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| Chugga90 Member Since: 07 Sep 2014 Location: Bucks Posts: 209  |
Keep the D4 and spend some of the 80k you save making it look and feel great again?
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9th Jul 2025 7:42am |
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| lightning Member Since: 23 Apr 2009 Location: High Peak, Derbyshire Posts: 3220 
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l have a D250 now 2 1/2 years old and have been thinking the same thing. Keep long term or swap for another old model Defender.
With the old one, the bills while regular are much smaller and it's rare to get a frighteningly high one. However my 2022 D250 has been totally reliable with only a couple of software upgrades and a squeak from the undertrays which l sorted myself. So it's a difficult question. lf l keep the new Defender l will almost certainly take out the LR extended warranty for as long as they'll provide it. One thing about the new Defender is, it's already attracting aftermarket parts suppliers so there's a good chance that in the future you'll be able to avoid LR parts prices. And my local LR specialist has started working on them, their labour rate is a fraction of the LR dealer. |
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9th Jul 2025 7:46am |
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| Skully Member Since: 10 Jun 2022 Location: uk Posts: 8 |
That’s a very real option to be fair, it’s certainly the sensible one |
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9th Jul 2025 8:20am |
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| Skully Member Since: 10 Jun 2022 Location: uk Posts: 8 |
Thanks Lightning, that’s good info.
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9th Jul 2025 8:21am |
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| Crazymind Member Since: 11 Jun 2024 Location: Glasgow Posts: 277
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wouldn’t just assume the Land Cruiser will be more reliable than the Defender. The new Land Cruiser has to prove the legendary name it carries.
On top of that, I really can’t wrap my head around the fact that the 2.8 four-cylinder costs £80k. So far, my experience with the Defender has been excellent — 13 months and 20,000 miles around the UK and Europe, and it hasn’t put a foot wrong. About 80% of that has been on-road, with 20% on medium to challenging trails. It’s still solid, with no rattles, and it’s unbeatable on the road — none of the other capable off-roaders come close. The ride is comfortable yet doesn’t wallow through corners. Resale value is holding strong too: 13 months after buying it, We Buy Any Car is still offering only £6k less than what I paid brand new. |
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9th Jul 2025 8:45am |
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| Skully Member Since: 10 Jun 2022 Location: uk Posts: 8 |
Good perspective, thanks. That resale value is mad!
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9th Jul 2025 10:19am |
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| LRSpain004 Member Since: 30 Jun 2020 Location: Elche Posts: 69 
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I always had classic defenders TD5 and they were fantastic. After moving to Spain I bought a 2018 Land Cruiser 150. As you say the engine (same in the new 250 with some power upgrades) is not amazing but at the same time the engine and whole vehicle is truly bulletproof with reliability. I bought it from a Toyota dealer with 208,000 miles on it with a year warranty. it now has 261,000 and it has never been back to the dealer apart from services. I replaced lower front wishbone bushes last year and apart from being well serviced that is it. Buy a Toyota and never go back to the dealer.. simple choice.
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9th Jul 2025 11:24am |
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| SteveG Member Since: 29 Nov 2011 Location: Norfolk Posts: 671 
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I was seriously considering buying a Landcruiser 250, especially when it went on sale in Japan and the top spec version was the equivalent of £38,500. I knew it wouldn’t be that low with shipping, duties and UK VAT here, but the 100% difference was a lot more than expected and just Toyota fleecing UK consumers. They’re not the only ones, but they don’t even have the RHD costs excuse. Its a shame, if it was around the £55K mark I could easily get over the Hilux diesel 😊 Not owned a new Defender, but son has a 4 year old one from new, and a good fiend the same. Both six cylinders and no issues bar some rattly A post trim that flies off at speed and again some interior trim vibrations. The six cylinder versions seem to be proving to be reliable. |
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9th Jul 2025 12:36pm |
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| Crazymind Member Since: 11 Jun 2024 Location: Glasgow Posts: 277
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Maybe Spain is the right place for the 150 to thrive. Here in the UK, they’re all rusted out — even ones that are only five or six years old don’t hold up well. In that sense, the new Defender does better, since it’s mostly aluminium underneath. The question is: would you rather have an ultra-reliable Toyota with a rotten chassis after ten years of use, or just repair a newer Defender instead?
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9th Jul 2025 12:57pm |
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| Skully Member Since: 10 Jun 2022 Location: uk Posts: 8 |
Kind of wish there was a better option for 80k
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9th Jul 2025 1:46pm |
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| Retroanaconda Member Since: 04 Jan 2012 Location: Scotland Posts: 2746 
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Mine is the D200 but it’s the same basic engine as the D350.
4.5 years on and 100k miles and I’ve had no issues other than an exhaust pressure sensor which was sorted under warranty. It’s getting a new front camera under warranty in a few weeks too but that’s minor details. Wouldn’t hesitate to buy another, if it wasn’t for the fact that it’s now £15k more. Too rich for me now so I will just keep this one. |
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9th Jul 2025 2:12pm |
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| Skully Member Since: 10 Jun 2022 Location: uk Posts: 8 |
The prices do seem to have gone insane across the board. My Disco 4 HSE with a bunch of options cost me 52k in 2014, although taking into account inflation, that's 72k today. In my head, that's still what you pay for a flat or small house, not a car
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9th Jul 2025 2:26pm |
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| lightning Member Since: 23 Apr 2009 Location: High Peak, Derbyshire Posts: 3220
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lneos Grenadier? |
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9th Jul 2025 6:15pm |
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| Crazymind Member Since: 11 Jun 2024 Location: Glasgow Posts: 277
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Despite its undeniable charm, the Ineos is still very much a tractor at heart. It’s clearly biased towards 80% off-road use and only 20% on-road. On the road, the recirculating ball steering takes some getting used to, it’s quite bouncy, and the soundproofing isn’t great either. It also feels underpowered — supposedly to make it more reliable.
In my opinion, it’s a very niche vehicle, and there’s really not much the Ineos can do that the Defender can’t. Off-road, the Defender makes things effortless, whereas the Ineos demands a more experienced driver to tackle the same terrain that a novice could manage in the Defender. |
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9th Jul 2025 7:29pm |
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