Zagato wrote:

What I don't want is electric windows that will go wrong eventually/rattle and add weight. Whats wrong with winding a window down.

I haven't had a single problem with mine in 1.5 years.... and my 20 year old Discovery has them too and never had a problem- My dad's Discovery's window stopped working but the motor was fine- it was the sliding frame that had rusted through which would have also happened if it was a handle type,.

What I don't want is air con, again it will need servicing and it always dries my throat out on long journeys. Whats wrong with winding a window down.

AC only needs servicing if it hasn't been used.... Turn it oin for 30 seconds once a month and you will find out it only need a service every 3-5 years (it also is the fastest way of getting mist off your screen)

I used to have heated seats in my 1972 SAAB 96. Last thing I want is a hot ass thanks very much!

Leave it turned off. I have used mine about 3 times when it was -10/-20 degC outside, but my ex used to have it on all the time (keeps passengers happy)

ABS - you can keep it, seems to be a costly pain in the ass. Whats wrong with using your foot. My ABS on other cars has never come into play, never needed it, I won't be off roading it.

Again, never had a problem with ABS on any of the cars I have owned. I have had mine kick in twice and how I thanked the lord when it did

People seem to have a stigma about electronics on a Land Rovers... Like when the Td5 was launched, I remember 80% of the people writing it off as it had an ECU etc.... fact is that once it was affordable all the competition guys started using them and loads of people use them for exxpeditions.

If anything it makes repairs cheaper.... instead of taking it to a garage to have the fault investigated, diagnosed and then the parts ordered and fitted, all you have to do is plug a box in and it tells you exaxctly what needs repairing.

Glyn

Sonic3d wrote:

If you don`t want gadgets and want a simple reliable vehicle why don`t you have someone like Trekoverland build you a new 300tdi on a galv chassis.

I can do it myself when I have finished my current build and that was/is still a consideration. My current Series2 rebuild will come to 15K when completed but a Defender will be more as I want a puma dash, recon Tdi etc etc it will come to about 20K then you think all that farting about, labour, hours on the phone, miles picking bits up etc and you think sod it chuck in another 5K say and you have a Puma already done that you can drive home and finish/improve at your leisure.

Rebuilds are a very time consuming, all encompassing exercise which can leave little time for anything else. I have two kids 4 & 6 and a yacht going in for the first time this April which will take a hell of a lot of time to get ready, classic car involvement and meant to be finishing off a stationary engine rebuild, getting my 1947 BSA mot'd and finish decorating the house suffice to say It would be so much nicer to buy new.

Sounds crazy but people that have built there vehicles rebuilds or kit cars apparently don't get the same enjoyment when finished as someone who buys one of the shelf - The hard bloody toil will have sapped any enthusiasm for the project 3 months previous I'm not kidding, you definitely hit a brick wall with a rebuild. You get fed up with it. I hit my brick wall 8 months ago

SteveS wrote:

regarding previous posts on the effectiveness of puma heating and the fact that you cannot get it really cool in the summer after you have driven it a while.....all true. My suggestion would be to get the base spec no a/c version and try it a while in the summer months - particularly if you do any amount of motorway or town driving - and if you find that open windows not enough cooling you can get an after-market LR aircon kit which fits to existing mounts/brackets etc. Cost about £1k for the bits and a few hours to fit. Plenty of places can do it and the wiring loom and interlocks on the heater fan etc are all taken care of (ie it owrks like OEM). You also DON'T get the front grille bulge as everything is tucked away so you don't need an a/c winch bumper etc - standard stuff will do.

I went for county spec cos I too did not want stuff like TC and other 'luxuries' but I did want a/c - so had it fitted after market - with the money saved on XS I spent on 2" lift and lockers - not everyone's choice. I don't get the benefit of avoiding tractors etc and have got TC on my other cars which I wouldn't be without - but I took a purist view and wanted lockers rather than TC on my LR

mse wrote:

i think in this modern world - with the kit the puma ships with as base spec...the argument of keeping things simple isnt one.

We will have to agree to disagree then! If there are less parts of a system to go wrong because they are absent or of a less complicated design then the overall system is potentially/more likely to be simpler to maintain/repair. IMHO whilst a 50kg saving is not a great deal on a heavy vehicle (As you point out) - it is still 50L of fuel or water.

That is before we 'discuss' the 'virtues' of aircon on a vehicle that we will use for travel in far flung places

mse wrote:

i think in this modern world - with the kit the puma ships with as base spec...the argument of keeping things simple isnt one.

For example...if AC doesnt work...dont turn it on.
If ABS doesnt work, you get a light, but keep driving without ABS.

Im not even sure the weight is much on an already 2ton vehicle 50kg?

Also the stand electronics present enough to go wrong, as the other technology is old school (skool) - but the diagnostic capability you are then afforded makes it streets ahead

Mike are you saying ABS & Air con is 50KG combined or just the ABS? - Don't fancy hauling around two sacks of spuds around all the time! If it's just ABS

Is it also correct if the ABS packs up you can drive the vehicle normally afterwards like a standard system?

That's good news!

Chris

ps. Just reading in the LROI mag re a TD5 and the ABS modulator "If this fails, it can be expensive to fix - and the cause can be difficult to diagnose". This is what I want to avoid.......