Need a "work truck" for off road
 

K, old member here. not been active for a few years

I am involved in doing biological research out in the deserts of California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona etc.. I need a vehicle that can carry myself and a good deal of expensive equipment between my home - and the research sites - so about 600 miles on the road. Once I get there it has to spend a week going up 2 tracks rutted out washed out mine roads, sand arroyos etc.

I am thinking that the RR's legendary offroad ability and smooth riding make it a good choice. so what do I choose?

my idea is to spend 3K on the vehicle - and add on parts

so I really need dependability, and capability off road.

I am thinking a classic - LWB maybe - with the air system replaced with Bilsteins - adding a winch and a few other things. Is the Disco as able?

so dependability - what years / models do you suggest? 94 seems to be a good choice?

or with the legendary electrical snafus - should I sell out and go with a Toyota?

I am posting this in both the Disco forum and the RR classic - as each side may have valid points of view - different from each other!

Carl Johansson
Auberry Ca

Well, the rr classic seems to be the most reliable in my opinion. I know many people that own them, and they simply will not buy an other rr for that reason. If you get a classic, lots of dust will make its way into the cabin and electrical components, causing some things like windows not to work... The electrics on them are fragile, but easy to repair. Trying to get a P38 RR for 3k is not impossible, but chances are you will not get a good one. So I would go with a classic lwd, or swb. The swb will do better off road cause it will not ground out as easy. The disco has either the same wheel base as the classic swb, or even shorter. The disco I will be just as capable as the swb rover, and more capable than the lwb.

The 95 Classic in my opinion, is the best year to buy for the classic rovers. You will get a more refined engine and electronics, as well as an updated interior. The 94 is also a good choice, my boss owns one and absolutely beats the snot out of it and never maintains it. It is one of the only old vehicles he owns (out of about 9) that still drives, which says something. Recently it's fuel pump went out though :(. If you are going to get any vehicle for doing this, get AAA and make sure you get an offroad recovery option ;).

For what you are doing, either a rover or toyota will do the job. Even for me, I would hesitate using a rover for this just because you are alone and absolutely need dependability. If you decide to go the rover route, just ensure you have a back up plan. I might get some flack for having said that, but safety needs to be the primary consideration in this factor. A rover will not just leave you stranded unless something major fails. Usually when that is about to happen, you get fair warning, sometimes weeks in advance. Good luck to ya!