I'm in the UK market for a new working 4x4 (forestry and towing). Landcruiser (Prado 2.8) up against Grenadier. I've owned 4 Defenders, 2 Discoveries, Rangie, Amarok, D-Max, Hilux, X-Trail) etc before. Just had a Grenadier on a day long working test. Very impressed. Was concerned about the LHD footrest, but I'm 6'2" with size 12 feet, in boots and never noticed it - far better seating position than 'old' Defender. Hell, way better than any pickup I've driven (err, all of 'em) Very comfy, very adjustable. Well judged throttle mapping (diesel), very good brakes, steering very good at low speed, finely weighted in quick corners, vague centred on road at mid-high speed (still better than Defender). Very (surprisingly) refined re vibration and wind noise. Wind noise an issue above 80mph. Off road, big and capable - like any 4x4 it has weaknesses and strengths, but well judged for a (very) big 4x4. Driving, it felt smaller than it is (unlike Discovery) and very placeable off road and on. Inside, shame the rear seats don't fold flat, but with draws fitted to rear load bay, they would and as the rear bay is so high, that's preferable to a step down to the seats with draws fitted. All closures and fixings, switches and lights worked as they should and actually surprised me with the quality. In all, I was staggered that this was a first generation vehicle in mass production, 6 years from inception. Yes it has some faults (like ALL), but the strengths outweighed them. Now, there's no Landcruiser 70 in Europe, so true alternatives are limited, but I'm very tempted to take a punt. As for price, I can get one for £5k more than a Ranger, £10k more than Hilux and £5k less than Landcruiser (£15k less than modern Defender!). To me, that's relatively good value.
Interesting. I've been told the Utility is ok, the Station Wagon (Fieldmaster etc) not. Getting a straight answer out of HMRC not the easiest! But I know people who have them and claimed successfully.@@cornishlad97
Cheers! Just trying to be objective as I found it. My opinion is that it was absolutely bl00dy fantastic, but I have to keep my sensible hat on for a big purchase. How are you getting on with yours? Any probs/irritants/hidden brilliance? This is a long-term purchase for me, probably to see out ICE vehicles.@@M0RMY
Great points. I've only seen one from the outside and was very impressed in the detailing, overall design and apparent robustness. Also, full respect to the design and manufacturing teams from inception to reality in such a short time with all its complexities.
Overlanding with Bruce has done some insane adventures to be honest. Mana pools, Delta River crossings, etc. So I think the new land rover defender is capable lol.
The issue with the defender isn't necessarily that it isn't capable, it's that it's a liability. If you do encounter some kind of failure or unrecoverable damage, it's considerably more difficult to get out of that, let alone get home. The other issue with it is that it's considerably more expensive to modify. If you've got the cash that's great, but that severely limits its utility as an adventure vehicle.
Quite possible Land Rover knew the off roading limitations of the new Defender & engineered it primarily as a luxury suv for the urban customer keeping its off roading ability as second priority. The urban market is far greater than the off roading one, this is confirmed by the waiting period for the new Defender. For a manufacturer, the sales volume supersedes everything else.
Andrew, what you say about the Defender and the Ineos are true (reliability, range challenges, too much tech, posers, etc).....but, it would be 1000% more interesting to follow your travels if you did have one of these vehicles and show their capabilities and flaws. Experiencing a major breakdown in Oz is not the same as breaking down in Africa....you're much safer in Oz with no border crossings and all the other life threatening challenges that can face travelers in a most of Africa. Come on Land Rover, sponsor a truck and trip on a well known Oz track and let Andrew report his experience. It would definitely be highly entertaining and must watch. Doing the trip in a Toyota means there will be minimal vehicle information to report. I want to see issues and problems and how you overcome them.....that is also how we learn.
I wonder if resale value is a consideration for him? Surely the Toyota’s hold up better.. ? But I agree.. I would be far more interested if he drove something else. Toyotas as dead boring by now..
Toyota's are bought for a resson when overlanding. My grandfather always said if it's made by a Jap 🇯🇵 it ain't crap. But he was a very big Toyota fan... I was almost baptised by him, when I got my first Toyota. 😂😂
Agree. At some time Andrew you need to move on. You can't live in the past. Vehicles only get better if you embrace them. With modern communication breakdowns are not that bad generally. You just need time and patience. Disagree as most of us now carry emergency jump packs for power and Starlink is becoming very common.
Andrew, You absolutely struck gold the day you met Gwynn, she is absolutely a gem & I love seeing segments on your channel where she features. You both are a wealth of knowledge & experience, only with Gwynn she somehow managed to achieve that all yet remain beautiful & youthful……you less so mate 😂. Thankyou for such an excellent channel. 10/10👍🏼
I'm getting used to this type of comment about Gwynn. Thanks. Proper spelling is Gwynneth. Its Welsh. But I don't hold it against her. Well, not often.
@@4xoverland I will have to work on my spelling of her name, that’s for sure 🤦♂️. Great segments either way 👍🏼 I get sick of the negativity of some of the smart (not so smart) comments on this platform sometime directed towards the content creators & I try to go out of my way to let people know that their efforts are appreciated. Now, I’m just going to race back to the original comment & fix my spelling errors 👍🏼
I am a retired motor mechanic (Old school) & personally I think you will eventually become disappointed with the 2.8Lt after having the V8. Yes the automatic will be nice for a while but I really do think the V8 manual is already over engineered & bulletproof for all your needs, + there is no substitute for cubic inches.
G'day Mate, Probably not because they would think that their mighty V8 clutch would more than handle the Raw power of an idiotic 4 cyl. However I am not sure if the new wizbang 4cyl sludge box comes in a manual. LOL.@@npet6842
Andrew, the part of the Defender not being able to get onto the flat bed tow truck is an operator error. ALL cars with electronic parking brakes have a manual overrides. The fact the owner or tow operator didn't use their head to search the manual to see that when you pop the hood there is a very small leaver to pull which will manually disengage the parking brake and put the car in N, is only their fault and no one else.
I believe you to be 100% correct, whilst the torque comes in at slightly higher revs, it's far more torque delivered by multiplying effect of Torque Converter, less speed more revs plus smoother driveline delivery over manually locked (clutch out) drive line. Current Prado demonstrates this point, shits all over a 70 series in performance & fuel economy.
Nice information, thanks for sharing :) Any idea on transmission temperatures? Would be nice to compare the heat of a manual at 110 km/h to the heat of an auto at 110 km/h. Cheers
Same here. I was going to purchase one along with a few friends when they announced with pricing. Then when it actually came time to truly sell them the price jumped and there’s almost no dealer support. Too many options on the market for that they are asking.
I don't Live in America (I'm Australian) but is it possible to Import a Vehicle made in the UAE into the USA? Why I ask, is because in the UAE they still make a LHD, Petrol, GU Nissan Patrol (Sold in Australia 1997-2016 (Arguably One of the Best 4WD/Overland Vehicles ever Built)) and could be a Better and Cheaper alternative to the Grenadier.
It is not true what you are saying about the battery. Total BS, my battery died because of me and I just used a $20 portable starter kit. It worked and didn’t need a laptop nor an internet connection.
Yeah, his explanation about needing internet if the battery died made no sense. I was thinking he was going to say something like “you need internet to ask for help and be rescued” 😂
Great to see you again Andrew. Being a True Land Rover Defender owner with my 1987 110 ex MoD in Scotland. I love your assessment on the “Pretender”. For sure a city car for posers 😂👍 take care my good man.
The build quality is shockingly bad, there are multiple video's on YT showing customers with bolts missing very poor workmanship in the flooring and so on, go and look at harrys farm review as one example, half the bolts were missing in the boot door.
Oh please Harry works for Landrover so made out the car was crap. The missing screws in the back panel were due to the car being a late test vehicle and they previously installed the fold down table option.
As far as taking your mall crawler Defender off road I guess prepare for the worst, bring an extra battery 🔋. Done ! Defender is still on my short list to buy. Andrew
Beats me how Andrew draws conclusion to rubbish the defender on battery drain based on a sample population of.....1! .....hardly representative of the new defenders.
@@harvey867 Well, he's mostly ranting about the fact it's hard to OR repair OR tow if ever you do break down. Anyway, where I live the option is between Defender or Wrangler PHEV Hybrids (due to extreme taxes), so it'll probably be a Defender for me.
Andrew, I like your predictions on the performance of the 2.8 auto in the big 79 LC. I must say from owning a 2.8 auto Hilux for almost 4 years now, I can tell you the fuel efficiency is not great. They are thirsty engines and I can only assume that it will be worse on a LC which is a lot heavier. Standard the Hilux is about 2.2 ton from the factory, a LC79 is closer to 2.8 - 3 ton standard. I only get 8.5kms/L highway cruising unladen. Fully packed for a trip +- 500 - 600kgs above factory weight, I average 6.5 - 7kms/L and that is roughly the factory weight of a LC79.... so you will most likely get the same fuel efficiency if not worse when fully loaded. Oh and another valid thing to mention is that you can't go bigger than the factory tyres otherwise you will never hit top gear in the auto and your fuel range will suffer. I recently went 1 inch bigger (32 inch tyre) than factory and it took off 1.5km/L on my daily driving, I can't imagine if you go to 33 or 35 inch tyres, you will literally half your fuel efficiency. Go watch Ronny Dahl video on the Hilux 2.8 fuel consumption after he modified it. You will get a full view of how thirsty those 2.8 engines are. Keep up the awesome content. 💪🏻💪🏻
Bigger wheels/tires mean lower rpms at same speed (like longer gearing) which should result in LOWER fuel consumption. Wider tires are less aerodynamic and that can rise the fuel consumption for few percent at higher speeds (above 80 km/h or 50 mph). Rolling resistance of a tire has also some effect(ca 3%) on fuel consumption. But generally larger wheel diameters results in lower fuel consumption -- your claim is very surprising.
@@ms-jl6dl Never have I ever heard anyone in the world say "my bigger tyres gave my vehicle better fuel consumption" . Bigger diameter or wider tyres = more rolling resistance/more torque required to get vehicle moving = more work needed to be done to achieve the same output, which therefore, results in more fuel being burnt. I'm a mechanical engineer by trade and your theory of bigger wheels = higher gearing = less work needing to be done = fuel savings... was nowhere to be seen and can be mathematically proved false, otherwise all vehicles would come standard from the factory with bigger tyres if your proclaimed benefits were legitimate.
The larger tyre problem won’t bother those that use the 2.8 LC for station tracks and fleet vehicles but I can imagine the cut lunch cowboys that pimp them out from the ARB checklist will be devasted.
I’ve test driven an Ineos and loved it. There are two deal breakers for me though. The killer is the second row seats. They don’t fold flat and if you take them out you still have all the battery box in the way. The second was the ‘foot rest’ it makes for a cramped feel when driving. I could see myself getting cramp in my left leg on a long drive. It’s a shame because I really wanted to love it.
No one that actually owns a Ineos is complaining about the foot rest. The seats don't fold down flat. Really is that all you can fault on the car. People are hanging onto the smallest of things to justify the inability to afford one. The vehicle performs phenomenally out of the box for what it was designed for.
@@watda011 I don’t own one but have driven one and for the 30 minutes I was driving it was fine but I do get sore knees on longer trips if I can’t flex my legs. The rest significantly reduces the amount you can straighten out your knees. So for me it is actually a big problem, it might not be for you but don’t imply people are just looking for something to moan about. The rear seats are a disaster. I often need to carry a couple of portable work benches. In the Defender the seats come out and I can slide the benches in. Simply can’t do that in the Ineos. I could get the van version but I want the option of glass all round and the second row of seats. Perhaps not an issue for you but a real issue for how I would use the vehicle. I had cash available to buy one but the combination of these two issues have left me still looking.
The Ford Bronco rear seat also doesn’t fold flat. Ford made a tool drawer that is the same height as the rear seats folded down. Makes the back flat and adds storage.
I had a 110 defender and this was pre all the computer software update shyte. It was awesome, I had a solar panel on the roof wired to the battery so if it ever went flat I had a way of charging it and I never looked back. Sadly my new wife of 20 years ago said it was a bone shaker and persuaded me sell it. I learned 4x4 driving in the British army and have loved it ever since.
Ive just had a Defender sitting for three months waiting to be picked up by its owner, I hit the start button it it started first go. Here's a tip, the key fob has a double lock function. set up your camp and then only open the doors if you need to, double lock the car to put it to sleep and you wont have a problem. This is a technology advanced off road vehicle under constant improvement over seventy five years and setting the standard for other companies to follow. I'd like to make it clear any off road vehicle will complete its task that it was engineered for regardless of the brand, its success in getting you home relies on how well you know the car and its limits. So stop this nonsense.
He literally mentioned the battery died in the defender from opening and closing doors while the owner was camping. You seem to be missing the point. If you think an offroad vehicle is great when it cannot have its doors closed or opened during a trip, then clearly that's the perfect vehicle for your use case. To everyone else who want to go out into the wilderness and come back, we'll happily pass.
The low standard of what I would call "common sense engineering" is amazing in the new Defender. I know someone who has one and we've been off roading together. I'm pleased to say that my 6 year old Mitsubishi Pajero (Shogun here in UK) was not beaten by the new Defender (worth at least 4 X the Shogun). So many things have pushed me towards planning a Grenadier to replace my Shogun - > winch mount system is madness. It's only got a remote control which sometimes won't "pair" and the reset button to enable a repairing is impossible to reach unless you cut away some of the lower grill > mud flaps are poorly mounted and can come off when off roading > side steps have cast aluminum brackets which tend to crack when hit plus the steps themselves are easily bent. LR don't offer rock sliders ! > battery problem as you say is insane - were the electrics designed by one of the LR engineers 9 yr old kids ? Here's a video of my Shogun vs. the new Defender off road in the North of England czcams.com/video/YY7NPe50TCU/video.htmlsi=0vXjscE8Ujm6vhfO
Not sure why you have trouble carrying tomatoes, we always take them and have no problems. Buy them a bit on the hard side and keep them in the fridge. We’ve had them for a couple of weeks and they never go soft or soggy.
It’s perhaps a representation of how disconnected these makers of modern vehicles are from their core consumer base have become. That blows my mind not even being able to release the park brake.
Um the core base for Land Rovers isn’t what it was now though. Sadly. It should be but too many people are buying them for the city and not off-road. JLR are very in touch with what people seem to want them for now. It’s annoying. I have a modern one and I off-road it.
Well , they are selling cars, and the number of overlanders’represent not much, and they mainly focus on toyota and old defender, so , for a manufacturer, this niche is very small, important for the dream image but its not what they are selling
Grenadier: last November I queued excitedly to take my turn to just sit in the Grenadier at the Perth 4WD and Adventure Show. Sadly, the space constraint in the driver side footwell was a deal breaker for me. I simply could not imagine sitting comfortably in the car for even a short drive. So many aspects of the car really appealed to me and I'd been following its development from close to the first publications and videos. And then I sat in it, and it was all over. I was so sad.
Andrew, INEOS hesitation is understandable. With less sensationalised subjectivity perhaps more 4wd manufacturers would be willing to loan their vehicles; although that maybe counter to getting views. For those reading this comment have a look at L2SFBC Robert Pepper comparison between Grenadier, Defender, Patrol and LC300 for an objective analysis. ASPW I appreciate your expeditions and story telling. But on some of these reviews perhaps some more objectivity.
Possibly your best vid yet. Love the pantry. In fact its how we live with our bottle-O at home as we have an orchard etc. your comments re the defender (im not too sure what you could defend, not even your pride but a nice Polo field car). 2.8. Well ive stopped buying the 70s and bought a hikux to see if i can live with it. It does not deliver its KW or Torque the same way the v8 does. Even tho on paper they produce roughly the same. The SR is great in that it doesnt beep or gong or take control of the steering (you have to deliberately turn that crap on)… So im gunna watch others “go first” re the 70. Intruely hope this isnt the end of the product like the patrol 3.0
Great video. Man I just love the straight in-your-face facts. This kind of straight up honesty about stuff is so hard to find these days. As I’ve gotten older I do the same (much to the chagrin of others)
@4xoverland Far heavier? Keep in mind, the Prado was built on a 70 originally. I think a bit of reorganisation and less unnecessary shit. You'd be fine.
I have the 2.8L diesel prado a new one with the latest engine. It is very capable, you will not be disappointed in your new 70 series, as far as the engine and transmission is concerned
Plenty of defenders doing overloading with zero problems. Let's not forget you have to open and close the door 35 times with a time of at least a 15 minute intervals. Also you get a dash warning when the battery is running down and the battery has to be dead flat not just in a state where it won't start the car before a laptop needs to be plugged in. Putting a bigger battery in would basically sort the issue.
lnteresting video and comments. l've had the old Defender and now have the new Defender in base "Commercial" specification. l had a Grenadier on order and test drove it. I've also got a 2020 Jimny. l'll ignore his comments about the new Defender because he clearly just doesn't like it. The Grenadier is fabulous but it's just too expensive. When l configured mine it was £50,000 and then it went up to £65,000. As it's not a Commercial Vehicle l can't get the tax back like l can on the Defender, which makes it effectively £25,000 more (than a Defender) The Defender is very good off road, it may have limits but they are well beyond what 99% of owners will ever do with them. Mine does go off road in my work. The old Defender is perfect for Overlanding as it's designed primarily for that purpose. Which one would l take across Africa? None of the above. l would take our 2020 Jimny, which in my opinion is what Land Rover should have done with the old Defender lt's unstoppable off road and 100% reliable. The only issue is, it's a bit small. 25% larger and it would be an absolute world beater.
I liked Land Rover when they made vehicles for farmers and military, you know , hard working people, instead of fashion obsessed poseurs with too much money to throw away
@@richardglossop9085 I hated the defender in the British Army, a hateful thing when you are tall and wearing boots! The money lavished on the last of the old defenders now seems crazy for what they are. I don't blame LR for wanting to make money, but it would have been great to have had a simple utility vehicle, but how would it ever compete with the ubiquitous Japanese or Chinese pickups in the UK market?
@@user-cn8vb9hh5z I must admit, I owned an ex-military RAF Land Rover, so I get your point. It’s just the principle of going down the luxury road. It’s a shame LR didn’t do a pick up to compete with Hilux etc
Id like to see the chaps at PowerfulUK confirm the issues on the defender. On face value these problems are indeed terrible, but often the biggest brains in the after market can figure out a work around. I see this in various enthusiast cars where the dealers word isn’t the last word, it takes time for the hacks to be discovered.
A vast majority of the issues he's discussed with Land Rovers over the last several years can be addressed with an iiD tool and, to make it easier, a smartphone. (You can use the iiD tool with steering wheel controls, but it's easier using a bluetooth connection to a smartphone).
@@4xoverland Maybe on the new Defender for the particular problem you've discussed here, but not on the Discovery 4 that I've had for 8 years now. Just a smartphone and the iiD tool. Can read and clear all codes, customize settings, but the suspension in manual "service" mode, etc. No internet connection needed.
@@4xoverland there are lot of “enterprising individuals” who seem to be able to drive off in other peoples Landrovers, despite the best efforts of Landrover, maybe they can solve this :-)
I love your comments on the Defender because you are so right! I wouldn't buy one at all! I love the way it looks, and all the reviews say it drives very well, but it is seriously flawed! Now, I have a 2023 Golf MK8, a fantastic car but far too much tech. The tech has failed me once and by stint of my IT background, i.e. press a button for a long time and it might do a reset, it did and we got back to normal. Now, living next to the Malvern Hills I decided the Golf was too nice to be taking the dog out in it, country lanes, muddy tracks etc I decided on an off roader and chose a 2013 Suzuki Jimny. What a gem this car is, no tech to speak of, it bounces along on A/T tyres, it steers like a narrow boat, but it is so practical and a delight! I honestly look forward to getting up in the morning and taking the dog up into the Hills! So, for me, you can keep the Defender and the Grenadier. If I want to drive off road the Jimny is great and if I want to drive up the motorway then the Golf is excellent!
Re. the Defender, overlanders would inevitably fit a dual battery system with a controller which would link the batteries, so if the starting battery went weak the vehicle would still be able to draw power from the second battery to start. Also, many overlanders including myself now fit rooftop solar connected to the starting battery. I recently went through this myself when the starting battery in my 2009 Defender failed, but it could still be started from the second battery. Also, many people including myself carry a lithium jump starter pack, which could start tge vehicle. BTW the V8 is to remain available in the 70 series, according to 4 x 4 Australia.
Just activate the boot lock, it's disabled as standard, when you do this it won't activate the start up screen which doubles drain the battery. Added point it would have to be a test to see if the tracker system in the defender also has an idle drain on the system, if so remove the option and just place some apple air tags into the car and wheels, there about 25 dollars each. Also don't mean to point out the obvious but a 100 dollar emergency battery/store jumper would hold power for at least 12 jumps over a 12 months time period and are not much bigger than a hardback book. Am sure there are lot's of CCF's files on any car including the defender that can be deactivated, everyone mod's there 4x4 but seems to forget just how easy it is to mod the CCF files.
Also it's factual wrong to say you need a laptop to jump the defender with a flat battery, you would know this if you had tried it yourself instead of listening to a rumour mill. Andrew I thought you would have learned this after the ABS debacle.
@@terryteesI've scoured the internet looking for instances of this happening. It looks to be a rumor. It's hard to come up with simple solutions when you're constantly focused on the problems.
I’m at 37,000 miles on my 2020 Defender, several trips from San Diego to Montana, and into the Canadian wilderness without a single issue whatsoever. I’m grateful that my rig has been so incredibly reliable, even in temperatures-40F for 3 straight days…. I feel like Andrew’s criticisms of the Defender while accurate to his standards, (if you’re trying to develop a rig that can go into the inner stratospheres of earth) into places like the Australian Outback, or Africa… places that our ancestors thankfully abandoned, or our species would’ve gone extinct like 99% of every living thing that has ever lived on this planet. It’s absurd to expect that an auto manufacture should mass produce a vehicle off the line designed for that purpose. The fact is for every day life in the mountain states of North America, the Defender is more than capable of helping you joyfully inhabit your place in the world.
Depending on the design parameters I would think that to spec the engine 2.8t to carry its max payload will involve a looser converter to ove it off the line and keep it in its torque band. Expect as you mentioned time spent at 2500-3500 rpm loaded to keep pace. I think youll be disspointed. No replacement for displacement.
I have the latest 2.8D, I have 60,000km on it and it really took 20-30k for the engine to open out it has great power when on boost.. I do find it a bit dead at low low revs so that will be a factor.. I have my name down for a new Prado LC next year with the new 8sp auto I think that will be very interesting dev it is the first major transmission change to come in the LC getting away from the old style 4/6spd autos I would disagree with the old 3.0 dsl we had one in a hilux and it was great on our farm but an alcoholic .. combined driving towing in out of fields could see you in 15mpg or less the 2.8 rarely gets below 22mpg
Load of nonsense comments from guys who only ever looked at a new Defender from afar. I have had the first one in Ireland for over 3 years. Its a D240 110 driven daily by my wife and used by me a weekends towing small to large trailers. She is averaging low 30’s to the gallon /9 cheap to run too. She has never broken down even once. And before you all jump up and down I also had a 2001 highly modded 90 TD5 making 230hp on Jose Amorim moded engine. This truck been to top of many a mountain here in Ireland. Shes sold now as the new one is far better for towing. And finally if you want real of road capability my 1988 200tdi winch challenge truck with 100” spacer nissan axles, 37” trepadors and dual Gigglepin GP100 winches will beat all others with ease. She is very original Defender looks and regularly trounces custom buggies built just for competition.
Have you not listened to the Overland Journal podcast.. Scott fully explains the Starlink system he has installed on the Ineos. He also talks about the border crossing and the fuel range issues.
Just saw 2 x new Defenders in Savuti - very deep soft sand and in October very hot - towing offroad trailers without any hassles and I was very impressed how easy it managed the sand - even in the campsite, where I had to use Low range on my Td5 and gameviewer Cruisers from lodges battled as well!! I am not a fan of the new Defender ( but a HUGE Tdi, Td5 fan) but was impressed by it's performance towing heavy Bushlapa trailers- so I dissagree with Andrew, but then, he is and always been a Toyota fan
Disagree with what? I said they are excellent performers in many ways. Did you not hear that? I said it several times. But when they have a fault, even a minor one, it could leave then stranded. This is a fact. It's built into the design and not my opinion. And with your Td5, you'll be smiling all the way home.
Your opinion regards Defender is correct.I owned from new 2020 240 D, best car I have owned until, the issues started.DF replacement, crankshaft leaking,engine senses ceasing.12 weeks at LR being fixed. No faith in LR now, wholesaled it, lost money. Bought 2023 Nissan Patrol TIL-old technology but capable and reliable.
I had a LC90 with the old 3 litre turbo diesel engine and automatic gear box. The turbo worked already at very low RPM, and the auto gear box was perfectly adjusted to this engine. It was a wonderful car off road, with the right amount of torque at low RPMs. Now I have a LC150 which is totally different. It has the same 3 litre diesel engine, but now with the common rail injection system, a turbo with an immense turbo lag (no noticeable turbo boost until about 2500 RPM) and lots of exhaust cleaning filters and so on. Much more horsepower and torque than the old LC90 - but: the power is not there, when you need it off road: at low RPM. I can´t really understand why Toyota did this. And reducing the 3 litre diesel engine to a 2,8 did certainly not these things better.
I'm at a loss as to why Andrew continues to insist that the new Defender needs a diag tool to jump start the car. This is simply not the case, even for the 2024 model. Replacing the battery, sure, because you need to tell the BMS it has a new battery, but this is common to all cars with start/ stop tech not just Defender nor even Land Rover. There's a reason you can't buy the 70 series in Europe..... Emissions standards. At this point it looks like wilful ignorance. Andrew maybe talk to newdefendermods and the team from GAP diagnostics, before going off half-cocked like this again.
All these trucks would be a really good option, if , and it's a Big IF, they would just take notes from Toyota, and apply it to their vehicles. But they, Don't, and they Won't. So, just like Land Rover, just like Ioenos will always be issues of reliability, which should be above all else the #1 priority, especially for the cost of most us them. Andrew, if I was a car company, I would only give you a car, if I had Full Confidence in it like I do a Toyota Land Cruisers, because the one thing I know(and Expect) is an Honest, Full Test review with the the Good, Bad, and the Ugly. But, then again I'd call you during the dream, ideology, methodology, development, build, and the testing of course. You have a ton of wisdom in the overland, especially vehicles, and like you I have found what works, and is the Best, and when you drive/own a TLC, it makes it really hard to drive anything else, if you rely on it as a tool. Thos others are cool, cute toys to play with, if you have that much Time and money. You do good work! When are you and Paul doing a 200 series build?
My wife’s BMW X5 diesel was parked at a railway station a few times, some years ago, and the railway’s radio frequency prevented the BMW system from shutting down. When she came back in a couple of days the battery was dead flat. No point trying to charge it, because the system needed to be rebooted at a BMW dealer, therefore it was recovered, three times in all, to the dealer on the back of a truck. Guess who’s engine and ECU is fitted to Grenadier!
🇦🇺 living in 🇬🇧 I wanted a Defender, then I was about to buy an Ineos, then saw the new LC arriving here early next year, deposit paid, counting down the months!
Very few manufacturers are making vehicles that are designed first and foremost with offroad issues in mind. Most are street vehicles that then have offroading stuff added on. Those offroading things might be quite good, but there are lots of things that are not visible that may not be well thought out. Jeep Wranglers and Gladiators are two of the few left designed specifically for offroad. So Jeeps are easily modifiable and built expressly with the idea that they will be modded, breathers for the diffs either have a plug (rear) and pretty high (front) that you can easily make even higher, the alternator is up high so it won’t be constantly submerged in water crossings, everything on the underside is up high above the body rails, transfer case is still mechanical (a guy I know actually had his cable break in 4lo but was able to fix it to get to 2hi at end of trail), parking brake is mechanical, on auto trans models trans cable can be accessed via a little cover in front of shifter manually get it out of park, it can be flat towed, no turbos to break, not even a cable to open the hood to break, buttons for everything on the dash and also ability to do through touchscreen if you want, hard-drive Nav system if you get it so you have nav even if no internet with breadcrumbs feature. There are probably more I am forgetting right now. I offroaded a modded LR4 as my last veh. Really loved it and it was a bit of a mid life crisis/ nostalgia purchase as the original Disco and Disco 2 is the LR that fired my imagination as a yute, and now that I could afford it I went for it, but man it had a lot of electronics and by the end I wanted to get back to a more manual and mechanical offroader. In addition to reliability (I was getting worried as it was getting older of a failure while in the boonies) I was missing the ability to do the offroading myself instead of being a passive passenger to a computer brain. And in the US any no red light town mechanic can work on a Jeep and if you break down on a trail chances are higher someone out there passing by might have the spare part you need or also be able to fix it. Now out will come all the brand fanboys who will shout about reliability and tell lots of anecdotal tales but I will say a few things in response- first, if you legit wheel you know that any veh can break and we are all just playing the odds, second, reliability and toughness are two different things- I have seen far more IFS vehs (and yes that is Toyotas too) with snapped CVs or other issues (ahem alternator) broken down on trails. Third, there are a shit-ton of old Jeeps running around out there that have not led soft lives- you just can’t tell at first glance because they all look the same. Fourth- not many other 4x4s where you can take it all off and really get out there with the outdoors while offroading. And lastly- still the best offroader is the one you own- don’t worry about what “is best” or the newest thing, wheel what ya got and enjoy it- your money is probably better spent modding what ya got for how ya wheel or overland and fixing what ya break than buying new. End of the day, we’re all out there trying to capture the same experience and facing the same challenges, and I’ll waive to anyone I see with the same mentality- it ain’t a Jeep thing, it’s an offroader thing. 🤙
One of my most favourite experiences as well ♥️. I am an older West Australian, but Ningaloo and Dampier are so very hard to beat. Thank you for reminding me 😊. Safe travels.
Hi Andrew i have a grenadier your welcome to test drive, however i live in Melbourne. If your on this side you're welcome to take it for a day or so. Cheers
honestly, i find it fascinating that people obsess over what car is "the best" when if you look through history specifically in aus, people were doing massive trips in wagons that just had slightly bigger tyres, or the OLD 4wd with the fat tyres they just made it work, nowadays people think they need all the bits and bobs but really they're just quality of life upgrades as long as you have a shovel and there are some sticks around, bar a roll over or drowning, you can recover yourself obviously then the only thing that matters is keeping the car running which does lend itsself to simplicity and protection but. anyway, people took VW beetles onto the beach back in the day any all wheel drive vehicle is more capable than that let alone a dedicated 4wd
Don't know about the new Defender but Disco 3/4/5 owners who go offroading should have proper ODB reader in car. iCarsoft or IID Tool. It's pretty basic knowledge. Like taking some spanners or a extra generator for Land Cruiser ;) With those tools you can erase most errors, change many settings etc. A smaller starter-battery pack is pretty elementary. And if you know that opening/closing doors will drain you battery..you can and will take some steps to avoid the problem. You change stuff on LC's to make them more offroad worthy. You can do the same for LR's.
You’re wrong regarding the 4 cylinder off road. I’ve done a lot of desert crossings and Vic High Country travels with a V8 cruiser ute. In stock trim, they are gutless and require careful gear selection on approach to obstacles. Last year we crossed the Simpson in a 100% stock standard straight off the showroom Hilux with no accessories at all. We were astounded at how superior an automatic transmission was in the desert. That engine and transmission will improve the 79 a lot. However, I find that in pretty much all 4wd situations, it’s better to use the auto in manual mode so you have instant throttle response and aren’t waiting for a gear change. Engine braking is reasonable too, even on steep high country descents, with DAC only needed for the steepest of sections. I think you’ll be impressed.
The interesting factor that everyone hasn’t covered in the conversation on the LC 2.8 with auto is that the box is an 8 speed. Hopefully it works. Also re the 200 comments, were not all grey nomads🤫
I am led to believe the 2024 update 70 Series auto will be the carry over 6 speed, same as what's in the current Hilux. Sadly, it is not going to be equipped with the new 8 speed auto ala the upcoming 250 Series next year.
My greatest fear with overloading in today's vehicles, is that there's way too much technology on them. Long gone are the days when most issues could be resolved temporarily to enable you to hobble to the next outback mechanic.
“The V8 delivers its torque at lower RPM, and the lower RPM that you can deliver torque, the more traction you will have.” Sure, Andrew, but the torque converter decouples engine RPM from wheel RPM, so the auto box will allow the 2.8 to still deliver its torque at really low wheel RPM. Worry not!
The torque converter might deliver the correct amount of torque at lower wheel RPM because of the so called "decoupling" from the engine, but the engine RPM will still be higher due to the "slip" created by the torque converter, therefore you will be burning more fuel offroad. I've owned a 2.8 auto Hilux now for almost 4 years and they are thirsty vehicles, 4low and you can half your fuel efficiency.
The 2.8 auto drives very nicely in other Toyotas Andrew. Always change the diff ratios. Pretty happy getting 8.7l 100km with my auto 2.8 towing my tandem trailer Andrew. Fuel savings WILL be significant. Disagree with you completely on this.
@madmod the point being discussed by Andrew was traction, not fuel efficiency, and that’s why I made my point. If you want to save fuel overall, including off road, you won’t pick the V8.
Andrew, I 100% agree with you, in my personal observation, I have noticed that the majority of consumers that are now purchasing the new Defender would have never even considered driving the previous (old) Defender range... It just wasn't ever meant to be a posh vehicle, as is perhaps the case now.
Lovely Ep and tips, We have carried half green tomatoes for weeks over very corrugated roads up Cape York and the QLD and NT Gulf in the 80s and 90s wrapped in a few layers of news paper and as the rippen up we ate them , same with all our fruit, no bushes at all, A local chap has a IG and he just did a trip from Noosa to the Gulf of QLD and back around 5000ks towing a small off road van it used around 15lph and went lovely he said.
I believe you will get significantly better fuel savings than you're predicting, especially during cruising on highways. Besides the obvious difference in engine configurations, a primary factor will likely be that the automatic gearbox in your 4-cylinder will operate at lower RPMs compared to the manual on your V8 (if nicely tuned, I hope). I am extremely curious about how those numbers will turn out!
Cruising on highways is irrelevant to true offroaders/overlanders. Yes it's a part of it, but if most of your miles are on pavement (bitumen) then you're doing it wrong off the trot.
@@samjohnson9894 Well, I have to disagree with you there, mate. No savings are ever irrelevant. If you're okay with wasting resources for no reason, then that's a bit concerning. I find it hard to believe anyone in the same boat as Andrew, especially living in Australia, puts more off-road than on-road kilometers on their rig. Maybe if it's a farm car and it never leaves the property, sure. But for a car used the way Andrew does? I'd bet a lot that he covers waaay more bitumen than anything else. Why not check out his trips in his videos? He goes off-road, but only after some seriously long stints on-road to get to the right spots. But oh, right, my bad! I forgot that in your eyes, Andrew might not be a “true overlander”. The "true overlanders" like you probably have a car with 200k km and only 5k km on the road. I bet you guys drive through cane fields next to the roads when going somewhere, or over mountains and rocks just to grab some beer, avoiding roads at all costs. Because roads? They're for the "fake overlanders", right? Sorry for the oversight, mate. Cheers to the "true overlanders" out there like you!
Dwight Schrute of the 4X4 world here loves digging the hole deeper with OEM's. Also loves making mountains out of molehills in a struggle for relevance. If I was Ineos I wouldn't lose any sleep.
Regarding the Defender dead battery scenario, starting from a completely flat AGM starter battery is no different to most other donor/dead vehicle procedures. You either carry a suitable lithium starter pack or a set of jumper leads. Standard practice imo. The alarm will go off when there is sufficient charge in the battery, so switch it off with the fob, and you might have to reset the windows by closing the windows and holding the switch for 1 sec. Big deal isn't it? The only time you need access to any GSM or wifi network is for the occasional software update or to update your Spotify playlist. Sorry, no tapedeck in the Defender. Software updates are not needed to get you going, (they will install when you're back in mobile service range) Another point...unless you want a flatbed callout when you don't need one, then don't call Roadside Assistance. Their business model is to tow you to the nearest service point, not to fix your car. With the GAP IID tool or another OBD2 device you can do your own diagnostics...over BLUETOOTH not wireless...no internet required. The GAP tool is well worth the investment for this alone, not withstanding its many other features.
I thought Andrew or another you tuber stated that Defenders cannot be jump started using leads or with a quick starter otherwise it will void the warranty due to potential damage to the electronics.
@davidshepherd1107 complete rubbish. The procedure is in the manual. I've done it myself 4 times from a battery that registered less than 1.8 A ala dead flat.
I test drove the INEOS in the summer, bit of off road, wade in Spain. The footwell 'footrest' in on the passenger side, and it's now lower than it was in the prototype. It drives worse than the Defender on the road, as you'd imagine and probably could handle more extreme 4x4 conditions. There you go in a nutshell !! But hey, be free to check it out! and remember, that Defender is it's own company, no longer Land Rover
I would argue that most built up rigs "adventure cars" are also posers cars. All the industry cares about is sales, they don't care whether the car is seen crossing the outback outside of a sales brochure or not. All these cars and custom rigs are ridiculously expensive, you could buy a yacht for the price of modifying a 70 series.
I have a 2023 prado 2.8L turbo diesel and at 120 kph it is doing just 1350rpm in 6th gear. And it will pull from those rpm quite ok even going uphill. It makes maximum torque at about 1500 you will not find any problems off-roading it or cruising on motorways for miles on end. I think you will be pleasantly surprised at its performance. I think you will find your predictions will not be as accurate as you think. I am anyway happy with my prado and it suits my purpose very well. One thing it does have is crappy fuel economy, but then I knew that before I bought it. And let's face it we don't buy big 4x4 for fuel economy. I get about 20- 22 mpg from it when driving under various conditions and speeds. Can get closer to 25 on a motorway depending on how many hills there are, of which there are many here.
You keep going on about this ‘not being able to tow’ yes you can. There is a manual release override to keep it in neutral. The parking brake can be overridden as well as the gearbox. It can be flat towed.
I don't think a modern 2.8td will lack in terms of low end torque. Looking at the figures - which is the same and the only source Andrew has access to atm - these engines start at 60% peak torque from IDLE and then they ramp up immediately. Most of today's heavy duty diesels for vans have peak torque available at or below 1500 rpm. A V8 might have a flat-ish torque curve, but never as flat and as low down oriented as a well tuned turbodiesel of an acceptable size (which 2.8 is).
Being the owner of both a Hilux and a V8 70 series both regularly driven in rough country , Andrew is spot on in the call that a Hilux is no match for the V8 in the scrub,over rough ground .
Hi Andrew, great channel. I think your wrong on your assessment of the defender. I think it’s a great adventure vehicle but it’s not an overlanding or expedition vehicle like it’s predecessor’s. You don’t have to cross countries or continents for it to be an adventure vehicle, simply getting in it for a weekend away to somewhere new would be enough. It’s not designed to be parked up for days on end like almost every other new car. I’m looking forward to your non biased review of the Grenadier should you finally get one. Keep up the good work
I have seen a Grenadier parked up off Winton Road in Joondalup, so they are starting to appear. Lets hope someone with one follows your channel and you will get your hands on one soon.
Perhaps you should speak to some of the many New Defender owners who use them in remote overland locations without drama, instead to listening to an unsubstantiated rumour from a "Land Rover tech" because clearly you have no intention of trying a new Defender yourself.
Agree - Andrew keeps circulating anecdotal unsubstantiated “evidence” badmouthing the new Defender. This is really dis-honest journalism- he should know better. Ever since Andrew was not invited for the Defender press launch trip in Namibia - he has just made it his mission in life to ruin the reputation of the Defender.
So. If you can't defend the argument, then attack the person giving it. Fact is, I'm never invited to any launches, anywhere! Ever. And they shouldn't. I'm not going to print what they want me to. So go ahead and believe the paid-up journos and buy one. Makes no difference to me. I feel sorry for the people who are buying this car for all the wrong reasons. And that is why I do this.
If I recall correctly your real world experience with the new 70 series was very different to your comments in this video. Towing with the 2.8 seems better than the V8.
Hi Andrew, In your explaination about defender flat battery, remmber, the car warns the user the battery is getting low and you need to start the engine to charge the battery, a very short engine run will fully top up the battery Lots of modern vehicles struggle with flat batteries, even cars from the 00s. I think you need to maybe consider how often and what the occurrence is of such major battery failure before stating your final opinion maybe?
I have a seriously problem with you lack in distinction between "power" and "torque" when discussing the difference between the driving of the 2.8 and the 4.5, also you spoke about the engine delivery and off road capability however failed to mention the off road drive ability between the manual and automatic. And lastly if you are doing 1800rpm whilst towing a 2.5t plus van in Australia you are driving considerably under the speed limit becoming a hazard on rhe road or have done some outstanding modifications to your vehicle to be able to drive safely at that rpm
Hey Andrew, 2021 Defender 110 X P400 MHEV owner here who does take it out for long trips (multi-week) quite a bit. Yeah, the flat battery problem is very real. Everyone in camp REALLY hates the "duh duh duh DUH" warning noise the truck makes every time I open a door once the voltage drops enough. Although, all I have ever had to do is make sure I start the truck for a bit every few days, or if it does really go flat (which has happened to me), a quick lithium jump will power everything back up, you hop in and start it. You don't need the DoIP/SST, Laptop, ToPIX, Starlink, etc (although I carry all that stuff anyway). Maybe this is just a USA thing, maybe in other markets it locks itself down in some way if the battery dies. But I haven't ever had that problem. Doesn't mean JLR didn't totally screw the pooch on not having a "camp mode" or something similar. All I want is the interior lights to turn on when I open the door. I don't need all 47 computers to boot up, CarPlay to kick in, etc. It's BY FAR the largest problem with it. Everything else has turned out brilliant with the vehicle and it does everything I want. I recently picked up a small Dewalt battery tender adapter that I can plug into the ODBII port that trickles power in to the car while in camp, I am hoping it keeps everything happy. But I shouldn't need to bodge it together in the first place.
I'm in the UK market for a new working 4x4 (forestry and towing). Landcruiser (Prado 2.8) up against Grenadier. I've owned 4 Defenders, 2 Discoveries, Rangie, Amarok, D-Max, Hilux, X-Trail) etc before. Just had a Grenadier on a day long working test. Very impressed. Was concerned about the LHD footrest, but I'm 6'2" with size 12 feet, in boots and never noticed it - far better seating position than 'old' Defender. Hell, way better than any pickup I've driven (err, all of 'em) Very comfy, very adjustable.
Well judged throttle mapping (diesel), very good brakes, steering very good at low speed, finely weighted in quick corners, vague centred on road at mid-high speed (still better than Defender). Very (surprisingly) refined re vibration and wind noise. Wind noise an issue above 80mph. Off road, big and capable - like any 4x4 it has weaknesses and strengths, but well judged for a (very) big 4x4. Driving, it felt smaller than it is (unlike Discovery) and very placeable off road and on. Inside, shame the rear seats don't fold flat, but with draws fitted to rear load bay, they would and as the rear bay is so high, that's preferable to a step down to the seats with draws fitted. All closures and fixings, switches and lights worked as they should and actually surprised me with the quality.
In all, I was staggered that this was a first generation vehicle in mass production, 6 years from inception. Yes it has some faults (like ALL), but the strengths outweighed them. Now, there's no Landcruiser 70 in Europe, so true alternatives are limited, but I'm very tempted to take a punt. As for price, I can get one for £5k more than a Ranger, £10k more than Hilux and £5k less than Landcruiser (£15k less than modern Defender!). To me, that's relatively good value.
Utterly agree with every point you make - I absolutely love mine.
From what I have heard they are not vat reclaimable. Not a high enough payload to be a commercial vehicle by the HMRC 🤔
Interesting. I've been told the Utility is ok, the Station Wagon (Fieldmaster etc) not. Getting a straight answer out of HMRC not the easiest! But I know people who have them and claimed successfully.@@cornishlad97
Cheers! Just trying to be objective as I found it. My opinion is that it was absolutely bl00dy fantastic, but I have to keep my sensible hat on for a big purchase. How are you getting on with yours? Any probs/irritants/hidden brilliance? This is a long-term purchase for me, probably to see out ICE vehicles.@@M0RMY
Great points. I've only seen one from the outside and was very impressed in the detailing, overall design and apparent robustness. Also, full respect to the design and manufacturing teams from inception to reality in such a short time with all its complexities.
Overlanding with Bruce has done some insane adventures to be honest. Mana pools, Delta River crossings, etc. So I think the new land rover defender is capable lol.
The issue with the defender isn't necessarily that it isn't capable, it's that it's a liability. If you do encounter some kind of failure or unrecoverable damage, it's considerably more difficult to get out of that, let alone get home.
The other issue with it is that it's considerably more expensive to modify. If you've got the cash that's great, but that severely limits its utility as an adventure vehicle.
LR have always been capable, no one can deny that. It's about the reliability.
Quite possible Land Rover knew the off roading limitations of the new Defender & engineered it primarily as a luxury suv for the urban customer keeping its off roading ability as second priority. The urban market is far greater than the off roading one, this is confirmed by the waiting period for the new Defender. For a manufacturer, the sales volume supersedes everything else.
Andrew, what you say about the Defender and the Ineos are true (reliability, range challenges, too much tech, posers, etc).....but, it would be 1000% more interesting to follow your travels if you did have one of these vehicles and show their capabilities and flaws. Experiencing a major breakdown in Oz is not the same as breaking down in Africa....you're much safer in Oz with no border crossings and all the other life threatening challenges that can face travelers in a most of Africa. Come on Land Rover, sponsor a truck and trip on a well known Oz track and let Andrew report his experience. It would definitely be highly entertaining and must watch. Doing the trip in a Toyota means there will be minimal vehicle information to report. I want to see issues and problems and how you overcome them.....that is also how we learn.
I guess the reason why Andrew 😂does it in a land cruiser is because he knows he will arrive home safely, Andrew doesn't take chances
I wonder if resale value is a consideration for him? Surely the Toyota’s hold up better.. ?
But I agree.. I would be far more interested if he drove something else. Toyotas as dead boring by now..
Toyota's are bought for a resson when overlanding. My grandfather always said if it's made by a Jap 🇯🇵 it ain't crap. But he was a very big Toyota fan... I was almost baptised by him, when I got my first Toyota. 😂😂
Watch Overlanding with Bruce
Agree. At some time Andrew you need to move on. You can't live in the past. Vehicles only get better if you embrace them. With modern communication breakdowns are not that bad generally. You just need time and patience. Disagree as most of us now carry emergency jump packs for power and Starlink is becoming very common.
Andrew, You absolutely struck gold the day you met Gwynn, she is absolutely a gem & I love seeing segments on your channel where she features. You both are a wealth of knowledge & experience, only with Gwynn she somehow managed to achieve that all yet remain beautiful & youthful……you less so mate 😂. Thankyou for such an excellent channel. 10/10👍🏼
I'm getting used to this type of comment about Gwynn. Thanks. Proper spelling is Gwynneth. Its Welsh. But I don't hold it against her. Well, not often.
@@4xoverland I will have to work on my spelling of her name, that’s for sure 🤦♂️. Great segments either way 👍🏼 I get sick of the negativity of some of the smart (not so smart) comments on this platform sometime directed towards the content creators & I try to go out of my way to let people know that their efforts are appreciated. Now, I’m just going to race back to the original comment & fix my spelling errors 👍🏼
Amazingly the first advert that popped up while watching this was an ad for a Land Rover. Brilliant marketing
I am a retired motor mechanic (Old school) & personally I think you will eventually become disappointed with the 2.8Lt after having the V8. Yes the automatic will be nice for
a while but I really do think the V8 manual is already over engineered & bulletproof for all your needs, + there is no substitute for cubic inches.
Have they improved the under rated clutch that slips when towing ?
G'day Mate, Probably not because they would think that their mighty V8 clutch would more than handle the Raw power of an idiotic 4 cyl. However I am not sure if the new wizbang 4cyl sludge box comes in a manual. LOL.@@npet6842
Andrew, the part of the Defender not being able to get onto the flat bed tow truck is an operator error.
ALL cars with electronic parking brakes have a manual overrides. The fact the owner or tow operator didn't use their head to search the manual to see that when you pop the hood there is a very small leaver to pull which will manually disengage the parking brake and put the car in N, is only their fault and no one else.
Torque converter will resolve your off road concerns. I think the fuel savings will be more too.
I believe you to be 100% correct, whilst the torque comes in at slightly higher revs, it's far more torque delivered by multiplying effect of Torque Converter, less speed more revs plus smoother driveline delivery over manually locked (clutch out) drive line.
Current Prado demonstrates this point, shits all over a 70 series in performance & fuel economy.
The more I watch, the happier I am with my old Trooper 3.0 ( even if it is the feared 4jx1)!
I replaced the v8 manual with an auto and my rev went from 2500 revs at 110km per hour down to 1400 rev at 110km and dropped more than 3 litre per 100
Nice information, thanks for sharing :) Any idea on transmission temperatures? Would be nice to compare the heat of a manual at 110 km/h to the heat of an auto at 110 km/h.
Cheers
@Land_Cruiser_40 temp never seems to get above 70 although with a 2.5ton boat up hill I have seen it go to 80
Ineos price in America is way more than I expected. That was a killer for me.
Same here. I was going to purchase one along with a few friends when they announced with pricing. Then when it actually came time to truly sell them the price jumped and there’s almost no dealer support. Too many options on the market for that they are asking.
Or you could buy a 2023 F150 for the same price…
I don't Live in America (I'm Australian) but is it possible to Import a Vehicle made in the UAE into the USA?
Why I ask, is because in the UAE they still make a LHD, Petrol, GU Nissan Patrol (Sold in Australia 1997-2016 (Arguably One of the Best 4WD/Overland Vehicles ever Built)) and could be a Better and Cheaper alternative to the Grenadier.
@@DMSVICAU We can import a vehicle if it’s sold here. If not, we need to wait 25 years. California has its own rules
Sadly the price killed it for me as well. Starts from £65,000 in the U.K.
It is not true what you are saying about the battery. Total BS, my battery died because of me and I just used a $20 portable starter kit. It worked and didn’t need a laptop nor an internet connection.
Yeah, his explanation about needing internet if the battery died made no sense. I was thinking he was going to say something like “you need internet to ask for help and be rescued” 😂
Great to see you again Andrew. Being a True Land Rover Defender owner with my 1987 110 ex MoD in Scotland. I love your assessment on the “Pretender”. For sure a city car for posers 😂👍 take care my good man.
I laughed as Andrew has talking about the new Landcruiser and a new Landrover was out the side window. 13:20
Morning Andrew, in my area the new Defender is very popular on the school run , it’s perfect for mounting the curbs outside the school 😅
And also popular with pathetic men that can't drive a manual, and have emasculated bullshit jobs like real estate agents and "project managers".
A new Toorak Tractor model?
Love the reviews of cars you have not or barely driven
Lol
I got to check out a few Grenadiers at the Sydney 4x4 show and was very impressed by the build quality given they're a new company.
The build quality is shockingly bad, there are multiple video's on YT showing customers with bolts missing very poor workmanship in the flooring and so on, go and look at harrys farm review as one example, half the bolts were missing in the boot door.
Oh please Harry works for Landrover so made out the car was crap. The missing screws in the back panel were due to the car being a late test vehicle and they previously installed the fold down table option.
Scott’s walk around video a cpl weeks ago was really spot on, great info. Looking forward to see the rest of the trip.
As far as taking your mall crawler Defender off road I guess prepare for the worst, bring an extra battery 🔋.
Done !
Defender is still on my short list to buy.
Andrew
Beats me how Andrew draws conclusion to rubbish the defender on battery drain based on a sample population of.....1! .....hardly representative of the new defenders.
@@harvey867 Well, he's mostly ranting about the fact it's hard to OR repair OR tow if ever you do break down. Anyway, where I live the option is between Defender or Wrangler PHEV Hybrids (due to extreme taxes), so it'll probably be a Defender for me.
Andrew, I like your predictions on the performance of the 2.8 auto in the big 79 LC. I must say from owning a 2.8 auto Hilux for almost 4 years now, I can tell you the fuel efficiency is not great. They are thirsty engines and I can only assume that it will be worse on a LC which is a lot heavier. Standard the Hilux is about 2.2 ton from the factory, a LC79 is closer to 2.8 - 3 ton standard. I only get 8.5kms/L highway cruising unladen. Fully packed for a trip +- 500 - 600kgs above factory weight, I average 6.5 - 7kms/L and that is roughly the factory weight of a LC79.... so you will most likely get the same fuel efficiency if not worse when fully loaded. Oh and another valid thing to mention is that you can't go bigger than the factory tyres otherwise you will never hit top gear in the auto and your fuel range will suffer. I recently went 1 inch bigger (32 inch tyre) than factory and it took off 1.5km/L on my daily driving, I can't imagine if you go to 33 or 35 inch tyres, you will literally half your fuel efficiency. Go watch Ronny Dahl video on the Hilux 2.8 fuel consumption after he modified it. You will get a full view of how thirsty those 2.8 engines are.
Keep up the awesome content. 💪🏻💪🏻
Bigger wheels/tires mean lower rpms at same speed (like longer gearing) which should result in LOWER fuel consumption. Wider tires are less aerodynamic and that can rise the fuel consumption for few percent at higher speeds (above 80 km/h or 50 mph). Rolling resistance of a tire has also some effect(ca 3%) on fuel consumption.
But generally larger wheel diameters results in lower fuel consumption -- your claim is very surprising.
@@ms-jl6dl Never have I ever heard anyone in the world say "my bigger tyres gave my vehicle better fuel consumption" . Bigger diameter or wider tyres = more rolling resistance/more torque required to get vehicle moving = more work needed to be done to achieve the same output, which therefore, results in more fuel being burnt. I'm a mechanical engineer by trade and your theory of bigger wheels = higher gearing = less work needing to be done = fuel savings... was nowhere to be seen and can be mathematically proved false, otherwise all vehicles would come standard from the factory with bigger tyres if your proclaimed benefits were legitimate.
The larger tyre problem won’t bother those that use the 2.8 LC for station tracks and fleet vehicles but I can imagine the cut lunch cowboys that pimp them out from the ARB checklist will be devasted.
I’ve test driven an Ineos and loved it. There are two deal breakers for me though. The killer is the second row seats. They don’t fold flat and if you take them out you still have all the battery box in the way. The second was the ‘foot rest’ it makes for a cramped feel when driving. I could see myself getting cramp in my left leg on a long drive. It’s a shame because I really wanted to love it.
No one is talking about the real issue with the Ineos which is the MPG, it's awful and in fact the worst MPG compared to all the alternatives.
I agree 100% so annoying - that function in my LR3 is amazingly helpful
No one that actually owns a Ineos is complaining about the foot rest. The seats don't fold down flat. Really is that all you can fault on the car. People are hanging onto the smallest of things to justify the inability to afford one. The vehicle performs phenomenally out of the box for what it was designed for.
@@watda011 I don’t own one but have driven one and for the 30 minutes I was driving it was fine but I do get sore knees on longer trips if I can’t flex my legs. The rest significantly reduces the amount you can straighten out your knees. So for me it is actually a big problem, it might not be for you but don’t imply people are just looking for something to moan about. The rear seats are a disaster. I often need to carry a couple of portable work benches. In the Defender the seats come out and I can slide the benches in. Simply can’t do that in the Ineos. I could get the van version but I want the option of glass all round and the second row of seats. Perhaps not an issue for you but a real issue for how I would use the vehicle. I had cash available to buy one but the combination of these two issues have left me still looking.
The Ford Bronco rear seat also doesn’t fold flat. Ford made a tool drawer that is the same height as the rear seats folded down. Makes the back flat and adds storage.
I had a 110 defender and this was pre all the computer software update shyte. It was awesome, I had a solar panel on the roof wired to the battery so if it ever went flat I had a way of charging it and I never looked back. Sadly my new wife of 20 years ago said it was a bone shaker and persuaded me sell it. I learned 4x4 driving in the British army and have loved it ever since.
Ive just had a Defender sitting for three months waiting to be picked up by its owner, I hit the start button it it started first go. Here's a tip, the key fob has a double lock function. set up your camp and then only open the doors if you need to, double lock the car to put it to sleep and you wont have a problem. This is a technology advanced off road vehicle under constant improvement over seventy five years and setting the standard for other companies to follow. I'd like to make it clear any off road vehicle will complete its task that it was engineered for regardless of the brand, its success in getting you home relies on how well you know the car and its limits. So stop this nonsense.
Really Appreciate This Input
He literally mentioned the battery died in the defender from opening and closing doors while the owner was camping. You seem to be missing the point. If you think an offroad vehicle is great when it cannot have its doors closed or opened during a trip, then clearly that's the perfect vehicle for your use case.
To everyone else who want to go out into the wilderness and come back, we'll happily pass.
The low standard of what I would call "common sense engineering" is amazing in the new Defender. I know someone who has one and we've been off roading together.
I'm pleased to say that my 6 year old Mitsubishi Pajero (Shogun here in UK) was not beaten by the new Defender (worth at least 4 X the Shogun). So many things have pushed me towards planning a Grenadier to replace my Shogun -
> winch mount system is madness. It's only got a remote control which sometimes won't "pair" and the reset button to enable a repairing is impossible to reach unless you cut away some of the lower grill
> mud flaps are poorly mounted and can come off when off roading
> side steps have cast aluminum brackets which tend to crack when hit plus the steps themselves are easily bent. LR don't offer rock sliders !
> battery problem as you say is insane - were the electrics designed by one of the LR engineers 9 yr old kids ?
Here's a video of my Shogun vs. the new Defender off road in the North of England
czcams.com/video/YY7NPe50TCU/video.htmlsi=0vXjscE8Ujm6vhfO
Andrew hates the Gen 3 pajero with a passion. The earlier versions of the Gen 3 were as good as Landcruiser!!!
@@Heegooat - mine is a Gen 4, 2 things annoy me;
1) the UK version didn't get the rear locker
2) the rear overhang is too big
You guys are so lucky to get Land Cruiser Troopy’s, 79 Series et al with diesels. EPA sux
U.S. ...so true , a new troopy v8 diesel id never have to buy a another. off roader
Not sure why you have trouble carrying tomatoes, we always take them and have no problems. Buy them a bit on the hard side and keep them in the fridge. We’ve had them for a couple of weeks and they never go soft or soggy.
It’s perhaps a representation of how disconnected these makers of modern vehicles are from their core consumer base have become. That blows my mind not even being able to release the park brake.
Thats why S.U.V are so popular 99.9% of what they need can be done with a wagon, but its not "keeping up with the jones" 🤦♂️
You can. Obviously the towie didn’t know how. See how things can get distorted?
Um the core base for Land Rovers isn’t what it was now though. Sadly. It should be but too many people are buying them for the city and not off-road. JLR are very in touch with what people seem to want them for now. It’s annoying. I have a modern one and I off-road it.
@@jerrymyahzcat
City use only applies to every 4wd.
Well , they are selling cars, and the number of overlanders’represent not much, and they mainly focus on toyota and old defender, so , for a manufacturer, this niche is very small, important for the dream image but its not what they are selling
Toyota is bringing out its baby Land hopper 😂 with the 2.8 … think that will be a best seller smaller lighter, ideal for the urban expedition 😊
Absolutely - this is a true mall crawler by definition.
Grenadier: last November I queued excitedly to take my turn to just sit in the Grenadier at the Perth 4WD and Adventure Show. Sadly, the space constraint in the driver side footwell was a deal breaker for me. I simply could not imagine sitting comfortably in the car for even a short drive. So many aspects of the car really appealed to me and I'd been following its development from close to the first publications and videos. And then I sat in it, and it was all over. I was so sad.
Yep.. this is the very point that broke it for me too. Such an oversight!!!!!
I dont even realise its there anymore. An im 6'2"
Never meet your heroes.
@@nothingtoseaheardammit lol But then, if you're in the market for new 80 series,THIS is what you're in for.
#Toyota80series
So the motto still applies. It has always been “a Land Rover to get you in, a Toyota to get you out”. Only the reasons have changed.
Andrew, INEOS hesitation is understandable. With less sensationalised subjectivity perhaps more 4wd manufacturers would be willing to loan their vehicles; although that maybe counter to getting views. For those reading this comment have a look at L2SFBC Robert Pepper comparison between Grenadier, Defender, Patrol and LC300 for an objective analysis. ASPW I appreciate your expeditions and story telling. But on some of these reviews perhaps some more objectivity.
Agreed Robert Pepper's reviews are at Technical Report level in objectivity and setting test protocols.
Possibly your best vid yet. Love the pantry. In fact its how we live with our bottle-O at home as we have an orchard etc. your comments re the defender (im not too sure what you could defend, not even your pride but a nice Polo field car). 2.8. Well ive stopped buying the 70s and bought a hikux to see if i can live with it. It does not deliver its KW or Torque the same way the v8 does. Even tho on paper they produce roughly the same. The SR is great in that it doesnt beep or gong or take control of the steering (you have to deliberately turn that crap on)… So im gunna watch others “go first” re the 70. Intruely hope this isnt the end of the product like the patrol 3.0
Great video. Man I just love the straight in-your-face facts. This kind of straight up honesty about stuff is so hard to find these days.
As I’ve gotten older I do the same (much to the chagrin of others)
He's hilarious and genuine
Very rare these days 😂
I'll continue to watch
Your new Troopy will drive just like a New Prado, end of story.
The Prado is a very capable vehicle!
But when a Troopy is built up, it's far heavier than a Prado.
@4xoverland Far heavier?
Keep in mind, the Prado was built on a 70 originally.
I think a bit of reorganisation and less unnecessary shit. You'd be fine.
I have the 2.8L diesel prado a new one with the latest engine. It is very capable, you will not be disappointed in your new 70 series, as far as the engine and transmission is concerned
Plenty of defenders doing overloading with zero problems. Let's not forget you have to open and close the door 35 times with a time of at least a 15 minute intervals. Also you get a dash warning when the battery is running down and the battery has to be dead flat not just in a state where it won't start the car before a laptop needs to be plugged in. Putting a bigger battery in would basically sort the issue.
lnteresting video and comments. l've had the old Defender and now have the new Defender in base "Commercial" specification. l had a Grenadier on order and test drove it. I've also got a 2020 Jimny.
l'll ignore his comments about the new Defender because he clearly just doesn't like it.
The Grenadier is fabulous but it's just too expensive. When l configured mine it was £50,000 and then it went up to £65,000. As it's not a Commercial Vehicle l can't get the tax back like l can on the Defender, which makes it effectively £25,000 more (than a Defender)
The Defender is very good off road, it may have limits but they are well beyond what 99% of owners will ever do with them.
Mine does go off road in my work.
The old Defender is perfect for Overlanding as it's designed primarily for that purpose.
Which one would l take across Africa? None of the above. l would take our 2020 Jimny, which in my opinion is what Land Rover should have done with the old Defender
lt's unstoppable off road and 100% reliable.
The only issue is, it's a bit small. 25% larger and it would be an absolute world beater.
Unfortunately, Land Rover know they will sell far more poseur, city cars than they will anything capable of offroad touring.
Well yes, but the defender is only canibalising Discovery sales. The new Defender is basically a better looking Discovery.
I liked Land Rover when they made vehicles for farmers and military, you know , hard working people, instead of fashion obsessed poseurs with too much money to throw away
@@richardglossop9085 I hated the defender in the British Army, a hateful thing when you are tall and wearing boots! The money lavished on the last of the old defenders now seems crazy for what they are.
I don't blame LR for wanting to make money, but it would have been great to have had a simple utility vehicle, but how would it ever compete with the ubiquitous Japanese or Chinese pickups in the UK market?
@@user-cn8vb9hh5z I must admit, I owned an ex-military RAF Land Rover, so I get your point. It’s just the principle of going down the luxury road. It’s a shame LR didn’t do a pick up to compete with Hilux etc
Feel like they could hit both markets if they wanted. Really crazy they don't introduce a true bare bones high performing off roader
Id like to see the chaps at PowerfulUK confirm the issues on the defender. On face value these problems are indeed terrible, but often the biggest brains in the after market can figure out a work around. I see this in various enthusiast cars where the dealers word isn’t the last word, it takes time for the hacks to be discovered.
A vast majority of the issues he's discussed with Land Rovers over the last several years can be addressed with an iiD tool and, to make it easier, a smartphone. (You can use the iiD tool with steering wheel controls, but it's easier using a bluetooth connection to a smartphone).
. . . and an internet connection.
@@4xoverland Maybe on the new Defender for the particular problem you've discussed here, but not on the Discovery 4 that I've had for 8 years now. Just a smartphone and the iiD tool. Can read and clear all codes, customize settings, but the suspension in manual "service" mode, etc. No internet connection needed.
@@4xoverland really are you sure? Because every thing else is rubbish
@@4xoverland there are lot of “enterprising individuals” who seem to be able to drive off in other peoples Landrovers, despite the best efforts of Landrover, maybe they can solve this :-)
I love your comments on the Defender because you are so right! I wouldn't buy one at all! I love the way it looks, and all the reviews say it drives very well, but it is seriously flawed! Now, I have a 2023 Golf MK8, a fantastic car but far too much tech. The tech has failed me once and by stint of my IT background, i.e. press a button for a long time and it might do a reset, it did and we got back to normal. Now, living next to the Malvern Hills I decided the Golf was too nice to be taking the dog out in it, country lanes, muddy tracks etc I decided on an off roader and chose a 2013 Suzuki Jimny. What a gem this car is, no tech to speak of, it bounces along on A/T tyres, it steers like a narrow boat, but it is so practical and a delight! I honestly look forward to getting up in the morning and taking the dog up into the Hills! So, for me, you can keep the Defender and the Grenadier. If I want to drive off road the Jimny is great and if I want to drive up the motorway then the Golf is excellent!
Re. the Defender, overlanders would inevitably fit a dual battery system with a controller which would link the batteries, so if the starting battery went weak the vehicle would still be able to draw power from the second battery to start.
Also, many overlanders including myself now fit rooftop solar connected to the starting battery.
I recently went through this myself when the starting battery in my 2009 Defender failed, but it could still be started from the second battery.
Also, many people including myself carry a lithium jump starter pack, which could start tge vehicle.
BTW the V8 is to remain available in the 70 series, according to 4 x 4 Australia.
All correct. V8 is still available but my guess is, it won't be for very long. Toyota is phasing out the engine.
Just activate the boot lock, it's disabled as standard, when you do this it won't activate the start up screen which doubles drain the battery. Added point it would have to be a test to see if the tracker system in the defender also has an idle drain on the system, if so remove the option and just place some apple air tags into the car and wheels, there about 25 dollars each. Also don't mean to point out the obvious but a 100 dollar emergency battery/store jumper would hold power for at least 12 jumps over a 12 months time period and are not much bigger than a hardback book. Am sure there are lot's of CCF's files on any car including the defender that can be deactivated, everyone mod's there 4x4 but seems to forget just how easy it is to mod the CCF files.
Also it's factual wrong to say you need a laptop to jump the defender with a flat battery, you would know this if you had tried it yourself instead of listening to a rumour mill. Andrew I thought you would have learned this after the ABS debacle.
@@terryteesI've scoured the internet looking for instances of this happening. It looks to be a rumor. It's hard to come up with simple solutions when you're constantly focused on the problems.
I’m at 37,000 miles on my 2020 Defender, several trips from San Diego to Montana, and into the Canadian wilderness without a single issue whatsoever. I’m grateful that my rig has been so incredibly reliable, even in temperatures-40F for 3 straight days…. I feel like Andrew’s criticisms of the Defender while accurate to his standards, (if you’re trying to develop a rig that can go into the inner stratospheres of earth) into places like the Australian Outback, or Africa… places that our ancestors thankfully abandoned, or our species would’ve gone extinct like 99% of every living thing that has ever lived on this planet. It’s absurd to expect that an auto manufacture should mass produce a vehicle off the line designed for that purpose. The fact is for every day life in the mountain states of North America, the Defender is more than capable of helping you joyfully inhabit your place in the world.
Depending on the design parameters I would think that to spec the engine 2.8t to carry its max payload will involve a looser converter to ove it off the line and keep it in its torque band. Expect as you mentioned time spent at 2500-3500 rpm loaded to keep pace. I think youll be disspointed. No replacement for displacement.
I have the latest 2.8D, I have 60,000km on it and it really took 20-30k for the engine to open out it has great power when on boost.. I do find it a bit dead at low low revs so that will be a factor.. I have my name down for a new Prado LC next year with the new 8sp auto I think that will be very interesting dev it is the first major transmission change to come in the LC getting away from the old style 4/6spd autos
I would disagree with the old 3.0 dsl we had one in a hilux and it was great on our farm but an alcoholic .. combined driving towing in out of fields could see you in 15mpg or less the 2.8 rarely gets below 22mpg
Andrew I am looking all your video from Laos I love it thank a lot I am lock here since10 years but I got your video Bob
Load of nonsense comments from guys who only ever looked at a new Defender from afar. I have had the first one in Ireland for over 3 years. Its a D240 110 driven daily by my wife and used by me a weekends towing small to large trailers. She is averaging low 30’s to the gallon /9 cheap to run too. She has never broken down even once. And before you all jump up and down I also had a 2001 highly modded 90 TD5 making 230hp on Jose Amorim moded engine. This truck been to top of many a mountain here in Ireland. Shes sold now as the new one is far better for towing. And finally if you want real of road capability my 1988 200tdi winch challenge truck with 100” spacer nissan axles, 37” trepadors and dual Gigglepin GP100 winches will beat all others with ease. She is very original Defender looks and regularly trounces custom
buggies built just for competition.
Have you not listened to the Overland Journal podcast.. Scott fully explains the Starlink system he has installed on the Ineos. He also talks about the border crossing and the fuel range issues.
Ek het nou lekker gelag vir die Defender storie. Thanks oom Andrew
Wat van di land cruiser 300 Toyota man
LOL the pretender defender @13:20
Loved the defender cameo 😂
Hi Andrew. If Ineos back off, I’d like to suggest a “rental car overland special😅” cheers
Just saw 2 x new Defenders in Savuti - very deep soft sand and in October very hot - towing offroad trailers without any hassles and I was very impressed how easy it managed the sand - even in the campsite, where I had to use Low range on my Td5 and gameviewer Cruisers from lodges battled as well!! I am not a fan of the new Defender ( but a HUGE Tdi, Td5 fan) but was impressed by it's performance towing heavy Bushlapa trailers- so I dissagree with Andrew, but then, he is and always been a Toyota fan
Disagree with what? I said they are excellent performers in many ways. Did you not hear that? I said it several times. But when they have a fault, even a minor one, it could leave then stranded. This is a fact. It's built into the design and not my opinion. And with your Td5, you'll be smiling all the way home.
Your opinion regards Defender is correct.I owned from new 2020 240 D, best car I have owned until, the issues started.DF replacement, crankshaft leaking,engine senses ceasing.12 weeks at LR being fixed. No faith in LR now, wholesaled it, lost money. Bought 2023 Nissan Patrol TIL-old technology but capable and reliable.
I had a LC90 with the old 3 litre turbo diesel engine and automatic gear box. The turbo worked already at very low RPM, and the auto gear box was perfectly adjusted to this engine. It was a wonderful car off road, with the right amount of torque at low RPMs. Now I have a LC150 which is totally different. It has the same 3 litre diesel engine, but now with the common rail injection system, a turbo with an immense turbo lag (no noticeable turbo boost until about 2500 RPM) and lots of exhaust cleaning filters and so on. Much more horsepower and torque than the old LC90 - but: the power is not there, when you need it off road: at low RPM. I can´t really understand why Toyota did this. And reducing the 3 litre diesel engine to a 2,8 did certainly not these things better.
I'm at a loss as to why Andrew continues to insist that the new Defender needs a diag tool to jump start the car. This is simply not the case, even for the 2024 model. Replacing the battery, sure, because you need to tell the BMS it has a new battery, but this is common to all cars with start/ stop tech not just Defender nor even Land Rover. There's a reason you can't buy the 70 series in Europe..... Emissions standards.
At this point it looks like wilful ignorance.
Andrew maybe talk to newdefendermods and the team from GAP diagnostics, before going off half-cocked like this again.
You can import new grey market 70 series petrols to Europe and register them happily.
So buy an old Land Rover then…. New Land Rover is around £100,000 and therefore beyond the budget of most adventure travellers…
All these trucks would be a really good option, if , and it's a Big IF, they would just take notes from Toyota, and apply it to their vehicles. But they, Don't, and they Won't. So, just like Land Rover, just like Ioenos will always be issues of reliability, which should be above all else the #1 priority, especially for the cost of most us them. Andrew, if I was a car company, I would only give you a car, if I had Full Confidence in it like I do a Toyota Land Cruisers, because the one thing I know(and Expect) is an Honest, Full Test review with the the Good, Bad, and the Ugly. But, then again I'd call you during the dream, ideology, methodology, development, build, and the testing of course. You have a ton of wisdom in the overland, especially vehicles, and like you I have found what works, and is the Best, and when you drive/own a TLC, it makes it really hard to drive anything else, if you rely on it as a tool. Thos others are cool, cute toys to play with, if you have that much Time and money. You do good work! When are you and Paul doing a 200 series build?
My wife’s BMW X5 diesel was parked at a railway station a few times, some years ago, and the railway’s radio frequency prevented the BMW system from shutting down. When she came back in a couple of days the battery was dead flat. No point trying to charge it, because the system needed to be rebooted at a BMW dealer, therefore it was recovered, three times in all, to the dealer on the back of a truck. Guess who’s engine and ECU is fitted to Grenadier!
🇦🇺 living in 🇬🇧
I wanted a Defender, then I was about to buy an Ineos, then saw the new LC arriving here early next year, deposit paid, counting down the months!
You’ve been able to put down a deposit for a new LC in the UK?? Wow! Where abouts are you in the UK?
Very few manufacturers are making vehicles that are designed first and foremost with offroad issues in mind. Most are street vehicles that then have offroading stuff added on. Those offroading things might be quite good, but there are lots of things that are not visible that may not be well thought out. Jeep Wranglers and Gladiators are two of the few left designed specifically for offroad. So Jeeps are easily modifiable and built expressly with the idea that they will be modded, breathers for the diffs either have a plug (rear) and pretty high (front) that you can easily make even higher, the alternator is up high so it won’t be constantly submerged in water crossings, everything on the underside is up high above the body rails, transfer case is still mechanical (a guy I know actually had his cable break in 4lo but was able to fix it to get to 2hi at end of trail), parking brake is mechanical, on auto trans models trans cable can be accessed via a little cover in front of shifter manually get it out of park, it can be flat towed, no turbos to break, not even a cable to open the hood to break, buttons for everything on the dash and also ability to do through touchscreen if you want, hard-drive Nav system if you get it so you have nav even if no internet with breadcrumbs feature. There are probably more I am forgetting right now. I offroaded a modded LR4 as my last veh. Really loved it and it was a bit of a mid life crisis/ nostalgia purchase as the original Disco and Disco 2 is the LR that fired my imagination as a yute, and now that I could afford it I went for it, but man it had a lot of electronics and by the end I wanted to get back to a more manual and mechanical offroader. In addition to reliability (I was getting worried as it was getting older of a failure while in the boonies) I was missing the ability to do the offroading myself instead of being a passive passenger to a computer brain. And in the US any no red light town mechanic can work on a Jeep and if you break down on a trail chances are higher someone out there passing by might have the spare part you need or also be able to fix it. Now out will come all the brand fanboys who will shout about reliability and tell lots of anecdotal tales but I will say a few things in response- first, if you legit wheel you know that any veh can break and we are all just playing the odds, second, reliability and toughness are two different things- I have seen far more IFS vehs (and yes that is Toyotas too) with snapped CVs or other issues (ahem alternator) broken down on trails. Third, there are a shit-ton of old Jeeps running around out there that have not led soft lives- you just can’t tell at first glance because they all look the same. Fourth- not many other 4x4s where you can take it all off and really get out there with the outdoors while offroading. And lastly- still the best offroader is the one you own- don’t worry about what “is best” or the newest thing, wheel what ya got and enjoy it- your money is probably better spent modding what ya got for how ya wheel or overland and fixing what ya break than buying new. End of the day, we’re all out there trying to capture the same experience and facing the same challenges, and I’ll waive to anyone I see with the same mentality- it ain’t a Jeep thing, it’s an offroader thing. 🤙
One of my most favourite experiences as well ♥️. I am an older West Australian, but Ningaloo and Dampier are so very hard to beat. Thank you for reminding me 😊. Safe travels.
Hi Andrew i have a grenadier your welcome to test drive, however i live in Melbourne. If your on this side you're welcome to take it for a day or so. Cheers
honestly, i find it fascinating that people obsess over what car is "the best" when if you look through history specifically in aus, people were doing massive trips in wagons that just had slightly bigger tyres, or the OLD 4wd with the fat tyres
they just made it work, nowadays people think they need all the bits and bobs but really they're just quality of life upgrades
as long as you have a shovel and there are some sticks around, bar a roll over or drowning, you can recover yourself
obviously then the only thing that matters is keeping the car running which does lend itsself to simplicity and protection but. anyway, people took VW beetles onto the beach back in the day
any all wheel drive vehicle is more capable than that let alone a dedicated 4wd
Don't know about the new Defender but Disco 3/4/5 owners who go offroading should have proper ODB reader in car. iCarsoft or IID Tool. It's pretty basic knowledge. Like taking some spanners or a extra generator for Land Cruiser ;) With those tools you can erase most errors, change many settings etc. A smaller starter-battery pack is pretty elementary. And if you know that opening/closing doors will drain you battery..you can and will take some steps to avoid the problem. You change stuff on LC's to make them more offroad worthy. You can do the same for LR's.
Just love watching your channel again and again and again. Thank you!
You’re wrong regarding the 4 cylinder off road. I’ve done a lot of desert crossings and Vic High Country travels with a V8 cruiser ute. In stock trim, they are gutless and require careful gear selection on approach to obstacles. Last year we crossed the Simpson in a 100% stock standard straight off the showroom Hilux with no accessories at all. We were astounded at how superior an automatic transmission was in the desert. That engine and transmission will improve the 79 a lot. However, I find that in pretty much all 4wd situations, it’s better to use the auto in manual mode so you have instant throttle response and aren’t waiting for a gear change. Engine braking is reasonable too, even on steep high country descents, with DAC only needed for the steepest of sections. I think you’ll be impressed.
The interesting factor that everyone hasn’t covered in the conversation on the LC 2.8 with auto is that the box is an 8 speed. Hopefully it works. Also re the 200 comments, were not all grey nomads🤫
I am led to believe the 2024 update 70 Series auto will be the carry over 6 speed, same as what's in the current Hilux.
Sadly, it is not going to be equipped with the new 8 speed auto ala the upcoming 250 Series next year.
My greatest fear with overloading in today's vehicles, is that there's way too much technology on them. Long gone are the days when most issues could be resolved temporarily to enable you to hobble to the next outback mechanic.
“The V8 delivers its torque at lower RPM, and the lower RPM that you can deliver torque, the more traction you will have.” Sure, Andrew, but the torque converter decouples engine RPM from wheel RPM, so the auto box will allow the 2.8 to still deliver its torque at really low wheel RPM. Worry not!
The torque converter might deliver the correct amount of torque at lower wheel RPM because of the so called "decoupling" from the engine, but the engine RPM will still be higher due to the "slip" created by the torque converter, therefore you will be burning more fuel offroad. I've owned a 2.8 auto Hilux now for almost 4 years and they are thirsty vehicles, 4low and you can half your fuel efficiency.
The 2.8 auto drives very nicely in other Toyotas Andrew. Always change the diff ratios. Pretty happy getting 8.7l 100km with my auto 2.8 towing my tandem trailer Andrew. Fuel savings WILL be significant. Disagree with you completely on this.
@madmod the point being discussed by Andrew was traction, not fuel efficiency, and that’s why I made my point. If you want to save fuel overall, including off road, you won’t pick the V8.
Nice Defender went past at 13:20 🙂
Have you learned nothing. Lol.
Well spotted. Too funny.
I want a Grenadier very badly. Here in the US
Andrew, I 100% agree with you, in my personal observation, I have noticed that the majority of consumers that are now purchasing the new Defender would have never even considered driving the previous (old) Defender range... It just wasn't ever meant to be a posh vehicle, as is perhaps the case now.
Thank you….. nice
Lovely Ep and tips, We have carried half green tomatoes for weeks over very corrugated roads up Cape York and the QLD and NT Gulf in the 80s and 90s wrapped in a few layers of news paper and as the rippen up we ate them , same with all our fruit, no bushes at all, A local chap has a IG and he just did a trip from Noosa to the Gulf of QLD and back around 5000ks towing a small off road van it used around 15lph and went lovely he said.
Awesome episode Andrew. Many thanks from Cape Town. 😊
I believe you will get significantly better fuel savings than you're predicting, especially during cruising on highways. Besides the obvious difference in engine configurations, a primary factor will likely be that the automatic gearbox in your 4-cylinder will operate at lower RPMs compared to the manual on your V8 (if nicely tuned, I hope).
I am extremely curious about how those numbers will turn out!
Cruising on highways is irrelevant to true offroaders/overlanders. Yes it's a part of it, but if most of your miles are on pavement (bitumen) then you're doing it wrong off the trot.
@@samjohnson9894
Well, I have to disagree with you there, mate.
No savings are ever irrelevant. If you're okay with wasting resources for no reason, then that's a bit concerning.
I find it hard to believe anyone in the same boat as Andrew, especially living in Australia, puts more off-road than on-road kilometers on their rig. Maybe if it's a farm car and it never leaves the property, sure. But for a car used the way Andrew does? I'd bet a lot that he covers waaay more bitumen than anything else.
Why not check out his trips in his videos? He goes off-road, but only after some seriously long stints on-road to get to the right spots.
But oh, right, my bad! I forgot that in your eyes, Andrew might not be a “true overlander”. The "true overlanders" like you probably have a car with 200k km and only 5k km on the road. I bet you guys drive through cane fields next to the roads when going somewhere, or over mountains and rocks just to grab some beer, avoiding roads at all costs. Because roads? They're for the "fake overlanders", right?
Sorry for the oversight, mate. Cheers to the "true overlanders" out there like you!
I have a Grenadier that I’m happy to lend to you.
I live in Padbury WA.
Let’s talk.
Thanks for replying Luke. I can't make my email address public, but could you send me your details here: www.4xoverland.com/contact-us
Your videos, your thoughts are the best to hear!!!
Dwight Schrute of the 4X4 world here loves digging the hole deeper with OEM's. Also loves making mountains out of molehills in a struggle for relevance. If I was Ineos I wouldn't lose any sleep.
Exactly. Paper weight!! Strand💥💥😳👌💯
The best 4X4 is one that you can fix with a hammer simple
A toyota
Regarding the Defender dead battery scenario, starting from a completely flat AGM starter battery is no different to most other donor/dead vehicle procedures. You either carry a suitable lithium starter pack or a set of jumper leads. Standard practice imo. The alarm will go off when there is sufficient charge in the battery, so switch it off with the fob, and you might have to reset the windows by closing the windows and holding the switch for 1 sec. Big deal isn't it? The only time you need access to any GSM or wifi network is for the occasional software update or to update your Spotify playlist. Sorry, no tapedeck in the Defender. Software updates are not needed to get you going, (they will install when you're back in mobile service range) Another point...unless you want a flatbed callout when you don't need one, then don't call Roadside Assistance. Their business model is to tow you to the nearest service point, not to fix your car. With the GAP IID tool or another OBD2 device you can do your own diagnostics...over BLUETOOTH not wireless...no internet required. The GAP tool is well worth the investment for this alone, not withstanding its many other features.
Really appreciate this input.
I thought Andrew or another you tuber stated that Defenders cannot be jump started using leads or with a quick starter otherwise it will void the warranty due to potential damage to the electronics.
@davidshepherd1107 complete rubbish. The procedure is in the manual. I've done it myself 4 times from a battery that registered less than 1.8 A ala dead flat.
I test drove the INEOS in the summer, bit of off road, wade in Spain. The footwell 'footrest' in on the passenger side, and it's now lower than it was in the prototype. It drives worse than the Defender on the road, as you'd imagine and probably could handle more extreme 4x4 conditions. There you go in a nutshell !! But hey, be free to check it out! and remember, that Defender is it's own company, no longer Land Rover
It is a LAND ROVER Defender!
I would argue that most built up rigs "adventure cars" are also posers cars. All the industry cares about is sales, they don't care whether the car is seen crossing the outback outside of a sales brochure or not. All these cars and custom rigs are ridiculously expensive, you could buy a yacht for the price of modifying a 70 series.
I have a 2023 prado 2.8L turbo diesel and at 120 kph it is doing just 1350rpm in 6th gear. And it will pull from those rpm quite ok even going uphill. It makes maximum torque at about 1500 you will not find any problems off-roading it or cruising on motorways for miles on end.
I think you will be pleasantly surprised at its performance.
I think you will find your predictions will not be as accurate as you think. I am anyway happy with my prado and it suits my purpose very well.
One thing it does have is crappy fuel economy, but then I knew that before I bought it. And let's face it we don't buy big 4x4 for fuel economy. I get about 20- 22 mpg from it when driving under various conditions and speeds. Can get closer to 25 on a motorway depending on how many hills there are, of which there are many here.
John Canning - at canning outdoors has already posted a Grenadier 5,000 km test of it
You keep going on about this ‘not being able to tow’ yes you can. There is a manual release override to keep it in neutral. The parking brake can be overridden as well as the gearbox. It can be flat towed.
I don't think a modern 2.8td will lack in terms of low end torque. Looking at the figures - which is the same and the only source Andrew has access to atm - these engines start at 60% peak torque from IDLE and then they ramp up immediately. Most of today's heavy duty diesels for vans have peak torque available at or below 1500 rpm. A V8 might have a flat-ish torque curve, but never as flat and as low down oriented as a well tuned turbodiesel of an acceptable size (which 2.8 is).
Being the owner of both a Hilux and a V8 70 series both regularly driven in rough country , Andrew is spot on in the call that a Hilux is no match for the V8 in the scrub,over rough ground .
Nice no bullshit video.thanks.hope you get the Ineos to test
Hi Andrew, great channel.
I think your wrong on your assessment of the defender. I think it’s a great adventure vehicle but it’s not an overlanding or expedition vehicle like it’s predecessor’s. You don’t have to cross countries or continents for it to be an adventure vehicle, simply getting in it for a weekend away to somewhere new would be enough. It’s not designed to be parked up for days on end like almost every other new car.
I’m looking forward to your non biased review of the Grenadier should you finally get one.
Keep up the good work
I appreciate that you took the time to give yourself a backlight for these shots.
I appreciate that you took the time to notice.
5:24 Here in the US we call those type of poser cars “Mall Crawlers”
I have seen a Grenadier parked up off Winton Road in Joondalup, so they are starting to appear. Lets hope someone with one follows your channel and you will get your hands on one soon.
Defender, Absolutely 100% brilliant 🤦🏻♂️😎👍
I've thought that ZF8 trans has a screw to disconnect park brake on the bottom of its housing
Perhaps you should speak to some of the many New Defender owners who use them in remote overland locations without drama, instead to listening to an unsubstantiated rumour from a "Land Rover tech" because clearly you have no intention of trying a new Defender yourself.
Agree - Andrew keeps circulating anecdotal unsubstantiated “evidence” badmouthing the new Defender. This is really dis-honest journalism- he should know better. Ever since Andrew was not invited for the Defender press launch trip in Namibia - he has just made it his mission in life to ruin the reputation of the Defender.
So. If you can't defend the argument, then attack the person giving it. Fact is, I'm never invited to any launches, anywhere! Ever. And they shouldn't. I'm not going to print what they want me to. So go ahead and believe the paid-up journos and buy one. Makes no difference to me. I feel sorry for the people who are buying this car for all the wrong reasons. And that is why I do this.
A call from a high-ranking Land Rover tech guy, an 'unsubstantiated rumour'? Even if I was a LR sycophant I could not stretch to that.
If I recall correctly your real world experience with the new 70 series was very different to your comments in this video. Towing with the 2.8 seems better than the V8.
Hi Andrew, In your explaination about defender flat battery, remmber, the car warns the user the battery is getting low and you need to start the engine to charge the battery, a very short engine run will fully top up the battery
Lots of modern vehicles struggle with flat batteries, even cars from the 00s. I think you need to maybe consider how often and what the occurrence is of such major battery failure before stating your final opinion maybe?
Very true about the fuel consumption between the 2.8lt GD6 and 3lt D4D. The older engine saves I do drive both
I freeze dry my food and it is by far the cheapest, easiest, lightest and space saving one can get, however the initial purchase is substantial.
Really looking forward to the 2.8L v 4.5L comparison.
I have a seriously problem with you lack in distinction between "power" and "torque" when discussing the difference between the driving of the 2.8 and the 4.5, also you spoke about the engine delivery and off road capability however failed to mention the off road drive ability between the manual and automatic. And lastly if you are doing 1800rpm whilst towing a 2.5t plus van in Australia you are driving considerably under the speed limit becoming a hazard on rhe road or have done some outstanding modifications to your vehicle to be able to drive safely at that rpm
Hey Andrew, 2021 Defender 110 X P400 MHEV owner here who does take it out for long trips (multi-week) quite a bit. Yeah, the flat battery problem is very real. Everyone in camp REALLY hates the "duh duh duh DUH" warning noise the truck makes every time I open a door once the voltage drops enough. Although, all I have ever had to do is make sure I start the truck for a bit every few days, or if it does really go flat (which has happened to me), a quick lithium jump will power everything back up, you hop in and start it. You don't need the DoIP/SST, Laptop, ToPIX, Starlink, etc (although I carry all that stuff anyway). Maybe this is just a USA thing, maybe in other markets it locks itself down in some way if the battery dies. But I haven't ever had that problem. Doesn't mean JLR didn't totally screw the pooch on not having a "camp mode" or something similar. All I want is the interior lights to turn on when I open the door. I don't need all 47 computers to boot up, CarPlay to kick in, etc. It's BY FAR the largest problem with it. Everything else has turned out brilliant with the vehicle and it does everything I want. I recently picked up a small Dewalt battery tender adapter that I can plug into the ODBII port that trickles power in to the car while in camp, I am hoping it keeps everything happy. But I shouldn't need to bodge it together in the first place.