Lr3

[troverman]

The off-road disadvantage of the LR3 seems to be its size, the breakover angle will be greater. Approach & departure are still good. Solid axles have the advantage of being stout cheaply and providing articulation to lift the low side of the vehicle over obstacles. The LR3 has a stout ind. susp, and the cross-link feature allows it to articulate. No, I don't like the computers. But think about it: the old Disco II (1999-2004) had no center diff lock which could be easily engaged / disengaged, and so relied solely on a computer to manage ALL of its traction. And the P38 Range Rover, although it still had the VCU also used a computer for side-side traction, and its EAS system was very unreliable. How good is that truck riding on its bumpstops off-road? And that started in 1994. Ind. suspension has another advantage, which is clearance. The diffs are mounted fixed to the floor pan of the truck, and the entire underside is clean and high, no axles with low diffs hanging in the way. How do you think the Humvee gets 16" of clearance? Even the Range Rover (Series III) has 11.1" [The VW Toureg has 11.8!]
Back to the LR3, for the first time ever, land rover has a manual center diff lock AND a rear differential lock. Plus, ETC.
What other rides can you get for between $45k-50k? You could get a Volvo XC-90, no frame, front / AWD, no lo-range, S-80 car platform, and ugly styling. (Now with Yamaha V8 option!) You could get a BMW X5, no frame, AWD-no low range, a 3.0 six-cylinder, etc. You could get a
Mercedes ML, with ind. suspension, not much clearance, perm. 4x4 with lo-range, but three open diffs and only a computer to provide traction, plus basically poor styling. And the new for '06 ML is even more hideous, and low-range is now an option. So the LR3, with unibody-integrated frame, cross-linked air suspension, 300hp Jaguar V8, Terrain Response, permanent 4x4 w/lo range, locking center and rear diffs, 4-wheel ETC, liftable suspension--conservative styling, great brakes, roomy interior--its a bargain!

[SCSL]

I hear ya Troverman. LR3's a nice SUV. But for 40-50k you could get a Disco II w/ solid axles, a Defender, or even (gasp!) a Jeep, and put the rest of the money into mods (suspension, lockers, etc), add a winch, end up with a truely capable off-road vehicle & still have plenty left over.

So,,, when does LR get back into the off-road vehicle business? It's true that you can't keep a company in business building off-road vehicles or catering to the 1 in 100, or 1 in 1000, or maybe 1 in 10,000 who really takes their truck off-road. Even so, a true off-roader would still have mass appeal. The popularity of H2 seems to indicate that people would buy a vehicle with the "look" of a true off-roader. So all this comes back to--- when do we get an American-market Defender that is really a Defender? If Jeep can still sell Jeeps, and even add the Rubicon to the line-up, stands to reason that LR could sell the hell out of Defenders in the U.S. No need for high-tech,,,, their margins could be HUGE.

[dent]

if judging the lr3 just on looks, personnaly, i'm not a fan of it. I think it's lost alot of disco charm without the stepped roof. the front does look sharp. rear looks like it was the last thing done and the designers just called it quits. think the could have done alot more with it.
also it looks very similar to the nissan aswell.
but looks are a personal issue so if you like... i say go for it
sam

[01001010]

Troverman, geeze, you have some of the best posts! Good points! About the computer thing, im just stuborn and love classic mechanical stuff, but you made it very clear! Good comparisons too!

[Serg]

Originally Posted by 01001010

I'm tellin you guys, I'm going to buy Serg a new truck one day..

Oh... I won't forget that one... and I have plenty of witnesses... I'll take a D110 please...

Seriously, the LR3 is really aimed at all the people LR has done market research on. It is a product that seems to be guided mainly towards US consumers. Few of which want a $50,000 vehicle to go off roading. The majority of Land Rover buyers (in the US at least) buy them for the name, prestige, etc.. very few of the US sold LR's will ever see any kind of off road work.

However, Land Rover realizes this and made a product to match what the people's needs are. I totally agree that the LR3 will make money for LR and keep em in business.

Serg

[01001010]

HAHA, Serg, how could I get ya that 110 if you dont specify a color!

[Serg]

Simple.. NAS D110.. white only...

I'll email you my address.... oh and make sure it's full of premium gas, don't be cheap!



Serg

[01001010]

LOL .... thats a big 10-4

SO yeah, Litespeed, get that LR3 and restore a D1! You can't go wrong. Then get the Ms. a D2

[tuxrover]

i reely like the lr3 i just got it