 | Home > My New Defender (L663) > My 110 x-Dynamic D300 6 months old. |
 
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| Gareth Member Since: 12 Dec 2011 Location: Bramhall Posts: 1038   
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Today our Carpathian grey 110 X dynamic D 300 is six months old. In that time we’ve covered just under 4000 miles. This has consisted mainly of short journeys but we have done a couple of longer journeys including a day return all the way from Manchester down to Essex and back.
We have also completed a caravanning holiday to the Lake District for which the car was just fantastic. Since we got the car fuel consumption has steadily improved it’s now averaging almost 28 miles to the gallon. When we first got it the average was as low as 23. Towing the caravan the car can managed nearly 22 miles to the gallon which is far better than I ever got out of my old Discovery 4. From a practicality point of view obviously the boot space is less than the discovery. This however has not caused us any problems. We run an upholstery business and the car has successfully carried many chairs, it just can’t manage large settees like the Discovery could. The rear door opening is slightly harder to deal with, and the side opening door is nowhere near as practical as the split tailgate arrangement on the Discovery. However, we knew all this before we bought it. We had looked at the Discovery 5 but decided it just was not for us. So maybe it’s wrong that we should be putting so many comparisons to the old Discovery into this, maybe we should be comparing this with the old 110? If We did it would paint a completely different picture. For a start theres the driving position. No longer do you bash your elbow on the door every time you turn the steering wheel or jam your knee into the handbrake every time you move your left leg. You can have a sensible conversation at motorway speeds and so far there are no water leaks! The load space is of course, far more practical. I love the technology in the new car. The digital dashboard is very good. Pivi pro is easy to use and so far I’ve had very few problems with it. There was an issue with Apple CarPlay however I solved that by buying a new cable and installing a holder on the dashboard to prevent the phone from moving around. The voice control can be a bit hit and miss. I find you need to let the car wake up properly for a good couple of minutes before trying to use it. Once it’s paying attention however, it is quite good. My one big gripe with the technology in the car is the satnav. It does sometimes send me on some strange routes, I can live with that because generally I know where I’m going and I only use satnav for the final couple of miles of any journey. But by far the biggest problem is the dim display on the drivers information panel. When you set the information panel to show navigation information you cannot see it when it’s anything but daylight. At night time it descends into a dark black picture with virtually no discernible information. You simply can’t see it! There is an adjustment knob under the park brake lever but it seems to have very little effect. Interior wise it has proved very robust. We have two dogs and they have made their mark in the back but it’s easily cleaned and shows no lasting damage so far. Mine has lunar acorn half leather interior. There is cloth edges to all the seats but so far it has stayed clean and no permanent marking has appeared. I love the way the mats simply unclip and you can wash out the interior with a wet sponge very very easily. I find the seats very comfortable with many adjustments available. I do have an issue with the positioning of the steering wheel and the mirrors. I find the steering wheel needs to be adjusted to its lowest position to be comfortable, and the Door mirror adjustment doesn’t allow the glass to move out far enough so I’m always looking along the side of the car, when I would personally prefer to be able to see more of the road but the adjustment is limited. Maybe in the future Land Rover will use the same technology that they’re using for the rearview mirror and use the side cameras to provide side mirror view? This would also solve the problem of the huge blindspot caused by the side mirrors! Mechanical reliability has been 100%. Nothing has broken or fallen off, and it’s not let me down yet. The only issues have been electronic, software related I’m sure. Many times have I had to reset the roof blind and sunroof which mysteriously seem to stop working regularly, And I have yet to work out how to make the user profile system work. I have several times entered information for both me and my wife for it to be forgotten shortly afterwards, I’ve given up now! To drive, It gives you the same commanding driving position that you got from either an old Discovery or a Defender. It’s extremely smooth and quiet inside the cabin, and the performance is exceptional with nimble handling and rapid acceleration. So in conclusion it’s a great car, we really like it. It does pretty much everything we have asked of it. I doubt I will keep this as long as I kept my discovery. I suspect after three or four years I will be looking to new engine technologies. I was quite uneasy about buying a diesel in these times, but at this moment with our requirements for the car, there really was nothing else on the market that we liked. I hope we don’t regret that decision. 2021 Defender 110 X-Dynamic HSE D300 MHEV 1966 S2a 109 aka Betsy 1968 S2a 88 aka Bob 2014 Jaaaag F Type 3.0 Supercharged. |
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8th Jun 2021 11:17am |
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| Gareth Member Since: 12 Dec 2011 Location: Bramhall Posts: 1038
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I’m 5’7” and have the seat quite far forward. I’d say I have height set to mid point. 2021 Defender 110 X-Dynamic HSE D300 MHEV
1966 S2a 109 aka Betsy 1968 S2a 88 aka Bob 2014 Jaaaag F Type 3.0 Supercharged. |
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8th Jun 2021 11:56am |
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| pjm-84 Member Since: 12 Apr 2021 Location: Hampshire Posts: 642 
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Aghh a little smaller than my 6ft 5in.
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8th Jun 2021 1:06pm |
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| Kubrick1978 Member Since: 01 May 2021 Location: Midlands Posts: 101
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That's a great update on your first 6 months of use, Gareth. I'm looking forward to mine turning up next month. It'll be interesting to see whether I have the same observations as you. I'm also worried about opting for a diesel again, but as you say, the 'next gen' of engines are not quite there yet - and I don't want to be a guinea pig for the first wave of JLR hybrids etc. If Rivian had come out in the UK earlier, that may have have been an alternative - but for now I'm happy with having one of the last generations of diesel engines (hopefully absolutely optimised). If diesels die a death in the next few years, I can still give it back after 4 via PCP and swap it out - and just enjoy it in the meantime!
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8th Jun 2021 3:22pm |
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| Gareth Member Since: 12 Dec 2011 Location: Bramhall Posts: 1038
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Whilst I bought mine outright, it was the fact that leasing and pcp were still affordable that gave me a bit of confidence that values will hold for the next 3-5 years.
Once the lease costs and pcp final values start plunging on diesels, you know the end is nigh! 2021 Defender 110 X-Dynamic HSE D300 MHEV 1966 S2a 109 aka Betsy 1968 S2a 88 aka Bob 2014 Jaaaag F Type 3.0 Supercharged. |
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8th Jun 2021 3:41pm |
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| DSL Member Since: 20 Aug 2007 Location: Wandering the wasteland. Posts: 837
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6 months, seems like just a few weeks ago.
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8th Jun 2021 4:14pm |
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| Ajay(UK) Member Since: 13 Feb 2021 Location: Arundel, W.Sussex Posts: 74
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I’m not sure what all the doom and gloom is over Diesel engines, in the UK we are still 9 years away from the “supposed” date at which the sale of new petrol and diesel cars will be “banned”. Personally I think the word “hybrid”will also be discreetly added to the terms of new car sales from 2030 but that’s another story
In the mean time 9 years is a long time away and way beyond the likely time frame we will keep our new Defender when it arrives next month so we will enjoy it for the foreseeable, probably part exchange it for another in 5 years time and in 2030 I believe there will still be demand for combustion engines and don’t see their value falling off a cliff. I for one am in no hurry to go “lecky” 
Andy. 22MY Defender 110 X Dynamic HSE D250, Gondwana Stone with too many options! Gone: 2015 L405 SDV8 Autobiography, Indus Silver with Black Pack. Gone: 2014 Discovery 4 HSE Luxury Firenze Red |
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8th Jun 2021 7:03pm |
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| DSL Member Since: 20 Aug 2007 Location: Wandering the wasteland. Posts: 837
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Discussed going leckie with SWMBO and the conclusion was she doesn’t want the stress, and a happy wife is a happy life.
Presently at a hotel near Stonehenge and been watching peeps plug their car in, sit in the car (or wander round and round and round it) for a while squeezing a few more miles in. No thanks. I put 600 miles in the tank in 5 minutes and have better things to do. |
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8th Jun 2021 8:16pm |
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| Gareth Member Since: 12 Dec 2011 Location: Bramhall Posts: 1038
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Yes I’m with you there Derek. I was in Tesco yesterday and they were queuing for the chargers, cables everywhere. There needs to be a wireless charging method. Some sort of drive-on induction pad.
We have really thought about getting a small ev for local use only. Something like a second hand Zoe, or a VW E-up! (Is it made in Yorkshire?) 2021 Defender 110 X-Dynamic HSE D300 MHEV 1966 S2a 109 aka Betsy 1968 S2a 88 aka Bob 2014 Jaaaag F Type 3.0 Supercharged. |
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8th Jun 2021 9:02pm |
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| DSL Member Since: 20 Aug 2007 Location: Wandering the wasteland. Posts: 837
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We thought long and hard re replacing our 14 year old Jazz, and considered the full leckie ID3. Long and short of it was SWMBO didn’t want any hassle of not getting a plug in, or if we took it to Heelands then guaranteeing getting plugged in if we stop over night. The new 2020 Jazz is a petrol powered hybrid so no issues then. Then we both came to the conclusion that we only do 2,000 miles max, in “normal” times, why not just keep the old girl until she dies. Spending averted.
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8th Jun 2021 9:16pm |
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| pjm-84 Member Since: 12 Apr 2021 Location: Hampshire Posts: 642
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Love our ID3 pool car (when I drive it). Absolute Hoot to drive, but alas no good for our dogs.
The car has just been to Edinburgh and back. Bought it new just before Christmas and its already has about 9000 miles on the clock. 80% charge is now equating to 192miles with the warmer weather. Full charge is 262miles |
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8th Jun 2021 9:59pm |
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| 4B4B Member Since: 30 Apr 2021 Location: Midlands Posts: 83
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I don’t think diesel is going to become obsolete anytime soon. It’s going to take years to build the infrastructure, let alone have the national grid support supplying enough energy to power so many vehicles simultaneously. Eventually yes. But I can’t see it happening by 2030. Defender 90 HSE 250D 2022MY - Gave up after two failed orders
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8th Jun 2021 10:05pm |
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| J77 Member Since: 04 Nov 2019 Location: Fife Posts: 3247 
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My drivers display doesn’t dim the map it stays full colour.
Only downside is the Pivi screen stays bright but I don’t use that when navigating anyway  Click image to enlarge I must admit I found the door mirrors awkward at first, they don’t give as wide a field of vision as other models in the range 24MY 90 D250 HSE, Tasman Blue |
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8th Jun 2021 10:39pm |
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| Ryderoo Member Since: 28 Aug 2015 Location: South Bucks Posts: 1655 
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Here, here. Come 2029 I will be searching for a fossil fuelled engine as a keeper. I wonder how the infrastructure will support EV. Memories of a cliffhanger on Corrie in the seventies during a commercial break everyone puts the kettle on for a cuppa and the national grid struggles and your lights at home actually dimmed Cheers Simon
I can explain it to you, but I can't understand it for you 2015 Urban Truck 90 XS Santorini Black Hard Top - Reluctantly gone 2020 Discovery 5 Eiger Grey 3.0 SE 2021 Defender S D250 Santorini Black 110 Hard Top on the drive |
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8th Jun 2021 11:58pm |
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