Is the LR3 a Serious Off-Road Competitor?

[DRTYFN]

Originally Posted by Mooncricket

but then again most people would say that the Land Rovers are tippy and top heavy and I tend to think they kick ass on the trails. The LR3 just has way too much pretty plastic to mess up but I'm sure I'll be eating my words when one destroys me on the trails in my jeep someday....

But you also want to stick your foot in other guys' asses.

[HummBebe]

I have personally wheeled with the LR3's.

It was a desert run, and they did sustain some bumper damage. But I think if they had a few mods, ie tires and a rock rails etc, they would make a great wheeling vehicle.

They have traction control up the arse. A button for every type of terrain, and it will literally drive itself!

They are not rock buggy's, but neither is an H3.

[DRTYFN]

Originally Posted by HummBebe

I have personally wheeled with the LR3's.

It was a desert run, and they did sustain some bumper damage. But I think if they had a few mods, ie tires and a rock rails etc, they would make a great wheeling vehicle.

They have traction control up the arse. A button for every type of terrain, and it will literally drive itself!

They are not rock buggy's, but neither is an H3.

You're a girl. We don't care about your opinion. Don't you have housework to do?

[HummBebe]

I think you should take a trip to the mall.

[CO Hummer]

Originally Posted by HummBebe

I think you should take a trip to the mall.

He's into the singles scene at the arcades.

[Aubs]

Originally Posted by HummBebe

I have personally wheeled with the LR3's.

It was a desert run, and they did sustain some bumper damage. But I think if they had a few mods, ie tires and a rock rails etc, they would make a great wheeling vehicle.

They have traction control up the arse. A button for every type of terrain, and it will literally drive itself!

They are not rock buggy's, but neither is an H3.

I echo these thoughts in a way. I find that A/B/D angles are really important, but also the traction control systems play a huge part. I wheeled with a buddy that had a Cherokee, and basically he just gunned whatever he wanted to conquer. With TC, you can go at a nice, slow pace and let the vehicle do the work.

I do think the LR3 tires are not very well suited for off-road situations. But the Terrain Response system looks like it could be pretty amazing. And as for the tippy bit, Land Rover claims that the LR3 will do a 45 degree ascent drive through, and a 35 degree sustained side slope. Note that's degrees, not %. Also, the Hill Descent Control is pretty amazing (BMW has it, got it from LR) and it works very well when descending an icy slope anyway.

Actually, I shouldn't have spoken so quickly earlier. The approach angle matches the H3 (well, .3 off), the breakover beats the H3 over the head, but the departure angle is poor, probably because of the spare's location.

You do get 9.5 inches of clearance under the differentials and can do 27" of water. Actually the physical dimensions are very similar. Interestingly enough you have to add underbody protection to an H3 and an LR3 to get decent protection. The LR3 does offer something I haven't seen on one yet, a snorkel in the accessories picker. I wonder what kind of wading you can do then? There's no specs on it. Heck, there's even a cage for Shaggy:




Let's see, also we have a 4-corner independent air suspension (which is probably a problem spot for LR), and you get 7,700 lbs towing capacity. That's more than my H2! Curb weight is 5,700lbs.


Well, I think tomorrow I might just go drive one of these things. Just for the hell of it. Maybe they will let me take my H2 over the course too.

Wow, in May only 1,549 LR3's were sold. That's down 12.6% from last year.


Finally, LR says there is 10 inches front and 13 inches rear wheel travel. Is this a lot? I can't find the specs on the H3's travel. The DAKAR version has 20, but that doesn't even look like an H3 anymore..

[Aubs]

What, an LR3 actually doing something somewhat interesting?



http://www.flickr.com/photos/16177735@N00/?saved=1

[Aubs]

Aren't I nice, compiling all of this LR3 information?

Here are some vids. The water fording is actually pretty cool.

http://www.uae4x4.com/vids/lr3.htm

[Wisha Haddan H3]

Originally Posted by Aubs

Finally, LR says there is 10 inches front and 13 inches rear wheel travel. Is this a lot? I can't find the specs on the H3's travel. The DAKAR version has 20, but that doesn't even look like an H3 anymore..

Yeah, that's a lot ... leads the pack. By comparison:

2006 H1 Alpha - 9" fr, 9" rear
2006 H2 - 8.7" fr, 10.8 rear
2005 Grd Cherokee - 8.9" fr, 8.8" rear
2007 FJ Cruiser - 7.9" fr, 9.1" rear
2006 Liberty - 8" fr, 8" rear
2000 4runner - 7.9" fr, 6" rear
2005 Xterra - 7" fr, 10" rear
1995 Samurai - 5" fr, 6" rear

[Aubs]

So I went and drove the LR3 today. And it was a good driver, but nothing really exciting. It was way overpriced, and like two models on the lot of 30 had a rear locker. So essentially, unless I wanted the $60,000 model, I couldn't get a locker.

They claimed the LR3 would kill the H3 and H2, but I think that it's a bunch of hooey. It certainly can do a very impressive side slope (we did a 35 degree at the dealership), and the independent suspension works like a solid rear axle in that the air is transferred from one side to another so you get a similar effect.

However, impressive as the specs might be, the underbody is NOT armored in the least, and LR makes no factory parts to solve this problem. The exhaust is also in a position where you would probably pinch it shut as it is the lowest point on the vehicle for the most part.

The transfer case is tucked up inside the frame which I thought was nice. But I wouldn't get this vehicle. I think a Hummer would just beat it out any day. It's got to be modified with sliders and plates for one thing, and it's hard to even find the rear locker on one. It probably wouldn't climb a wall, and the bumper in the back sticks out way too far. As the salesman said to me (and this was probably a deal breaker in itself), "Well, at least it's not some cheap pickup truck that's been made heavier and called a Hummer." He continually pointed out how the H2 and H3 suck balls, and I was kinda pissed.Um, the tow hooks are hidden under plastic parts which you can easily remove, but I thought that was silly. Um, I don't want to write anymore. In the end, maybe the LR3 could keep up with a Hummer, but I think it would probably not be able to follow in the same path and survive for long.

[Michael1]

I've been doing a lot of shopping lately, and comparing features on true off-road vehicles. While the LR3 looks too pretty to be a formidable off-road vehicle, every test and report from the field has proven otherwise. Apparentley, Land Rover does know what they are doing with traction control and suspension systems. The words "unstoppable" are used over and over, which is pretty amazing considering it rides on 30" street tires. They also know how to build an SUV with a usable interior, meaning all the seats fold flat, and you've got a flat load space that's 6 feet long. You could easily sleep in this thing. They also have a tailgate so you can put even longer items in.

The underbody is very flat, with no protrusions to catch rocks. As was mentioned, the armour is limited. All the major pieces such as fuel tank, and transfer case are covered, but it is not the full cage available for the H3. LR does sell rock rails, and a HD front skid plate through their accessories catalog. The snorkel is not water tight, but prevents water from splashing into the engine intake while fording up to 27".

The air suspension is amazing. It lifts the truck 2" when you set the conditions control to one of the off-road settings. There are settings for mud, sand, ruts, and rocks. It adjusts the suspension height, locks the center and rear differentials, and adjusts the traction control and throttle. Now here is the amazing part. If the truck electronics detect that you are high sided. It will lift the truck another 1.5 inches so you can get free. If that isn't enough to get you free, you can manually adjust it up another 1.5 inches for a total of 3 inches! That's above the normal off-road ground clearance of 9.45 inches.

Even though it has independent front and rear suspension, LR cross links them so it becomes an "anti-roll bar". Motor Trend measured the RTI at 518, which is almost the same as the H3 they measured at 521. So much for requiring solid axles to get good RTI.

You don't need to spend $60K for a rear locker version either. It's a $625 option on all models including the V6 version which retails for $39K.

So where does the LR3 fall down compared to the H3? The crawl ratio for the LR3 is 45.6, compared to the H3's 68.9 with the manual transmission. Oh, and there is no manual transmission available (big minus for me!). The V6LR3 has about the same acceleration performance as the H3, but requires premium gas, and gets 2 miles per gallon poorer fuel economy. Also the seat adjusters are not as complete as the luxury version of the H3, and they eliminated the lumbar adjustment on the LR3 in 2006 for some strange reason with a side air bag redesign. I was able to get more comfortable in the H3, although the LR3 on-road ride is better and it is slightly quieter. With the factory accessories, the H3 is certainly better armored. The H3 is a better value, too, being about $8K less expensive for a comparable vehicle.

While there is a lot to like about the LR3 (nice things GM could copy), I would say if you are off-road, and had to get home again, I'd be in the H3.

Michael

[Aubs]

Originally Posted by Michael1

You don't need to spend $60K for a rear locker version either. It's a $625 option on all models including the V6 version which retails for $39K.

So where does the LR3 fall down compared to the H3? The crawl ratio for the LR3 is 45.6, compared to the H3's 68.9 with the manual transmission. Oh, and there is no manual transmission available (big minus for me!). The V6LR3 has about the same acceleration performance as the H3, but requires premium gas, and gets 2 miles per gallon poorer fuel economy. Also the seat adjusters are not as complete as the luxury version of the H3, and they eliminated the lumbar adjustment on the LR3 in 2006 for some strange reason with a side air bag redesign. I was able to get more comfortable in the H3, although the LR3 on-road ride is better and it is slightly quieter. With the factory accessories, the H3 is certainly better armored. The H3 is a better value, too, being about $8K less expensive for a comparable vehicle.

While there is a lot to like about the LR3 (nice things GM could copy), I would say if you are off-road, and had to get home again, I'd be in the H3.

Michael

I found that I couldn't find anything in stock that had the rear locker that wasn't an SE or HSE, so that's why the high price. Theoretically, it's cheap enough, but it's not really on the base models. They just do not order/build these cars for people looking to beat them up. I mean, the catalog is essentially worthless, and the H3 catalog makes the LR3 catalog look like just pretty eye candy. I think that the LR3 could do alright, but there's no way I'd buy one to find out. I haven't seen enough evidence that makes me believe it will be what I'd like, especially for the price.

I still think the exhaust is way too exposed, and there are these little metal fins on the rear suspension to hide the exhaust, perfect for getting hung up on.

Additionally, I think the H3 is a much, much better value. You can get one, loaded with Nav, brushguards, upgraded armor, off-road lights, roof crossbows, and whatever else you might want for less than most LR3's. That's kind of biased I guess, because with the LR3 you get better acceleration, cornering, safety, room, etc. but as a pure off-roader that's acceptable on-road, the H3 is definately the better choice. On-road, the LR3 is a much better performer. I threw this one I drove into a hard corner, and could feel the cornering brake system come on and stop it from rolling. It was pretty cool. Not sure I'd do that in the H3.

I do like the folding flat seats, and the third row WILL ACTUALLY ACCOMODATE TWO ADULT HUMANS, who can sit normally, with legroom and cupholders. That is awesome in my opinion. And LR makes a lot better use of the size. The LR3 is near the size of my H2, but has drastically better storage, visibility, and versatility. The Nav system is fun because it shows you the position of the front tires, which I can see being helpful off-road. I'm always hanging out trying to figure out how they're turned.

I wish they would have let me borrow it this weekend, I could have taken it out and really driven it properly. LR is not concerned with selling this to people like us, so they really don't demonstrate the abilities too well. The test track is a sideslope and some cobbles. I still have mixed thoughts on this thing. I don't think I'd be happy with it in all honesty. It's maybe more practical than the H3, but off-road I might be taking the bypass.

As far as the armor, I couldn't find any skid plates in the US catalog, and there are sliders, but they're not for off-roading. They're about 3 inches in diameter, and they come in black or CHROME, and would probably do nothing to protect your sills. The chrome says it all.

[BlueTJCO]

Originally Posted by DRTYFN

But you also want to stick your foot in other guys' asses.

...

[DRTYFN]

Originally Posted by Mooncricket

...

Fine. Here's your favorite kind of fetish pr0n.
***EXTREMELY NWS***
http://www.elcovaforums.com/forums/s...232#post256232