Best Landie For Infrequent Use Overseas?

Hello - Sorry if this isn't in the spirit of the forum, but I figured it would be the most knowledgeable place to ask.

I split my time between Canada and South Africa (Cape Town), spending ~2 months a year in the latter. Right now I have a higher mileage 2003 BMW 525i which my wife is losing confidence in, and both of us have always wanted a Land Rover and think South Africa is the place to own one rather than Vancouver. We will use it mostly for city driving (sorry!) with some gravel roads and a bit of camping but nothing serious.

The issue is that since we are only here 2 months a year, the car will sit on a battery tender in a garage for long periods of time. I also haven't owned a Land Rover before, though I have a long history of oddball, "not worth the trouble" cars that all forums warn you against (old Bentley, V12 Merc, W116, 924T, etc etc) and I do all my own maintenance.

I'd be open to a late Disco II, LR3, LR4, Freelander, LR2 or 1st gen RR Sport..
There seems to be a trade off between old school simplicity (Disco) and reliability (LR4) but I'm wondering if there is a sweet spot somewhere. Also, petrol vs diesel?

When we aren't around, a family member will typically drive the cars for one day a month to keep them from degrading, though we've noticed the E39 suffers way more from sitting than the W116...