Carfection Asks: Is the Land Cruiser Better Than a Defender?
The Defender looks cool, but whether it’s worthy competitor of the Land Cruiser is a fair question.
Whether I’m reading for work or pleasure, I tend to agree with Betteridge’s Law of Headlines, which states: “Any headline that ends in a question mark can be answered by the word no.” But laws, as they say, are meant to be broken, and I think Carfection’s “Toyota Land Cruiser: Better Than A Defender?” video is a perfect example. Here, presenter Alex Goys asks that very question, and while I’m well aware I’m writing for a Toyota enthusiast blog, I’m being dead honest when I say I agree with it. Give me a choice between which rig I’d take into some rough stuff, and it’s crystal clear: I’m team Land Cruiser all the way.
So right from the start, I found myself agreeing with Goy. While tooling down a British B road in a brand new 300 Series Land Cruiser, he rattles off some of the things he believes separates the buyers of the Defender and the Toyota. The first thing he mentions is the fact that when he sees folks driving a Land Cruiser in the UK, he immediately thinks that while they’re aware of how luxurious Land Rovers are, the Toyota folks just don’t care. They’re more concerned with actually off roading than looking cool, because “Toyota’s don’t go pop.”
Now, if you’re not fluent in British English, or have somehow not gotten the meaning there from context? Just do a quick search for the phrase, “Land Rover reliability.” I just did, and the results I found could best be described as dismal, off putting, and baffling. Even as someone who loves British vehicles, fashion, and music, I’m constantly puzzled by how a modern company can stay in business building off-road rigs that continually score at the very bottom of reliability surveys. Anyone remember Doug DeMuro’s CarMax Land Rover warranty? He made his money back almost instantly!
Of course, Goy doesn’t love everything about the Toyota, as he has less than great things to say about the the fuel economy, on-road performance, and a few other elements. But without spoiling the video too much, I’ll just say by the end, he and I are on the same page about exactly which SUV we’d choose to go exploring. Watch the clip for an entertaining arguments about how more expensive doesn’t always mean better, and do let me know: When you’re out wheeling, do you see many Land Rovers?
Photos: YouTube