Home > Off Topic > Defender V Massif |
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AndrewS Member Since: 10 Apr 2007 Location: Hereford Posts: 3708 |
What the title says. Following on from enfrance comments what do you think Oh its not out for another year and the dealers dont know if it will be covered for warranty repairs if it goes off road.
Discuss http://www.massif.iveco.com/ Click image to enlarge |
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12th May 2009 9:23am |
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Landy nut Member Since: 22 Dec 2007 Location: In hiding Posts: 154 |
Iveco engine looks good (especially the 176bhp version). Needs some more traction, like optional front and rear locking diffs. I like all the styling except the lights at the front. Not too keen on the idea of leaf springs though.
I have to be really honest here, I am keeping hold of my current Defender and waiting until the new one comes out. It will be up to LR to prove that they can produce the right vehicle. In this day and age with the ability to get hold of materials and parts from all over the world, there really is no excuse to produce a car with as many major problem areas as they currently do. If the new one is bad, I will be switching brands when I change my LR. Even Mercedes learnt their lesson that cutting corners does not pay and their reputation and profits suffered as a result. If LR can not learn from this and do something about it, I fear they may lose some of their customer base. The Iveco will pass the EU b******s legislation etc and so obviously shows that it can be done without destroying the vehicles looks and functionality. I reckon that if you took the lights and grille off and took a boywork hammer to it, you could probably get it to look a lot like a Defender, so it cant be too hard for LR to get something decent out - surely??? I was told by a reliable source that although the NEW car market has been badly hit in this recession, new Defender sales have not taken that much of a hit and that the people who buy them are buying them for function. I just hope LR see this as their stable vehicle. If they dont respond to their customer requirements, then quite frankly I dont believe they deserve any. They listened about the heating, the air conditioning and the put a new gearbox in for the motorways, but there is just so much room for improvement without ruining the model and turning it into another gimmic that you will see people just buying and them ending up everywhere and losing that special something. I saw the Iveco a few weeks ago in one of the LR mags and have been doing as much research as possible into them and will be keeping my eye on the market from now on. If LR dont get the next one sorted, I for one will be looking at what I need the vehicle for and either looking at a Land Cruiser or something a little more functional like the Iveco. Come on Land Rover, listen to the customers and address the issues that we all know about. You have possibly one of the most unique vehicles and certainly one of the most distinctive on the roads, that people love and adore and will go to the ends of the earth to defend to everyone, so please help us out and give us a reason to defend it for the next 50 years!!! I keep praying that they will prove me wrong, but I still have this horrible feeling in the pit of my stomach that they will look at the books and the business over passion. |
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12th May 2009 6:22pm |
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markalpha Member Since: 23 Apr 2008 Location: Downham Market Posts: 690 |
Well said Landy Nut. Hopefully the Iveco will make LR thing abit more and realise that the Defender may have some competion which they should be worried about!
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13th May 2009 2:46pm |
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alantd Member Since: 14 Dec 2008 Location: Northamptonshire Posts: 1513 |
Well said.
It is surprisingly reminiscent of the last days of the Series 3, which fell way behind the competition until the 110 came in with the Tdi engine and coil springs and propelled LR right to the front of the pack again. One that started out as a 2.4 TDCi 110 XS + New Defender 110 First Edition |
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14th May 2009 2:27pm |
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solmanic Member Since: 16 Aug 2007 Location: Brisbane Posts: 191 |
Hate the fact that it has leaf springs, and some of the styling might take a bit of getting used to... but having said that, if they were available in Australia, and Iveco/Fiat were able to back it up with a suitably extensive service & dealership network, they would walk away with many Defender customers and probably a few Toyota & Nissan commercial ones as well.
Anybody know if the All Blacks sponsorship deal means it is available in New Zealand? 2007 Defender 110 1970 Alfa Romeo 1750GTV |
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15th May 2009 12:31am |
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Glynparry25 Member Since: 16 Feb 2009 Location: Miserable Midlands Posts: 3015 |
I am liking the intereor and the new engines, but the rest of the vehicle is still back in the 70s which isn't soo good.
Just to throw a spanner in the works- why not consider the IBEX? All the good parts of a defender with a more reliable body and intereor. Glyn |
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17th May 2009 5:40pm |
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