Thread: why do landys have such a bad rep

Top Gear Bolivia special. Says it all.

Yes mate - they can have problems just the same as any other car and as they age then things wear out just like any other car. Many Discoveries, Range Rover Classics and most of the P38 Range Rovers are pre 2000 and many will have odometres reading 200,000 kms plus. This makes them at least 11 years old. Given their age and distance covered then gaskets might fail and whirry bits wear out and as they age less caring owners don't bother so much with regular servicing or proper maintenance in fact some just might not bother lifting the bonnet at all. The obvious result is that the car will break down and then it will cop the "Unreliable Landy" flack from the owner.

I have a1994 Range Rover LSE and it has had its share of problems over the years. Most are age and useage related and one biggie that could have been avoided was because I didn't know that the cooling fan hub needed maintenace. That one small accidental oversight resulted in an overheated engine and rather than just doing the heads up I opted to drop in a new engine. And that was a much cheaper excercise when compared to a Jap fourby.

But all is forgiven when you drive your Landy of choice. I know that every time I jump in mine then the smile lights up the dial and it still drives like a new one.

What sort of Landy are you considering acquiring mate? Each model and year has some, what shall I say here....I know..."quirks" and the guys at ALRO can highlight these for you.

But if I was you I'd get a Rangie. There's nothing quite like it on this earth. Oops - there's a red flag to the Disco guys.......lol.

Cheers.
Grumbles.

I think a lot of people are threatened by Land Rovers. If someone takes to mouthing-off about something or someone they need to be sure their words are backed up by credibility. However problems arise for these people when the Land Rover out-performs their whatever make of vehicle. Further loss of credibility occurs when their whatever make of vehicle has a "recall" or is earning a reputation for guzzling oil.

I once "did" the light switch in my Defender. It was repaired in Mt Isa - the auto electrician said: "The whole town will know about the Land Rover that came in the broken light switch, blown computer, completely burnt-out electrics - the story will get better with each person - but no-one takes notice that I had to fix the electrics of over a dozen Landcruisers in the past week."

I reckon that bloke's observation says it all

Just remember (and no offence intended to forum members who are not heterosexual): "Trying to explain why you like Land Rovers is like trying explain heterosexual sex to a gay person".

Originally Posted by Barra1

I think a lot of people are threatened by Land Rovers.

That comment extends to many mechanics and whole workshops too Barra1 to the point where they'll tell you if you approach them with a problem "Nah mate we don't touch Landrovers". Just as an aside this is something the Jeep guys encounter too.

But i'll give a big plug to Landrover Inc here. When my Rangie was a tad over ten years old I took it to a Landy dealer to try and find a particular small but iritating problem I had. When I picked it up the Service Manager informed me that not only had they fixed my problem at a nominal cost but they had also performed an unrelated repair for me as an Out of Warranty claim which would be paid for by Landrover.

Now I wonder if any Jap manufacturer or dealer workshop would do this?

When I was first looking for a D2 I asked my cousin for a recommendation on someone in his area that might be able to do a pre inspection on a TD5 I was interested in. He told me the usual story "Too expensive to maintain, they all have major problems..." I had to laugh - the guy is a classic Porsche specialist.

I have owned (new and secondhand) 4wd's for years now and don't find Land Rovers unreliable, I've never owned a new LR but have owned, new, Ford 4wd's (F100, Bronco), never had a problem, International, no problems, Suzuki, no problems.
Toyota BJ40 (new), problems, Oh Yes!, 2 weeks old , pinion flange nut on rear diff undone itself while crossing Gladesville bridge one rainy night, allowing the pinion shaft to drop back into the diff and jam up solid, causing 3 X 360 degree spins in peak hour traffic.
Toyota said I would have to wait 3 to 4 weeks for a new diff centre, I kicked up such a fuss that they stripped the whole backend out of a showroom BJ40, still off the road for 2 weeks. Had 2 complete changes of springs and shocks under warranty and problem was not fixed until I fitted aftermarket gear. Then within 2 years rust started to appear, (never been on a beach or near sea water), glad to see the back of that one and I wasn't alone a few mates had Toyo's back then as "LR's were so unreliable", who had all sorts of problems from engine blow ups to **** suspension. Now I have a few LR's and I do my own maintenace and repairs and I have never been stranded and if a mechanic ever says, "sorry we don't touch Landrovers" it is because they are incompetent and shouldn't be allowed near any vehicle.
I wouldn't recommend to a friend to buy a secondhand LR unless they were mechanically competent, because of the above attitude of crap mechanics, a car you can repair yourself is rare nowadays, This 94 300TDi Diesel Disco I have now had a few problems when I bought it (lack of commonsense and maintenance), but now it is running well and I did all the repair and maintenance work myself and it will be the last vehicle I will ever buy, because it is a Land Rover I can rebuild it and enjoy it till I'm past it, Regards Frank.

I purchased my 1999 D2, with 319,000 on the clock, almost purely on impulse. My mates [toyota lemmings] said I was crazy, to which I replied you do crazy things when in love. I spent a bit of money doing the usual fixes, found a great independent LR dealer , and threw myself into learning about a new type of vehicle to me, great fun. We now have 340,200 on the clock, been to the Gulf @ back , am I nervous about what may happen? yes. But I'm 63, living on the edge, Whoo-hoo! Old farts can handle pressure, you bet! Bob

I have to agree with most of the above sentiment , I have owned Rangies , ex Army series 3 FFR , more Range Rovers , a *cough* Nissan 4.2 GU Patrol , another 300tdi 1990 Rangie and now my Defender 300tdi

Of all the Rangie 300tdi was the best around town and light camping , the Defender blows the all away for traveling and fishing/camping durability and basic bush mechanics ...

The Nissan was a 2001 TD 4.2 , you need 16x10 Binoculars to see over the bonnet , the 4.2 is a dog to change both oil filters on and spits oil , with the air cond on and in sand it is a pig under powered and over weighted , the doors rattle like a Salvo down the pub , the back bumpers fall apart along with the indicators ... and the ones in the body require an after market kit to work ...
The barn doors don't open wide to body line so that is another kit there , the back doors leak in dust , so i really couldn't wait to sell it off and get back to the green oval.

If you throw enough mud , it sticks ... if it doesn't stick it will stain. Most a poo pooed by those who's dad drives a Jap motor and his mate drives a Jap motor and none have actually owned one !!!

My Defender was the only vehicle out of 5 to travel to Kunnanara without incident , mine was the only one to make it to Darwin with absolutly no problems . the convoy was a Toyota 61 series 6.5 chev td starter died , a Nissan Patrol 3.0 which blew the motor completely and freighted home , Nissan 3.0 5th gear died , Toyota PC 4.2 NA lay shaft went on the Sturt hwy .... I got into Darwin booked it into Rapid Creek Rover and dropped all the oils , new fuel filter , tighten up all my bushes and replaced shockie rubbers on the rear , rotated tyres ... and what did i hear ??? Land Rovers are rubbish land rovers have poor build quality , land rovers are ugly , land rovers leak oil .......... but I made it lol