New Defender Hacket & Longwater, Nov '20 

Marlon, thanks for the nice feedback.

Thank you for recognizing what I was after in my testing/evaluation. I aimed to follow the LR mantra of "as slow as possible, as fast as necessary" while taking harder lines initially and repositioning as needed.

@@JCsBritish4x4Englewood yes exactly what I meant and should have stated. When I was wheeling my 03 disco (no aftermarket CDL) all spotters would want to change route as soon as wheels started to spin. Well, the TC won't work without sensing the where wheel spin is. Used to aggravate the hell out of me. I wheeled with you guys, Solihull Society, 2010 in Moab, and 2011 in Breck. I used you exclusively while I lived in CO. Still have my 03 but saving her so only use her in the winter snow here in MT. Ive had to call your shop several times since I left (mechanics here intimidated by LR) and your service department has always been helpful, so thank you!

Yes, but it does help that this defender is not throwing codes, that we know of.

@@spartanchirho I've had a random warning pop up when wheeling, but nothing that has stayed on. Just passed 2500mi and a weekend of wheeling in Moab, so far so good :)

@@JCsBritish4x4Englewood good! I sure im not alone in saying would enjoy some video of your wheeling!

@War.L _ fail.

George, thanks for the feedback. I agree that the new Defender is very bouncy/stiff when the suspension is extended, this is part of why I recommend keeping it as low as possible for any given terrain. Note that while the EAS does raise to the off-road height automatically when engaging low range, you can lower it back to standard height. This is something I did all the time as it will allow the suspension to flex/articulate easier. If you are not already doing it, air down your tires some for off-road use (make sure you've got an air compressor or CO2 tank to fill back up). I'd recommend staying around 25-30psi depending on your wheel/tire combo as the tire bead retention isn't as strong as I'd like (at least on the 19"s my D110 had). Happy trails :)

20 has been a bit too low on 18-19" rims in my experience in the rocks (pinch flats and rim damage) - though this does vary depending on the tire/driver. 18-10 psi is typically what I run on a 33" tire on 16" rims, and I often drop down to 12psi on my 37's on the P38. Very true on the highway driving, done a few trips at 20-25psi, heck I usually air down once for entire week-long trips in/around Moab ;) I just finished a Christmas weekend in Moab and the D110 did great! I'll get the video compiled and posted in the next few weeks.

@@JCsBritish4x4Englewood All depends on the tire. I find that tire sidewall/width ratios above 60 will handle airing down really well even in 20 inch rims. Glad you are working that new defender out.

We blew the bead a couple of times at 15 psi on our Defender with 20’s... River really needs to downsize the rim to 18” with the P400!

@@cotrails8356 I believe the ratio on the 20s is 50. There just isn't enough flex in the sidewall at that ratio. 255 60r20 would be 32 inches tall vs the stock 255 55r20 at 30. Not sure if there is room for anything larger.

I like when an $80,000 vehicle can just barely pull something off and everyone is all excited talking about how great it did and I'm like dude it barely pulled it off. You should see what those Jeeps can do when you take them to their limit for half the price Factory front and rear lockers and Factory sway bar disconnects LOL they also have traction control on jeeps and adjustable hill-descent but no one talks about it. Everyone needs to cheer for the new Defender to justify its existence and cheer for small victories LOL the fact that it merely goes up things but no one does a side-by-side comparison even to an old disco two or a Range Rover P38 it would blow it away. Now don't get me wrong I do like Landrover even to this day all of them including the new Defender is very beautiful but I just don't like the fact that they are slowly trying to sneak in the fancy ifs all plastic everywhere thing. It just seems more of a stowaway vehicle now compared to the Jeeps or the older Rovers with solid axles and less plastic. I wouldn't mind having one but they should have gave it a different name or made it like the Grenadier. You don't have to change the body style look at the G wagon body

Exactly my thoughts. Shows how good the defender is.

@slickkapone this shows how good the traction system is at finding every last bit of grip possible. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-d3nP2mbjB_M.html ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-sEy_CWoEgoc.html

Agreed! I've had a few times I would have loved to have some footage saved.

Thanks! The truck really does fit me well from all aspects, not overly luxurious but still has a ton of features. I'm based out of Colorado, our shop is JC's British & 4x4 in Englewood.

Robin, the Goodyear Duratracs are generally very well rated for snow conditions if you are still looking for a year-round & off road tire. For dedicated snow tires Nokian Hakkapeliittas are very well rated - www.nokiantires.com/winter-tires/nokian-hakkapeliitta-lt3/ As for size I would maintain the same as stock.

Factory 19" with the Goodyear Wrangler All-Terrain Adventure 255/65R19. I'm likely to move over to some 18" options next year with a little larger dia tire, but will not be pushing it much larger as this is my daily driver and I've already got my more hard core wheeling trucks (P38 on 37's, a '94 D90 on 33's getting the Cummins R2.8 swap, and a Perentie 6x6 on 36" tires.)

Normal street pressure is close to 50psi. Agreed that going down to 20-25 would have been better for traction and control, but I didn't bring a compressor and wasn't sure if someone else would be able to air me back up. I knew 35 psi was safe to drive home on, that's why I only went down to 35. Given the slick wet/icy rock I don't think airing down further would have made much difference on this trip though. Looking to move over to 33" tires on 18" rims next year, this will allow me more room to air down and have good sidewall flex.

@@JCsBritish4x4Englewood Is that what it says on the door sticker? Jeez that's high for an SUV . I've been searching the spec but can't find tyre pressures.

@Dartmoor Dave Front 34 Rear 37 for a "light load" and Front 47 Rear 50 for a "normal load"; all sizes except 22s which are Front 44 for "normal load".

@slickkapone 33-34" tires have already been done and paired with an air suspension lift. Some are even going to 35's, but that would require some trimming. 33's are only 1" taller than stock so will fit easily and not alter any function/dynamics of the vehicle by any noticeable amount. For a daily driver & light off-roader there is really no reason someone needs to change out the factory tires/wheels, but what fun would that be ;) For reference - 34" tires and 2" lift rods were used on this D110: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-frTPchIuD4U.html

:) Yup, have to try the harder lines. Isn't that a requirement when off-roading ;) If you count some scratches and possible damage as a trophy, then yes, there is a trophy - and I now have a collection.

Vincent, absolutely! While I will be moving to 18s next year, I still will be keeping the build small/mild with likely only a move up to a 33" tire. Frontrunner rack going on soon, we just got some in last week but before they released the air dam to keep wind noise to a reasonable level. One the air dam is in I'll be getting the rack installed.

I find it pretty good overall. Typically I'll keep the vehicle at the standard height setting unless/until I need the clearance. I did note a bit more suspension top out thumping when in the off-road height (which was even more noticeable on the lifted D110 I drove back in June). The seats do a great job of supporting you comfortably while wheeling, I've always been impressed with Land Rover's seat ergonomics for my height. Being an avid wheeler, I'd prefer a bit more wheel travel but I realize this would detract from other aspects of the engineering of this truck (ie. road hanlding, tow safety, etc). As this truck is my daily driver, will tow my wheeling rigs, and be an overall adventure vehicle, I feel that Land Rover did a great job overall. So far I have about 1250mi of failure-free operation and am truly loving the truck. :)

@@JCsBritish4x4Englewood Thanks!

Yes, very well and even in the back seat! - Only issue I have is that I wish the driver's sideview mirror could adjust up a little further, but it's not a problem. - For those that wonder why the question, I'm 6'4" tall and have had issues in prior Rovers. From horrible line of sight out the windshield of D1s & DIIs, to no headroom in a RRC or P38, and even issues in my LR3 with the non-adjustable headrest pushing down on my shoulders.

Might have issues at first but after that they should be fine.

Hopefully some time after it's fist oil change ;) Almost at the 1k mark now and still no problems :)

TFL must be incredibly jealous!!!

That's old now 🤣

I agree with how you feel, and that is why I also have other off-road trucks, my primary trail truck is my '98 P38, and I'm refitting my '94 D90 with a Cummins R2.8 but keeping it manual but extend its range over the V8 gas guzzler. But I still wanted to know and see how the new Defender did on the trail, I'm impressed by new technology and wanted to see it in action. One thing that I can say is that the current level of engineering on the defender is a reactive system only, but the real advancements in self-drive (think DARPA) is when the system can read upcoming terrain and obstacles and calculate the best approach before hand (i.e. knowing how much momentum to hit an obstacle with, recognizing the type of ground/traction available, etc). In all likelihood, I'll not wheel it all that often as it's my DD and will be towing my trail truck to events (one of my next tests with the Defender) and long-distance trips where I plan to push my trail truck to (or past) the breaking point.

You cannot drop the pressure on low profile tires.

@@maximapitko thats why you dont use low profile tires offroad

@@davyzywek6487 yea but there's not currently any option to get smaller wheels with the defender

@@Harry._.Thompson aftermarket

@@davyzywek6487 Very limited because of the brake disc size. That was one of the major gripes when the design previews were made available. All to do with sufficient braking for towing weight.

Thanks, while it may not wheel like my P38 it is a hell of a lot nicer inside & out! ;) I'll be using it to tow the P38 to the trails I'd likely not drive home from - Carnage Canyon here I come :)

@@JCsBritish4x4Englewood I've just subd again .👍 ....... want to see how far you can take it , before it fails 🙄............... My favourite vid featuring your P38 ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-YV6Co8DWvYU.html 👍

True, but also partially high centered and a ledge at the left rear to climb on cold/wet/slick rock all while trying to crawl it as slowly as possible. This trip was all about testing the truck in it's as delivered condition. It'll be getting some mild upgrade components over the next year and beyond and I hope to give my feedback on each one as time progresses.

You are smoking crack...

I am not hating or anything. But I would take my 2020 4Runner TRD Off Road over a 2020 Defender of any spec for off road.

It probably would break

Which one is the pretender ?? I saw the jeeps also struggling to climb and those are modified cars. Everyone is an expert in the comments

@@andresgonzalezmadriz7342 , had two LR....only problems......I know....they look good but quality is the main concerne.

It usually is. I did some off road in the past and the videos did not reflect at all the real conditions.

For a stock truck, it really is more impressive than it looks on video, wet & icy granite are not great traction surfaces for any vehicle and I tried to take every obstacle as slowly as possible. A little momentum can drastically change how easily a vehicle gets through. Yes, this is a mild/mid-level trail overall, which is a good test for stock and lightly modified vehicles. There's also a lot I need to get used to with this truck, with only 600miles on it she's still getting broken in and I still need to get comfortable with all its aspects. Thanks for the feedback

Probably a good thing its built for a different market as when the Landie was renamed Defender it failed to "defend" its market share against better all round practical competition - you have to wonder why it took Land Rover 70 years to build a vehicle that is not only good off road but also good on road where most mileage is driven! How many Defender owners went rock crawling - mostly about getting around muddy farm fields.

@@paulfellows2535 Agree and you can look at it from this angle but unfortunately this one is too complex for any remote work. LR had no choice but to go this way in order to improve sales. This will predominantly be bought by people that will not even think going offroad, I have seen a lot here in melbourne Australia driven by younger rich women so the market has shifted.

Thanks for comments defender13. Perhaps in reality the 1990 Defender missed the boat by not being sufficiently improved over the earlier Series and really let in the Toyotas, Nissans and Mitsubishis. Attempts to address this through “specials” with more modern elements to them are grossly expensive and minority vehicles. The massive change made by the new Defender will probably mean it also joins the other 4WDs going down to hobby farms on the Mornington Penninsula Defender13. The one very happy owner of the new Defender I know in County Cork in Ireland uses it as day to day transport and to tow a large horsebox. I suspect that an awful lot of modern 4WDs are no longer targetted at the utility market given their levels of “sophistication” and high prices (not unique to the new Defender).

Watch Doug’s video after he’s driven the new Defender 7000miles. He owns the original Defender too. I agree with him this is a defender and more capable than the original. Go watch his reasons.

@@dmbassett I did and yes agree is more capable but unfortunately many people these days focus on gadgets. and you wouldn't take a $AU120k car where I take mine.

The Jeep struggled equally with those big wheels. And they are such a compromise on road.

The defender did ok considering stock wheels and tyres