JeremySteel

Naks; that's a bit of an expensive cockup. Are there any other bits of bad news on the I6? The old Ford/Lion V6 had quite a reputation for breaking crankshafts and spinning shell bearings. I assume the I6 has more main bearings and better oiling.

That's a very good point Snagger. The only time I've ever worked on hydrogen was on a small fuel cell and that had leak detectors but I don't know how they worked.

Yes, agreed, the propensity to leak is way higher with H2. Odorants can be added just like natural gas (even your Camping Gaz). Have there been any reports of accidents in places like California where they've had H2 refuelling for a while? Don't forget the pressures involved versus LPG. The only problems I've seen are frozen nozzles. Any issues with the (rare) Toyota Mirai? (Apart from infrastructure). But I do share the concerns of Snagger regarding long term usage at refuelling stations and wer & tear of the equipment. Nuclear for land is an option for reliable 24/7 power but excess renewables (one day) can be used for H2 production. Every man and his brother are making electrolysers now (e.g. ITM Power, Plug Power and Cummings.) For ships? Nah. Costs a fortune and some countries won't allow nuclear powered ships to dock. And trusting a shipping line feeling the pinch to maintain their ships? Mmm. As suggested an EV Defender/RR is going to be a tank esp if they want to offer an acceptable towing range. Has JLR's Project Zeus bitten the dust? Good old Diesel. And JLR's I6 is a beauty.

A UK Gov Parliamentary report late last year actually highlighted that hydrogen was not the panacea. No Sh** Sherlock. Obvious really, like many things: horses-for-courses. A part to play. Not sure if HFCEV et similar are a scam. Germany is way ahead of UK in H2 infrastructure and they're not daft. And, in a magic World, the H2 would be generated by renewable. Expensive? Yes. Leaks, yes a problem as you describe and for the reasons you describe. But not beyond the wit of man. Embrittlement is another risk. The smell? Well, just like your home Natural Gas a smell is added. Similar to Snagger I can't see FCEV for small cars. But if it allows me and my Defender/RR to tow for 250 miles between (10 minute) refills then I'm for it. I suspect a divergence of power sources, assuming we're not held to a battery/lithium ransom by any countries. But with recharging it's not just the pain of charging time and frequency, it's the fact that your 10+ metres of rig can't find a space to charge and/or pees off a lot of other people.

Yes, I saw the TFL show and others wrt towing heavy loads. I think the Lightning with a 3-4 ton trailer was creating charge anxiety/panic at about ~100 miles. And there was another review of a boring EV mid-sized car towing a tiny caravan - it highlighted the hassle of small EV charge bays and having to dump the caravan. Never mind, you can always buy a 500kg e-Jerry can.

With reference to Naks' posts I wonder what the curb/kerb weight will actually be for an EV RR or Defender? Surely if they are expecting a decent tow capacity and range then the battery would have to be considerably more than 100kWh? After all, look at Ford F150 Lightning , the GMC Hummer and similar; monsters with whopping batteries. A very difficult design choice I suspect. Sadly, I can't see hydrogen racing to the rescue anytime soon. If I was towing a 1.5 tonne caravan or heavier trailer and had to stop every (say) 100 miles to charge I'd be unimpressed. And the pain of unhitching and re-hitching would be a nightmare. Even worse in very cold weather.

Gazzar is right. It's a utility Range Rover / Disco now. I doubt if boulder-basher off-roaders represent more than 0.01% of their sales. Harry, Horsies and Caravanists are a far greater market with big wallets.. My main gripe is the 2 candle-power reversing lights. Nice bit of work with MS Paint. Cheap & Easy? Nothing is cheap & easy in automotive sadly. Ask Mr Ineos.

The PHEV is likely more to do with legislation and average fleet emissions; old Harry in his garage discussed it in his RRS Youtube a couple of years ago. Anyone who wanted to do a lot of towing etc. would go for the diesel. True Real World figures, like most PHEVs, will be miles different from the manufacturer's careful usage of official testing.

I would imagine that JLR marketing are more miffed that the movie was delayed. I'm sure they'll offer more vehicles - never say never again.

This must surely be the most annoying presenter in the World (currently). New Ford Bronco review: better than a Land Rover? - Bing video After watching this the next working week will seem a joy

If you want a nerve-shattering presenter try CarWow.

Absolutely Happyoldgit.

That's a lovely thing.

It's a pain to clean I admit but "unfit for purpose" (even when prefixed "arguably") is a little strong. I doubt if 0.001% of owners will have a problem and any serious mud-plugger will have a pressure washer. A more important (stupid) design thing is the positioning and lack of protection for the (I think) A/C heat-exchanger. I'm going to make a grille as I already have a couple fins flattened by old Defender owners throwing stones at me

No doubt there will be some enterprising Company out there designing replacements. Maybe the new Defender2 in 2023 will change that.