Japs V Landrovers

Japjeep

Just joined up to post this message!
Has anyone else noticed this weird divide amongst offroad/4x4 enthusiasts in this country?
It seems that alot of Landrover drivers believe that Landrover is the be all and end all. I'll admit that I love older series Landrovers, but I drive a SWB Pajero for general towing stuff and getting around.
I dont get it, I've seen some serious snobbery by Landrover drivers towards other jeeps, especially the wee Suzukis(something else on my wish list actually)
And honsetly I dont see how a defender is much better offroad than say an older Land cruiser with solid axles allround. And those wee suzuki(ive forgotten the exact name) are amazing and are only ever let down by lack of power. Obviously you cant tow yer horsebox with em' but offroad they look like they'll beat anything bar a quad!
Now I know there is a thing about landrovers that I'm always gonna like no matter how unreliable people claim they are, but Landrover drivers seem to actually believe that all else is inferior when it so clearly isnt.
Good marketing perhaps??
Im baffled!?!

peasant

Landrover? Whazzat?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iGq_6avRbYE

peasant

and as for Japaneses & Landrovers ...

compare this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qqu46rqCahM

to that:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zs7PTdLdLaE

/discussion :D:D

jwshooter

been driving them for 13 years now ,first a 94, 300tdi swb defender the best one of the lot sorry i sold it the guy that bought is still driving it.

i would love it back, then a 300tdi disco also a nice truck .
then a td5 defender i did not like it as much as the 300tdi

i ran a freelander for two years ,i gave it its fair share of abuse for a little landy.

back to a diso now a td5 lovely snug truck .

the swb defender will frighten ya where it will go and do .

but if i was buying in the morning it would be a 2.5 hilux twin cab .

a friend has a 02 one with bf goodride AT s on it was savage in the snow this year , i could not get over how good it was.

101sean

As a Land Rover fanatic, I'll chuck my 2p worth in, actually partly in defense of the older Jap 4x4.

The divide is worse in the UK, but some see the best of both, couple of challenge Defenders around with Land Cruiser axles!

The basic Jap 4x4 like the old Land Cruisers, Hi Luxes, Patrols etc were good vehicles, witness what the Aussies do with them, and these killed off most of Land Rover's traditional markets. The bloated examples sold in Europe these days though aren't up to the job, the market wants bling not basic vehicles like the Land Cruisers used by the Red Cross and other aid agencies. Top Gear proved that old Hi-Luxes are indestructable!! The old basic Suzikis SJs were phenomenal off road.

I'll wave to and appreciate other 4x4s that are obviously used for what they are meant for, just wouldn't be seen dead in anything other than a Land Rover!:D

For what I've said I'll probably get blackballed from the Land Rover forums I belong to!

101sean

I like the VW Synchro;)

Spent several months extreme off roading on haul roads on the M7 Nenagh to Limerick, left a trail of wrecked L200s and Rangers:D

Slidey

Off topic I know, but can you throw up a pic of Landrover 101?

Back O/T

The defender is a very capable work vehicle with very few that can challenge it. Saying that i did drive a 'cruiser ute in oz hauling diesel to machines and it was incredible if a little sluggish.

The jap yokes tend to err on the side of comfort and dare i saw low maintenance, but are let down by a softness in components when they are put doing hard graft.

Hey Peasant, its not just German that was left out. What about the Tata Safari?



/shudder

peasant

The Tata Safari is supposedly not too bad ...once you take it off the road.

...or so I've heard

101sean

You may shudder, Tata now own Land Rover:eek:

Best Land Rover ever built -

Slidey

Safari scared me just driving it in the door of the garage!

What engine is in the 101?

101sean

A very well tuned 3.5l Rover V8 petrol! :D:D:D:D

101sean

Saw lots of Jap 4x4s in New Zealand, many in the form of Utes with traybacks, wonder they never caught on in Europe, more practical than pick ups.

cearrbach

nissan patrol!!!!!

thethedev

101sean wrote: »

You may shudder, Tata now own Land Rover:eek:

Best Land Rover ever built -

I love those!

The Italians where also left out!
The Italian Unimog!
http://www.bremach.it/Uk/video.asp

IVECO MASSIF! Apparantly its going to corner the utility market that Landrover are dominating!
http://www.massif.iveco.com/

BeardyGit

The Massif is just another sham Defender. It's based on the Santana, which in turn is based/licensed on the Defender 110 platform.

It ain't a landrover, and never will be. It'll always be the poor cousin trying to live up to something it never will.

Like it or not lads, Defenders have and hold their reputation on their own - Nothing Jap will ever actually compete.

What? Well, he started it! :P

peasant

Gil_Dub wrote: »

Like it or not lads, Defenders have and hold their reputation on their own - Nothing Jap will ever actually compete.

Yet when the UN need a couple of vehicles to ferry them reliably through some remote crisis zone they buy (and always bought) ...Toyotas :P

niceirishfella

And the Russian Military buy Lada's!

BeardyGit

peasant wrote: »

Yet when the UN need a couple of vehicles to ferry them reliably through some remote crisis zone they buy (and always bought) ...Toyotas :P

Yeah...okay....I'd buy one of those too. :pac:

101sean

That was the point I was making, plenty of respect for that sort of think, not the over specced, over tyred, over chromed, bloated and shiny stuff they sell in Europe.

CJhaughey

Not just the UN, got to Africa and you will see almost 98% Toyota 80 series and 75/78 series landcruisers.
There might be a few old series Landrovers knocking about but they are not common.
Consider that 78 series troopie pictured they have been almost unchanged since 1984.
I think 99 saw the rear springs change from leaf to coil.
and there was a new V8 diesel last year I think.
Thats some record for production of a single vehicle type.
They can't be beat for reliablity and comfort.
The Taliban seem to like Hilux's in Afghanistan as well.
If series LR were as good as people think they are they would be in use all over the world, But they aren't.
They are really an enthusiasts vehicle, well supported here and in the UK.

101sean

That's the problem, Land Rover were so cash strapped in the 70/80's and the vehicles weren't developed so they let the Land Cruiser/Hilux take all the markets that were traditionally theirs. Coils on 110s in 1983 and Discos introduced in 1986 plus decent powerful diesel engines was too late to regain what they had lost. If it wasn't for the military market, farmers and utilities, the Defender would have died andd LR would just be a luxury 4x4 maker and in even worse trouble:mad:.

CJhaughey

Look I have to admit that I have a soft spot for old LR's as well I had a SIIa with big 6 cyl conversion but the creature comfort just isn't there.
The best thing about the series LR's is the front wing is very convenient for holding a cup of tea while you tinker with the engine or scrape rust off the bulkhead:D

Slidey

CJhaughey wrote: »

L
The best thing about the series LR's is the front wing is very convenient for holding a cup of tea while you tinker with the engine or scrape rust off the bulkhead:D

Like the back step on a sprinter. Handy to sit on when you get tired pushing it!

niceirishfella

Handy olde metal grille on the front of a landy to cook yer roadkill up on BarBee style.

101sean

Where's Japjeep gone? Think he lit the fuse, lobbed it in and legged it!

bushy...

Here maybe ?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwTlyqKEvxA

101sean

Hmmm, how not to drive off road, waaaay too fast!

Traumadoc

Very few guys in Australia would trust landrovers. They nearly all would go for normally aspirated 4.2 lit landcruisers. Most guys I knew would buy ex government cruisers fitted with long range fuel and drinking water tanks.

bushy...

101sean wrote: »

Hmmm, how not to drive off road, waaaay too fast!

Forgot to say tis a time trial so stopwatch instead of calender

oflynno

well the op has a point

there is a divide but to be fair its all fun and games really

i am amember on elite4x4.co.uk(all welcome),but we do take the pee out of each other on a regular basis.me being a japorcrap fan,i do respect the other camp too and would love a landy outside the door
(i have range rover v8 engine for a job)

funny though we are all in awe of the unimog,another german yokey to join the vw synchro hall-of-fame-r

Xennon

Arab saying: To go into the desert you take a landrover........... to come back you take a toyota.