Team,
Just received a quality ladder from Voyager Off Road!
Admittedly I have the VOR full roof rack. OK
So the construct and fitment are night and day better than the OEM!
See Pics...

 

Hardware looks a little suspect.

 

needs a little black touchup paint imo

 

Love it but don’t say it’s better than OEM. Because it’s not.

 

I'd say if the quality is there and it is powder coated for durability, it is indeed better than OEM. The OEM one is too heavy, too fiddly, and too flimsy. Not to mention too expensive.

 

‘Better’ is such a subjective, loaded term.

i like the voyager more than oem with the voyager rack. And i like the voyager rack more than I like the oem rack. So that settles it for me.

I think very very few people have installed and used both voyager and oem combos and can actually legitimately review/compare the two based on anything other than aesthetics, price and personal preference. I see nothing in either that leads me to believe that one is ‘better’ functionally or more practically durable than the other

 

oem ladder doesn’t even work with the voyager rack so does the comparison really matter


oem ladder only works with the oem rack and front runner oem rail rack. your choices on which ladder are really dependent on your rack

but i have the oem ladder and it’s a engineering marvel. i am not a heavy guy and it’s plenty stable

i am not fan of the exposed random colored bolts of the voyager ladder

 

Rear ladders for Defenders are as God intended, so a side ladder looks bad IMO.

 

I think ladders are decidedly a personal preference. Right down to whether to have them or not! I have my honest/humble opinions on all of them. To date NONE of them are that sublime combination of form, function, and price. I think at best, you only get to choose two. Since I'm already a lunatic and bought a Defender, I threw out price and went with the Lucky8/Rhino's. As bad as I think some versions are, there are others who think the same as mine. So, as with any Defender mod: go with what you like and "looks great!".

 

Looks aside, to speak to functionality, so how do you get your leg up that high onto the first rung as it looks to be quite high?

I'm errr less flexible than I used to be. For example, on my old D2, I use the rear step (hydraulic), then step on the rear bumper, then on the ladder on the rear door.

Something I worry about with all these ladders is grime on the front of your boots screwing up the paint behind. (clear film protection perhaps require)