deep

My brother in law, a lifelong Ferrari fan, bought a Kia EV6 (I think that's right) and is besotted with it. To be fair, it feels like a very big, smooth V12 to drive but, otherwise, just yuk. The interior is particularly awful, the exterior clearly a matter of taste...

Looks like a taxi...

I take the rear seats out of all my vehicles...

Starting price is under$NZ60,000. To put that in perspective, I doubt you could get any new Defender under $100,000. In many ways, I think it could be considered a direct competitor with a 90, though a good bit smaller than a 110.

The world of vehicle styling has long abandoned the concept of form following function and now it seems everyone is scrambling to convey an image, except they're mostly confused about what that image is!! It's not all bad everywhere though. I had a look at a GWM Tank 300 yesterday. They're a mixed bag in photos but, in the flesh, they've nailed it. It genuinely looks like it's designed for its purpose, rather than for an image (it helps that this properly diff-locked display vehicle was actually fitted with decent mudgrip tyres). Despite the excess of computer trickery, I found it highly appealing and half the price of the vehicles we talk about here.

So, no more Discovery in the line-up?? What have I missed here?

Brilliant!

Even more comfortable without them, depending on what roads you were on.

The email came through this morning. It specifically states it's made for the Australian and New Zealand market; that it is in fact a Quartermaster chassis and it's being sold as a cab and chassis with "aluminium and steel trayback bodies". It's a welcome and logical move, just a shame that it seems to be only the restrictive crew cab at this stage.

Keep the bits that have already been approved - probably a pragmatic approach in this modern age? The lights are well protected and the bumper does its job with minimal protrusion. Like most Grenadier things, it seems well-considered and executed.

The Chinese are on a roll and not necessarily copying anyone any more (I mean, you could accuse every manufacturer of copying, with the same sort of logic). The Aussie press puts out a lot of information about them and it seems they are becoming genuinely desirable - or at least no less desirable than anything else these days, which is the key point. Check out the GWM Tank 300 as a good example. Well made, decent credentials off-road (including diff lock) and fairly practical. Give it five years and they will dominate large sections of the international market, like it or not. Ironically, it won't be a relatively low price that makes them popular either.

I had a look at a video last night that analysed the Fusilier based on the scant information currently available. The bloke agreed it was likely indespension and low, so I might be on the mark after all. Sadly, but understandably, Ineos is already branching into the mainstream...

Looking at the pictures provided and reading between the lines, does this look more like a Freelander2 type vehicle than a smaller Grenadier? Narrower, lower, smaller wheels, possibly independent suspension and possibly a monocoque? Or am I way off the mark?

Obviously, the full battery version works in a different language! However, the one with the petrol motor could be interesting. A good friend's sister had a Nissan car with that system - a small petrol motor solely charging the battery and drive being only electric. Apparently, the motor turns on fairly regularly and revs its little heart out for a while, until the battery has enough charge, then turns completely off. It's a sensible system, because the charging motor only runs at peak efficiency and the electric drive loses little energy. I can't remember what he said the miles per gallon were but I remember it was outstanding. A bigger, heavier Fusilier with more wind resistance won't be outstanding but I'll bet it's well above 30 miles per gallon in general use. I'm definitely keen to see how that pans out. I'm also encouraged by the comment that their hydrogen vehicle would be ready now, if there was a refuelling network available...

I did see a couple of his earlier videos. Good owner perspective. This doesn't look good (no time to watch right now though).

I think the last two posts nailed it. I had a 2.5 petrol for a while and it was a lovely engine, with the caveat of not being motorway fast. I believe they are as tough a motor as Land Rover ever made and lasted a long time, albeit with the old school need to lift the head and do a valve grind every 80,000 miles or so. Also worth doing the timing chain at a similar mileage, as they get sloppy. With the Weber carb and higher compression, they can be reasonably economical (20 mpg when not bogged in traffic or tackling big hills or soft sand). From my experience though, you will eke a bit more out of an injected V8 if driven placidly. So yeah, a very good service, starting with a compression test, then fit electronic ignition and consider lifting the head for a decoke and also doing that timing chain (both easy task with that engine). You should already have the Weber carb but make sure it's clean, not work, set up properly and protected with a good fuel filter. Skinny tyres (7.50x16 ideally), get rid of any excess weight, roof racks or anything else that creates drag and drive it with a soft foot. That will work out cheaper than any engine change and you keep that lovely four pot with its bottomless torque!

Bizarre comment. Land Rovers have been changing since late 1949. And how do you expect this thread to move on when the main subject has been a fact of life for a number of years? I believe you have the option of choosing not to follow it...

The irony of that post is that the Disco 2 is far more closely related to early Defenders and their predecessors than the new Defender is! It's all just a big melting pot of fairly similar vehicles, now that they don't support the original Land Rover market.

Exactly what I have on my big Fiat. Only problem is it doesn't stay tight, creeps down slightly and then doesn't completely close. If I didn't have a sieve like a memory, I'd have fixed it a long time ago...

On my TEA28, there's a small hole in the lowest part of the hockey stick to stop water accumulating in the exhaust. I still jam a tin can on it (even though it now lives inside, force of habit) and ALWAYS forget when I start it. Quite the projectile...

I did put a live sheep in my previous car once. Farmer was mustering along the road and the old girl just collapsed. I was a bit alarmed, when I got to his yards, to find my dog had been quietly "plucking" it while we were driving!

You have to wonder why someone who clearly has no time (and maybe not the cash either) for the Grenadier would even be on this page? The thread has been interesting until the rather pointless, borderline ranting started. Hopefully it will get interesting again soon! Any spy photos of a short wheel base version? 😇

Strange conversation indeed - Shep the Disco against the world! Though, to be fair, he probably doesn't get to see much outside his own, very busy world. I'm 62 and debt-free. I also value my time. In fact, in my whole life, I've only worked full time for 15 years, which was about 14 years too long. Despite that, I have been fortunate a few times when I have bought properties in a low market and sold them in a better market, when I've been otherwise pretty skint. I could have afforded a Grenadier a few months ago but made wiser decisions around setting up my few acres here (plus I haven't worked for money since June!). As things stand, the Grenadier would be my pick of a new vehicle, in theory. However, when the next lot of money comes in, I think I'd be sorely tempted to give away a lot of capability but save a swag of money and make do with a Ford Everest (and probably a second hand, older tech version at that). Or even get something much older and get it fully rebuilt. Hmm. Either way, it won't be a pickup truck. I absolutely can't stand much of the modern technology which has taken all the fun out of new cars. Ironically, I think the Grenadier stands pretty much alone in pushing as much of that technology as possible into the cupboard under the stairs. Between that and the solid, pragmatic design, it sure is appealing.

Pretty much what I was going to say!

In that case, you would fully justify a nice, comfortable vehicle and something upmarket would be worth every cent! Though, being such a depressing lifestyle choice, you'd probably be too tired to care and would be a massive risk to other road users anyway. In this country, you'd actually be breaking the law.