Is the new Defender better than the new Range Rover?
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- čas přidán 9. 05. 2024
- Is the new Defender a better choice for my country lifestyle than the Range Rover I drove a month ago? I was excited to find out. On paper it makes a strong case. Handsome, rugged and bearing the iconic Defender name, it costs half the price of a Range Rover to lease. It's also an automotive icon that's been brought completely up to date and is a huge hit with buyers and motoring journalists. I seriously thought it could be my next 'daily'. Did it live up to the billing? Yes and no. Watch the video to find out what I liked and disliked about the new Land Rover Defender.
- Auta a dopravní prostředky
I'm 6' 1" with a bad back and over three years have found the seats the most comfortable I've ever sat in.
Good to hear. I didn’t find them uncomfortable just not as comfy or supportive as say Volvo V90, Disco 4, RR.
Also, the speed limit indicator is an EU/UK add-on. Charlie’s Garage notes this in his review of the 130. We do not have that warning in the U.S. but we have the annoying stop start that has not bothered me enough to purchase a newer GAP tool to correct.
Interesting notes thanks! A least you're spared the bong bong of 'little Ben'
Thank you for the nice review. I just purchased a 24 defender X-Dynamic (SE) in the same color/black pack and interior. However, in the U.S. market it is a P400 and the interior trim is all darker colors. I also have an LR3, which has been retired to dog hauler and farm car. I find the Defender seats to be quite comfortable. Yours is the first review I have seen to note the acceleration lag, which I have noticed as well. Additionally, I find the brakes on the Defender to be very sensitive. I do not know if this is intentional or a drive by wire issue. In sum, I really enjoy my Defender and feel it is one of the better made/driving cars that I have owned over the years. Cheers!
You're very welcome, thanks for your comment. Good to hear I'm not alone in my experience of the laggy accelerator and sensitive brakes. The Range Rover felt much more sorted in those departments. Small niggles on what is, as you say, one of the better made/driving cars.
The best seats I’ve ever sat in and I had a Discovery 4
Ever sat in? Like ever?
Three back operations and multiple cars / suvs etc and best ever .
@@jamesstewart9824 Fair enough 🙏
@@jamesstewart9824maybe you need stiff bench.. Are you shorter now?
cool review, loving the Barbour Beacon Sports Wax jacket!
Thanks, well spotted, of Skyfall fame of course!
do you think this is one of those cars you can buy and keep forever, I'm guessing it will be more reliable than a Range Rover lo
It's rugged and the looks are kind of timeless so I guess so - though the engineering is more complex - more to go wrong than old defender. I liked that on my old Defender, if I some how managed to break a wing mirror, it was £15 to replace it. On my M5 it was more like £500, but that's another story.
New defender has definitely “matured” in its aesthetic appeal, particularly in a dark colour and the square rear lights certainly evoke the original Series 1 landie. Cant totally agree that it’s “as good as a Rangie”… case in point my new Vogue arrives soon to replace a MY 2019 and Disco 5 before that… but for the extra £15k it’s a no brainer in terms of “status”… and yes I still will be throwing building stuff and logs in the back 😵💫 however, I will concede it’s the same running gear underneath… horses for courses I guess 🧐
Definitely not as good as a RR in my book either!
Good honest review. I have thought that about the seats a few times just by looking at them through the window. Dash very basic. It's expensive considering Shogun was max £45k top model before production stopped..
Thanks, yeah expensive, but doesn't seem to stop people buying them. Maybe it fills the gaping hole left by the Disco 5 which has been a market failure.
Hi Ross in 360p :)
How tall are you ?
196 cms
It will certainly keep its value better than the Range Rover.
True, especially if today's L405 prices are anything to go by.
new to the channel. I thought you were great as the new M in James bond
Ha, yes I was also in a Schindler Lift once.
Preferred him in Harry potter,like the Defender-very versatile!
Upload in HD in future and I'll subscribe 😌
Noted, thanks, didn’t realise.
Have you done any hearse reviews? You'd be great at that.
What do you mean?
I like it Land Rover so much ❤❤❤
Thanks for the video Ross. Is it saved in a low quility format? I can only get it to play at 360p? Anyway, I have a V8 110 and love it. I live overseas, (in Greece) where the roads make UK roads look fantastic. In effect I drive off road most days and the Defender is exceptional off road. It’s quite understated, (as long as you don’t add the ghastly “Urban” type kits), and it really can deliver on all terrain. I have been looking at the Ineos, but its on road manners are not quite there yet. If I had one issue with my V8 is it’s just not hardcore enough on the road. The suspension is all over the place if you drive it quickly and becomes quite unsettled. I guess the new Octa, (What a daft name), will fix that?
Hi Tom, yes I think I did contrive to upload it at a lower quality than usual - not sure how I did that. Good to hear you love your V8. Sound ideal for Greece.
Intrigued by your comment about overtaking someone on an A road, which you normally would never do! Is that why so many JLR drivers, drive that way 🤔
OK, so, let's say it's a narrowish B road (what Americans might describe as a cart track) and you see the national speed limit sign. You're behind the vicar's maiden aunt, who's doing 30mph listening to Songs Of Praise and there's a small stretch of straight road ahead. If you're in the Defender, you feel safe to overtake - even brushing the verge. I wouldn't try that in all cars. My Tesla for example, a bit wide and with low profile tyres, I'd wait for a wider stretch of road. That's my point - you can thread it through quite narrow gaps on pot-holey country roads and feel fully confident of it.
👍👍👍
Bonging is mandatory on all new cats now
What?
Cars from2024 must have warning noises for almost everything. It’s a safety regulation which manufactures must comply with .
@@jamesstewart9824 Oh cars, not cats. Well yes, though I’ve not come across this particular bong before.
@@RossOnCars not exactly 'Big Ben' bonging
@@michaelfraser5723 True, 'Little Ben', its annoying little brother.
Whilst the new defender has a cool look, it isn't as good as the old discovery, so i dont know why the desire to compare it to the Range Rover 🤷♂️.
Yeah I’d have my old Disco 4 over the new Defender too. The RR comparison is because at knocking on £80K for this Defender, the RR is not far off price wise, I only drove it 3 weeks ago and I was considering both as a daily.
Base price of 300D Range Rover SE is £104k with HSE costing £110k without extras so no where near the same price point
@@Lyc65 Bogo RR £104K vs £78K for 300D HSE X-Dynamic with options is the comparison I'm making. Not so far apart.
Mid range D350HSE defender is £75K base price as D300 no longer available. Bottom spec RR SE with the same D350 engine is £107k. £32k difference is quite a gap especially if you start to tick the options list on either car and the £107k will rocket higher. Mind you the silly days of people paying a premium for either car on the used market are well and truly over and discounts are available again on new so used prices will drop further. The price difference on used versions of either Defender or RR will as you say make the gap smaller and it will come down to personal choice.
Twelve minutes and you never once mentioned how it performs on the school run or trips to the football training ground - the Range Rover's "raison d'etre".
I did mention what my children thought of it on the school run, albeit briefly (they liked it). Football - I didn’t have it long enough to test this but it’s not flashy in the carpark - more of a Paul Scholes.