patrick_y
[PuristSPro Moderator]
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Land Rover Defender, a Tribute to a 67 Year Old Icon
PuristSPro honors the Land Rover Defender, a vehicle with an unparalleled history. The Defender has enjoyed production in Solihull, England for an amazing 67 years but will unfortunately be stopped in December 2015. We explore the Defender and compare it to its modern brother the Range Rover.
Hand-built SUVs, the Land Rover Defender and the Mercedes-Benz Gelandewagen, are both modern classics that are a part of the dying times.
We see the marketing phrase “hand-built” all the time. And it’s mostly meaningless. Very few things are hand-built anymore. Public companies are run by profits, profits dictate robots and efficient designs that minimize human labor costs.
Land Rover Defender – rumored to be one of The Queen’s
favorite personal vehicles that she personally drives, is almost entirely hand
built. While all the major metal
pieces are pressed by machine, a large amount of the finishing of pieces,
pre-assembly of pieces, riveting and welding are all done by hand. Only seven robots are on the production
line, in contrast the Range Rover production line has 328 robots. The Defender has been built in
Solihull, England for 67 years!
But Solihull production will supposedly end in December 2015.
The Defender is destined to become a future classic. Procure yours today and see where it takes you in the decades to come.
60+ year old car or modern car? This is a modern car believe it or not!
The interior of the Defender. Simple, practical, and purely functional. Just the way I (and The Queen) like it.
Assembly is done almost entirely by hand with minimal assistance from machines. The factory looks fairly antiquated.
Measurements are done manually. Modern factories have robots with laser measuring devices. Production is done in a way that is so counter-intuititive that it's starkly different from the modern Range Rover production.
There are only seven robots on the production line of the Defender.
A lot of manual work is still performed.
Finished Defenders on the productoin line.
The rugged go anywhere attitude of the Defender allows it to go anywhere, anytime, in any condition. The Defender has been on all seven continents in all types of conditions.
Range Rover production. The Range Rover has larger and fewer parts.
There are 328 robots on the production line of the Range Rover.
Modern factory, brightly lit. More robots than humans.
Highly automated, mechanical claws running on computers hold the cars as they make they their way pass the assembly stations.
Almost complete, this Range Rover is ready for customer.
The Defender. Versatile in combat and highly desirable during peacetime. Long live the Defender!
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Land Rover Defender, a Tribute to a 67 Year Old Icon
PuristSPro honors the Land Rover Defender, a vehicle with an unparalleled history. The Defender has enjoyed production in Solihull, England for an amazing 67 years but will unfortunately be stopped in December 2015. We explore the Defender and compare it ...
Very true. A very iconic machine.
It'd look good next to your Volvo P1800. It's also fuel efficient (by American standards) with a 2.2 liter diesel engine.
I am fortunate to have....
...several of these in my neighbourhood, mainly late model Defenders, but there is a 110 and a Series 2 that I often see. My father had a Series 2 that he drove around Australia with friends in the 60s...could you imagine touring across Australia in a car...
True...
You're right. It is more of a result of the production methods being unable to advance due to the design of the car being incapable for robots of today. Not entirely due to the desirability of hand craftsmanship, but just out of necessity. Good point! Wil...
I'm quite certain....
..they are still for sale here. I used to work just down the road from the main local dealership (complete with a properly challenging obstacle course....) and last I remember they were still on the lot. I don't doubt they'll finish up soon as Solihull cl...
A lot faster than the horse and cart...
At least 50 miles per hour, 85 kilometers an hour, is faster than the normal horse with cart. Unsealed roads? That's not good, most tires can't handle extremely fast speeds on poor road surfaces. In the United States, drivers don't maintain their cars wel...
The main limit...
...on a lot of those unsealed roads is corrugations. Many of them are really bad so you basically speed up until the car stops shaking like a jackhammer and sit at that. Much faster or slower means the car goes crazy again...really tiring and a great reli...
Gotcha...
So no fancy sports cars driving on these roads at 120+ miles per hour due to how corrugated the roads are. I get the picture. Australia, true wilderness.
Well deserved hommage post Patrick
Along with just few like Lada Niva, Toyota Land Cruiser. Jeep Willys or Nissan Patrol this is indeed grandfather of all real off-road utility vehicles Long live the King sorry Queen ;) Sincerely D
I'll miss it...
It will be possible to buy non UK built Defender in other countries. For instance, South Africa has a factory for the African market. But Western European sales is supposed to end in December 2015. Other factories are in Malaysia and Pakistan. I haven't s...
Thanks Patrick. I adore the Defender.
You saw my post a few weeks back on the old FJ40. I probably have a preference towards an old Defender to be fully honest. I would love to have one.
I love them all...
Old Landcruisers (Toyota) Old Defenders (Land Rover) Old Gelandewagens (Mercedes-Benz) I love them all. Realistically, I'd probably get a modern day Gelandewagen, it's easily serviced here in California, a lot of Mercedes-Benz dealerships equipped to serv...
LOL! Sounds great to me!
I wish I were there on the beach with you my Friend. One thing about the old FJ40s, the engines and systems are very basic. I believe a competent mechanic can figure his way through servicing most needs. Parts remain commonly available. I do give an edge ...
Mainly safety is my concern...
Safety and practicality are my main concerns. While I really like the look of the old Land Cruisers, the fact that the car is ancient and doesn't have certain safety features nor creature comforts is a concern. The Defender is good in a way that it has a ...
An era is coming to an end...
i really enjoyed it even if it was not reliable, fast, confortable and even not the best one off road. But it had character and that is so dificult to recreate. I remember some drives in the altiplano in bolivia where the V8 was struggling with rarified o...
Thanks for sharing!
Thank you for sharing those nice pictures of the Defender in (presumably) Bolivia. Cars have to breath too, but I know I'd be the one struggling at 4500meters, and I'd probably be struggling more than the car. "it had character and that is so difficult to...
Yes bolivia you are right that was back in ...87
and you are right as well, you need some time to get used to 40-45% less oxygen