![]() For towing, wading and low-ratio, grind-it-out driving across truly inhospitable ground, the Land Cruiser scores very highly, and basic-spec Utility versions, identifiable by their steel wheels, are genuinely affordable.īut while you can choose the 2.8-litre turbodiesel Toyota with air suspension and leather seats, don’t expect it to ride and handle like a monocoque SUV from Audi or Mercedes-Benz. This is an old-school off-roader with a body-on-frame construction and big numbers in all departments. It just wouldn't be as nice to live with everyday as the Land Rover Defender, hence it's second-place ranking.įor expeditions in true wilderness, though, the Jeep yields to almost nothing.Īnother icon – one that has historically been the workhorse of choice in the Australian Outback, a place where breaking down simply won’t do. ![]() ![]() Of course, the Wrangler is still spectacular off the beaten track, especially in three-door Rubicon trim with its ladder frame, locking differentials, knobbly tyres, specialised articulating axles, underbody bracing, and outstanding approach and departure angle statistics. 'The best 4x4 by far' has been given a whole new lease of life. But offering all that in a car that also rides and handles so well on the road puts the icing on the cake, and makes this car stand head and shoulders above its rivals. The car’s 4x4 capabilities are beyond question, and the way in which it sets about its work offroad makes it seem like a car built for people who don’t even like offroading. The D250 diesel would be our pick, which combines useful torque with respectable fuel economy, drivability and refinement - and needn’t cost as much as some of the other versions of the car. Land Rover offers four- and six-cylinder diesel engines, and both four- and six-cylinder petrols, with a plug-in hybrid and range-topping V8 versions soon to be launched. And yet it’s the style in which is tackles offroad driving, and the way it eases the load on the driver to select just the right transmission mode, to maintain just the right amount of forward momentum, and to keep to just the right line through those ruts, that really impresses. With approach and departure angles of around 40 degrees, and ground clearance of as much as 291mm thanks to its height-adjustable air suspension, this car has all of the right vital statistics. The new Defender can do almost all of that and more, however. Having switched from a ladder frame construction to a monocoque, and for plenty of reasons otherwise, this new Land Rover Defender is more of a successor than a direct replacement and some feared that it wouldn’t be capable of quite the same kind of mud-plugging, rock-hopping, water-fording, slope-scaling and axle-twisting as a result.
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