Goodbye & Thankyou - Leaving the LR & D4 Fold

[eddomak]

Hi All,

After 8.5 years I've just done the deal to trade in the the D4 for another car (not a LR), and Friday will be my last day of ownership.

Firstly a MASSIVE THANKYOU to all on this forum who have shared their experiences and advice over these years. I have really appreciated the knowledge and help and hope that I have contributed and helped others in my own posts.I have enjoyed meeting many of you at the 2 meet-ups we have had.

The reasons why I have needed to move on are the usual ones - D5 would be too expensive to trade to, and the D4 is getting too expensive to maintain because of eventual part failure (totally understandable when plastics and rubbers degrade), and impending work and servicing. All in all it has been a fantastic car and the whole family is already very sad at losing it. We have had such great times in so much comfort no matter what the circumstances. We love the absolute luxury and view when driving through highways and byways. When looking through the current market nothing else comes close, and we will be compromising quite a lot no matter what we choose.

[B]Goodbye to you all - I will keep my messaging and notifications on and am more than happy to keep in contact, but will not be checking the forum much after a week or two.

I will be listing the following in the Marketplace section, so keep a lookout if interested:

Travall Dog Guard / barrier
Single Roof Rack suitable for front lower section of roof


Thanks again, and may you all have happy and safe trails!
Edwin.

[Ean Austral]

Sorry to hear your moving on from the D4 and L/R but you dont need to move on from the forum.

I am sure the knowledge you have after 8 odd yrs would still come in handy to many users.

If you do leave the forum then best wishes to yourself and your family.

Cheers Ean

[oldsalt]

Goodbye and good luck......
and your situation sends a shiver down my spine..."what do I buy when my D3 finally dies"....?????
There's not much on the market I like at all... tried the D5, just don't like it for soooo many reasons, so it won't be one of those...

oh well, time will tell....

Thanks for all your great posts & help...

cheers

[mikeford]

Thinking along similar lines to you but struggling to find a reasonable alternative, if not to rude what did you choose

[DiscoJeffster]

Ill be buying a 2016 D4 when my 2010 D4 gives in. D5 is repulsive to me. I hope one day they see the light and redevelop the D5 into a palatable product. Maybe interviewing some D3/D4 owners as a starting point?

[eddomak]

...if not to rude what did you choose

Well, since we're amongst friends here, and if you promise not to tell anyone...

I got a Skoda Kodiaq, petrol with all the option packs. We are a family of 5 who uses 1 seat of the last row at least once a week for short lifts, and we haven't gone 4WDing for around a year and a half. The Kodiaq will get us to all of our campsites (since all of them are off fire roads anyway) for the 3-4 times a year we go camping. In these camping cases the main difference is that whereas with the D4 a top box was optional, now it is mandatory. Hmm... with the money saved I could get a nice forward fold camper trailer... [bigwhistle]

Most of the time around town this will probably do a better/ easier job. 5 year factory warranty (anyone want to start an extended warranty thread? [tonguewink]), $450/year fixed price servicing for 5 years (compared with the D4's major service at the 2 year mark for $1300 - $1700...), better fuel economy, lower insurance premium. It all adds up.

As I mentioned earlier, not matter which car we chose it would be a compromise in some form of another compared to the "do it all" ability of the D4, so we have sacrificed the 4WD ability, and the massive cabin and load carrying. Since we don't need 3 child seats anymore, this is not an issue anymore, and our kids are still young and slight of build, so the back row is viable for another 7 years, especially on urban trips.

Here's a funny story for you... when I asked the salesman "What's the wading depth?" he said "I think it's 700mm.", to which I replied, "Um, I don't think so since my Discovery can wade 700mm, and that is halfway up the doors.". He then tried to Google it, but with no luck. Now when I read the manual it says to not exceed the door sill height. So no water crossings for me anymore, as who knows whether the water will come flooding in.

Anyway, I doubt if anyone here will be going quite that small, but happy to chat about things.

[BobD]

I semi retired the D4 (especially from the town duties it was doing) and went with a Skoda Yeti for my wife to drive. It was a little bit too small for the grandkids which my wife looks after several days a week so we upgraded to a Disco Sport with the 135kW Ingenium engine and sold the Yeti to my daughter for her to carry her dog around in. I am now seriously considering whether to go up to an SD4 D5, with all of the extra space and ability and probably similar power and fuel consumption. I will wait until the next D5 upgrade if I do, however. The D4 is still going strong at 280,000km for heavy duty scratchy four wheel driving and not much else these days, with the RRV the main touring and towing vehicle.

My TDV6 L405 Vogue gets around the same fuel consumption as the Disco Sport so a D5 shouldn't be a fuel consumption disaster. The Yeti was way more fuel efficient than the Sport, especially with its Dieselgate software. The 2010 SDV6 D4 uses 40 to 50% more fuel than the RRV and Sport, probably due to the massive weight difference with all of the heavy goodies I have on the D4. However, it has always used more fuel than the newer D4's do.

Enjoy the Skoda. They seem to be a pretty good vehicle.

[DiscoJeffster]

But the rear of a D5 is, well how can I not be rude? Is such a disappointment. Big sigh. It’s ruined the brand for me. Sigh. Sigh. Sigh.

[DI5CO]

A bit off topic sort of, but this could be an option later. They are saying it will be different to the current LR styling.
https://www.carsales.com.au/editorial/details/land-rover-to-launch-new-defender-family-114586

[DiscoJeffster]

A bit off topic sort of, but this could be an option later. They are saying it will be different to the current LR styling.
https://www.carsales.com.au/editorial/details/land-rover-to-launch-new-defender-family-114586

This is my future by the looks of it. Thanks.

[Bohica]

Hmmm what to buy when the D2 finally gives up the ghost? A D7 maybe?

[Bohica]

It mentions the straight six Ingenium engine. I predicted that years ago. Still waiting for the 4L V8.