Thread: D4 2009 TDV6 3.0 - Engine Seized

Originally Posted by jon3950

If we are looking at cost of ownership we should include depreciation. The D4 is holding its value far better than any previous model.

I've had one of each Disco - 1, 2, 3 & 4. Each one has been more complex than the previous but has also been more reliable. In 20 years I've only been stranded twice. Once when the fuel pump on the D1 packed up and once when I put a rock through the fuel cooler on my D3 (my own fault). The D2 and the D4 have been the most enjoyable to own.

How a 10+ year old D4 would compare to a D2 is an interesting question and I suspect its not as bad as you may think. 2 things are in the D4's favour. Firstly more work was put in at the design stage to make it easier to build to a higher standard and secondly a lot of work was put into improving supplier quality. This has meant that the D4 is better built out of better components than a D2. So while there are more expensive components to replace they will break less often.

Cheers,
Jon

Hopefully,but as i have said,a lot more things too go wrong as it is way more complicated than the earlier models.

LR had to get the reliability reputation off their back or they wouldn't survive in the current market.People have good memories,it will take generations before it disappears altogether.

And carrying on from Celtoid,pity LR haven't put more effort into making the last of the Defenders more reliable as well.They have had many years to get them sorted.In fact looking at some posts by JC,and others,some major components are worse than they ever have been.Some may say it is a run out model but that is really no excuse.

It doesn't do the brand reputation any favours at all.

And thinking about the D2,the last one i had,a D2a was one of the best vehicles i ever had.

Originally Posted by scarry

And carrying on from Celtoid,pity LR haven't put more effort into making the last of the Defenders more reliable as well.

Isn't it. Trouble is the design is inherently difficult to build. That's why it has to be replaced.

Originally Posted by scarry

And thinking about the D2,the last one i had,a D2a was one of the best vehicles i ever had.

So was mine - second only to the D4. And while I think the D4 is more capable I agree in many ways the D2a was more suitable for getting into the rough stuff. Certainly a more engaging drive, which is one of the reasons I'm getting a Defender.

Cheers,
Jon

Originally Posted by gghaggis

There's a lot of "apples vs oranges" here (and sorry to the OP for continuing this off-topic bent). LR aren't stupid - they have the largest R&D off-road department of any motor brand. The D3 was designed to be better than the D2 - the D4 was designed to be better than the D3. And thd D5 is being designed to be better than the D4. And that's off-road. That they don't cater for the after-market crowd is a marketing decision - as I've said before, the after-market industry will have to catch up.

Even so, a stock D3 with a decent set of tyres and a set of rods/LLAMS will eat all but the most extremely modified D1/ D2's off-road. I know - we had a (very) modified D1 that we used to run in competitions with our stock D3. There's no "more" that goes wrong with them - it's just what does go wrong is "different" to what traditional 4WD owners are used to. This is what we teach in our seminars - how to simply and effectively diagnose faults so that they're as simple to diagnose as the mechanical issues that are rampant with D1 / D2/ Deefer models.

Cheers,

Gordon

I agree with Gordon and many have never really pushed or challenged their D3/4's off road to know, fearing the damage or the likelyhood of them failing while out bush. But unless your really prepared to take risks then you will never really know how good they truly are off road especially with the mods Gordon mentions.

Its not unusual to read comments in here on how much better a D1/2 is off road by people who have never owned a D3 or D4 to truly know.

My reasonably modded D3 will go anywhere my heavily modded D1 would, though I could mod the D1 up even more and then the D3 wouldn't keep up, but the D1 would be a absolute pig to drive on road, where as the D3 would still be good enough to be a daily long distance driver.

Its easy to remember past owned vehicles and how good they were and indeed at the time they were that good, but few have owned longterm their old Disco's along with their current new ones to compare, I have.

I am down to three Disc's now, after deciding four was to many and comparing them over time the one I sold off was the D2a, owning all four Disco models at the same time and driving them puts a completely different perspective on each model and their strengths and weaknesses and the one that made the least sense to keep was the D2a. No offense meant to D2 owners but for me it was a obvious choice.

so you sold the best one,, goodonya.


making way for Mk V ?

Originally Posted by Pedro_The_Swift

so you sold the best one,, goodonya.

Not yet,it is still in his sig.

Pretty sought after,a good D2a,and not bad price either,but it has to be good

Originally Posted by scarry

Not yet,it is still in his sig.

Not anymore it isn't Paul, the D2 is gone.

Well it has been a while. Sorry for not posting sooner but I didn't want to jinx our good fortune.


I picked the vehicle up this afternoon with a new engine thanks to Landrover Australia. They paid for everything apart from the non genuine accessories that needed shifting (winch).


We had sent them an email explaining what had happened and suggested they provide a new engine and we would cover the labour costs. To our surprise they sent one back advising us they would pay more or less the lot. They expressed their disappointment that this had happened and thanked us for our patience and hoped this gesture of goodwill would go towards restoring our faith in the brand.


Just to remind some people this vehicle was a D4, 12/2010 build. It had done approx. 160,000 kms and had its last couple of services done at our local Repco. We did not have an extended warranty.


I know some people will say Landrover only did this because they knew it had a fault but I would like to believe they were genuinely disappointed and were ready to stand by their product. I can not thank them enough.


I would also like to mention how helpful and professional Blacklocks at Lavington were.


Thanks to everyone for their comments and advice.


Ian

Very good news, things turned out well.