WA LR owners

[koutadog]

I have been in contact with LR Australia in regards to authorised LR service centres between Perth and Darwin and have been informed that there are none.
LRA said that the vehicle can be taken to a registered mechanic who can stamp the service book, but if they damage something LR will not honour any warranty.
Between the lack of tyre choices in 19" and the long drive to Perth for a service makes the decision harder to upgrade to a D4 SE.
What do other remote LR owners do?
Is it an excuse for a week off work to get a service?

[Normthe1]

Strewth, I though I was hard done by because the nearest LR dealer is an hour away...

I reckon I will do the minor services locally and trust a mechanic that I know I can trust. He may not be LR trained but he is good and if he can't fix it, he will tell me to take it to LR.

Major services I think I will just have to take the day off as its an hour up, an hour back to work then the same again when i pick it up. Not worth going...

I hear what you are saying about the risk but surely any mechanic can change fluids etc and point you to LR if he/she thinks there is anything wrong..?


Norm

[Duck's Guts]

The way I understand it, is that any licenced motor mechanic can service the vehicle using genuine parts and the warrenty will not be effected.

L/R is right to say they are not liable if a non-L/R mechanic damages something. The non-L/R mechanic will be responsible & will need to rectify the damage. His own business insurance should cover this if the value of the damage warrents him to lodge a claim.

But as long as the service schedule is followed using genuine L/R parts you are covered.
But, if you are looking the claim against the L/R warrenty you will need to take the vehicle to the nearest L/R service centre.

Personally, I wrestled for ages with my D4 purchase decision because the nearest L/R dealer was 2.5hrs away. I certainly understand your reservations given the HUGH distances & time that you would need to allow for. Good luck with that!

Cheers,
Marc...

[LGM]

Hi Koutadog,

From my understanding Marc is on the money and any licensed mechanic can carry out the work but it must be to the LR schedule using OEM parts.

I currently live near Dongara but used to live in the Pilbara for a number of years. With my then vehicle a D1 I was forced to run to Perth from time to time for service work but in the end settled for a local garage close to what was home at the time in Dampier.

I currently use Whyatts in Geraldton (Independant LR service) and have been happy with their competence and work on my D2. I have a D4 on order and when it arrives I will review my arrangements but at this stage I can't see any reason not to continue to use the local independant rather than drive to Perth.

From memory there was a dealer in Broome before LR Aus chucked a number of them off the list and they may still be in business but not as a LR agent. I think the name was Shinju Motors or something akin to that. You may want to let your fingers do the walking and ring around!

Linds

[Dingmark Jim]

One thing to put into your consideration is the service interval. On the 3.0 TDi D4 it's annually or about 24K (the computer calculated based on load, etc). That said if it were me in a remote WA location, I'd get a Faultmate MSV2 from Blackbox Solutions Ltd - Designers and manufacturers of the best vehicle diagnostic tools. (he's a sponsor and I think offers a 10% discount to bonafide aulro.com members). It allows you to query the computer, clear faults, and re-program the computer. The cost is about $1k by memory - less than having to do a trip to/from Perth. I'd also extract some sort of agreement with the Perth dealer you buy from (note: both have the same owner) that they will provide over-the-phone expertise at their standard billable rate in return for you buying from them. That way if you get a glitch at least it's worth knowing if it can be field-fixed or not.

The services of Landrover Assist ("LRA") are also worth understanding. On my old D3 the park brake failed, causing a bit of a fire on rubber bits in the back (including the tyre). I was literally "Back of Bourke" on a dirt road on the Darling River. LRA gave me a 600km tow, rental car for 2 days, 2 nights in a hotel without quibbling at all. That may be only 1/2 the distance from Tom Price to Perth but worth putting into your decision equation.

On the tyres, I have 19" MTRs which are expensive (ie, $550 each) but pretty good on sharp rock and sand, but noisy on bitumen. The low profile needs careful watching of pressures to prevent rim damage. As part of your dealer negotiations, you may want to sort out a swap on these. Alternately extra 19" rims can be had on the internet pretty cheap (I got a set for $230 each) and just have the MTRs mounted on them. Alternately there's another thread on this site about buying expensive 18" rims but that gives much more robust tyre choices.

I may be heading up your direction in a couple of weeks. If the trip happens I'm happy to get together and have a chat, drive and look/see at the D4.

OTT - What's the road like between Tom Price and Nanutarra? I've one map that shows it's bitumen and the other gravel (if gravel, I'll have the MTRs on).

[ADMIRAL]

Paul at HardRange Australia is now carrying Blackbox stock in OZ. Check out his website and pricing.

[LandyAndy]

Just chated to a WA AULROian today that had his warranty cancelled on a Puma Deefer because it had Koni shocks.
He has a BRAND NEW one now,what a JOKE LRA!!!!
Andrew

[koutadog]

OTT - What's the road like between Tom Price and Nanutarra? I've one map that shows it's bitumen and the other gravel (if gravel, I'll have the MTRs on).[/QUOTE]

Jim
There is two ways to go, one is all bitumen and passes through Paraburdoo at 352 km and the second has 50km of gravel road at 289 km, distances off google maps. The gravel section is generally good but havent been on it for at least 12 months and with it being tourist season cant guarantee the condition. Some nice great scenery though.