I like the Defender. The prospect of Land Rover reliability terrifies me but its really the ultimate combination of luxury and off-road. Throw some aggressive ATs on the Defender and it'll do some impressive stuff off-road.
Don't let that scare you, they are about as reliable as jeeps but having more components means the things that break will need to be replaced eventually. they are just hard to bring back to life at 200k / 300k miles than a bronco or jeep will be because of complexity
@@chanceym6000 Interesting the last LR I had the rear differential went out in a little over a year, dealer said it'd take at least 2 weeks to get one in, we told them to keep it went to Toyota and bought a Land Cruiser. Inexcusable for an $90k vehicle to have a major drive train issue like that ever, much less so soon after driving it off the lot. The LC isn't the looker the LR was however the quality difference stands out.
@@argonammy wah! When someone appreciate LRs design and their complex engineering, people on the internet quick to claim that it's British design and British engineering. But, when it comes to reliability, blame the TATA motors. Just tell me, when was the LR brand doesn't have any reliability issue. It was even worse under FORD & BMW ownership. And how do you say TATA motors make worst cars on the planet. Did you drove one. They're lot better and reliable than your American junk. Once Check their ranks on the reliability survey. Even Tesla occupies almost last position in every survey.
The Defender would have performed WAAAYYYYY better if it had a more aggressive mud terrain type tire. 👍🏼💯 But for what are essentially street tires, I was pretty impressed with it's performance.
But yeah... The Defender essentially has street tires whereas the Bronco had a proper mud terrain beefy tire. It was basically no competition, which is what I expected. This comparison basically proves how important a proper tire is on your rig when you want to go wheeling. If you're on a street tire, you cannot expect your rig to perform well... Even if you have the most capable optioned Defender, or Bronco, or Wrangler, etc... Without a proper tire, you will be in trouble. 😆😭👍🏼
Exactly - thank you! So many videos showing the Defender fail yet the competitor has 18 inch wheels compared to the Defenders 20's and the Defender has what look like all weather tires! which is stupid for real trail driving. These videos are only showing us that it's tire choice which is crucial.
Great review! As someone who ordered both the Bronco and the Defender, I ultimately went with the Defender. It’s such a nice daily, and with a tire and wheel upgrade, it’s as capable as I’ll ever need. Appreciated you taking the time and having some fun!
@@crazybear5475 Easy, it's gets horrible fuel economy, they need to keep the company averages up. I didn't mind buying wheels and tires to suit my needs, didn't consider it a downside at all. My Defender is remarkably capable, and such a nice vehicle to drive. I guess to each his own.
Yes I feel the same, had a badlands on 37s and was awesome but I'd rather have luxury, since I'll never need to go offloading like this. But sone nice 33 mts on the defender would make it handle almost everything
@@jacobpartin4553 I would always go body on frame for off road or tow vehicles. The Ford also has the advantage when it comes to reliability. I hate to actually admit that since I have had to go through the lemon law arbitration with Ford and swore to never own another after 2 Expeditions.
Ford sure did put a lot of engineering effort into the Bronco. The off-road prowess is very impressive. The Defender is nice too, but it needs a better tire/wheel setup. I think if it had a substantial meaty tire setup like the Bronco it would do much better.
Yeah, that's what I was thinking. Those 20" wheels and mild off road tires don't do it any favors. I think the smallest wheel you can put on the Defender and it clear the brake caliper is a 19", *maybe* an 18".
@@backwoodstherapy The wheel size depends on the model. In the US, the base and S models with the 4 cylinder engine have smaller front calipers so 18” wheels are an option, I think 20” are the smallest available if you get the 3.0L 6 cylinder motor that’s standard on the higher spec models.
In my view Land Rover has hit a sweet spot with the new Defender. I think it’s a mistake to say they failed because it’s not like the old Defender or better off road than a Rubicon or a Bronco. The market has spoken, Land Rover has found a market niche with little or no competition and they’re exploiting it well. The proof is a top spec Defender costs more than the new Range Rover SE, and they can’t build them fast enough. In reality that extra 1%….5% of off road prowess you might get with a less civilized alternative isn’t worth it to the Buyers of the new Defender. If I want a kick-ass off roader I’ll buy an old Jeep that someone else has already modified and use it on the reality extreme stuff, the other 99% of the time I’ll much more happily drive the new Defender.
I’ve had 4 raptors. They’re nice. All of them had issues. There are no “reliable” machines.. lol machines break. Period. 3 land rovers, 2 defenders never one issue in 60,000 miles. Ford NEVER had ANY kind of technology terrain modes until they purchased land rover years ago. Land Rover had this decades ago. Most of the people that talk shit about land rovers either had an old one or never owned any at all.
Great review. Defender has more amenities but is also more expensive. Tires are definitely a weak point for severe terrain. I had considered both, but decided to go with the Bronco. Won’t get it till next year however.
I was bummed about the tires on the Defender,,,,but got it fixed! ADDED 1.5 suspension lift and 275 60 R 20 BFG’s and it looks great and I feel confident now with the tires! Cost $2700.00
I love your enthusiasm haha. This test doesnt exactly show the strengths & weaknesses of the vehicles though. Just really reminds us that tires and ground clearance is a huge deal.
Good video. But I think you have misunderstood some things. It isn’t the “Traction Control” on the Defender killing the engine. It is the Dynamic Stability Control. Why it doesn’t shut off in low range I have no idea. But you need to manually switch it off, regardless of the Terrain Mode you are using. The only exception is the Sand Mode which allows far more wheel slip. But will have a different throttle map. That said, your test really seemed to show the difference in the tyre tread, not the size.
4-Low is rarely a good idea in mud and sand because torque is less important than wheel speed/spin, especially with the less aggressive tires on the LR. Great video
@@Adam_Rosenberg91 4-low is rarely a good idea through deep mud because low speed through deep mud is a good way to get stuck. It is the exact opposite of rock crawling. Sand/mud modes allow for unlimited wheel spin and require higher RPMs, often higher than 4-low will allow. The advantage of 4-low is to allow feathering of the throttle in tricky areas and to engage lockers, but the additional torque is not needed when there is low traction. I would never advise faster speeds through deep water, but it is more advantageous in mud in the absence of deep water.
Both look great but but if your are look for mostly offroad I'd stick with the Broncom. While both are good daily the Defender is definitely more refined for everyday use. For me the Bronco is my choice but not by much.
@@interestingwaytoexplore4848 Many others have not been as lucky... "That being said, the things that CR didn’t like about the Defender weren’t crazy. The 2021 Land Rover Defender got an overall score of 45/100. The main killer was the predicted reliability score of 1 / 5. This score is based on reports from owners of previous models. Land Rover has not had the best reliability track record over the years. This doesn’t mean the new Defender WILL have problems, but it suggests that it might. This will kill any vehicle on Consumer Reports." The TFL Channel had an absolute nightmare with multiple new Defenders...
Despite of LandRover claims... Defender is only a luxury a SUV. Instead Bronco is a real offroad and do really much more than this nice video has shown. You can see Broncos in Rubicon trail... I don't think you may find any new Defender (olds one for sure, but none new one). Till now in all RU-vid video I have seen about Defender, I have only seen really basic dirt or muddy roads... but anytime ROADS... that for definition is not "offroad" !! Everybody talking about those simple patterns claims Defender doing something really valuable... to try to make the people not think about the easiness of the pattern in front of really hard ones. Everybody try to convince the people Defender is a real offroader... but simply it isn't...! Defender is not more than an old Touareg... that is a luxury SUV, not an offroad.
Come ON😊😊 Land Rover struggled and COULD NOT make it with few tries. Bronco Had no issues. With Fourty Thousands in my pocket I will take the BRONCO all Day..
@@GRcorolla-bt3mn Not necessarily. There is a location for the winch in the factory bumper, and they make a roo-bar for the Australian market. Its just no tin the US.
The fact that the Defender made it through that deep, icy water with relative ease on those tires speaks volumes about its capability and awd system. That was impressive, at first I thought no way will it make it through that. Also factor that in the real world, the Bronco is selling for $30-50k more than the Defender.
? The MSRP for the Defender is $48,700, while the Bronco's is $30k. I bought a 2 door sasquatch badlands for $52,000, and that is basically the maxed out Bronco.
@@benjaminford8173 I’m talking about seller markups as many are selling over $100k. This will settle down as supply balances out but lots of stupidity in the market for these currently for those that weren’t able to get at msrp.
Others probably noted the only faux pas on this excellent Review. Your wheel diameters were transposed. Your graphic view showed the 33.5 inch tires on the Bronco & the 35 inch ones on the Defender. Keep up the good work & stay well, friend.
You cant have best of both world, defender need to tow and bigger brake is required. But 18 inch wheel/35inch tyre can be mounted on defender too(see lucky8 build). Defender is more of a complete package that can do everything but can equally be viewed as overly complicated depend on your need. Bar is so high nowadays.. Defender is raising the bar for all arounder higher again hence the one I would pick.
It would be interesting to see the Defender with the same tires give it a go again - even on the smaller size - its the tread pattern that helped the Bronco the most..
In my opinion, even though the Defender is a pretty capable SUV/crossover Land Rover really missed the mark. They basically spat in the face of one of the most iconic vehicles ever made. They went from a company who makes a utilitarian world-class off-roader and a world-class luxury capable off-roader to a company that makes like five midsize luxury crossover/SUVs that are decent off-road... when they're not broke down. With their background in reliability, no thanks. Just more systems to fail and leave you stranded. And we all know that the air suspension sucks. People are already changing it out or trying because it fails, among other things, and jacked up to it high point it rides like a deuce and a half. I'm just super bummed. I was really hoping they'd do the nameplate justice and there'd be a third, cool, modular 4x4 to take out and run with the Jeeps and Broncos. I mean it even looks like a first gen Freelander that was blown up like a puffer fish. Really disappointing. Leave it for the Beverly Hills crowd, but then again they'll just probably get a Range Rover or Jeep or Bronco... Maybe used ones will be the new Jettas and Beetles and hairdressers will buy them when they're old enough.
Learned that lesson the hard way .1970 Range Rover, 2 Defenders.One diesel, one Petrol.Great when they go, a very expensive nightmare if they break. Even worst, it seems to breaks down when not expected and very far from help or spare parts.
Funny part , the first Gen Escape based on the first Gen Freelander, was actually a far better vehicle Still a lot of them around in my neck of the woods.
The Land rover struggled to find traction on the rocks for two reasons 1. You applied the brakes and cut its momentum to a stop right before the rocks 7:09 (unlike you did in the Bronco) 2. LR has basically rugged road tires.
How much ever other companies try to level up with Defender/Land Rover vehicles they are trying to be like it. Land Rover vehicles are alwaz inventing new stuff which others try to match like it. Land Rovers are alwaz the Beast nd the Best. No comparison at all. 👍
Bronco for sure .. yeah they are both off roaders .. but in my opinion bronco and defender really aren’t in the same category.. biggest difference is the fact that you can remove to top and doors in the bronco .. can’t on the defender .. so in my opinion bronco is a WHOLE LOT BETTER !
I've watched so many videos comparing these 2 vehicles and what stands out with them all - IS THE TIRES! They both have the capability and technology to get through the trails but having different size and types of tires is the main reason the vehicle will pass or fail. Not really a fair comparison of the vehicle - this is more about the wheel size and tire choice. You could clearly see the Defender had all weather/terrain tires and therefore far less grip.
Your video are great, but could you make one test with a non sas bronco? like a black diamond only with a rear locker,wanna see if the bronco has any electric limited slipper on the front Thank you!
New Jeeps and Broncos are cool because they maintain their original character; rugged body-on-frame trucks with manual transmissions, removable top and doors, that are attainable by the average working-class outdoorsman. The Land Rover? Completely lost it’s way. Sure, it’s probably pretty capable with real tires on it, but come on…$100k for a luxury status symbol that basically drives itself. I’ll bet it comes with a set of golf clubs and pink shorts.
Jeep and bronco are the best off-road if you put a left and better tires on the defender it can do this stuff to I have seen defenders doing rock crawling they are just as good but if you want to do hardcore stuff the Jeep and Rocco are the best if you're doing just regular overlanding and not hardcore stuff to the defender will work just as well 😅😅😊
Could've performed the defender with similar profile tyres as the bronco. Not saying that the defender is better but I am just curious to know which one would perform better with similar tyres.
Land Rover needs to put better tires on it for the money you pay lol. Can’t say it’s better when they don’t even give you the right stuff to succeed. Give defender some AT tires then it’ll be a better test but bronco all the way
I had a 2020 Defender - Loaded with all. Just returned it and got out of my lease. Many issues, great ride height and comfort but not worth the money. Build quality is as bad as American Vehicles but the Bronco is far better though noisy cabin. The Defender is just not there. Now driving a Subaru Outback 2022 Wilderness. Will never ever ever go near an English Vehicle or product from JLR. I will wait until the Ford Bronco works out all its issues which will be in 3 years when my Subaru lease is up.
Thanks for the great review! I'm a Ford Girl but I have to admit the Defender turned my head, and the comparison was impressive. But at the end of the day it's damn hard to beat a Ford Bronco!
Every time I hear a Ford Bronco I always remember Oj Simpson. And every time I hear a Land Rover I always remember the movie The Gods Must Be Crazy! Just saying...🤣🤣
The funny thing about all these comparisons of the two vehicles, they're never actually even. Sasquatch package, sure it comes from Ford, but anyone who's spec'd a Bronco knows that package is not 'free'. Grant LR doesn't have an add on "package" to offer, if you spent a similar amount of money on your Defender wheel set up... Comparison is much more equal.
The tires actually don’t make this comparison even whatsoever. It’s strange to me that street tires are being compared to meaty off road tires. Especially when tires are no reflection of either vehicle make, you can buy them aftermarket, Ford didn’t make them. If I ran track in heels versus spikes, if I hiked in sandals versus boots. 🤷🏽♀️
