Reassurance please??

[nmel]

Hi Guys,
Just picked up my new Disco 4 day before yesterday (first Landrover I have owned). Thrilled with the car, have always loved the styling and it feels beautiful inside and drives like a dream. Went to the auto shop today to buy a tow hitch and got the lecture from the shop guy about how awful and unreliable Landrovers are. Talk about a killjoy. He told me that everything goes wrong on them including sudden loss of power at speed and tow bars coming off the car (both pretty dangerous situations when 99% of my driving is on country roads at speed with a horse trailer attached). Anyway I really don't want to believe that things are that bad. What I would really like now is to hear from lots of people who have them, love them and have had no issues with reliability just to put my mind at ease.
Thanks in advance, I'm sure you are out there.

[Disco Muppet]

Well I don't own a D4, but I can tell you this.
He's full of crap.
All makes and models of cars will have their issues.
Some people get lemons, some get gems, most people get one in between the two :)
So I don't doubt that some people have had sudden losses of power, some people have probably had tow hitches fly off.
But I'll bet he didn't tell you why it happened, if it was due to age, kms travelled, poor workmanship or install, or even the owner being an idiot.
He sounds like a proper tosser, any shop that gives me that sort of attitude quickly sees me walking out the door without handing over a cent.
Enjoy your new vehicle, I'm sure it will bring you lots of happy motoring times! :thumbsup:

[RoverLander]

3 years of ownership,70,000kms with about 20k of that travelling on outback roads and its never let me down.

Only problem was that i needed a suspension air compressor replaced under warranty. The car was smart enough to tell me that there may be a problem before i actually had a problem... Very civilised really :)

Drives like a dream and i love the car!

Peter

[sheerluck]

The answer is very much less than the guy is making out. There aren't thousands of caravans falling off the back of D4s and running wild and free. There aren't thousands of D4s stuck in the fast lane of every motorway because they lost power at speed.

If you hunt through this forum and Disco3.co.uk, you will find instances of that happening, just as you will find instances of Patrol 3.0d engines dying if you go on Nissan fora, and Land Cruisers using more oil than the Exxon Valdeez if you go on a Toyota forum.

Remember that the D4 and the D3 before it has been awarded 4x4 of the year since Noah wandered around saying "tut, tut, it looks like rain". They don't give those kind of accolades out with cornflake boxes.

[Homestar]

Welcome to Land Rover ownership...

Everyone's an expert when it comes to LR's. anyone who doesn't own one will soon tell you how unreliable they are. Usually it's a mate of a mate who had one break down.

The Disco 4 is a great car, and while I don't personally own one, I wouldn't worry about tossers like that and I wouldn't give them any of my business either.

Drive it, maintain it, love it.:)

Cheers - Gav

[DoctorJ]

I have a D3 and think it is exceptional. After spending $9k on a GU patrol and it wasnt the 3.0ltr in 12 months I wasnt bound to the philosophy that Land Rover alone is the only company in the world that can produce a lemon. I love everything about the car and shout it out as often as I can but at the end of the day the world is full of people with closed minds which is okay with me they just will never drive the best 4x4 in the market. I even may have convinced a national writer in one of the biggest 4x4 mags in the country to come on board.

Cheers
Julian

[BMKal]

Agree with all the comments above. I would have been a little less polite and walked out of the shop - telling the bloke that I'll take my business to someone who actually has some clue of what they're talking about.

I'm on my third Disco - have never had to put a spanner to any of them other than routine maintenance. I drive regularly between Perth & Kalgoorlie (about 600km each way) as I live in Kal but work from an office in Perth most of the time. I sit on "at least" the speed limit once I'm away from the built up areas - and have never "lost power". I also tow a reasonably heavy trailer quite frequently - my tow hitch is still there.

You've bought a good vehicle - enjoy it and ignore the opinions of the "experts" that you'll meet along the way. You'll get far better advice on here than you'll come across in most other places. ;)

[Duke4]

Chalk it down to just another uneducated clown.

I have a 2010 D4 SE, 54,000Ks and surprise surprise it has started every time I've pushed the button, has never lost power in fact the power has been awesome. It has towed my boat and camper trailer like it wasn't there and has not fallen off yet.

So ignore them they are jealous it's a great beast on and off the road.

Paul

[nmel]

Thanks for the replies folks. I did tell him to keep his opinions to himself and then went across the road to his competition to buy my tow hitch. I have always thought that people who criticise what they don't own usually do so because they are jealous. I know all cars can have issues. My mother's boss bought a $350000 Maserati which has been returned to the dealer at least 9 times. Go figure. It just made me feel awful after I had been so happy about getting a new car, one that I have wanted for at least 10 years but haven't been able to afford until now. Anyway you folk have made me feel happy again. A few odd problems won't worry me too much anyway, not when the trade of is getting to drive around in the nicest ride I have ever been in (at in 4x4s anyway). Can't wait to take it off road and see what it can do.

[Blknight.aus]

I usually just start off on the laundry list of recalls, common faults and the "acceptable" oil usage rates of the other makes.

Interesting fact.

one of the new turbo diesel toyotas, according to one dealer, has an "accpetable" oil usage rate so high that the engine would burn through its entire oil capacity between services AND it doesnt have a dipstick so you cant check it without using the computer and going through a startup.

now I've heard a lot of stuff from landrover dealers that make my mechanics bell ring to say "best we be going to another dealer then" but I have never been told by any LR agent anywhere that something that chews its entire oil capacity plus some between services is "normal".

Let me put that further into perspective. Thats coming from someone whose in posession of a landy with a Tcase that has a rear output seal so badly failed that grease wont stay in the box.

[tup39]

Just clocked over 9000km in my D4 SE hasn't missed a beat.They are just jealous uneducated narrow minded people.
Enjoy your new D4 as I am..:D

[Judo]

I've had people say similar things and as far as I can tell those people know nothing about Land Rovers. Because they know so little about Land Rovers and they're a little "different", they automatically jump to "bad".

I had a mobile mechanic tell me when I first bought my Disco that the parts I needed were "special Land Rover parts" and would be more expensive and hard to find. I've since learnt those exact parts are not special in any way and are very easy to procure. He also told me how everything was going to break. Nothing he said would break has broken. The guy was a jerk.

In short, it's a load of crap. Enjoy your new awesome car. :)

[MichaelJR]

Picked up my new D4SE last October. Have done 27,000kms, including 7,000 around central Oz. Car running perfectly. Enjoy

[JamesH]

You've experienced the kind of reaction people who make a choice that is a little bit different to the herd often get from some people who are in the herd and feeling a little bit inadequate for some reason. This is not the last time you will experience this reaction from some Toyissin drivers. Get used to it.

Look, your car may well turn out to be a lemon, as mine (6 months old liking it more every day) might do. If mine turns out to be a lemon, I'll get it rid of it and try my luck with another one.

Speaking for myself, I'm no smarter than your idiot. I will never ever buy a Toyota or Nissan. Never. Ever. I hope I'm a little more polite about it. I'm still working on that.

[SBD4]

just clocked up 91,000Km, no problems at all other than replacing the compressor under warranty. drives like new and I still love getting in it for a drive as I did when I 1st got it.

Ignore their small minded, witch burning, village square crowd mentality and have faith in yourself that you have made a well considered and excellent purchase.

Enjoy the car.

[Graeme]

Whilst not always loosing power, I have to say that my 3.0 D4 has on numerous occasions gone into reduced power mode whereby it becomes almost useless. I feel quite strongly that LR have gone overboard in restricting the power output when something isn't quite right. It annoys me greatly that I have to get my Faultmate out to clear engine faults every so often because I don't thrash the engine often enough to keep the primary turbo's moving parts free. The 3.0 is a lovely engine most of the time but the performance restrictions placed by the software are extremely heavy-handed and can be outright dangerous in the wrong circumstances.

[Gribbsmy13]

I have had other brands since the lemon laws came into effect in January 2011. I no longer have this vehicle due to those laws :) so regardless of what other people say, there are now laws to protect the consumer that were not around a few years ago. This is why you have seen more Toyota and nissan recalls lately, it's funny though that I haven't seen any recalls on a discovery in the news.

By the way I'm in the same boat as you, picked my d4 up on Wed afternoon, I have never been in a car that felt so tight and of such high quality.

Point is, remember the colourbond add every time you look at your car.... You've made the right choice

[PKD4]

We have had our D4 for nearly 18months, it is my first LR and there was a little trepidation when I bought it. Now, just over 30,000kms and can only re-iterate what most others have said. No regrets, love the car, no problems to speak of.

I must admit I still get a little nervous when I get the 'ohh, a Landrover' face from people but am learning to ignore it. :)

In a similar vein, an acquaintance of mine is looking for a 4 wheel drive. He mentioned that the he has been warned off the next car he wants by everyone he knows. No surprises that it is a D4 he wants, and is getting to little support from the masses. Needless to say, I have given him my 2c.

It is still good to hear good reports from others though!

Pat

[lpj]

I have only had mine for 4 months and I couldn't be happier. MY 12 3.0 SE

I have two comments:
1. Anyone with such poor customer service skills would never get cent from me. Well done on walking away.
2. The general level of intelligence of the masses is an indication of why reality TV rates so well.

Enjoy the new ride.

[hydeslane]

I'm getting close to the 100,000km mark now in my 3.0ltr 2010 D4 so feel a little qualified to comment. No issues to speak of so far but the car is about to have front bushes replaced under warranty. Apparently this is not unusual while a little annouying. (no cost to me though). My other issues relate to my GG tyres but lets not turn this thread into another tyre one. I must say I've experienced the Landrover biggots alot especially from Landcriuser owners that for some reaon just won't let up. For me though there's just something special about owning one of these things - it makes me feel good. Looking to go another 100K and if I need to spend a few dollars in maintenance so beit. The D4 is no more expensive than any other in my view.

[BobD]

My 2010 3 litre D4 has just reached 114,000. I love the car and would get another one in a flash. We are off to Central Australia including the Birdsville area in August and did a 14,000 trip to Cape York via the Great Central Rd and Plenty HWy last year. In fact I did over 40,000 km last year

I have just got the dreaded squealing hand brake, which is an expensive fix, although not very necessary in an automatic. I have been trucked twice, once with the brake light switch failure and once with a starter motor failure. So far no problems with the compressor and no issues with reduced engine performance, unlike Graeme, who has a similar aged car. Maybe my wife is a lead foot. I know that the fuel consumption read out improves greatly every time I drive it, compared with her driving. I did do the transmission oil change and metal pan at 100,000 km but nothing wrong with the tranmission at the time.

I tow a caravan and a camper trailer and do lots of city driving together with a lot of long trips, so a good mix for the engine I would think. No oil useage at all between oil changes, some of which were spaced at 14,000 km. When towing I do between 100 and 115 on the GPS with no issues.

Bob

[AnD3rew]

Echo all the comments above, mine is a D3, had it for 4 years since new only significant repair I have had to do has been just replaced control arms and bushes at 60000k's which seems from reading in here is about standard. And I can honestly say it is the best car I have ever owned and I've owned a lot. It's also the first car in many years I have decided to keep past its warranty end.

Stuff will go wrong and wear out as it will with any car, if you hang around in here and keep reading chances are you will get a fair idea of what is likely to go wrong and when and how to prevent some of it from happening

[sheerluck]

Tell you what, print this article out, go back and stick it up his.......nose!

Jaguar Is Number One And Land Rover Named Star Performer In J.D. Power And Associates / What Car? 2013 Survey (http://newsroom.jaguarlandrover.com/en-gb/jlr-corp/news/2013/05/jlr_jd_power_what_car_240513/)

The D4 was voted the most reliable in it's class.

[lpj]

I have only had mine for 4 months and I couldn't be happier. MY 12 3.0 SE

I have two comments:
1. Anyone with such poor customer service skills would never get cent from me. Well done on walking away.
2. The general level of intelligence of the masses is an indication of why reality TV rates so well.

Enjoy the new ride.

[Graeme]

I tow a caravan and a camper trailer and do lots of city driving together with a lot of long trips, so a good mix for the engine I would think.I've come to the conclusion that this is what these engines need. Maybe I should get the van out again.

[LGM]

MY11 HSE 3.0L 56k on the clock.

In my period of ownership, since Sept 11, I have had 2 issues fixed under warranty neither of which actually caused me any real trouble.

1. Compressor replaced after one instance of the dash warning light coming on.
2. Radiator Fan replaced due to Clutch? not engaging properly evidenced by a clicking sound on cold start up! (never seen a rad fan with that much wiring before)

The D4 is a great drive and continues to provide me with a constant feeling of satisfaction. It is also the 3rd Discovery I have owned and much to the dissapointment of all the soothsayers of doom (none of which seem to be LR owners) I continue to enjoy the experience.:D

My neighbour is grappling with his Prado and injector problems, evidently a $4k fix for him.:eek: Basically all vehicle makes have their issues!

Be satisfied in the knowledge that the knockers really have no idea how good it is!:cool:

Enjoy

Is my bias showing????

[scarry]

Be satisfied in the knowledge that the knockers really have no idea how good it is!:cool:

Enjoy



Exactly......

I had three d2's all bought new and the last one a D2a was one of the best vehicles i have ever had,my eldest son has it now,still no issues and it is around 9yrs old.

My MY12 D4 has had the dreaded 'can't find the smart key' issue,sorted by dealer,but thats it.

No other issues.
Only 18 months old so see how it goes.:)

[sniegy]

I have had my D4 for just over 3 years now & can agree with the above posts. I have had a couple of issues with mine, but again it is a mechanical device.
Things fail & I understand, I work on them everyday & have been for the last 20 or so years. They have come a long way comparing them to the classic Rangie, Disco 1 etc.
Always the first to introduce new technology, then other manufacturers copy.

Let the naysayers talk there rubbish, just enjoy the vehicle, it was built to take you wherever you want to go, in style, in comfort & with ease.

Cheers.

Sent from my iPad using Forum Runner

[stray dingo]

ditto to all the above.

My last vehicle was a Nissan Pathfinder and I had the exact same comments about that too, and it wasn't a real Nissan 4x4 - ie Pootrol. (However, I *did* know the guy whose tow bar fell off - cos he used WDH on a genuine Nissan towbar which was so poorly designed.....but I digress)

The D4 I have now is far and away better than any other 4wd I've driven, on road or off, and I drive more km towing than not....

[mowog]

Its all love and hugs so for for the D4...

My opinion is no different I love the D4 I have had it for just over 3 years now and I would buy another over any large 4WD on the market...

But...

It hasn't been a trouble free ride for my D4. It has had a turbo replaced. Half the front end was replaced because of vibration in the steering the rear shocks and airbags were replaced. I have had issues with the GPS. It wouldn't start once (after sitting still for 5 weeks)

I currently have just over 50k on the clock and most of that has been with a large caravan attached so the D4 has worked hard but it is still a great car.