All Time Choice

[Krabby]

Ok. This has been on my mind for quite some time so I thought I’d throw it out there.

All of us came to the Grenadier from some other vehicle. The what do you drive thread points out how diverse our garages are, but I’d like throw this out there. If you could walk into a showroom and walk out with a “new” as it was sold off-roader, what would it be? What I mean is you could time travel back to whenever, buy it as it was sold in that year, and beam it back to 2025.

For example, I would love to buy a brand new triple-locked 1997 FJ-80.

 

[Dokatd]

Ok. This has been on my mind for quite some time so I thought I’d throw it out there.

All of us came to the Grenadier from some other vehicle. The what do you drive thread points out how diverse our garages are, but I’d like throw this out there. If you could walk into a showroom and walk out with a “new” as it was sold off-roader, what would it be? What I mean is you could time travel back to whenever, buy it as it was sold in that year, and beam it back to 2025.

For example, I would love to buy a brand new triple-locked 1997 FJ-80.

Maybe a NAS 110 or a U5000 Doka more likely. They still make the U5000 so....

 

[Cheshire cat]

Loved my Td5 Defender 90 over the past 20 years. So perhaps a new one of those.

 

[cyson]

I still miss my NAS Defender 90. I may opt for the manual this time though.

Since I'm greedy though, I'd have both a 1993 110 and a 1995 90 (either form).

 

[Jean Mercier]

Well, this was my dream when I was younger ... and i still would like to possess one

I tried to buy a second hand one in Ecuador in 1987 when I lived there for 3,5 years, but they were or too expensive or in too bad shape; I finally bought a brand new Suzuki Samurai: very good purchase, but small!

 

[Cheshire cat]

I first saw that model of Toyota in Portugal around 1980. Fell in love with it then. My friend who owns one tells me it is horrendous to drive when compared to Land Rover of the same era.

 

[Logsplitter]

For me it would have to be a Mercedes G-Wagon before they became blinged up toys. If I could have got a commercial / military style G wagon I would have bought one , but unfortunately not available in the UK in later years. Then along came the Grenadier.

 

[Paddy]

1982 GMC K2500 Sierra Grande.
I'm not the kind to kiss and tell, but...

 

[DefenderGuy]

As someone who bought a 1993 NAS 110 new in the fall of 1992, this is a tricky question.

I loved my truck and I equally loved my not inexpensive relationship with my mechanics (first at RoversNorth who no longer does service and later at Cityside garage). (The mechanics issue with Grenadier is, as we all know, an open book just now.)

While my original focus on the real Land Rover Defender came about in 1987 as a consequence of on an extraordinary road trip from Pokhara back to Katmandu, it was more than five years before I had the ability to buy one for myself back home in the States.

This is a tricky question so let me go on. I distinctly remember my conversation in June 1993 with the proprietor of an extraordinary wilderness lodge on the edge of Matopos National Park outside of Bulawayo (my travelling buddy and I had picked up the recommendation for this hostelry at a Rotary meeting in Kimberley, RSA a few days earlier) who swore up and down that wonderful as the then Land Rovers were, the Toyota Land Cruisers were far easier to maintain and comparably functional. So I have to answer, influenced by what I've seen folks do with fifty year old Land Cruisers, a Land Cruiser from the late seventies or early eighties would be my choice.

But the world has changed. Today I wouldn't buy anything that has an embedded non-removable sim card in it (I'm not a fan of surveillance capitalism). As the underwhelmed former owner of a 2023 [corrected] Land Rover Defender 110, a few months into my ownership I was appalled to discover that I owned a vehicle that was designed to become inoperable less than 24 hours after the telemetry circuit had been disabled. Indeed, for me one of the most extraordinary pluses about the Ineos Grenadier, at least in the US market, is that there's no sim card installed to support always on surveillance. And, yeh, I really do use an old fashioned flip phone.

Freedom is under appreciated. But hey a lot of y'all love the nanny state (both government and corporate) so I'll shut my trap.

 

[cyson]

As someone who bought a 1993 NAS 110 new in the fall of 1992, this is a tricky question.

I loved my truck and I equally loved my not inexpensive relationship with my mechanics (first at RoversNorth who no longer does service and later at Cityside garage). (The mechanics issue with Grenadier is, as we all know, an open book just now.)

While my original focus on the real Land Rover Defender came about in 1987 as a consequence of on an extraordinary road trip from Pokhara back to Katmandu, it was more than five years before I had the ability to buy one for myself back home in the States.

This is a tricky question so let me go on. I distinctly remember my conversation in July 1993 with the proprietor of an extraordinary wilderness lodge on the edge of Matopos National Park outside of Bulawayo (my buddy and I had picked up the recommendation for this hostelry at a Rotary meeting in Kimberley, RSA a few days earlier) who swore up and down that wonderful as the then Land Rovers were, the Toyota Land Cruisers were far easier to maintain and comparably functional. So I have to answer, influenced by what I've seen folks do with fifty year old Land Cruisers, a Land Cruiser from the late seventies or early eighties would be my choice.

But the world has changed. Today I wouldn't buy anything that has an embedded non-removable sim card in it (I'm not a fan of surveillance capitalism). As the underwhelmed former owner of 1993 Land Rover Defender 110, a few months into my ownership I was appalled to discover that I owned a vehicle that was designed to become inoperable less than 24 hours after the telemetry circuit had been disabled. Indeed, for me one of the most extraordinary pluses about the Ineos Grenadier, at least in the US market, is that there's no sim card installed to support always on surveillance. And, yeh, I really do use an old fashioned flip phone.

Freedom is under appreciated. But hey a lot of y'all love the nanny state (both government and corporate) so I'll shut my trap.

I don't understand, the 1993 Defender had remote kill circuitry?

 

[Logsplitter]

Well, this was my dream when I was younger ... and i still would like to possess one
View attachment 7908050
I tried to buy a second hand one in Ecuador in 1987 when I lived there for 3,5 years, but they were or too expensive or in too bad shape; I finally bought a brand new Suzuki Samurai: very good purchase, but small!
View attachment 7908051

Hey @Jean Mercier Check this video out from New Zealand. There’s some lovely old Cruisers on there.

View: https://youtu.be/akJQHa4K9yQ?si=HbGjKaSkTl6WBMpe

 

[DefenderGuy]

I don't understand, the 1993 Defender had remote kill circuitry?

No, it didn't and thanks for the head up. I'm an idiot. I typed 1993 when I meant 2023. The original post is now corrected.

 

[MattA]

I would have what ever had the build quality and reliability of old school Toyota, new ones are cheaply built crap no more reliable than anything else on the market, engineering of Land Rover and the strength of the GQ or GU Nissan Patrol
Does anyone know of any such vehicle?

 

[Krabby]

Admittedly I’m a bit of sucker for the gen 1 Broncos with the 289 small block V8. And having just read the Scout Encyclopedia an early IH Scout 80 could be fun too. I am a Rover nerd so proper Defenders hit the spot but a brand new off the lot Series IIa would be pretty amazing.

I asked a friend this question and, as a Jeep guy, he said he’d love a new early 70s Jeep Grand Cherokee.

 

[cyson]

No, it didn't and thanks for the head up. I'm an idiot. I typed 1993 when I meant 2023. The original post is now corrected.

Phew. Ok, the 1993 Defender 110 can stay on my list.

I'm with you on the freedom stuff. I currently have a Tesla and I'm not too thrilled with where this is all going.

 

[Krabby]

I would have what ever had the build quality and reliability of old school Toyota, new ones are cheaply built crap no more reliable than anything else on the market, engineering of Land Rover and the strength of the GQ or GU Nissan Patrol
Does anyone know of any such vehicle?

Cheater. You get one.

How about a ‘65 Ford Falcon Ute?

 

[OkGo]

For example, I would love to buy a brand new triple-locked 1997 FJ-80.

You basically started and finished the conversation there... Except, I would say the 1997 HDJ80 VX with the lockers.

 

[Krabby]

You basically started and finished the conversation there... Except, I would say the 1997 HDJ80 VX with the lockers.

I’m not sure if that was a US spec as it doesn’t ring a bell. I should amend my statement that I’d instantly swap out the face for the 92 LC as I like the “Toyota” text in the grill as opposed to the sombrero.

 

[DefenderGuy]

I currently have a Tesla and I'm not too thrilled with where this is all going.

Thanks again for the heads up and for the additional feedback.

I have a dozen computers in my primary home office and all but one are on a VPN (and most are running Linux not Mac or Windows). I'm a sotware engineer (of a sorts) and the inability to get into the Grenadier head unit drives me crazy (but I'm not that stupid: this is the case with all computerized cars and I know that). But the Tesla is, allegedly at least, over the top. I have no personal experience but something like this (if it's accurate, I have no insider knowledge) should give you pause:

Tesla workers shared sensitive images recorded by customer cars

Between 2019 and 2022, groups of Tesla employees privately shared via an internal messaging system sometimes highly invasive videos and images recorded by customers’ car cameras.

www.reuters.com

 

[OkGo]

I’m not sure if that was a US spec as it doesn’t ring a bell. I should amend my statement that I’d instantly swap out the face for the 92 LC as I like the “Toyota” text in the grill as opposed to the sombrero.

The HD's were the diesel versions of the FJs. And the VX was a few inches longer than the GS, since they had the 7 seat arrangement. Oh and the VX came with aircon as standard! Need Aircon.