Change of heart

L

Lyric

New member
I think I might be going back to Land Rover and getting a used 03-04 Discovery 2 or a 03-07 Range Rover. Just not really sure just yet. This 4Runner just does not seem to be who I am and I miss my Land Rovers all the time.

When I had my two Land Rovers previously I thought they were a POS but don't get me wrong I loved them. It's just I would get upset when something broke or whatever. Honestly with my previous 03 Discovery 2 I had a radiator, a window regulator and back hatch rubber seal go bad - that's it. On the Range Rover a O2 sensor and ABS sensor went out. I was able to fix these all myself and parts were not horribly expensive even when comparing to a Toyota. On this current Toyota I have replaced a few more parts than that of the Land Rovers I owned. Price on parts were not much different ether.

I could never see myself in an American made vehicle - hate everything American made in the auto industry. I have always been a foreign person on cars but I just cannot get use to this 4Runner for the life of me at all.

Vehicles on my list:

03-04 Land Rover Discovery 2
03-07 Land Rover Range Rover
03-07 Lexus GX470 (maybe)
02-04 Mercedes G500
 
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Well what don't u like about your runner. I have been in a few rovers. They are nice. But I still think the runner has better build,power,resale,after market,reliability,mpgs. The only area where the river might have an edge might be off road. I think they have solid diffs.
 
You mentioned inexpensive repairs then you put a Mercedes on your list? Aren't they expensive to fix?
What year is your 4runner and how cheap are you going to sell me that POS for? :)
 
WHORERUNNER said:
Well what don't u like about your runner. I have been in a few rovers. They are nice. But I still think the runner has better build,power,resale,after market,reliability,mpgs. The only area where the river might have an edge might be off road. I think they have solid diffs.
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Well what I dont like about the 4Runner hmm? Well I guess starting off I have a hate love relationship with the body style. I love it but then I dont. I liked the 3rd generation body style better. My favorite Toyota vehicle has to be probably the older style Land Cruisers from 1997. I do not like the idea of 4Runners being prone to rust and with the Land Rovers they were aluminum built. No worries about rust at all. I just dont feel like the 4Runners are what they once were. Even now with the 5th Gen they are starting to become a everyday SUV.

When getting in a Land Rover you relize they are made to go from the highway/car lot to off road. You know you are riding in something that has some balls about itself and I never had the feeling of I couldnt go anywhere. I love the ride height, build, style and everything. Bucket seats sit high and your driving in a work of art. It's honestly hard to explain unless you drive one for a while and understand these rides.
 
HappyMac said:
You mentioned inexpensive repairs then you put a Mercedes on your list? Aren't they expensive to fix?
What year is your 4runner and how cheap are you going to sell me that POS for? :)
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The Mercedes G500 is not to bad in repairs as long as you dont mind doing a lot of the work yourself. Most car cost comes from those who refuse or have no mechanical ability to work on anything. Me myself I prefer to learn what I am driving and know what it takes to fix it. Land Rover gets a lot of back lash from owners because those who own them and complain are 2nd and 3rd owners of the vehicle. They wait till the price goes down after 5 years or so and when something goes wrong they freak out at the dealership cost and repairs. When if they would shop around and pay an extra $2000 or so for the same vehicle that would not have so many issues. Most buying a used Land Rover jump at the first low priced one and dont relize its low priced for a reason. Technically because the previous owner buys another Land Rover because the current one has an issue and he refuses to pay for repairs. So he lets one thing go bad and so on. Before you know it more issues than you relize till your 3,000 down the road. They are like any vehicle, if you have an issue fix it before it becomes a bigger issue.

BTW I wasnt calling the 4Runner a POS but I was saying I always thought the Land Rovers I owned were but relized I only had issues any car owner would have. lol
 
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I won't tell you not to sell the 4runner but it is a great car. I would never ditch it for a land rover. Many that is just me, but they don't offer anything that meets my desires. Look, features, or price.
 
Anther vehicle I like but refuse to own one because of the auto maker is the Jeep Commander. In no way will I invest money in a Jeep/Chrysler at all.
 
Yes. I totally agree with u on style. I used to a 94 Landcruiser. Which reminds me more of the land rovers(how they drive). I have had 4 3rd gens my last one was a 99 highlander. Now I have an 05 sr5 with the v8. The 4th gen has become more modern, grown up. 3rd gen felt more unique. You won't like the gx470 that's more plush than the runner. Why don't u look at the fj80
 
trey99ek said:
I won't tell you not to sell the 4runner but it is a great car. I would never ditch it for a land rover. Many that is just me, but they don't offer anything that meets my desires. Look, features, or price.
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I just like the boxy unitarian look. Toyota had this style going on with the old FJ40's, older Land Cruisers and previous 4Runner's. I cannot stand this curves, aero dynamic looks. I like the 4th Gen 4Runner but then I dont.
 
WHORERUNNER said:
Yes. I totally agree with u on style. I used to a 94 Landcruiser. Which reminds me more of the land rovers(how they drive). I have had 4 3rd gens my last one was a 99 highlander. Now I have an 05 sr5 with the v8. The 4th gen has become more modern, grown up. 3rd gen felt more unique. You won't like the gx470 that's more plush than the runner. Why don't u look at the fj80
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Whorerunner I honestly might be going in the direction. I know Toyota is known for it's reliability and miles on miles of use. Like you said reminds you more of the Land Rovers and I agree. I find the FJ80's from time to time for good prices. Everytime I see one my mouth drops wide open and I get all lusty. lol

If I jump on one I would like a white one for sure.

Just something about the looks of old Land Cruisers FJ80's, Land Rovers, FJ40's, Mercedes G500 and a like that I lust over.

I honestly think Toyota is slowly pushing the 4Runner out the door on the off road ability and style. I think they now have the FJ Cruiser and it sales hot. So now the 4Runner is becoming just another SUV "slowly".
 
My fj80 was white. The one in the ad looks like a anniversary edition. Price seems high even if it is the anniversary edition. If it is well kept I'd say 8-8500 tops.
 
WHORERUNNER said:
My fj80 was white. The one in the ad looks like a anniversary edition. Price seems high even if it is the anniversary edition. If it is well kept I'd say 8-8500 tops.
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Yeah I am ether going for white, grey, silver or something of a light color and that's if i decide to trade or anything.

Any mileage or anything I should look out for?

Or one of these:

http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-...t=[ROV[DISCOV[]][]]&listingId=311992642&Log=0

http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-...t=[ROV[DEFEND[]][]]&listingId=331748052&Log=0
 
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Lyric said:
Yeah I am ether going for white, grey, silver or something of a light color and that's if i decide to trade or anything.

Any mileage or anything I should look out for?

Or one of these:



Cars for Sale: 1993 Land Rover Defender 110 in Santa Monica, CA 90401: Sport Utility Details - 331748052 - AutoTrader.com
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If you actually got the $ get the defender that you linked to, get it. I think going back to a d2 is just asking for trouble.

If you really want out of the 4Runner look at the land crusiers for the classic lines...
 
I currently have an fj60 and a 4runner, perpetually looking for a fj80 to go with them. I do stumble upon a nice looking LR every week or so and can't believe how cheap they are. Almost enough to tempt me. :D
 
4runners and RangeRovers are at the complete opposite ends of the reliability spectrum. consumer reports rate Land Rovers the worst when it comes to reliability and Toyota one of the top 3 or so.
 
I have owned a Land Rover Discovery as well and there is no doubting its off road capabilities, it was pretty nice off road. It really felt like a solid vehicle, but the V8 was a **** on the freeway and stopping was scary because of the weight of the vehicle.

As for repair costs, I remember my 60K service being over $700.00 at the dealership. I finally ditched my land rover when the trailer wiring harness shorted out the entire electrical system on the vehicle causing me to have the vehicle towed to a shop for repairs.

I really liked my Land Rover, but the fear of it breaking was always on my mind. If you like Land Cruisers, I would recommend a 1997 80 series. I had one and miss it every day, especially the front locking hubs.
 
My experience working on a Land Rover is that they all leak like sieves, from the '03-'08 models I got. I thought it was just that we were getting them used, but a guy tech who worked at Land Rover for a stint told me they have a lot of problems with those vehicles.

As for the Aluminum construction, its selective. Its still a steel frame, some panels and parts are aluminum; this was shuffled around depending on year and model. They don't even make them body on frame anymore do they?

Land Rover borrows heavily from Jaguar and BMW for powerplants and technology; BMW is just... I swear i'm gonna get PTSD with all problems those cars have. Jaguar has never been much better, leaky and rather shaky on reliability.

I'm not saying Land Rovers are the worst things on the planet (I personally want an old school or newer Defender myself,) but they are a far cry from "reliable." I'm glad you have had good luck with your previous vehicles, but my experience is when they start going bad you need to spend lots of money on parts, labor, and if you're lucky you don't have to have it outsourced to other shops for programming and factory tools.

Europeans have good ideas, but they load their cars up with so much electronic crap and over engineer things to a ridiculous degree that its bound to cause issues! One of the things I love about the 4th Gen is that its on the border of that technology/mechanical barrier. Its got techno gizmos and electronically controlled bits that do occasionally fail or go wonky, but thinks like my mechanical seat adjustments, mechanical linkage to open my door locks and actually open the door, parking brake; those all make me feel like the vehicle isn't going to fritz out and lock me in the car with no way out other than the window. (cough*BMW*cough)

Toyota, much like other manufacturers is follow the German/European formula of building vehicles which means we're going to see A LOT of reliability issues in modules, electronically controlled systems, engine controls, ect and if the extremeists get their way, we'll be using tin only solder in aeronautics and automotive industries which will greatly increase electronics failures. Read up on Tin Whiskers if you wanna learn more.

Sorry for dragging on for a bit, basically all I am saying is that the T120 Platform (4Runner, FJCR, Tacoma, ect) is a very stout and reliable platform in general compared to Land Rover's. BUT, the Land Rovers offer a lot more comforts and technology that make them just as capable if not a little more capable out of the box than the 4Runner; if their working properly. Many people on this forum do a lot of offroading in their 4Runners and honestly I'd worry about a Land Rover with their air bags, hydraulically adjusted shocks that use a secondary fluid pump off the engine, and other bits that if damaged on the trail spell disaster.

Its your choice in the end and I wish you the best of luck either way, I'm not trying to sell you a 4Runner or turn you away from a Land Rover. I'm just imparting my experience and knowledge of these vehicles. Its up to you to decide what vehicle better suits your needs and wants, a lot of people seem to forget that when buying a car or truck. (i.e. buying a V8 and then getting upset because it drains gas)

Best of luck to you! :)
 
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