It’s the age old question - how much does it cost to buy a Land Rover...
This is a question we get often get asked and understand why, there are so many different prices for these cars online so what are they really worth? How much do you actually need to spend to own one?
Quick disclaimer: we didn’t know anything about Defenders when we bought ours and still have no idea if what we paid was a fair price or not. But what we do know is that despite the price, the adventures we’ve had and lessons we’ve learnt along the way were worth every penny. Sometimes you just have to dive head first and figure it out along the way right? 😅
Firstly, a quick search on eBay shows that you can pick up a Land Rover Defender 110 with a 300TDI engine (which is what we’ve got) in the UK for anywhere from about £7000 to more than £60,000! Like everything, the price you pay will change depending on the condition of the Land Rover, its service history, mileage, accessories, the list goes on. And don’t forget that the value of these (almost classic) trucks keeps going up, so what we paid 2 years ago might not get you as much for your money as what you’d pay today, or in 2 years time…
Another thing that can affect the price you pay is how good you are at either spotting issues with the truck before you buy it, and how good you are at haggling and agreeing on a price.
So really, asking how much we paid for a Land Rover is like that classic saying 'how much would you pay for a piece of string'...
Maybe we should have done more research before buying ours and maybe we should have asked a Land Rover mechanic to come with us to the viewing to see if we were buying a lemon, but ultimately we ended up with what we wanted, and no matter how much you pay, we’re willing to bet that if it’s got a Land Rover badge on the front, you’ll still end up on the side of the road with the bonnet up!
It's funny, we don’t fear the break downs anymore… we know they’re coming, so we just enjoy the drive and remind ourselves that some of our funniest moments with the Land Rover happened when we were stranded in random towns or covered in oil trying to figure out how to swap a head-gasket in a field.
So, how much did we pay?
We know everyone’s going to keep asking for the exact price, so here’s what we bought, and how much we paid. The eBay listing was pretty simple, a couple of photos and a list of what was included:
- 1997 300TDI County Station Wagon
- 30,000 miles on the clock*
- Long MOT
- Galvanised chassis
- New bulk head + TDCI doors with no rust
- Winch bumper and winch (we sold it soon after…)
- Other accessories like a roof rack, snorkel, and diesel heater
*We’re not 100% sure how genuine this is - there’s a “Turners Engineering” sticker on the block and the engine is from a Discovery, but it didn’t come with much of a service history, and the engine’s needed a fair amount of love and attention since we bought it…
In total, we paid £17,000, but this didn’t include insurance, road tax, and the cost of the camper build and accessories we’ve added since. We also chose to go for finance so we pay it monthly over three years. We know this option isn't for everyone but we honestly just know we aren't the best at saving so this works so well for us and we could enjoy it while paying it off (about £250 a month each😊)
There might have been plenty of cheaper Land Rovers available at the time, but in truth, even though it was a lot of money, we were confident it had no rust, and we hopefully won’t need to worry about rust for several years. As a wise man once said, “the mechanical issues can be fixed with a spanner, but it’s the rust that’s the killer”.
Knowing what we know now, would we buy the same Defender?
Yes! It’s taught us so many mechanical skills, and taken us to some incredible destinations. We’ve got so many memories from our adventures, and even more stories from times we’ve broken down.
So regardless of how much we paid, we know that owning and maintaining one of these trucks is an adventure in itself, but one we'll never forget 🥰
Are you thinking of buying your own Land Rover Defender or overland vehicle? If you have any questions, let us know in the comments section below!
