Cynic-al

It's only what people have done in the pub for years, until they banned smoking, got to get your moaning fix somewhere, we're British!

ooo capitals on the internet, run away run away! I think the difference between a mini, fiat 500 or beetle is someone bought the originals as they wanted a cheap to run, easy to drive, economical car to get them from a to b. The new mini / fiat 500 / beetle still do that, but safer and more comfortably and with more flair than a Kia or Hyundai. The series / defender was intended for people who needed to take a bail of straw into a field, find a stuck sheep on a hill, tow cattle to market, throw a split hydraulic hose, split tyre and tools in the back, not worry if a cow leans on it, a goat chews the trim or they 'reshape' a corner, they want to kick the mud off their wellies on the sill, use the controls without washing their hands and keep it running with twine. A niche market. The new defender is great for a surveyor, a 200 mile motorway trip and an external locker to put the muddy wellies in when they've finished before a comfortable 200 mile drive home but I think it misses the mark for the above. I think they would've been better importing something else, rebadging it a defender and selling it for £20k through their established dealer network than going to the effort of manufacturing a whole new car which is very similar to their other stuff, selling it for £85k and telling us it's the same as it was before. I like it, it looks like it's going to be a great car, but don't tell us it's the same as it was. If anyone watches the apprentice it's like the wide boy trying to sell Tommy the talking turtle.

My wife told me she wants a discovery sport the other day, my instant reaction was I can't afford to keep repairing that. I feel that i@m somewhat biased against the brand. However the new defender is growing on me, I wouldn't pay the asking price though, I know I'm tight but a car would have to fly for me to pay that, so maybe in a few years. He keeps saying they had to move the radiators for the shorter front, I thought it was all new, move them compared to what?

Maybe they decided he needed a little comfort? Still, if they enjoy building then why not, probably better than what I turn out What was the thread about again

Well everyone likes a bit of cream! It didn't have any orange parts or the word extreem on it, that's why you don't like it.

It's an advertising tool and it gets attention 🤷‍♂️

I wonder how well it steers? Must fight it! Atleast he's not overloading the axles

That's just greedy!

You see to have put the steering wheel on the wrong side You also seem to have a lot of compressors and air lockers Looks really good work, dashboards are hard to do without looking bodged but thats tidy!

I still wear the same underwear that I had as a teenager, much to my wifes disgust

I think people who believe that this many people can inhabit such a small planet without changing it is at best naive. The problem I have with all these protests is that people are saying we want someone else to solve the problem in a way in which means we dont have to change the way we live whatsoever. The reality is if you want 100% renewable electricity you have to accept that you will have to live for periods without power. If you dont want single use plastic you have to accept that you take your own containers to the shops which means things dont last as long which means you have to go more often which means shopping locally or having a school boy doing a round on a bike. If you want to stop the masses of co2 created by the fashion industry you need to buy based on quality not price, repair clothing and not be constantly be keeping up with fashion. Anyone can do these things, rich or poor, old or young, you dont need the government to force it with taxes and legislation, the population just need to put the effort in. Thst or just cut the population significantly. Which would fix more than just this problem in my opinion. Not an election winning policy though.

I'm not sure why they put they old american pickup in, it's not a car you can buy from a main dealer, I think it was just to show how well even the 2 litre ranger did compared to the V8 engined brute. It's roughly 700kg heavier than the others. Although take them to 10,000 feet with a fully loaded trailer and I think the result might be different. I would expect the less stressed american engine to keep going longer too. It does highlight my annoyance with current legislation. My amarok v6 is restricted to 50mph single carriageway 60mph dual as the unladened weight is over 2040kg. However it can stop in a much shorter distance than a lot of lighter stuff The brakes have to convert the rotation into heat and get it away, the suspension and weight distribution have to keep the wheel on the ground and the tyres have to stay connected to it so there is more to it than just brake disks.

Just for fun.

In the hands of a good driver a manual is more economical and more environmentally friendly than an automatic. The driver is the problem, there were tests done when autos were becoming more popular in lorries. All the test drivers could better the mpg of an auto with a manual but roll them out over a fleet with average drivers and average use and the autos won hands down. Which is the operator paying the fuel bill going to go for? Most car drivers are not car enthusiasts and most car makers are making for the masses. They want easy, economical, affordable, practical. Oh and probably to connect their Twitter account. Have you ever driven the manuals with the up and down arrows on the dash suggesting when you should change. Our work vans have them and they often tell me to change up when I dont because I know in 300 yards I'm going to need to either speed up or slow down. The auto will change up then change down again in 300 yards. Also manufacturers are downsizing engines for economy and winding them up to death with turbos or superchargers. The effect seems to be no low down torque as it's a small engine and the compressors aren't giving much, then lots of power over a very narrow band. To make it drive able you need lots of gears to keep it in either the power or economy band. My car is an 8 speed auto and when I pull out my road end into a 30mph it will go through every gear to 6th or sometimes 7th. A manual driver will not do that. There are 10 speed gearboxes now, a manual driver will not use that properly. The worst one I've ever driven for this was the 2.3 navara, awful to drive as a 6 speed manual. Do I like automatic? No. Do I like small wound up engines? I would rather drive an electric, I'm just waiting for a practical energy source. The car manufacturers are trying to keep the old technology going until that comes along.

I would be surprised at an 8 speed manual. Car drivers won't want an 8 speed over under or slapper box like trucks have, unless they have a 6 speed with a slap left to get the 2 lows like the old unimogs rather than a full low box. An 8 speed auto I can see quote possible, there's a ZF box which goes into lots of makes with different blocks, the ration etc can be adapted to suit too. Seems an economic way forwards.

How soon will we get one to buy? It's been the same concept for years!

Could you hire a power float?

Yeah but the TVRs had similar build uniqueness to the defender I love the Elise, it's cut back so you feel what's happening rather than being isolated and handles very well but isn't over powered so you can have fun on the road and enjoy a spirited drive without causing death and carnage, or worse, breaking the speed limit to do so! If I was in a position to have a weekend fun car it would be high up the list. I think the key thing to remember with the Jimny was it wasn't designed for the UK, it's not that suited to the UK, there's just a small following of people who like it.

Maybe a TVR For the Jimny you have to consider where it's designed and made. Japan has a speed limit of 50mph, it's comfortable at 50mph not really above. Japan has bad winters and hills, a light 4x4 with narrow tyres might be handy. Fuel is expensive so you don't want to run a big heavy thing for the odd times you need 4x4. Population is high and space is at a premium, small is easy. So I agree it isn't comparable to the Defender as the design spec for the series / defender was very different. Many industrial machines are touchscreen now, its cheaper than mounting physical buttons and you can have as many layers and displays as you like all near the driver. Everything on a network so it's just a case of writing code for turn on / off, don't allow if something else is on etc. Much easier than doing it with relays or logic controllers or PICs and you can update the code remotely as required. Some of out machines were completely touchscreen apart from the e-stop. They've now gone back to buttons for the common functiosn thankfully. I don't like them as you have to look at them to coordinate the finger press and they're usually covered in grease, I bought a load of touchscreen pens off ebay and make people use them to try keep them clean. I think it's dangerous whilst driving and I think that functions needed whilst driving should have to be backed up with steering wheel or dash buttons.

Problem with the seats down is they're not flat. They couldve been a bit more creative and done them so they ended up completely flat with the boot floor. Work have lobbed a large cardboard box in the back to make it like a van with a bulkhead.

We have a new shape Jimmy at work. I'm glad you only want 2 seats, noone has even tried to get in the back, intact the rear seats have been folded down since we got it. Apparently the boot space with the seats folded is less than a golf with its rear seats up Its great fun to drive and comfortable at 50, You feel like your pushing it above that but it will do it. More people comment on it than any of the more expensive cars on the fleet. They're worth every penny.

I didn't find that a problem in the range rover as it was on aggressive tyres and if they were spinning you could see the mud flying up and hear it landing on the roof. I have had that confusion a few times in the pickup which is only on ATs, but that's 95% road car 5% muddy construction sites so I wouldn't class it as offroading and I would much rather have a manual in that if I could. It also has traction control, hill decent, it slows the abs so mud / snow builds up infront of the tyres etc etc so frankly I haven't got a clue what's going on! As for them coming to a stand still easily at idle, very true, I found left foot braking so you can hold the revs up slightly worked wonders. I think if you try that you will find it can be smoother than a manual over uneven terrain.

I hate autos for road driving but my rrc v8 auto was a fantastic gearbox for offroad. It could shift up and down on hills without losing drive at the wheels, you could left foot brake over obstacles which meant you didn't have the lurching and stopping then trying to start again as you go from clutch to brake to accelerator and you cant stall it. The above also means you dont need to spend a fortune lowering hearing provided you dont cook the oil which I never had any problems with. For the downhill I used to lock it in first, as you went over the edge youd get a bit of a lurch which was disconcerting but then it used to hold it back pretty well. Not as much as a manual but it could still get a wheel to slide on loose ground. Braking is fine so long as you dont just slam on and feather it if required. Relying on the engine to brake without difflocks in means if one wheel slides you'll speed up anyway. The brakes are on all wheels. The biggest downsides were you did lose some power to it and you couldn't really bump start it if the starter failed.

I know where to come with a HIAB You've managed to fit more in one toolbox than I have in my entire garage and you can find stuff, good work!

There are rumours of a commercial 90 at £35k next year.