Acquired one of Gaydons Best.

[otherclive]

A lady was turning her Defender near our drive and it just stopped showing a low battery warning. Assistance via jump leads did not work so she’s now awaiting RAC who forecast mid afternoon. She’s planning on getting rid of it as it’s been so troublesome despite being a nice car to drive. What you cannot see in the photo is the next door neighbours Juke which again awaited a long time for RAC attendance and it could not be fixed. My daughter and granddaughter also had long waits for RAC attendance, the latter whilst in darkest west wales countryside.

 

[RogerL]

None of JLR's products ever make my long list for a car replacement, let alone the short list - despite getting the Family discount - as the former site manager at Gaydon my brother-in-law has remained faithful but then he gets a new car every 6 months on the retiree scheme.

 

[birdman101]

Bought a brand new Discovery and had a new gearbox after 6 days as kept jumping out of gear. Then the new gearbox only lasted 32000 miles before self destructing. Hence another new gearbox and we had to pay for that one as a couple of months out of warranty. Worst new motor we ever bought.

 

[GUMPY]

They went downhill after the Series 2A 😉

 

[otherclive]

Bought a brand new Discovery and had a new gearbox after 6 days as kept jumping out of gear. Then the new gearbox only lasted 32000 miles before self destructing. Hence another new gearbox and we had to pay for that one as a couple of months out of warranty. Worst new motor we ever bought.

We had Disco 2 that suffered raft of engine and suspension problems. Wife sold it when I was working in Oz, and we bought one of the first Generation 1 Kia Sorentos in Wiltshire. In six years never visited the dealer apart from servicing. Just like our current 2017 Kia Rio.

The Defender is still stuck at the end of our drive and no RAC has yet been.

 

[borderbilly]

I wouldn't give one to my worst enemy. Read recently the Chinese version is not far behind them with there Temu range Rover.

 

[birdman101]

Did the same rid of Discovery and then Sorento, trouble free, and then Santa Fe again trouble free. Now Kuga as I wanted one of the last ones with a torque convertor and 8 speed box, and Kia and Hyundai had stopped fitting them for their new autos

 

[otherclive]

RAC now estimating 11pm this evening. What a debacle for a mother and daughter. Fortunately they were visiting friends in our close so have somewhere to roost.

 

[Kevin M]

We had a 300tdi Disco, good tug at slow speeds but suspension was too soft and the engine lacked power to tow at decent speeds, could easily tow 3t.
We got rid of ours at 3 y/o when the alarm started playing up, indie dealer said it’s a common fault and expensive to fix - went on the Shogun Trail after that.

 

[otherclive]

We had a 300tdi Disco, good tug at slow speeds but suspension was too soft and the engine lacked power to tow at decent speeds, could easily tow 3t.
We got rid of ours at 3 y/o when the alarm started playing up, indie dealer said it’s a common fault and expensive to fix - went on the Shogun Trail after that.

The lady who owns this Defender got a lift home to collect its paperwork and has been in to Halfords to buy new registration plates so she can remove her personal plates tomorrow and start to send it in its way.

When I had my SWB Pajero I was an honorary member of Bristol LR Owners Club. The joke was they needed a reliable and capable recovery vehicle on the off roading trips.

 

[Buckman]

RAC now estimating 11pm this evening. What a debacle for a mother and daughter. Fortunately they were visiting friends in our close so have somewhere to roost.

Woman alone is normally supposed to be a priority call? Not a good reference for RAC. When our 2012 Jeep broke down, it took Green Flag 5 hours to attend as no flat bed available. Probably the same issue with the lady as they cannot tow 4x4s or AWD vehicles.

 

[otherclive]

Woman alone is normally supposed to be a priority call? Not a good reference for RAC. When our 2012 Jeep broke down, it took Green Flag 5 hours to attend as no flat bed available. Probably the same issue with the lady as they cannot tow 4x4s or AWD vehicles.

Well my granddaughter aged 20 was left for several hours in a remote area near Llandovery. At least this lady is in a populated close with friends who live there. But the wait is astonishing. The Defender is just out of warranty. There was an article in a weekend paper where an elderly cancer patient and his wife had to get transported home and the RAC attended the hospital next day.

 

[Danddandy]

None of JLR's products ever make my long list for a car replacement, let alone the short list - despite getting the Family discount - as the former site manager at Gaydon my brother-in-law has remained faithful but then he gets a new car every 6 months on the retiree scheme.

I'm a big Land Rover (Discovery) fan. . 2 second hand. . 3 new. . Great tow cars. . Comfortable, big boots. . Air suspension, adjustable to aid hitch up. . Yes , everybody else who owns one has reliability problems. . . A bit like caravans. . Even a Rolls Royce "fails to proceed" on occasions. .

 

[RogerL]

I'm a big Land Rover (Discovery) fan. . 2 second hand. . 3 new. . Great tow cars. . Comfortable, big boots. . Air suspension, adjustable to aid hitch up. . Yes , everybody else who owns one has reliability problems. . . A bit like caravans. . Even a Rolls Royce "fails to proceed" on occasions. .

None of those attributes are unique to LR - my Touareg's got them all and more - and no reliability issues.

 

[birdman101]

There has been a saying for years that to own a Landrover you need deep pockets. When in my working days our MD had a 300TDI as a company car and at 40,000 miles had a new gearbox and again at 80,000 had another as the splines stripped. When it turned the 100,000 it went to Auction.

 

[Buckman]

There has been a saying for years that to own a Landrover you need deep pockets. When in my working days our MD had a 300TDI as a company car and at 40,000 miles had a new gearbox and again at 80,000 had another as the splines stripped. When it turned the 100,000 it went to Auction.

Where my son worked, they use Landrover Defenders for genuine bush off track work in Africa. They spent more time in the workshops being repaired than on the road. They now have a fleet of the proper Landcruisers and not the style of Chelsea tractor you see in the UK. Similar to the picture, but no top.

 

[otherclive]

Where my son worked, they use Landrover Defenders for genuine bush off track work in Africa. They spent more time in the workshops being repaired than on the road. They now have a fleet of the proper Landcruisers and not the style of Chelsea tractor you see in the UK. Similar to the picture, but no top.

View attachment 9874

You have clearly not been keeping up to date with Landcruiser developments and the new version has moved away from the recent softie looking ones. Not cheap, not as refined as JLR products but I wouldn’t say “No”if offered one.

Toyota's indestructible Land Cruiser is now a £78k Defender rival - but is it all over for the Rover? | Autocar

Rejuvenated icon promises better on-road manners without compromising off-road capability

www.autocar.co.uk

 

[Buckman]

You have clearly not been keeping up to date with Landcruiser developments and the new version has moved away from the recent softie looking ones. Not cheap, not as refined as JLR products but I wouldn’t say “No”if offered one.

Toyota's indestructible Land Cruiser is now a £78k Defender rival - but is it all over for the Rover? | Autocar

Rejuvenated icon promises better on-road manners without compromising off-road capability

www.autocar.co.uk

Hopefully they have improved on the software, but some how I doubt it.

 

[Hutch]

My son is very happy with his Defender, glad the battery didn't go flat where he was last week in the south West of France.

 

[Hutch]

I carry one of these in the car, a nice powerful unit. As well as a set of conventional jump leads

 

[Buckman]

With any car I think it depends on how well you look after it and how often it is serviced. What is the point of buying a top of the Range Rover etc, but then not being able to afford to service it regularly?

Many years ago we did look at Range Rovers, but it was difficult finding one with a compete dealer service history and within our budget at the time. We were looking at 8-10 year old vehicles. We then opted for a 1997 Toyota Surf 4x4 which we had for many years with no issues.

 

[birdman101]

The Disco we had,as said previously gearbox replaced after 6 days and then as I towed caravan had all lubricants changed every 5,000 miles and the gearbox then only lasted just a few miles over 30,000 miles and had actually been well over serviced.My neighbour worked for Electricity board and they had Defenders with the same gearbox and told me they were always having problems with them.

 

[otherclive]

My son is very happy with his Defender, glad the battery didn't go flat where he was last week in the south West of France.
View attachment 9876

Still in warranty and covered by Land Rover recovery.

Our “blockage” was removed between 5pm and 8pm but haven’t heard what the problem was.

 

[otherclive]

With any car I think it depends on how well you look after it and how often it is serviced. What is the point of buying a top of the Range Rover etc, but then not being able to afford to service it regularly?

Many years ago we did look at Range Rovers, but it was difficult finding one with a compete dealer service history and within our budget at the time. We were looking at 8-10 year old vehicles. We then opted for a 1997 Toyota Surf 4x4 which we had for many years with no issues.

I really cannot agree with that point of view. My Disco 2,was serviced fully in accordance with JLRs requirements and looked after and driven no differently to other cars before or afterwards. It was an out and out dog. If what you say were correct how come there are reliability indices that show some marques and models
poles apart in reliability?