 20-25 liters per 100 km (a wild guess, but I think I'm close?). And with the number of additional options that the other 2 cars offer in this price range... I simply won't find a LC for that price. And if I had the money to buy something more expensive I'd go for the Mercedez Gelendwagen :-) (although I don't know if they're sold in Australia, I still haven't seen one here) - but then it's good to have a goal ;-)
Thanks!
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Reply By: Rosco - Bris. - Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 20:36
Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 20:36
Dennis
I drove a V8 Disco for about 7 years. Not had anything to do with a Challenger but I've seen them in action.
If you're not into grunt .. give the V8 a miss and go the oil burner Disco. The 8'll keep you poor.
Typical Landie with all their idiosyncrasies ... but then again I luv em. Excellent off road and dare I say definitely has an edge on the Challenger. The auto is an excellent unit.
The level of interior trim and fancy do-dahs is probably better in the Jap.
Don't believe what Truck will tell you about running costs ... all 4WD's can be prohibitively expensive in upkeep. Not sure about the Jap, but with the Landie there are heaps of suppliers of genuine parts ... but not in an LR box for about 1/2 the price.
I've ridden in the back of a Paj and was sorry I didn't take my kidney belt .. I think the Disco has an edge here.
To sum it all up ... if you're not into serious off road I expect either rig would keep you happy.
Cheers and happy motoring
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Follow Up By: dennisV - Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 20:42
Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 20:42
Thank you Rosco, and yes, I was thinking of the diesel for Discovery...
Hmm, basically you just confirmed my fear of being unable to choose - perhaps I should get one for myself and the other for my wife and swap from time to time ;-)
I did have experience driving a Pajero a couple of months and I didn't like the experience personally, but I did drive a bit in both the Discovery and Challenger and I like them both.
As I wrote in the post above, it'll mostly be a city car, but on the weekends I want to put 2 mountain bikes in the back, a tent, a bbq and go somewhere out of the city to catch a trout.
Thanks again!
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Reply By: Member - Allan Mac (VIC) - Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 20:37
Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 20:37
Hi Dennis
I drive a 2002 Challenger XS which was special release that has all the features of the PA but withouth the leather seats. All I can say about it is that it is a good honest wagon. It is based on the Triton and I haven't had any problems or dramas at all with it. I have had it off road and it has handled everything I have chucked at it. Except for the tyres that they supply the wagon with I have no regrets with it.
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Follow Up By: dennisV - Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 20:46
Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 20:46
Thank you Allan,
I can't say I've seen XS's being sold... Are they the more recent model or just more scarce than the PA's?
Since you're in Victoria too, could you perhaps recommend a good yard that has a healthy selection of the 4WD's in the
Melbourne area or to the South-East of
Melbourne (Dandenong, Frankston, etc...)? (we just recently moved to this country, so don't know too much about it yet!)
Thanks again!
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Follow Up By: Member - Allan Mac (VIC) - Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 20:58
Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 20:58
Dennis,
We brought our wagon when we were up in Qld last year,
They brought the XS out in oct 2002 and oct 2001 as a one off(2off) "special edition" . The only yards I know are at Dandenong and Frankston . I havent used any but I'm sure either will put you on the right tram if you annoy them. If your intersted in looking at the XS give me a hoy and we will see if we cant work something out
Macca
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Follow Up By: dennisV - Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 21:11
Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 21:11
Thank you for the offer - I think if it's the same as the PA (except for the leather seats), then I know it :-) I will try the yards in that direction, since those in
Melbourne overcharge a lot.
Would it be a worthwhile idea to go to another state to buy one? How do the bordering states rate price-wise? Or would I spend more on the trip itself than the price difference?
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Follow Up By: Member - Allan Mac (VIC) - Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 21:30
Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 21:30
I dont think interstate would get you that much difference Maybe do a search through www.carsales.com.au might shed some light on it. On the economy side of things we are averaging 13ltr/100km and that is across the board (off road,Towing a 2000kg Van, Towing a camper, Highway and local travel)
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Follow Up By: dennisV - Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 21:39
Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 21:39
Thank you - I'll try that web site to compare prices.
As for the economy - my '98 Fairmont is averaging 14.5 ltr/100 km right now, so I'm better off in a 4WD ;-)
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Reply By: marcus - Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 20:55
Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 20:55
Hi Dennis,
A comparison between these two would differ in that the challenger is only available in petrol form and the discovery in petrol v8 or diesel.It is no secret that the disco v8 is very thirsty but smooth and gutsy to drive.Those who own the diesels love em ,frugal on fuel,so good on road and better off,the best driving position going around,very
well appointed and can tow anything.At around 24K you will find a very nice 98 or 99 tdi and if you could stretch the budget a bit further could get into the even better td5.I personally have a td5 and couldn't be happier.Keep doing your homework and good luck with your choice.
cheers Mark
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Follow Up By: dennisV - Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 21:02
Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 21:02
Thank you Mark,
I realize that the Challenger is petrol only, but then it's a 3.5 efficient Japanese engine which has a good power/fuel ratio. The last time I checked though (about a month ago), I couldn't get any near the TDi5, they were around 29+ mark. I'm looking at 24 tops (since I can't get a good trade-in for my 98 Fairmont). If I could find a TDi5 for 24K, I'd probably take it right away... Perhaps an opportunity will present itself, I am not in a big hurry :-) And I'd rather wait out a couple months for the prices to drop even further than grabbing something at the moment.
Thanks again!
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Follow Up By: Rosco - Bris. - Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 21:14
Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 21:14
Dennis
Re the above .. don't get too enthused about "efficient" Jap "small" engines.
My other half has a V6 Pathfinder and it's as thirsty, if not more so, than the V8 Disco was.
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Follow Up By: dennisV - Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 21:19
Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 21:19
Well, I don't consider myself an expert in Japanese engines, but I did hear from several people that Challenger is quite economical, especially in 2WD mode, so I'm just basically repeating them, since I didn't have a chance to drive it for a long time. MMC and Nissan have different engines, so we cannot say for sure that if one is fuel thirsty, then the other will be too, but thanks for the thought! This area needs more checking up on my side :-)
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Follow Up By: Aston - Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 21:30
Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 21:30
Dennis,
It never ceases to amaze me that when you ask a specific question,
As you have, comparing two vehicles as your choice: all the others have to stick their oar in and hi-jack the subject to vehicles mentioned to their preferences.(read some of the previous comments)
That said,
I have a Td5 Discovery and could'nt be happier, I did consider a "Challenger" at one stage when I was about to buy.
Thank the stars above, since doing my 4d
Driver training and another of the participants had a "challenger" boy did he have some difficulty in completing the track that we did.
You will hear all the jibes about all the oil leaks etc, the only difference is they arn't prepared to tell you about all their problems with theirs.
Their are many ask a toyota or nissan owner.
I have been in the automotive trade as a component manufacturer for the last 20 years and I have heard it all.
I really get a laugh out of some of the comments that are made about different things.
Cheers Aston.
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Follow Up By: dennisV - Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 21:44
Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 21:44
Thank you Aston,
I think I will narrow down my choices (in Discoveries) to looking only for the TDi5, but for my price, that should give me some more time to think about those cars :-) (since I don't think they'll be getting near the 24K mark anywhere in the nearest future).
It's really a hard choice and I guess there's no really "right" answer to this question. But I'm grateful to hear different opinions, as that is the only way I can form my own.
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Reply By: Member - Sparky - Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 20:58
Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 20:58
DennisV
Don't own either but have mates who own both.
The mate with the Discover will gladly sell you his...cost him a packet in
services and repairs on lots of little minor things that seem to cost a big bucks. Last year alone he spent over 4K in
services etc...ouch! Parts are dear and so are the servicing centres.
As for the Challenger...have heard no complaints except they are no long manufacturing them...wether that will be a problem later on with parts etc??? Mate drove his across Simpson and apparently went OK. Do you know a good 4WD mehanic? Ask him?
Good luck
Sparky
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Follow Up By: dennisV - Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 21:15
Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 21:15
Yes, running costs is an issue I haven't investigated yet, unfortunately. 4K per year in servicing is a bit high, unless he is always off-road and beats the car a lot.
I didn't know that they don't make Challengers anymore... I'll have to
check up on that information, but I doubt that parts will be a problem at least for the next few years.
As we recently arrived to Australia, I don't know any good mechanics here yet, but I guess I'll need to know one after I buy a 4WD ;-)
Thank you Sparky.
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Follow Up By: Rosco - Bris. - Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 21:20
Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 21:20
Now there's one unlucky chappy ... from recollection I reckon I would have spent about $7K in 7 years ... perhaps $8+K, but that's about it.
Seems to me $1+K/year/20,000km
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Follow Up By: Murfa - Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 20:37
Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 20:37
Hey there,
I own a Nov 2002 challenger. The vehicle is economical, reliable and had handled every thing I have thowen at it so far. Everybody seem to bag mitsubishi, but anyone who owns one will tell you there are build like a brick sh......t house. The 3ltr vk petrol engine has been around for years and has been perfected because of this. They still are making the challenger and have plans to keep making them for the next few years. The only thing I would suggest id get a model late 2001 onwards they have coil suspention all the way around, where as the ones prvious to this have rear leafs which can cause to sag. The only complaint I have is the factory tyres that came standard, terrible. I made a small investment into a set od cooper st's. best mode I ever made. If I was going into hard core off roading and your looking at lifting it etc, then go the disco, I would, but for 4wd with something reliable, economical, and will keep up with any other standard 4wd, go the challenger....
I live in QLD so I can't offer you a look at mine, however if you are heading up this way, give me a buzz.
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Follow Up By: dennisV - Saturday, Apr 17, 2004 at 00:51
Saturday, Apr 17, 2004 at 00:51
Thank you for the tip about
suspension!
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Reply By: Mark - Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 22:01
Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 22:01
Dennis,
I bought a new Disco TDI in 97 & still own it. I have had problems with oil leaks etc & the worse problem being a cracked drive plate on the torque converter. I have done a lot of research on the 300TDI & now carry out my own servicing & medium duty jobs like timing belt renewal. There is a good framework of Land Rover specialist in Oz therefore your not tied to a dealer for parts or service. I have not had any problems in the past 3 years so hopefully the earlier problems have been ironed out. I would go for a post 97 TDI model as there were problems with the timing belts breaking on earlier models & a kit was developed to remedy. Great car on big trips & fuel economy is unbeatable in this class of 4x4. Look out for rust around the alpine windows (roof) on models around 97 - 98, mine was fixed under warranty. My car has just turned 90,000km & is only really used on trips & weekends, probably 40% of which has been off road, with a polish car is still like new. Automatic + 300TDI is great combination on/off road & especially towing.
Cheers
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Follow Up By: dennisV - Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 22:12
Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 22:12
Thank you Mark, I will make sure to remember your advice when checking around.
I think TDi5 is post 97 by definition, right? It's the one with the tail lights higher than the other previous models.
Thanks!
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Follow Up By: Mark - Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 20:29
Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 20:29
Dennis,
Your right a TD5 is post 99 but I thought you weren't in the market for a TD5 as $$$
Cheers
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Reply By: jiarna - Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 22:16
Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 22:16
I'm not a fan of Disco's myself, but a good friend bought one a couple of years ago. He got a 1998 turboed oil burner for around $24K and tells me that he is very happy with it. Copped a lot of stick from his mates as he was always a Tojo man, but he's still got the Disco even though he can afford a Toyota again. Maybe there's something in that.
The Disco's not bad off road, but you wouldn't want to get too radical in it.
As for the Challenger, the only person I know who bought one only kept it for 6 months, then bought a Patrol. Didn't ask why.
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Follow Up By: dennisV - Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 22:22
Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 22:22
Thank you for your comments - I'm not planning to do anything too radical (yet), so I should be safe either way. It's interesting that someone got rid of the Challenger, but then there are really so many reasons that it's impossible to say... Thanks anyway!
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Follow Up By: pathfinder - Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 12:49
Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 12:49
'The Disco's not bad off road, but you wouldn't want to get too radical in it.'
Surely you jest...Discos have live axles and coil springs all round... it's third only to Patrol and Cruisers off-road (and would probably hose an IFS Cruiser on washed out firetrails)... would definitely eat a Challenger off-road
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Follow Up By: jiarna - Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 12:58
Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 12:58
Just quoting my friend, I haven't driven one myself. I guess he was comparing it with his Landcruiser ute. I agree with the LC100 IFS. Having driven a few IFS vehicles, yeah they ride really well but wheel articulation always let me down. Pretty hard to customise too. Don't know it this applies to the LC100 setup as I haven't seen it.
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Follow Up By: pathfinder - Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 13:14
Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 13:14
Landcruiser utes are good for carrying a load off-road, but a coil-sprung vehicle is usually going to have better wheel articulation than a leaf-sprung one, not to mention better comfort! My Disco goes
places that leaves my mate's Cruiser ute scrambling for traction... although I realise you don't have too many firetrails around
Oodnadatta...
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Reply By: Member - John- Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 22:27
Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 22:27
Dennis,
The V8 Disco is a nice machine but a gas guzzler, the auto diesel would be an excellent all rounder with heaps more subtlety in the off road and dirt road cruising than the Challenger. Have you not considered the Nissan Pathfinder of the same vintage. I bought a new Pathy back in 2000 over a Chellenger and Prado (latter was too expensive). I took the Pathy due to better off road capability (Patrol rear axle) and the engine/gearbox was tuned for off road use where as the Challenger engine is set up as a car engine. Definitely recommend autos as I had the same usuage profile as yourself except I took the Pathy into a lot of hard off roading and it was just amazing. Challenger leaf rear springs are better if you do a lot of towing but that is all.
JohnS
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Follow Up By: dennisV - Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 22:43
Thursday, Apr 15, 2004 at 22:43
Thank you John,
I actually haven't considered a Pathfinder because when I looked at the market last time (a month or 2 ago), it was more expensive than a LR or MMC with same/similar features. That is, this car being mostly for city driving, I expect it to have a sunroof, split AC or CC, cruise control, CD changer and all other small things that make life seem better ;-) A fully-featured Pathfinder was around $30K IIRC, I don't know the prices now though. Perhaps it is worth looking at again.
Thanks!
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Reply By: Rod - Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 08:51
Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 08:51
Does the Challenger share the same auto box as the Triton ? If so, I'd do some homework on the reliability of the auto. My neighbour has an auto Triton that has had mutiple auto gearbox problems under warranty. Not sure of details othen than he doesn't tow with it nor take it off road.
Yeah I've heard about LR reliability problems but I've recently heard as many stories about Mitsubishi auto problems.
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Follow Up By: dennisV - Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 09:14
Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 09:14
I'm not sure about the gear box, but I think they have the same engine - how's the engine? I'll try to find out what gear box they put in there as well, thanks for the thought!
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Reply By: Pesty - Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 09:37
Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 09:37
Hi Dennis
I have no personal exp. with either, but listen and read a lot and in a recent copy of 4wd monthly they did a write up on the challenger and gave it a good wrap up (check thier website and
forum site )and I know people with discos who could not say the same! Personally for 24k I like many would stick with cruiser or patrol, not much diffence in fuel consumption to either of the other 2 but a lot easier and cheaper to get aftermarket parts and gear for.
Cheers Steve
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Follow Up By: dennisV - Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 09:42
Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 09:42
Thank you Steve,
I'll make sure to find that copy of 4WD monthly - I haven't thought of reading that magazine, so thanks for the idea!
Unfortunately, the only Cruisers/Patrols that are in the 24K range are the "older" style ones, without all the bells and whistles... And while they are probably better in true off
road conditions, I mostly need a city car, and IMHO they're not that suited for city conditions.
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Reply By: Member - Des - Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 11:51
Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 11:51
I understand that the engine in the Challenger is from the superceded Pajero, so it has proven reliable. Parts might not be a problem if many are shared with Triton or Pajero.
One dealer to try is Fine Choice Auto Sales in East
Brighton - very good range of 4WDs. I haven't bought from them though - others might have comments on what they are like.
I suspect when you have driven a few Challengers and Discoverys you will have a preference between them.
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Follow Up By: dennisV - Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 19:48
Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 19:48
Thank you for the site - I'll check them out!
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Reply By: ianmc - Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 12:43
Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 12:43
Dennis, if still considering Mitsubishi why not a Triton dual cab ute. Most handy machine with heavy stuff isolated from the cab in the tray.
The running gear is strong, have a look at their rear axle, and the TD2.8 has eliminated the rubber drive belts. The motor is well proven & economical.
I understand their manual box is stronger nowadays but cant comment on the auto.
if available.
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Follow Up By: dennisV - Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 19:49
Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 19:49
Well, I need to listen to my wife :-) We do really need a "closed cabin", not a UTE. Personally, I don't care less for anything, except the steering wheel and pedals, but we need to carry some stuff back there, and even perhaps install a bio-toilet as well ;-) Thanks!
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Reply By: pathfinder - Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 12:54
Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 12:54
Dennis - I think you'll be surprised how much fuel 6-cyl petrols like Challengers use around town and off-road (like up to 40l/100km in sand). The TDi Disco (and you could get an excellent 4cyl one for $15-20K) gets 10l/100km in most conditions and probably doesn't blow out beyond 20l/100km off road.
I don't know if you've driven both, but Discos have a great ride and a great driving position - you have a panoramic view unlike in Jap 4WDs where you sit right down in the vehicle like a car - not great for off-road vision. If the Patrol had a similar driving position, it would be my first choice of 4WD...
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Follow Up By: dennisV - Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 19:52
Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 19:52
Yes, but TDi5 are hard to find in my price range :-/ Perhaps I should wait out a bit for them to drop and then get one. A diesel for a 4WD is always my choice. Thank you for your comment!
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Follow Up By: Mark - Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 20:32
Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 20:32
I think you would have to drill a hole in the tank to get 20 litres per 100km from a 300 tdi. worse I could get was 13 Litres through Simpson with very heavy load.
Cheers
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Reply By: Davoe - Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 14:40
Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 14:40
mate o mine was in the market for a 2nd hand 4by bout 2 years ago and looked at an auto td5 landie----- til he drove it and found it had half the power of a 2.4l hilux he purchased a v6 jackeroo and has been most happy. In my opinion if you will be seeing little bush work and mostly mums taxi city driving a petrol might be the go as they cope with that style of driving much better
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Follow Up By: NathanK - Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 16:03
Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 16:03
dunno what busted car he test drove then, because i've driven both 200tdi and 300tdi and both have more power than the hiluxs. the 200tdi isn't that great, but the 300tdi has more grunt than the 2.4l hiluxs by far.
the td5's are in another league too, almost as much as my 3.9l v8 disco.
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Follow Up By: Davoe - Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 17:01
Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 17:01
Probably was just the vehicle although after my breif drive of a td5 I would say you should be putting 4 of your spark plug leads back on if it goes like your 8
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Reply By: Camper - Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 22:13
Friday, Apr 16, 2004 at 22:13
Dennis,
We run a 1998 Challenger and are pretty happy with it. We tow an offroad trailer and it has gone everywere we have asked it to. Without the trailer we crossed the Coorong in sand and did the 4WD tracks around Arkaroola easily. Like you we did not want to do heavy duty 4WD but wanted to get to a bigger range of
camping sites than we could in a car. The Challenger has been great for this and handles well on the open road and is comfortable, smallish to park etc and not bad around the city.
We test drove a Disco TD before buying and decided it was too much like a truck for our needs. That's not so much a crit of the Disco as an expression of what we wanted.
It seems to me that if it's called Land Rover it will go anywhere but at some cost whereas the Challenger cost us $2.1K at auction and will do what we want if used with care. One problem you might find with a petrol Challenger is that petrol is not as good as diesel for the downhill stuff I can vouch for that from experience. Choosing an auto will only add to this problem. (We should all lobby Mitsi to importthe diesel ones they sell in NZ)
Best of luck with your decision.
Camper
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Follow Up By: dennisV - Saturday, Apr 17, 2004 at 00:56
Saturday, Apr 17, 2004 at 00:56
Thank you Camper,
I appreciate your comments on this subject and I will add them to my small list of pluses and minuses... I can't really say what I'll be getting in the end, but I'll be sure to come back here and post a picture of whatever that is I buy ;-)
Thanks again!
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Reply By: philmack - Sunday, Apr 18, 2004 at 15:01
Sunday, Apr 18, 2004 at 15:01
Hi Dennis, I have a 98 Land Rover Discovery TDI, it has travelled over 350000 km over the last 5 years, over the last couple of years I travel about 12000 km a month over some really rough terrain throughout the weast of Qld and into the Cape and Gulf (Business Cattle). Although I have had some minor problems it has been great, but in saying this I have it serviced every 10000-12000 km and my repairer fixes or replaces parts if needed (not very often). I have put a Bilstein
suspension kit under it (much better ride on both road and dirt) and a set of BF Goodrich on it and thats about it. I do hear that the newer models have had some problems but am unsure, all I know is that mine has done a great job for me and has very inexpensive to maintain given the Km I have done.
Regards
Philip Mackness
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Follow Up By: dennisV - Sunday, Apr 18, 2004 at 17:30
Sunday, Apr 18, 2004 at 17:30
Thank you Philip for your comments - that's quite a lot of travelling you've done there ;-) And with such mileage, it's a really good test for the car, so I really value your input here!
Thanks again!
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