"4muddyfeet - bare knuckle with an EZ30" (4muddyfeet)
03/29/2014 at 15:21 • Filed to: None
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"4muddyfeet - bare knuckle with an EZ30" (4muddyfeet)
03/29/2014 at 15:21 • Filed to: None | 0
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I'm going to supplement my Landrover with another Landrover, and I require your input please!
RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
> 4muddyfeet - bare knuckle with an EZ30
03/31/2014 at 10:47 |
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Sorry, was out all of Saturday and Sunday. Whatchu want?
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4muddyfeet - bare knuckle with an EZ30
> RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
03/31/2014 at 13:56 |
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Bonjour. Looking to buy another ex-MOD, but newer. I use the SIII for work, and want another one with better fuel economy, reliability, and pulling power. The Series needs to be retired to light duty as sometimes it's pulling upwards of 2 tons. Realistically I have £9,000 to spend on a 110 in excellent condition.
So; I've been looking at the c. 1990 Tithonus 110 2.5NA Diesel http://goo.gl/HrTOH3 , but worry about the engine. It doesn't seem to be a vast improvement over the 2.25 petrol I have already in terms of bhp and torque.
What has also popped up though is this '97 110 300tdi http://goo.gl/KRs8US which although doesn't look the business, has a much better engine albeit with unknown mileage and needs new rubber by the looks of it.
Considering my 4,000 (business) miles a year, and requirements for fuel economy and towing, do you think the 300tdi is the better bet?
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RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
> 4muddyfeet - bare knuckle with an EZ30
03/31/2014 at 14:14 |
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I'll admit to not knowing a *thing* about the 2.5 diesel, but as a problem with some mid-90s Defenders seems to be a not-thoroughly-engineered-for-load drivetrain and bits breaking, I'm not 100% convinced a lack of power is a bad thing longevity-wise. The latter of your two choices also isn't terribly clear as to just how manky his footwells are, though the fact that they still have some paint might make them better than some I've seen. I think I've heard some horror stories about some of the tdis as well, though without digging a lot deeper, I wouldn't know what to look for. I do know one sometime opponaut had one and absolutely hated it. The 2.5 using a belt instead of a chain freaks me out a bit, but according to wiki it survived a 500-hour durability test for the MOD, so it can't be very weak.
OTOH, a 300tdi will certainly pull harder and stronger than the 2.5, and a little higher freshness overall through the vehicle just means that though some parts weathered badly, it may still take longer to fall apart in ways that annoy - interior, electrics, etc. I will state this: my dad made do with a 109 SIIa diesel as a work truck for near a decade, but his case was helped immensely by having an overdrive. Not having a great amount of experience with the R380 5-speed and driving taller final drive ratios, it may be that your experience would be the same - extra gearing making for a much better result than a Series. It does bother me that the 2.5 coupled with the increase in weight to the Defender would end you up with about the same p/w ratio, but if an overdrive helped that much, having a five might...
I think it's going to come down to whether you want interior durability and performance with some driveline hazard, or good mileage with miserable performance, possible fiddly/aged electrics, and very high *mechanical* ruggedness. I'd also point out that the tdi's floorboards are not a huge issue to replace if minimally affected, but they certainly (along with poorly documented replacement of parts, scattershot maintenance) might indicate the tdi has been "rode hard, put away wet".
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4muddyfeet - bare knuckle with an EZ30
> RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
03/31/2014 at 15:01 |
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Top notch answer, thank you so much. I think I will have to view both vehicles to make a proper decision, and after reading about the 300tdi's it would seem you get a bad 'un or a good 'un. I did notice that the engine bay looks fairly clean and tidy, with non-corroded pipes and all stickers still clean and easily legible, so even if it's not low mileage, it may have been part of the Tithonus program as well, but seemingly missed out on a couple of Wolf parts. I'm thinking the Wolf wheels may be the giveaway on this one, as I'm sure they are not standard equipment on the original '97 MOD Station Wagon. If this is the case then I can imagine that the vehicle has had it's service life extended by 10 years which would be fantastic news.
That being said, the Tithonus is definitely part of said program! And subsequently should have had enough parts checked/replaced to get through another 10 years service life. I am completely aware that this doesn't mean that nothing can go wrong, but hopefully there is a reduced chance compared to something that is already on the market.
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RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
> 4muddyfeet - bare knuckle with an EZ30
03/31/2014 at 15:21 |
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My suspicion on the tdi was that somebody had gotten one that was a bit of a cob, and started throwing money at it until they got tired of it. The new seats, the fresh engine bay, the gauge/etc. replacements, the Wolf wheels, etc. Which of course would mean fresh/not fresh in that vehicle would be a bit muddled. It's possible it was included in Tithonus in some way, but a private fixer-upper seemed to me more likely.
I've got to apologize for not contributing more, as I'm not really a Defender boffin, but I've at least told you what I know, what I guess, and what I have as hearsay.
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4muddyfeet - bare knuckle with an EZ30
> RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
03/31/2014 at 15:27 |
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And that's all I can ask! Thanks for everything