Defender becoming it's own brand, Land Rover phased out
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#24
I was in Huntsville last weekend and saw a Pangea 110 with white roof, ladder, lunchbox parked at the Space & Rocket Center. Any chance that was you?
#25
Isn't this exactly what Jeep did? Distance itself so far from the Chrysler brand that most people don't know it's a Chrysler product. I asked my wife which American car company makes Jeep and she said Jeep's it's own brand. My kid is 22 and thinks Dodge is a car manufacturer, had never heard of the Plymouth, and guessed that Dodge makes the Chrysler 3000, but wasn't sure. Some of us remember that Chrysler is a manufacturer and that Dodge was its mid-priced brand, above the entry level Plymouth. No way Chrysler could market the Dart or new Hornet as entry level muscle cars without the Dodge name linking it to the Charger. The Chrysler "brand" still exists, but only sells mini-vans and the horrible Chrysler 300.
Maybe it's also a response to Grenadier, which no one calls "Ineos Grenadier" and an attempt to entice the serious off-road vehicle market. The big knock is that if your way off-road, and the air suspension or some other component fails, there's no way to fix it, so better to go with a Jeep, Bronco or Grenadier which are more mechanical and market themselves as super tough, fix-it-yourself because there's less tech to fail.
Even Defender fans in this thread are saying spend those marketing dollars to fix reliability issues; if we have that bias, how is JLR ever going to convince new comers to give the Defender a try? I have 40k+ miles on my '21 and I haven't had a single issue with it -- except a CEL for an emissions sensor. But no matter how much more reliable the Defender becomes, the taint/stain of Land Rover reliability will always be there. Spinning off Defender as a brand provides a chance to disassociate with JLR and erase that stigma.
Times change and marketing people know what they're doing. The only way to get passed the reliability question is to disassociate from JLR. If they build reliable vehicles under a separate "Defender brand," in 5 or 10 years Defender will be like Jeep, and people entering the market will only be asking "what can it do off road?"
Maybe it's also a response to Grenadier, which no one calls "Ineos Grenadier" and an attempt to entice the serious off-road vehicle market. The big knock is that if your way off-road, and the air suspension or some other component fails, there's no way to fix it, so better to go with a Jeep, Bronco or Grenadier which are more mechanical and market themselves as super tough, fix-it-yourself because there's less tech to fail.
Even Defender fans in this thread are saying spend those marketing dollars to fix reliability issues; if we have that bias, how is JLR ever going to convince new comers to give the Defender a try? I have 40k+ miles on my '21 and I haven't had a single issue with it -- except a CEL for an emissions sensor. But no matter how much more reliable the Defender becomes, the taint/stain of Land Rover reliability will always be there. Spinning off Defender as a brand provides a chance to disassociate with JLR and erase that stigma.
Times change and marketing people know what they're doing. The only way to get passed the reliability question is to disassociate from JLR. If they build reliable vehicles under a separate "Defender brand," in 5 or 10 years Defender will be like Jeep, and people entering the market will only be asking "what can it do off road?"
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#26
I myself just bought a D2 for $1000 that I’m bringing back to life for my project.
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#27
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#28
Of course, this may mean that JD Powers just won't survey them anymore because the volume would be too low if they break them all off. That's one way to win.
#29
I think the closer analogy is if Jeep spun Wrangler off as its own brand, like Dodge did Ram. I mean, Jeep does have other well known models, just like Land Rover. By the way, my son is 21 and I'm sure he'd be equally clueless about the Chrysler family of brands of yesteryear.
Regardless, I am very glad to hear of your ownership experience. My MY23.5 110 is on order and I have my fingers crossed I get one as good as yours. I had a 1993 Range Rover and although I loved the car, it was pretty much one thing after another. I also have a SIIA 88 that I've owned for 27 years, but that doesn't really count since it's from a completely different era and you expect to tinker on a Series Land Rover anyway.
Regardless, I am very glad to hear of your ownership experience. My MY23.5 110 is on order and I have my fingers crossed I get one as good as yours. I had a 1993 Range Rover and although I loved the car, it was pretty much one thing after another. I also have a SIIA 88 that I've owned for 27 years, but that doesn't really count since it's from a completely different era and you expect to tinker on a Series Land Rover anyway.