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Just a thought - might there be some markets where passenger vehicles are regulated or taxed in a way that makes a lower GVM advantageous? Not the UK, though.

It seems unlikely that's the main reason, surely? It must be a benefit to advertise the maximum possible GVM, especially for competitive comparison purposes, and the cost of the addtional testing, if you know that all the important parts are the same, would be negligible in the overall scheme of...

The springs on a Discovery are designed for a more comfortable ride. Anyone who's driven both vehicles will attest that the Defender has a much harder ride! The Defender also has lower gearing in high range than the Discovery.

No, same dimensions. 3-door versions were available right up until the release of the Disco II, in both pane-van form (commercial) as well as passenger vehicles. I have seen commercial Discos equipped with all kinds of nifty stuff - such as a complete workshop, with tool cabinets and pull-out...

Oops.. have we gone off topic here? What was the original question again? :xxrotflma

Nice video :) Many years ago, when I lived in SA, our Land Rover Club was asked to act as sweep vehicles for the Roof of Africa Rally. Exciting stuff - not only did we get to see some of the most exciting rallying in the world, but also recovered quite a few rolled cars and bikes from way down...

Absolutely - I remember the thread well. That's why I say your knowledge is not in dispute. Also conceded. I suspect Rob feels a bit skaam about that too!

LOL - you two are not so different. Intelligence and an ability to analyse other people's reasoning is a good complement to personal experience. Better in some ways, and of course not as good in others. But life would be hell if we had to learn every hard lesson through personal experience!

I was only ever a lurker on DWeb, but there was a very characteristic "feel" to the discussions on that site, that was totally different to the way things were discussed at ExPo. Suddenly we started getting a lot more of the confrontational style of argument here, and quite a bit of it was from...

Thom and Mike, thanks for the replies. Two points I should make - firstly, I was not at all belittling your experience - you guys know a lot more about many of aspects of automotive, off-road and "expedition" issues than I do, or Rob does. That said, it's probably also true that my experiences...

A vehicle-powered winch is easier and better in almost all cases. However, a come-along and good rigging can do everything a winch can (just more slowly, and with more effort), and it's more versatile. So IMO, if you're off somewhere remote with just one vehicle, a Tirfor or Highlift jack or...

Experience is only one way of acquiring knowledge. Rob may not have the same "expedition" experience as you, but he has a lot of firsthand knowledge of things automotive. Likewise, frankly, none of you (I mean the guys shouting Rob down for his lack of experience) have the same depth of...

I think we can all agree that simplicity is a virtue - but it's not the only virtue. Cars (and trucks) have got steadily more complex over the past 100 years, but undeniably better in almost all respects. One of the benefits of software control is that one can make incremental improvements to...

A full size shovel would be my choice - you need to be able to move a lot of material, and the shovel needs to be able to reach far under the truck. The one in the OP's pic (below) looks to me like it will break just where the shank meets the blade. The one in Antichrist's post (reposted...

Looks just about perfect for a Disco! :) As a matter of interest, I assume that in terms of towbar failure, you're not really worried about the tongue-weight per se, but rather the total mass of the trailer? Even so, I never had any concerns about my standard Discovery 1 towbars being too...

If you don't trust them for towing, then I'm not suprised you're scared to use them as a recovery point! Chalk and cheese...!

Mine was a very neat pintle too, that latched closed firmly with virtually no gap. It probably depends on the precise design whether it's a problem or not. It would be a pity to use a shackle - the big diameter pintle is much kinder to the strap than a shackle pin is.

Ah yes, the joys of putting chains on once you are actually stuck in the slick stuff! It's not a lot of fun taking the chains off again and stowing them after the muddy section either. There never seems to be a river just perfectly placed where the clay ends and the asphalt begins, with a nice...

If it's to be used as a recovery point, you'd have to make sure the receiver insert itself is well designed and doesn't rely unduly on the rear crossmember. Most tow hitch assemblies I've seen here in the UK (receiver types are very rare) are not ideal for recovery points. Oddly enough, they are...

I'm not a fan of using a single central point for recovery - a long bridle attached to two chassis mounts is far better IMO. My "nato-style" pintle, shown below, could rotate, or be locked in one position. There was never an issue with ropes or straps pulling over the (tiny) gap - but then I...