i think its all down to personal choice i like the series 3 the early defenders are normally a lot more expensive than the series. and i find parts are easy to get for the series 3 and are cheap. i also think that the series are better than the defenders as its a vehicle you have to drive if you know what i mean. a defender runs 4wd all the time and this can sometimes cause axel twist. where as a series in in 2 wd most of the time on tar and you can select 4wd when you need it and have a lot more fun playing in the mud in 2wd. also i love the steering in the old series 3 its what iv heard called predictive steering because you have to think about how and when you steer with no power steering it can be quite heavy at low speeds .
also i like the old series as they have a lot of personality everyone is different and takes getting used to espeshely the K gear box lol
iv had a few series 3s and a disco iv also driven a series 1 and 2 on and off road and the same with a defender and IMHO for fun and playing off road its a series 3 one of my old ones i used to off road every 2 weeks i had the original engine a 2 1/4 ltr diesel which i reconditioned and tuned and i could get round more of the tracks than the defenders discos and even the little Suzuki. but if your after a vehicle thats fun off road and comfy on the road and is quite cheap to buy and run i would say a mk1 or mk2 disco.
but like i say its all very much a personal thing with landrovers they are all good apart from the freelander
stuee
and then get a dawes when i am 20 something have a real job and then go for some really long tours
you cant beat em imho series 3 are the best
