Thread: LR "reputation"

Originally Posted by Blknight.aus

Ive always been a beliver in the fact that while a shed on wheels class landrover doesnt do anything with exclence it does do everything and does it with good economy and its a doddle to repair if youre interested enough in it to learn how... (you now know part of the story that lead to me becoming a mechanic) The discos and the rangies share the same blood stock.

And to that I say "hear hear".

How many vehicle owners manage to open the bonnet to see what's happening or have crawled underneath to see what is connected to what.

Owning the disco has taught me a lot. Whilst I don't have the skill to delve too deeply it gives me the confidence to challenge the workshop that tells me otherwise. It also makes me feel sorry for the pradocruiserpatrol owners who rely on an umbilical chord connected to the dealer when the inevitable goes wrong.

I take responsibility for my choices and have no one else to blame...a bit like being an adult.

I,ve only had my D2 TD5 for 18 months now and covered about 70k. It has been an expensive exercise with service catch ups and a few repairs and now a head gasket.
BUT! I can't think of another vehicle that will suit my needs better, and best of all I love driving it. It gves me a smile every time I drive it, and fortunately its nearly always out in the bush.
This is my first fourby but I learn't to drive in a S11a in the vic mountains.
I have always liked the landrovers and the Disco is the one I like the most.
I cop **** about owning a landy every where I go, but you get that when people are jealous of what you have.

G'day Folks

This is an interesting read, and here are a few little items that may help to keep the interest up. It is true that the Snowy Mountains Scheme used Landrovers in the formative years, then Toyota became the vehicle of choice, let's have a look at who were the major Contractors for the Snowy Construction, Thiess Bros. why, they had the most heavy equipment in private hands in Australia immediatly post WW11, (salvaged from the Pacific Islands, where it was abandoned by the US Forces at the end of the war), all other Ex-Military Quipt. left in Aust was property of the Commonwealth,(hence C.H.E.P) in the early 50's Cecil Theiss tested a new Toyota 4 Wheel Drive Utility in Aust that was being campained around Aust by the Japanese, he was impressed, and asked who was the Distributor for them?? when told that nobody had applied to be come the Distributor, Theiss Bros took on the Distributorship of Commercials, as Thiess Toyota, being the major contractor for Snowy Mountains, then started using Toyotas,part of the Distributorship agreement was that for every complete vehicle imported, 2 vehicles in parts had to be imported, so this started the "Sales & Service" marketing push which was copied by Nissan & Mitsubishi in this country, Rover/BMC and later Leyland was not able to produce vehicles suitable to the Australian Market,as the British regulations of the era for Commercial Vehicles still had the 30MPH max speed regulation, and all british vehicles were registered (taxed) by the horsepower, and developed horsepower, so most if not all British built cars,trucks and commercials were grossly underpowered for/by Australian Conditions The then management, also still under the control of UK management, were labouring under the misguided belief that "When you have made your decision to buy a Rover/BMC Vehicle, you would then come to a showroom and ask them to sell it to you"

The rest as the say, "Is History"

cheers

I am employed by Thiess and Leslie's name is still revered. The stock company 4wd is a Toyota. But yet in WA Thiess also have Land Rover as a fleet vehicle.

Originally Posted by UncleHo

G'day Folks

This is an interesting read, and here are a few little items that may help to keep the interest up. It is true that the Snowy Mountains Scheme used Landrovers in the formative years, then Toyota became the vehicle of choice, let's have a look at who were the major Contractors for the Snowy Construction, Thiess Bros. why, they had the most heavy equipment in private hands in Australia immediatly post WW11, (salvaged from the Pacific Islands, where it was abandoned by the US Forces at the end of the war), all other Ex-Military Quipt. left in Aust was property of the Commonwealth,(hence C.H.E.P) in the early 50's Cecil Theiss tested a new Toyota 4 Wheel Drive Utility in Aust that was being campained around Aust by the Japanese, he was impressed, and asked who was the Distributor for them?? when told that nobody had applied to be come the Distributor, Theiss Bros took on the Distributorship of Commercials, as Thiess Toyota, being the major contractor for Snowy Mountains, then started using Toyotas,part of the Distributorship agreement was that for every complete vehicle imported, 2 vehicles in parts had to be imported, so this started the "Sales & Service" marketing push which was copied by Nissan & Mitsubishi in this country, Rover/BMC and later Leyland was not able to produce vehicles suitable to the Australian Market,as the British regulations of the era for Commercial Vehicles still had the 30MPH max speed regulation, and all british vehicles were registered (taxed) by the horsepower, and developed horsepower, so most if not all British built cars,trucks and commercials were grossly underpowered for/by Australian Conditions The then management, also still under the control of UK management, were labouring under the misguided belief that "When you have made your decision to buy a Rover/BMC Vehicle, you would then come to a showroom and ask them to sell it to you"

The rest as the say, "Is History"

cheers

Very true!
Land Rovers were very instrumental in the area where I grew up in South Australia, in 1950.
No roads, just mallee scrub.

Couple of things.

Every day LRA are losing sales due to the 'perception' of reliability issues. Regardless of whether the D3/RRS are more reliable than previous models.

The perception of poor reliability preceded the contraction in the dealer network a few years back, but it has simply added to the image of 'fragility'.

I believe a well maintained Landy, driven compassionately will be as reliable as your Troopy or Patrol. But if you had a Landy, Troopy and Patrol and were not allowed to maintain any of them, I know which will be the last one running. It will not be the Landy.

The reason for this fragility is that Land Rover stopped listening to the Australian customer many years ago. The last time was when they put the 4BD1 into the County and they produced probably the best 4x4 still running around. IMHO the fact the new Defender has a 2.4 'hand me down' is an insult when LR had the TDV6 or TDV8. Toyota and Nissan Australia are renown for causing Head Office a misery when it comes to their preferred specs for the Cruisers and Patrols.

Originally Posted by noddy

Couple of things.

Every day LRA are losing sales due to the 'perception' of reliability issues. Regardless of whether the D3/RRS are more reliable than previous models.

The perception of poor reliability preceded the contraction in the dealer network a few years back, but it has simply added to the image of 'fragility'.

I believe a well maintained Landy, driven compassionately will be as reliable as your Troopy or Patrol. But if you had a Landy, Troopy and Patrol and were not allowed to maintain any of them, I know which will be the last one running. It will not be the Landy.

The reason for this fragility is that Land Rover stopped listening to the Australian customer many years ago. The last time was when they put the 4BD1 into the County and they produced probably the best 4x4 still running around. IMHO the fact the new Defender has a 2.4 'hand me down' is an insult when LR had the TDV6 or TDV8. Toyota and Nissan Australia are renown for causing Head Office a misery when it comes to their preferred specs for the Cruisers and Patrols.

This is a pretty fair post. I like to call a spade a spade and not look at things through rose coloured glasses, and I think Noddy you have sumed up LR reliability pretty well here.

Have you also noticed how Toyota owners say how reliable there vehicles are in one sentence and then go on to Imply that when you do brake down in a toyota you can get parts every where. One could believe that they are not as reliable as thought and that you can just keep fixing them no mater were you are as toyota has parts every where to keep them going and say you went to the cap and bavk but not mention the parts purchased to keep going.
I have had three land rovers my father five and all have been reliable.