Member Since: 16 Apr 2008
Location: leicestershire
Posts: 267
Am I missing something?
I don't understand where Land Rover are coming from these days.
I have fairly well-used (and generally reliable) D3. I love it for its incredibly flexible carrying capacity (people/things), its comfort on very long journeys, its go-anywhere ability and the fact that I can get a double air bed in with rows 2&3 folded. TDV6 2.7 is powerful enough for me. I am not a hardcore off-roader, nor am I interested in tearing round A roads on 20" wheels and a re-mapped performance boost. I am an outdoors pursuits person and like the fact that the D3 extends the envelope of where I can get to. I wouldn't be seen dead in an X6, X5, Cayenne or Q7 (possibly a Taureg)
Last week I was climbing a track in the French Pyrennees, and possibly unwisely tried to squeeze between some boulders rather than climbing over them and even on 17" wheels managed to scratch the rims. My point is even if I stumped up for a basic GS D4 with a few key extras, it's still fatally compromised by those 19" wheels. Believe me, where I was last week would have made a mess of 19" alloy rims and 55 profile tyres, even if the tyre walls were tough enough. And how do you deflate 55 profiles to get traction on sand - do they not sell any in the Middle East? (Oh and why no Winter pack - have to order HSE to get rear heated seats - no chance)
I can only conclude I am in a very small minority of potential D4 buyers. Looks like I have to wait for "County" version of next defender.
6th Jan 2011 12:04 pm
bigcarpchaser
Member Since: 13 Oct 2007
Location: Camberley
Posts: 2270
Because "Most" Disco's will never go off road and will only ever be used on the school run.
Flog your 19's and get some 17/18's with some ATR/AT2/MTR's, give the kids in the back a blanket.
Job done Welcome "Lola"
6th Jan 2011 12:12 pm
MogulBoy
Member Since: 07 Feb 2010
Location: Devon
Posts: 140
UK-market specifications do tend to be quite curious and generally overtly luxurious as Land Rover attempt to move the Disco upmarket ready for it to be re-launched as a 7 seat Range Rover (if you believe many of the posts on here)....
I've got an order in for a Euro spec D4 SE that will come with no satnav or fancy HiFi, and cloth seats but I have been able to specify 2nd row seat heating and even 2nd row climate controls!
Never had any problems running 19" wheels in rocks and sand in Tunisia and this time I was on bog standard Pirelli Skorpions, not ATRs or 18" AT2 and still managed fine with airing down for soft sand conditions (down to 10-15 PSI at one time).
Yes I did have 2 punctures, not the tyres/wheels fault, but the drivers in each case, I watched the outside edge and forgot to look at what I was heading for with the inside edge LRs are a fond memory, apart from the maintenance.
6th Jan 2011 1:09 pm
nigelc
Member Since: 16 Apr 2008
Location: leicestershire
Posts: 267
bigcarpchaser wrote:
Because "Most" Disco's will never go off road and will only ever be used on the school run.
Flog your 19's and get some 17/18's with some ATR/AT2/MTR's, give the kids in the back a blanket.
Job done
But that's the point - you can't fit 17 or 18" wheels to D4
6th Jan 2011 1:32 pm
bigcarpchaser
Member Since: 13 Oct 2007
Location: Camberley
Posts: 2270
Out of interest then, I presume it's the brake calliper it fouls is it? How much by?
Anyone brave enough to try some Zu rims to see if they squeeze on?Welcome "Lola"
6th Jan 2011 1:46 pm
DSL Keeper of the wheelie bin
Member Since: 11 May 2006
Location: Off again! :-)
Posts: 73123
MrH wrote:
Never had any problems running 19" wheels in rocks and sand in Tunisia:
Apart from getting stuck!!!
Though in the interest of fairness did get stuck myself one or twice, once in the lunch time car park!
But that's the point - you can't fit 17 or 18" wheels to D4
Neither would I have choosen to - Bear in mind I previously had a basic D3 with 17"wheels and I took 18" AT2 last year and choose not to use them again. My tyre of choice now being 19" ATRs - but as the skorpions were on their way out, I choose to use those and bin them on my return to the UK, and keep my good ATRs to get me throught the British Winter.
Yes DSL, I did get stuck a couple of times, seem to remember most of us did at some point or another . However, I do have the excuse of "playing with my knob" on this trip seeming as it was the first time I'd done any serious off-road with TR. So quite a few, if not most, of my delays in progress were indeed due to driver f**k-ups with settings and erm not watching where he was going But hey, who cares I'd go again tomorrow if I could LRs are a fond memory, apart from the maintenance.
6th Jan 2011 7:35 pm
nigelc
Member Since: 16 Apr 2008
Location: leicestershire
Posts: 267
MrH wrote:
nigelc wrote:
But that's the point - you can't fit 17 or 18" wheels to D4
Neither would I have choosen to - Bear in mind I previously had a basic D3 with 17"wheels and I took 18" AT2 last year and choose not to use them again. My tyre of choice now being 19" ATRs - but as the skorpions were on their way out, I choose to use those and bin them on my return to the UK, and keep my good ATRs to get me throught the British Winter.
Yes DSL, I did get stuck a couple of times, seem to remember most of us did at some point or another . However, I do have the excuse of "playing with my knob" on this trip seeming as it was the first time I'd done any serious off-road with TR. So quite a few, if not most, of my delays in progress were indeed due to driver f**k-ups with settings and erm not watching where he was going But hey, who cares I'd go again tomorrow if I could
Getting stuck is not the issue - its going to happen sometimes - its just that with 55 profile tyres the soft alloy rim has that much less protection than with a more rounded 70 profile. If that means on a normal trip you are reluctant to go "off piste" for fear of getting punctures (don't have room for an extra spare on top of the kitchen sink) then defeats whole object of a car like D3/4.
At very least I'd need to see evidence from an LR Experience day to see D4 being abused on rock crawl before considering buying one.
Nigel, I know where you are coming from and yes I agree the 17 or 18 wheels potentially offer a bit extra protection due to the larger tyre wall, but basically it boils down to how worried you are about scratching the alloys - the 19" wheels have never stopped me going off piste in either D3 or D4 regardless of whether I carried 1 or 2 spare wheels/tyres. Yes I do have a few minor scratches in one or two of my wheels, but then I view my vehicle as a working vehicle capable of going offroad as well as a motorway cruiser, so am willing to accept these. It was different when I had my Audi S4 , then I was very carefull and wanted shiney unmarked wheels.
It comes down to what you want from the vehicle and your own opinion as to what's acceptable - and that god we still have some freedon of choice left to us in the country; well at the moment LRs are a fond memory, apart from the maintenance.
7th Jan 2011 11:38 am
DSL Keeper of the wheelie bin
Member Since: 11 May 2006
Location: Off again! :-)
Posts: 73123
MrH wrote:
But hey, who cares I'd go again tomorrow if I could
Me too!! All this rain is making me miss the sand, and the snow!
7th Jan 2011 12:44 pm
powella
Member Since: 29 Dec 2008
Location: Sydney
Posts: 68
FWIW there are some interesting threads on people considering changing brake calipers to the D3 ones....
That way the 17"s will fit. Also I think the Commercial TDV6 still has the smaller brakes....
Not sure what legal or insurance concerns may arise in different countries! But it is an "interesting" alternative if one must have 17's.
Member Since: 09 Oct 2010
Location: SE London
Posts: 840
[quote="nigelc"][quote="MrH"]
nigelc wrote:
At very least I'd need to see evidence from an LR Experience day to see D4 being abused on rock crawl before considering buying one.
I'll have a look for that next week - going to the Ashford Centre on Tuesday.LR Discovery 4 XS pulling an Airstream 532 Caravan also own (since new) a 1996 MGF
8th Jan 2011 8:13 pm
blade74
Member Since: 15 Feb 2010
Location: Sydney
Posts: 57
There are some people here in Australia on the aulro website who have found some 18"s to fit onto that model over the massive brake calipers....
I know it's only one inch smaller but it does give a lot more choice in tyre and a little cheaper to purchase Tyres.
Plus a wee little bit more profile.
I've been keeping my eye on the post.... Disco 4 SE
Honda CRF450X
8th Jan 2011 9:58 pm
mowog
Member Since: 12 Jan 2010
Location: Brisbane
Posts: 90
The post on 18" wheels.
There is a photo of a RRS with the rims fitted and a set of mud tyres. In the thread you will find the brand of the wheel being supplied and for you guys in the UK it should be good news.
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. However, I do have the excuse of "playing with my knob" on this trip seeming as it was the first time I'd done any serious off-road with TR. So quite a few, if not most, of my delays in progress were indeed due to driver f**k-ups with settings and erm not watching where he was going 
