Thread: Defender Puma 2.2 - voice your issues

Probably going to jinx myself here but have done almost 9000km since I got the new 110 at the end of Sept last year with no issues. Done a combination of city and country driving and some off road.

Something that has been said often enough, but worth repeating...

There is nothing inherently 'wrong" or "weak" on new Defenders!

My car is a 2010 Defender 90 and in the 4 years and 9 months I have owned it from new, I have had the following issues and events:

1. One month in (May 2010) a spade plug on the immobilizer worked loose and I had to be talked through the issue over the phone - fixed with no need to go to the dealer.
2. July 2014 I broke the front diff - wrong line off road and shock loaded the RHS front wheel causing the diff carrier pin to snap. My fault completely and nothing to do with "weak" diffs!

And that's it...! I have a minor leak onto the driver's side seat belt roll which is a touch annoying, but not a show stopper.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with my MT82's output/ adapter shaft (see previous posts), but my local Land Rover dealer will fit my new Ashcroft shaft as preventative maintenance (they are actually dead keen to have a go at it) and I'll keep my old shaft to help out someone who might have future issues. While the TC's out they will also replace some shims that will will remove any hint of lash (their commitment on the issue).

Again, that's it...!

So yes, there are the ODD Tdci Defender out there with issues, but so does every other brand and in significantly larger numbers. Don't kid yourself with "bulletproof" Toyotas and Nissans. They all have long lists of known issues on their current models and they are nowhere near interested in warranty repairs of many of those.

Southern Land Rover (Perth) is our club's main sponsor and I can drive over and have a coffee with the service manager (as I did yesterday) and discuss all and everything associated with my car. They take a real interest and provide spectacular and cost effective service for all Defenders, especially those outside warranty. Try that with any other brand of vehicle...

My car has seen extensive off road use and is my daily driver, and this 90 is by an absolute country mile the best of my 5 Defenders I've owned over the past 20 odd years.

I've for a few moments considered upgrading to a 2015 model, but my current 90 is loved like a family pet and trading it in at this stage would literally be like trading in your 5 year old dog for a new one - unimaginable!

Cheers,

Lou

Keeping things in perspective the adapter shaft is the only thing gone wrong in my TDCi,mines done the Canning up to Lake Disappointment,Talawana,Kidson,Gary Junction,Gary,Connie Sue,first 100k's of the Anne Beadell from Neal Junction,Great Central,Gibb River and many smaller trips around the Pilbara and Kangaroo Island in South Australia,the North Coast and Southern Forests and crossed Australia 4 times,many times towing my camper.My vehicle is still stock,no rattles,leaks or bits falling off and it goes better know than ever before and gets sub 12ltres per 100 towing sitting on the speed limit. Pat

Originally Posted by 51mondays

Just found this article on ford transit reliability - the van has come first for a couple of years in a LARGE survey of UK fleet companies. Good vote for the puma. (Planning on getting a new one and was feeling a little nervous)

Ford Transit crowned most reliable van | Fleet News

Problems with electronics is very common with many here in Aus,most are well over 5yrs old.The issues are that bad,Ford,or anyone for that matter, has struggled to repair them.

Originally Posted by Loubrey

There is absolutely nothing wrong with my MT82's output/ adapter shaft (see previous posts), but my local Land Rover dealer will fit my new Ashcroft shaft as preventative maintenance (they are actually dead keen to have a go at it) and I'll keep my old shaft to help out someone who might have future issues. While the TC's out they will also replace some shims that will will remove any hint of lash (their commitment on the issue).

If you don't mind me asking how much are they charging to do the changeover.

About $900 or so at dealer prices to do it with a genuine shaft,it's not a hard job at all with a hoist. Pat

Hi loneranger,

As Pat said for the actual work, but I'm having it done in conjunction with a service and I'm going to need new oil in the gearbox and transfer case. The shaft and female/ female connector are both genuine OEM parts (in original packaging) that's just been modified to lubricate the joint. The third part in the kit is the new cover that's custom made to contain the gearbox oil that will now "leak" into the joint and serve as the new output shaft seal. The mod will only ad about 5 minutes to a standard install.

Southern's are doing it for me so I'm still getting the 10% off the bottom line as club discount for TeamW4 membership.

Cheers,

Lou

I need convincing. I have a hold on a new 110..........after 3 test drives...........I love it......BUT.....I just cannot get over the line with build quality..!


nothing lines up...I don't care about stuff lining up as such, but I do care if it falls apart/rusts/stops working.


tell me to forget about it..!