07 Defender recall

[nesjules]

I've just received a recall notice from LR for Defenders built between 07/06/07 and 13/02/08. The rear seal on the transfer box can leak oil onto the park brake shoes and "the customer has reported that when correctly applied the park brake has not held the vehicle satisfactorily".
Strangely enough, about 14 months ago I parked my 07 Defender under a tree at Ballarat race course, handbrake on. About an hour and a half later the car rolled backwards on the same steering lock as when I left it and smashed through a picket fence. There was only a slight slope, and witnesses described the progress of the driverless vehicle as very eerie! I was paged over the PA and returned to recover my vehicle from the smashed fence, to find the handbrake still in the on position, for which I have a witness. There was slight damage to the car - smashed rear light, broken reflector and slight damage to the rear corner and the fence cost me $250!
This was over a year ago and I've always assumed I'd not pulled up hard enough on the handbrake and needless to say I always leave it in gear now. In the light of the recall notice I'm wondering if LR would or should recompense me.
Comments invited

Cheers Jules

[seano87]

I've just received a recall notice from LR for Defenders built between 07/06/07 and 13/02/08. The rear seal on the transfer box can leak oil onto the park brake shoes and "the customer has reported that when correctly applied the park brake has not held the vehicle satisfactorily".
Strangely enough, about 14 months ago I parked my 07 Defender under a tree at Ballarat race course, handbrake on. About an hour and a half later the car rolled backwards on the same steering lock as when I left it and smashed through a picket fence. There was only a slight slope, and witnesses described the progress of the driverless vehicle as very eerie! I was paged over the PA and returned to recover my vehicle from the smashed fence, to find the handbrake still in the on position, for which I have a witness. There was slight damage to the car - smashed rear light, broken reflector and slight damage to the rear corner and the fence cost me $250!
This was over a year ago and I've always assumed I'd not pulled up hard enough on the handbrake and needless to say I always leave it in gear now. In the light of the recall notice I'm wondering if LR would or should recompense me.
Comments invited

Cheers Jules

I'm pretty sure I read about this one a fair while ago on here, but may be mistaken, at worst, it has been known of for at least 4 weeks: http://www.aulro.com/afvb/rss-news-feeds/95527-land-rover-defender-recalled-park-brake-performance-issue-caradvice-blog.html

In regards to wondering if LR should recompense you, I think you'd face an up-hill battle - you'd have no proof that this is what caused it, your vehicle may not have any symptoms of this issue and hence be an unhappy coincidence. If you though it may have been vehicle related, you would have had to have taken it in and notified them of a possible fault and inspection pretty much straight away for assessment.

Why would you not have left it in gear anyway? I was always taught proper parking of a manual vehicle includes leaving it in gear, first if flat or facing uphill, reverse if facing downhill. I'd never trust just a handbrake to hold a vehicle on a hill.

Seano.

[clean32]

bloody hell a recall 07/06/07 and 13/02/08 it should be 1948 to today.

Hardly a new problem. speedy sleves, duble liped seals, Gallons of RTV around that silly bit of material behind the Nut or was it leather in 1948?

[nesjules]

Yeah you're right about leaving it in gear! However it was only a slight slope and also, malfunctions excepted, the standard transmission brake is very powerful normally due to the gearing through the diffs. Rather different from the handbrake on my Mark 2 Jag!

Cheers
Jules

[AKW]

I never have never will leave ANY vehicle in gear and teach
every one i teach to drive NEVER leave it in gear.
I have seen too many started or tried to be started in gear.
I know you should start with your foot on the clutch but it dose
not always happen that way.
My boss has a habit of leaving trucks in gear and brakes off
have gone to start my truck from the tank step 2 or 3 times and had it move on the starter always check now.

ps both my disco and s2a have had oil leak into the hand brake drum
Disco fixed 10 years ago s2a to be done.


Andrew

[JDNSW]

I never have never will leave ANY vehicle in gear and teach
every one i teach to drive NEVER leave it in gear.
I have seen too many started or tried to be started in gear.
I know you should start with your foot on the clutch but it dose
not always happen that way.
My boss has a habit of leaving trucks in gear and brakes off
have gone to start my truck from the tank step 2 or 3 times and had it move on the starter always check now.

ps both my disco and s2a have had oil leak into the hand brake drum
Disco fixed 10 years ago s2a to be done.


Andrew

I recall an occasion (almost fifty years ago) when a driver left a truck in first gear, handbrake off, after giving it a thorough washdown. In the middle of the night a short in the wiring from the water operated the starter - the petrol engine used an ignition ballast resistor, so that the starter solenoid switched on the ignition. The result was the engine started, and it drove off, stalling after about twenty yards when the front wheels dropped over the bank of a creek. Pure luck that it did not hit another vehicle or one of the tents with sleeping men inside.

John

[dullbird]

Yeah I have it to

Can anyone scan it (rubbing out there name of course) so I can put it in the sticky thread. I would but I don't have a scanner.

[Blknight.aus]

I never have never will leave ANY vehicle in gear and teach
every one i teach to drive NEVER leave it in gear.
I have seen too many started or tried to be started in gear.
I know you should start with your foot on the clutch but it dose
not always happen that way.
My boss has a habit of leaving trucks in gear and brakes off
have gone to start my truck from the tank step 2 or 3 times and had it move on the starter always check now.

Andrew


and that would be why we have cabin drill before startup...

check the fire extinguisher, the first aid kit, the park brake, neutral. Now you can put your seat belt on and move onto startup drills.

[Grockle]

Jules, I had similar thing last week,a tree with a faulty brake hit our truck whilst parked in the forest,small world eh;)