I have been offered an N reg Defender 90, and in my 30+ years of motoring have never run a LR product...very wise some might say! I sold my Legacy estate some 2 years ago, but continued to run my '97 VW Transporter, for no reason other than emotional attachment.
During the next 6 months I am having a house extension built, and once complete, will assess my finances and purchase a car. The LR will be useful for building materials, and I plan to sell the VW LWB Hi Roof Transporter 2.4D as I fancy a change after 9 years...despite its fantastic reliability.
The LR has had one owner from new, tax to October, FSH, new tyres and a genuine 70k miles. Living in rural North Yorkshire I should have no problems in finding a buyer when I come to sell, but what should I offer? Having looked at Autotrader online, prices seem ridiculously high for old (in my opinion) Defender 90's, but I am tempted to make an offer, but do not wish to insult!
Does anyone in the BR have an ideas as to a sensible offer price. Presumably if I buy this LR the current owner will be in a position to negotiate a good deal on its replacement, having no part ex.
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Only buy if you're happy with a spanner and hammer. They're great vehicles, cheap bits and easy to fix. But it will need fixing and probably welding. You'll need to look on it as a hobby not just a form of transport. Otherwise buy a Hilux to cart the building materials.
For Defender, it sounds a good one. Good luck.
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They are pricey because they are the best at what they do and regardless of age, they still carry on going ( take a look on Ebay to see how many Series2/3 are still around! ), plus their simplicity makes them attractive from a running costs point of view.
70k is lowish and its a fair way down the Defender evolution - if the price is right, id snap it up.
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Beware of corosion and make it a priority to wax oil it straight away if you do buy it. Landrovers and 4x4s in general hold there prices well compared to cars. I have always been put off landrovers by the lack of mod cons eg elec windows and air con. Most defenders are very poor on the motorway and you will be pushed to get 80 even with a head wind and going down hill!
Comparativly other than water leaks from the seals and very poor wipers a defender is no less reliable than anything else. My previouse Isuzu trooper and my current navara have not been without problems the only genuinly reliable 4x4 ive ever come across was a merc g wagon and these are rare as rocking horse poo.
In terms of transporting building materials eg plaster board, cement , skirting etc your van will aford far beter protection from the elements and will protect tools etc from the gypos. I run a property maintenace business and for me my transit is a far beter work horse than the Navara.
Im of the mind better the devil you know, keep the transporter and run it into the ground then save your money and get a nice legacy or forester in two years time. If you need to transport sand etc you could even get a trailer and tow bar on the van.
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I dont know if this is the right vehicle for you or not but an N reg defender is worth between £1500 for a heap of scrap and £5000 for a clean tidy example that has been looked after ,they are easily serviced and parts can be had cheaply ,if you like diy its very easy to work on but I never really have much trouble with mine
there was however a timing belt modification to the 300 tdi about this time which was needed to stop the belt wearing on one side so check the belt and make sure it has been changed ,other than that the engines are very reliable
as mentioned check for rust on the bulkhead and chassis but theres plenty of this age with no problems
as for resale just look after it and you will get your money back if its a good clean example
I bought a new tdi in jan 1990 for £10k and scrapped it in 2004 and got £1500 for it as breaking value not many cars could do that
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ps be aware if you start fitting toys and accessories on it can become addictive and you can end up in strange places trying them out
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Many thanks for the input. I have spoken to a long time LR owner pal tonight who knows this vehicle and assures me that mechanically it is sound...chassis in excellent condition. Superficially it needs some (lots) of TLC, a good valet, polish etc so tomorrow I shall submit an offer! Watch this space. The interior condition could work in my favour as it looks a tip, but this is purely superficial.I now know for a fact that it has never been used off road, towed anything, or abused mechanically.
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All together now....
P-P-P......... POLISH!!!!
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From experience, a dirty Defender is a pig to clean!
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"a good valet, polish !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Eh ! The shock will kill the poor thing. Leave well alone generally the dirt holds them together. I'm sure the Mr Wilks programmed non cleaning into the alchemy that brought the LR about.
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The dirt and mud adds to the authenticity and helps make up for the inefective door seals.
I have never seen adefender that has never been off road or towed other than brand new unn redgisterd ones going up the motorway on the back of a transporter.
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