Are Land Rover Defender 130's any good or not?

G N
I have to agree with Axle.
AULRO is your friend, the guys there give practical advice and Information.

And "Yes, they (LandRovers) have issues"

BUT then so does every other vehicle.

Toyota and Nissan are NOT excluded from having issues.

Disco.

HAHAHA!, GAWD Roachie never thought i'd be reading that!!!.


Mate everything about the new defender is good , EXCEPT the bloody fuel issues with that transit motor.( same prob yota and others have had} Trouble is now, WILL Landrover address it quickley like its competitors???, Sadly i have a gut feeling they won't, SIGH.. Landrovers!


Cheers Axle.

Hi Roachie

sounds like they issues are similar for a few of us.
sounds like its just a different set of issues so might as well stay with what i have for the time being.
You would think that someone could come up with something that had it all? It would not be so hard, probably no more expensive than what thye are currently making and would capture the market big time.
hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
oh well
Thanks for comments
GN

mmmm
sad they dont get it right, and its the easy stuff the seem to stuff up.
Thanks for your thoughts Barnesy
GN

Hi Landy
good reply and i heed your words.
I know what you say about the gtransfere case issue but i didnt want to put the while story in as i didnt want to start a rah sesion and wanted serious opinion. But for that trip i only saw about 10 landy,s. one was rolled (obvious not verhicals fault) one had done a gear box, another had done a transfere case and another was stopping for no reason when it was hot due to they thought electronic throttle control, this is a bit high of a % i thought, but still could be drivers and / or maintainance issues.

I am interested to hear you find the seating / door / steering wheel ok as that seems a big put off to me (and others it sounds)

So excuse my lack of knoledge on these models but whats is special about the 1995 TDI 300 model?

regards
GN

Hi GN

Previously we had a TD5 Defender (2001) model which was fully computerised. We bought it brand new and had 130,000 klm of trouble free driving, although we maintained to a high standard.

I decided I wanted to set up a long-range touring vehicle and set about finding a 'non-computerised' Defender 130. They tend to be a little under powered, but it is suitable for what we use it for. We reconditioned everything in the vehicle and purposely bought a vehicle that needed this type of work. As you can see there is plenty of potential for these vehicles, we carry a zodiac inflatable boat and outboard in the back.

Why the TDI? Well I just wanted something simple that wasn't relaint on a computer system and should the need arise it will be easier to work on 'in the field'.

The seating arrangement is fine.....if you are hoping out of a Nissan or Toyota you may find it a little cramped at first, but as someone else noted in this thread..you can do 10,000 klm ad hop out feeling like you just drove down the road.

If you are in Sydney drop me a line and you can have a look over our 130...

Regards

Hi Landy
i appreciate your kind offer to check out your rig but we are 1100km away sadly.
I have a mate who has the TD5 motor 110 wagon and he is a landy obsessed type but does admit the computor worries him when way out bush.
He said the TDI300 motor was pretty good, is slightly more thirsty once over 100km but not much different to the TD5 on fule under 100kmh.
TDI not much left over 110kmh, only other issue is timing belt must be done at 90 000kmh by a specialist who knows what they are doing with the right tools or can come off amd stuff the motor.
The only other issue he said was rear axle spline at about 150-200k.
I am not sure if you would agree with these comments or have any thing to add?
I am with you on the no computor idea. When i talk to those who recue peope who break down out bush, they tell me 70% + are from "electical issues".
Plus a few reds, dual batteries, jumper leads, solar panel, 30 amp 12v generator = problem comming with a power spike / computor issue i recn.
Do you tow much with your TD300?
Are there many of these around? My mate said they ran from 1995 to 1998?
What sort of valve to they hold?
I too have the idea of wanting to carry the zodiac and outboard. thats the issue with the cruiser i have, where we have what we need onboard but no room / capacity left for any more and dont realy want to tow a trailer.
What did you do to your 1995 landy when you did the overhaul?
What kind of set up do you have in the rear?

Sorry for so many questions but you are pretty much on the plan that i agree with and i dont have too many options for gathering info. So all help is greatly appreciated.

Many thanks
GN

Hi GN

Previously we had a TD5 and towed a camper trailer behind it; in the end we wanted to have a single vehicle set-up and the Defender 130 is ideal for this; we don’t usually tow anything with this vehicle.

To put our set-up into some sort of perspective our aim was to have a reliable long-range touring vehicle that has been reconditioned to our specifications. Customising a vehicle in this way usually involves a fair amount of expense, but you end up with what you want. Our Defender 130 has been fully overhauled, including the engine; drive line, gearbox as well as having a custom canopy made for the rear. By doing this we know what we are dealing with and it is a simple case of maintaining the vehicle to a standard. When purchasing the vehicle we deliberately sourced a vehicle that was in clear need of this work and therefore it was at a discount. The theory being that there was little point purchasing a vehicle that was in average condition if we were going to overhaul it in any case. We wanted a ‘dog’.

Traveling at around 90-95klm per hour is efficient speed for our vehicle and bearing in mind we set it up for touring, getting somewhere in a hurry is not a priority.

You mentioned a couple of specific issues related to this model, including the timing belt and axle spline. The timing belt was done with the overhauled engine, we are aware that it needs to be done at periodic intervals and we now when it was last done, so it becomes a simple case of monitoring over time and particularly when the ‘average life’ gets closer. The axles’ and splines have been replaced with Maxi- Drive axles and splines, an after market modification and I don’t expect any problems going forward. We also did this on our previous Defender 110. In fact our Defender 110 TDI200 is currently in having the timing belt done and the modified splines put on.

Sourcing a vehicle just takes time and patience although I have found there are fewer Defender 130’s around, especially this model, but you can find them. It is more common to see the TD5 version for sale. Whether any vehicle holds its value can be debated, however if you customise like we have you’ll never get back what you have spent in monetary terms, but that isn’t our aim. We do have a vehicle to our standards and requirement.

The rear canopy has a lot of storage space and we designed it to carry a 60 litre fridge, equipment including the boat if we want to take it. The outboard has its own bracket in the canopy and is very secure when traveling.

We have a touring range in the 1600/1800 klm region, which covers most trips that we are likely to undertake and it has a stainless steel water tan fitted. Currently there is a roof-top tent on it, but this can easily be taken off if we choose to do that.

Have a look at my profile as I have added a couple of photos that show the canopy a little better and gives you a feel for what can be done…..

The vehicle was also featured in Australian 4WD Custom Magazine in April (I think it was April) if you can get a hold of it.

Good luck…….

Hi Landy
thanks again for your helpful information.
I have had a couple of cruisers set up and i forever want to change stuff, but i totaly agree with most of the stuff you have said and also like the idea of no trailer, its a lot of weight / hastle for very little and often stops you going to the best spots as well as more than not is the souce of break downs.
I have had a look at your pics thanks, looks great.
we are going a way for a few days (1st time since may grrr) so will ponder all info while out bush and may have a few more questions ater that if that ok

Many thanks again
GN

No problem just send me a message...

Enjoy your trip..

Hi Steve

Thanks for your info

Whats the good bit about the 300TDI?

regards

GN

well, for a start it'll cost a fair bit less, leaving more funds for toys. The motor on these things should last for several hundred thousand ks and very simple without computers and the like. They do have their problems but these are usualy minor and often a bit annoying. Minor electrical probs, and things like door locks malfunctioning but basically a very reliable vehicle notwithstanding the aforementioned. Also, agree that it does generate heat that can be felt thru the floor, but that's in the absence of car mats so there's a simple answer there if you insist on driving barefoot. The shape of the thing means that unlike most modern cars the windows are vertical and minimum sunlight gets in leaving the car a lot cooler when parked or when driving for that matter. One of the big plusses for me is that they are so easy to add bits and pieces to, especially the 130 which has a huge carrying capacity. Also, you can use low range without engaging your diff-lock, which means you can use your low range to pull very heavy weights on the black-top. Very economical. Just over 10L/100ks before the diesel/gas job - now just over 9L/100ks and heaps more power. They're quirky alright - but hey, what's wrong with that?

;)