- Joined
- Dec 26, 2021
- Messages
- 75
- Country Flag
Easy story to start, but it goes back a long way. I have always had a love of Land Rovers but it has come to an end. I have spent time on farms, I have soldiered in the REME and since I was 20yrs old, ( 0ver 30yr ago ), nearly always run an old Land Rover with a tool box in the back to earn a living as a mechanic.
My last Land Rover was a 1986 coil sprung 90. I bought it scrap in 2003, shoe horned a 200Tdi into it and used it for 15yrs without issue until it fell apart, I wore it out with two hundred thousand on the clock. The Father-in-Law had parked up his 2005 Discovery III so I bought that ... What a pretentious piece of overrated junk. I could not believe how bad them things are. I could not repair or fix it without complications, issues, grief, expense and the need of the local LR independent dealer. Four years of motoring grief but I tried. I can honestly state that there was never a journey, long or short, when that thing did not throw up a fault code.
Well, having worked on Toyotas, Nissans and Mitsubishis, the ease of working on them was apparent, servicing, timing belts etc. No problem. Then back in October 21, a chap brought an Amazon 4.2 in to me for a major service and timing belt. Not only was it easy to work on, but after taking it for a test drive, it was a revelation. I declared that, 'This has to be the best car that I have ever driven' !
So I got on to Ebay and started to search and eventually found this one close to me with a second hand motor dealer who has six Amazons on his forecourt. So I rang him up and paid him a visit, but before we looked at his stock, I showed him in the back of my Discovery;- 'I have always run Land Rovers and this is what I expect from them'. In the back was a big truck battery, jump leads, tool boxes, a tractor door, a wheel, logs, a sack of my own grown potatoes and other things of purpose. Furthermore, the tow bar with twin sockets, one for my Ifor Williams 3.5 ton trailer and the other for my 16ft Giest Caravan.
'I see what you mean but I bet you have always had trouble with this, they are like christmas trees'. He replied.
Anyway, we did a deal, the Disco has gone and I am now the proud owner of an Amazon. It drives every bit as good as a Rolls Royce except I can see more. The air con worked, the radio worked, it went up the gears and back down again. The engine purrs. No warning lights came, articulated lorries moved out of the way to let me pass, but, this is the best bit. When I came to stop, it has a proper parking brake lever that quite simply pulled on and the two and a half ton of Toyota stood still, without screaming and warning lights flashing!
We went out on a job to a farm in to a muddy field near a barn to work on a bale grab. Parking brake on, engine off. Removed the bent parts off the bale grab and put them into the back of the Toyota without a fight with a stupid door locking system, then back to my workshop. Easy.
What I have come to realise is that Land Rover has become a big car without any utility purpose what so ever. The Amazon is a TRUCK when I want it to be, but also it can be a very nice car fit for taking my wife and family out.
My last Land Rover was a 1986 coil sprung 90. I bought it scrap in 2003, shoe horned a 200Tdi into it and used it for 15yrs without issue until it fell apart, I wore it out with two hundred thousand on the clock. The Father-in-Law had parked up his 2005 Discovery III so I bought that ... What a pretentious piece of overrated junk. I could not believe how bad them things are. I could not repair or fix it without complications, issues, grief, expense and the need of the local LR independent dealer. Four years of motoring grief but I tried. I can honestly state that there was never a journey, long or short, when that thing did not throw up a fault code.
Well, having worked on Toyotas, Nissans and Mitsubishis, the ease of working on them was apparent, servicing, timing belts etc. No problem. Then back in October 21, a chap brought an Amazon 4.2 in to me for a major service and timing belt. Not only was it easy to work on, but after taking it for a test drive, it was a revelation. I declared that, 'This has to be the best car that I have ever driven' !
So I got on to Ebay and started to search and eventually found this one close to me with a second hand motor dealer who has six Amazons on his forecourt. So I rang him up and paid him a visit, but before we looked at his stock, I showed him in the back of my Discovery;- 'I have always run Land Rovers and this is what I expect from them'. In the back was a big truck battery, jump leads, tool boxes, a tractor door, a wheel, logs, a sack of my own grown potatoes and other things of purpose. Furthermore, the tow bar with twin sockets, one for my Ifor Williams 3.5 ton trailer and the other for my 16ft Giest Caravan.
'I see what you mean but I bet you have always had trouble with this, they are like christmas trees'. He replied.
Anyway, we did a deal, the Disco has gone and I am now the proud owner of an Amazon. It drives every bit as good as a Rolls Royce except I can see more. The air con worked, the radio worked, it went up the gears and back down again. The engine purrs. No warning lights came, articulated lorries moved out of the way to let me pass, but, this is the best bit. When I came to stop, it has a proper parking brake lever that quite simply pulled on and the two and a half ton of Toyota stood still, without screaming and warning lights flashing!
We went out on a job to a farm in to a muddy field near a barn to work on a bale grab. Parking brake on, engine off. Removed the bent parts off the bale grab and put them into the back of the Toyota without a fight with a stupid door locking system, then back to my workshop. Easy.
What I have come to realise is that Land Rover has become a big car without any utility purpose what so ever. The Amazon is a TRUCK when I want it to be, but also it can be a very nice car fit for taking my wife and family out.
..Thats got to be the Funniest, Honest, Most direct quote ever posted Mike, Made me Laugh, 
