Defender 130

[Bobzdar]

Just picked up a 130, trading in my Jeep Gladiator Rubicon. The Rubicon was great, very rugged off road and could tow and haul what I needed, though right at it's limits. However, we just got a 2nd dog, my mother is moving next door, and with 2 kids getting close to their teens, we just needed more room so I started looking at 3 row SUV's. The Defender 130 and Grand Cherokee L were the two smallest 3 row SUV's out there with any decent off roading chops, and the Defender has a ton more towing (well, half ton, 8200lbs vs 7200lbs) and payload capacity - and I can use both - and there's no trailhawk version of the grand cherokee L, so Defender it was. I got a 'first edition' (who cares on that, but it came standard with a bunch of stuff) with tow pack and off-road pack, which were my two must-haves. I'd like to add the explorer pack but apparently the parts are in short supply, so I told the dealer to let me know when they could get them (as that's an 'accessory pack' so doesn't need to be built with it). They are saying it could be years for some parts, so not holding my breath.

I will be taking it on a rough winter trip in February that will give me a direct comparison to my past two Jeeps as I traded a JL unlimited rubicon for the gladiator. Depending on weather, lockers and winches are usually necessary, so we'll see how the Defender does. I may swap tires before hand as the 'off road' tires it comes with look pretty anemic compared to the Falkens or BFG's the Jeeps had. If anyone has any questions, happy to answer.

Fwiw, I also have a series III 109, so if you're going to ask why I didn't just get an old one, I already have one (and you've probably never tried to take an old one on an actual road trip).

 

[ChasingOurTrunks]

Can't wait to hear how you like it! I didn't realize the 130s were on the market already and genuinely thought you must be referring to the old Defender pickup, but the wagon does have some impressive specs.

In particular I'd be curious if it feels "big" to drive given the extra bit of room at the back.

 

[JackW]

You won't regret having the extra space in the back compared to the standard 110. I have the 110 and while it's plenty of space for my needs (except when the wife is packing for any kind of a trip). Since it's basically the same chassis with a bigger boot area it will drive the same as the 110 with an extra foot of rear overhang. The Wrangler off road tires aren't great - I've put on a set of BFG AT's to replace them and it seems much better. I just finished a 600 mile run down to Florida and back to pick up a new puppy and the Land Rover is an exceptional road trip truck.

 

[Bobzdar]

You won't regret having the extra space in the back compared to the standard 110. I have the 110 and while it's plenty of space for my needs (except when the wife is packing for any kind of a trip). Since it's basically the same chassis with a bigger boot area it will drive the same as the 110 with an extra foot of rear overhang. The Wrangler off road tires aren't great - I've put on a set of BFG AT's to replace them and it seems much better. I just finished a 600 mile run down to Florida and back to pick up a new puppy and the Land Rover is an exceptional road trip truck.

Yeah, the 3rd row seat is the only reason I considered it. I sat in it to make sure it was actually usable and it was surprisingly roomy back there. The 2nd row seats have sliders so you can make room where it's needed. Ingress and egress isn't minivan good, so I probably won't be asking my 70 year old mom to get back there but for most adults it's easy.

One thing I didn't like is the lack of power ports. There aren't any in the back 2 rows, it's either an option or the supply chain issues caused them to be deleted as there are 4 blank offs in the 2nd row where they should be. There's a 110 outlet in the cargo area that could be used by the 3rd row passengers, but seems like a major oversight in this day and age to not have USB or 12v ports.

I have the 20" rims so there don't appear to be a ton of choices, looks like duratracs are the best bet in factory size. Not sure if I can go bigger on the tires, maybe that's an option to get more selection.

 

[JackW]

There was a post on Defender2.net that said there is a shortage on the USB ports but they can be installed later at the dealer when they become available.

I had a diesel 2017 Discovery 5 with the third row seats and they were surprisingly comfortable and usable by adult sized humans and large dogs. The suspension calibration on the new Defender is very much improved over the D5 - lots more controlled over rough surfaces like gravel roads. The 110 is my twentieth Land Rover over the last fifty years and it's rapidly become one of my favorites. I'm one year older than your mom and I had no trouble getting into the third row seats of the Discovery.

 

[SkiWill]

I am in the same situation except three smaller kids, so it's basically Defender or Grand Cherokee L if I give up my LR4. The only thing I don't like about the LR4 is the lack of range and high fuel consumption. Otherwise it's a fantastically useful vehicle.

Please post some thoughts after trips and let us know your thoughts. While many people bemoan the complexity of the new Defender, very few actually use one and even fewer actually go further than maybe a camping trip in the western US. I probably wouldn't take a new Defender on a 3 continent expedition, but that is a minuscule use case. What I do is haul a bunch of kids and dog around remote parts of Utah, Wyoming, Idaho, etc, so a vehicle needs a lot of payload, safely cruise at 80 mph (our posted speed limits but most are doing 90), and strong off road performance. Sounds like pretty much the exact same you thing you do, so I'm very curious about your thoughts.

 

[Bobzdar]

Were taking a camping trip over new years, so I'll have some more thoughts after that. We're only going an hour and a half away, but will be loaded up and towing a camper, so should be a good first trip.

Here's a comparison pic with my Rubicon, which I'm now reconsidering trading in . I have the d130 set to max height for the the pic.

 

[NorthwestDriver]

I hope the Defender volume picks up enough to justify a modern D130 pickup. Sign me up!

The third row in my LR3 is pretty good for adults as well. The cargo area of the 110 is surprisingly small, that was the biggest surprise when comparing it to my LR3. I think the 130 would fit my wants and needs better than the 110. As some have said, the new Defender is the best Discovery LR has ever made! Enjoy.

 

[JackW]

For a family truckster the 130 would be the right choice - more room in the back and not really much more overhang than an LR3/4. We took my 110 on a camping trip last spring and a friend of mine slept in the back of the 110. It was a little short for someone around 6' tall - the extra length of the 130 would be much better if you plan to sleep in the back and are over 5'8". The LR3 and D5 have more room than the 110.

 

[DFNDER]

You can go with 275/55R20’s without mods. Lots of people on the various forums can attest. LR even includes a 275/55/20 tire in the recommended winter tire list in the iguide.

The GY Adventures get a lot of flak for being weak walled, but they are road biased AT’s and actually handle very nicely in pavement. Just don’t air them down at all off road (except on a beach) and they do pretty well. I’ve taken them on some very rocky terrain and aired up a heavy load they did great. I am going to move to Falkens after they wear out though. I’m staying away from the vaunted KO2’s after seeing how terrible they are on wet pavement.

 

[ChasingOurTrunks]

I'm curious if folks are aware of aftermarket bumpers or skids that help with the rear overhang? I know with some mid-size trucks there are wrap-around rear bumpers that protect that part of the box - does such a thing exist for the 130 yet?

 

[Bobzdar]

I'm curious if folks are aware of aftermarket bumpers or skids that help with the rear overhang? I know with some mid-size trucks there are wrap-around rear bumpers that protect that part of the box - does such a thing exist for the 130 yet?

I stopped by Sarek last week and they will be able to make them and showed me what they'd change compared to their 110 setup (including muffler) - the trailer hitch would be the low part. It will likely be in the $5k range, but I'm dropping the d130 off with them next week to look at some software activations and will have them get me an estimate on a rear bumper.

That said, I'm used to off-roading the gladiator which has even more rear overhang, so in actual use it probably won't be a big issue for me. The Gladiator does have things nicely tucked in underneath along with rock sliders on the sides while the LR has a bit more exposed, but breakover and departure angle on the 130 is better and it has .5" more ground clearance in off-road height.