Land Cruiser or Land Rover (or Forester XT)?

I am a little sick of my DD 2003 WRX Wagon, its not optioned up and its a little small for a daily driver.   Phase next is gonna involve a luxury SUV, I have never owned one.  Looking to sell the WRX this spring and get something maybe needing a little work for a winter rig, putting it into service around November 1.  

Things I dont need are towing ability (don't tow anything anyway and if I needed to I have a Powerstroke F250 in the garage) or good gas mileage, I have already resigned myself to the fact that I will never own a car that gets over 20 MPG.  Things I do need are dead nuts reliability for at least 5 months, I can always drive my F250 in the winter but its so nice it would be a stop gap while I wrench on my DD.  

Possible high on the list rigs are Land Rover Discoverys (they are all over for $3500 and down) or Land Cruisers or more likely the LX470 variant as they seem to be cheaper and more available.

The outlier would be a Forester XT 07 and down, the boxy ones. - I really like the idea but they are tough to find in a manual trans without paying the bro tax.  Swapping in a manual is not as easy/cheap as the interwebs would lead you to believe.

So talk me up, talk me down, what are the potential pitfalls to a Discovery and why should I definitely seek out a Land Cruiser.  

https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/grm/somebody-slap-some-sense-into-me-i-cant-stop-looking-at-land-rover-discoveries/103853/page1/

I'm swapping out the snows for my all-terrains on my LX470 today.  So, you know what I'd suggest.

LX470 isn't in your budget. A LX450 is. Both the Rover and LX will get 15-16 and require premium and only the very early Rovers have a manual option. THe Subaru will get better mpg than your WRX, likely close to 30 mpg.  For day to day reliability, the Subi will won, of those 3. The LX will last forever. The Disos is best off-road but reliability can be good, or bad depending on the truck and previous owners. Why not a Volvo X/C or R? Loads of others too, like CRV or RAV4??

Budget is really irrelevant, I could go up to 15k but not on a Disco or a Forester XT.  I would be surprised a turbo Forester with the bigger motor doing better than a WRX,why do you say that?  My WRX gets 22 to 25 mpg on premium which is brutal for a car of that size.

The CRV or RAV4 is too small and crappy, I would just keep my WRX.  Not super hot on the Volvo, the engine bays look awfully cramped and the exterior looks are only OK.

Doc, what's the learn me on the LX470? I got the hots for one.

4Runner Limited would be my choice in the kind of thing it sounds like you're looking for.

My neighbor had a Disco, and frequently asked me for help fixing things. Out of all of those times he asked, none of the fixes were either cheap, easy, or "went as planned." They are lovely to look at, but they are near the bottom of the list of "SUVs I'd ever own myself."

Budget alternative in the Luxury SUV class: 05-07 Sequoia. Cavernous, silent inside, had decent luxury, endlessly reliable, and they don't get the "cool" tax that the Land Cruiser and 4Runner get, so are cheaper for basically the same equipment.

LX470 is a Lexus V8 4Runner with more headroom. They're pretty rad for what you can get em for (8k for decent around here), assuming you actually want the ground clearance and 4wd. If you dont care about the ground clearance and 4wd, the Lexus GS you can get for the same money is better in a lot of ways, in my opinion. 

In reply to Vigo :

You are thinking the GX470. The LX series is the landcruiser twin. 

The XT is a lifted WRX with all of the good and bad involved. I really think you are trading for the same car..What do you need a SUV for? If you aren't towing and don't need 4X4 then there are a ton of ideas that aren't SUVs. 

In reply to John Welsh :

Pretty much. I love mine...as a farm truck. NFW I’d DD it. And looking at CL makes me cry a little for the owners who just didn’t know when to stop the bleeding. 

Lol a dead nuts reliable Land Rover luxury suv. Not gonna happen.

GX470 if you want the 4Runner sized SUV but with a V8. Or Land Cruiser.

smokindav said:

GX470 if you want the 4Runner sized SUV but with a V8. 

Or....a V8 4Runner, which were made for the entire 4th generation (02-09) in both 4WD and 2WD versions....

You are thinking the GX470. The LX series is the landcruiser twin. 

Doh, youre right. Had them on the brain from another thread.

Grand Cherokee.  

I would go with the Lexus. Why even consider an XT when you already have almost the same vehicle that handles better than the XT? 

3rd gen montero, interior is really nice on the 20th anniversary edition all leather etc, go anywhere capability, can seat 7 if you need to 2003+ I think got more reliable engines and transmissions got an extra gear.

I like Land Cruisers better mind you but the premium for them over a montero is a lot. I ended up getting a mercedes to replace my montero because only mercedes/lexus interiors felt as nice to me

irish44j said:

smokindav said:

GX470 if you want the 4Runner sized SUV but with a V8. 

Or....a V8 4Runner, which were made for the entire 4th generation (02-09) in both 4WD and 2WD versions....

I know. But not as lux as the Lexus so I tried to avoid the 4Runner V8 topic.

4 Runner would be fine as long as it is optioned out (leather, sunroof, heated seats are the biggies)  LX470 is really pushing most of the buttons for me right now, but who knows, gotta sell the WRX first.  

I would prefer something in the SUV/4x4 class as it is my winter car and I love 4x4 for snow.  I know a good RWD or FWD on snows is all you need 99% of the time in southeastern Wisconsin, but the boy scout in me always says "Be Prepared".  

The only reason I don't like the WRX is its not optioned out and not a nice place to commute.  No external temp display, which sounds super petty but really bothers me, no heated seats, no sunroof, crappy stereo.  Its a fine winter pounder/commuter but not really what I desire.    I only bought it because I got it dirty cheap with driveline issues.  I always wanted a Forester.  

The Forester XT seems like it would be just as fun as the WRX if I can get a manual trans, but would have sunroof and a premium interior, which is all I really want.

How are the LX470s on doodads and whoosits - i dont need a ton of stuff to break.

I know it's not on your list but again I did a 45+ minute commute everyday in my montero the sound system was great for a stock one, heated leather seats, surprisingly good brakes, very effective auto climate control I only sold it because I needed more mpg's

2003 Montero 20th is like 5-9k depending on what you find, same year Land Cruiser is abour 12-15k 

If you want a WRX with a nicer interior then a Forester XT will absolutely punch that ticket

I see you’re nearby. I just moved here (Williams Bay) - seems like a lot of good car stuff happening. Do you have any favorites? I plan to do track days at RA and Black hawk, autocross (I assume this happens in Milwaukee?) and check out cruise nights, shows and drag racing at union grove. If you know of any chump at teams that need a member let me know. 

Also, I think we’d get along just fine as I’ve owned two 1g Eclipse GSXs, a 1 g talon tsi awd and of course a Galant VR-4. 

In reply to smokindav :

Rgr. I know some people forget the 4Runner had the V8 for that one generation...since all other generatios have just had the 4-banger and V6.

I guess maybe it depends on what the definition of "luxury" is anyhow. Does it mean heated leather seats? Premium audio system? Or does it just mean faux wood trim on the dashboard? Not sure if the OP wants a "true luxury" SUV (i.e. Escalade-type thing) or just a "not Jeep" type of thing. 

Honestly the thing that has come to mean luxury to me more than anything is quietness, ride quality, and seat comfort. The biggest difference between my benz and my buddies WRX had to do with road noise/cabin noise. My Benz is a good 10-15 decibels quieter on the highway

My wife DDs our Gen3 Montero Limited and she loves it (I like it a lot too.) 

For me, it has been a lot of capability for a cheap price. For her it has been a cheap way to look like the cool kids. 

https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/build-projects-and-project-cars/the-sumo-wrestler-01-mitsu-montero-limited/130334/page1/

if you want a rover. Spend a little more and get an LR3 or 4. Both are better vehicles all around than the Disco, just as capable, but with better on road manners

Jaynen said:

Honestly the thing that has come to mean luxury to me more than anything is quietness, ride quality, and seat comfort. The biggest difference between my benz and my buddies WRX had to do with road noise/cabin noise. My Benz is a good 10-15 decibels quieter on the highway

I hear you. My DD is a WRX with SPT catback. My tow pig is a Sequoia, which is completely silent inside even at high highway speeds....no tire noise, no wind noise (even from my big rack with lights on it)....so well-insulated it's amazing.

In reply to mad_machine :

Land Rover LR3 engine reliability is still dismal - the classifieds are littered with cheap ones with engine issues. As much as I’d love one that’s a mountain too high to climb. Better to stick with what’s already been suggested and stay away. 

There’s a Land Rover thread somewhere around here that goes in to greater detail about how great the 4x4 system is and how bad everything else is, sadly.

https://classicmotorsports.com/forum/grm/can-we-talk-about-the-lr3/137683/page1/