There's a friend of mine who says that offroading nothing comes close to a Land Rover.

In my particular case, I'm in disadvantage because in my country 4Runners are imported only with the bare bones 4WD system.

We don't get traction control, Limited Slip Differential, or any other enhancement to the 4WD system.

Has anyone here gone offroading with a Discovery or LR3?

How much of a disadvantage does a 4th Generation 4Runner have when compared with a Land Rover?

Irregardless of hardware, the Runner wins. LR3 is ugly, did I say ugly?

The LR3 would do better than the 4R. EVen though it has IRS and IFS. It can be had with a rear locker as an option, and the air suspension does provide pretty good flex stock. I t also has good clearance. Problem is that it will be very difficult to mod anything and it comes with pretty useless tires for offroad. The previous DIscos which didn't have the center diff lock tends to be less useful offroad. They can however be modded pretty well. The problem is that they tend to get tippy easily.

The 4R's TRAC works pretty well. ANd it is fairly easy to mod it.

So the thing is that once you really start wheeling the 4R will win. It requires a couple of mods to do it, but that s to be expected with most 4x4 vehicles. The LR3 looses out then and the Disco shows some of its weaknesses.

but I have climbed in and around the Disco in the Auto SHows to remember a number of signficant things about it.

1. While the Disco is suppoed to be very off road capable, and gets lots of attention in the Disco Off Road Challenge, the old Buick based V8 was lethargic and weak. The 4.0 V8 was just not up to snuff getting it to speed on the highway or passing.

2. The Disco's doors are tall and narrow. Great for spatial economy, but hell for getting in and out of the seats. The rear wheel wells come up quite into the rear doors so one has to scoot and contort quite a bit on ingress/egress.

3. I love the safari styling and the double decker look..old farts like me remember the old Greyhound Vista Cruiser look. The first generation Discos had the rear bench seats facing each other military style. I like that even better.

4. With a Disco, you can get it fixed in Botswana, but you can't get a part for 4 weeks in Barstow.

5. I like the LR3's looks.

6. It's not how off orady it is. It's whetehr it is reliable and durable enough to get you offroad and back. That the Runner wins down...no discussion.

The 4Runner can be had with the rear air suspension which lift the rear about 4" over non-air susp and make a big difference off-road.

Koz

You mean the Disco.

Last I checked the 4R rear suspension raises it 1.6" above normal and lowers it 1.2" below normal.

The LR3 can raise the whole vehicle more than 2" fro additional ground clearance. The problem is that it has even more electronics doodas than the 4R. Given their track record I would be hesitant to go too far offroad with it.

The thing is that you can modify the 4R fairly cheaply to do much more, but with the LR3 you are stuck. The old Disco was nice, but had a number of shortcomings (some could be and was fixed, some not). The one thing from going offroad with the Disco I remember was how tippy it got.

I'm an analyst, so I tend to over research dang near everything. It took me 6 months to choose which 4x4 to get. So I have a lot of useful and not so useful information.

Besides what everyone here has said about mods,
which I wish I new more about, here are just a couple things which stood out for me:

The LR3 will do great off roading, just stock off the lot, but Reports say all the electric do-dads take the fun out of the trail. The car practically drives itself. Just select the trail option.

The extened warranty for the LR3 was well over twice that for the 4Runner.
The insurance rates were also higher. :eek2:
The engine requires High Octane :bugeye:
And the MPG is rated at less the the 4R V8 4x4

Lastly Do you really want to pay 55K for bells and whistles.

As much as I like my 4runner, the LR3 is worth it:

I've measured side by side (4Runner with 3" lift and 4Runner with air suspension, set at high) and the air suspension was approx 1" higher. From the auto level setting to the high setting there is a big difference. Also the low setting is sweet for loading and washing. The rear air is one my favorite 4Runner options, well worth every penny.

Koz

I wasn't asking about value.
I was asking about capabilities, because the 4th Gen 4Runner has most of the 4WD electronic enhancements that used to be exclusive to Land Rovers.

Well, I think you're the right person to ANSWER the question about the "underwing" in this thread:

Land Rover LR3 Question

Well, my brother has an '01 LR Disco SII. My comments apply to only LR Disco II, not LR3.

- LR Disco SII has the best stock wheel articulation of any stock vehicle in the USA. It's RTI score is well above 700, according to Fourwheeler (don't remember exact number). For comparison, a stock 4th gen 4runner is around 430-440. I have seen my brother's Disco in action...amazing wheel articulation despite intact anti-roll bars. LR vehicles are well-known for their articulation, even the new Range Rovers and LR3. (BTW, the Defender is even more amazing than Disco II.)

- IMO, LR makes the most effective ATRAC system for the trail. Toyota comes in second. LR's ATRAC system is very sensitive and will brake a wheel quickly if it loses traction...and it will brake the wheel(s) to a full halt, not just pulsate it. It's quite effective.

- All 2004 Discovery came with a locking center differential. Prior to '04, you had to do a minor modification (can be done at home) to activate this feature.

- It has good approach and breakover angles. Departure is disappointing, but you can get the rear air suspension to help out. Both axle differential are offset to passenger side for better active ground clearance (over 11"). It also has high rocker panel which helps in off-roading.

- The engines were underpowered, drinks gas crazy, and noisy...but fairly reliable. The rest of the powertrain is not reliable.

- LR axles are considered a bit weak. They are designed for ATRAC only. You cannot put in an aftermarket locker without having to change out the halfshafts or axle. Locker + stock axle = snap, crackle, & pop.

- Discovery's ride is not pleasant...a lot of bounce, noise (mechanical and wind), body roll, and floating. It rides like an American truck. Lots of rattles too.

- Reliability is a BIG issue. My brother is getting frustrated with his Disco...tranny weird noise, ABS light goes on and off, etc.. Disco has a lot of electronic issues...but, unfortunately, it also has mechanical issues too! My brother is planning on getting rid of it soon.

- Disco does not come with stability control or brake assist, which i think is much needed in a vehicle like the Disco (tall & narrow, short wheelbase, lots of body roll). Crash protection is also only average for the Disco.

Conclusion: stock vs. stock, discounting reliability, the Land Discovery SII is better than 4runner off-road. However, reliability is a big thing...so, i would pick the 4runner over Disco II if i were to off-road often or take long off-road trips. For on-road driving, there's no comparison...4runner is light years ahead.

Hope this helps.

BTW, i am moving this thread to Comparisons.

Hubabubba - nice mower/drying rack!

For more info on Disco SII:

http://www.toyota-4runner.org/showth...s=&threadid=36