Member Since: 27 Dec 2013
Location: Oxfordshire
Posts: 3
Plan to buy a D4, advise on pitfalls please!!
Hi all,
Grown up with LR's all my life and new wife and I are planning on buying one for mainly 'non farm' use (it's what I am telling her!) her commute 30 miles, plus general mover of 3 labs, bit of shooting mad shopping etc.
Expecting to part with 25 - 30k and currently interested in a 3.0 tdv6 xs which has done between 25 - 50k and 2-5 yrs old. I think the xs has enough spec with out getting silly..
I can cope with the purchase price and the mpg ( my Scooby gets 22mpg at the moment) what worries the hell out of me is the reliability and fault fixing costs.
I have a good specialist dealer locally but even so, some of the reports out there leave plenty to worry about regarding electrical faults, hand brakes stuck on and power losses which the dealers can't solve.
As with all things in life you get good and bad eggs. People always complain when the cars don't work (www.landyhell.co.uk) but few take the time to sing praises.
Does anyone have any views on:
Best engine (ie power option) seems odd that more bhp gives better mpg
Upgrades to avoid/ make sure it has
Expected values for the above? Willing to travel for right price!
Likely to only get the 6 speed, can live with that.
Mpg fluctuations on tyres ( bf or grabber AT )
Only no no's are cream leather and silver, after blue green or red ( seem to be most rare!)
Are dealers the best place to buy them from, I hate them normally but a warranty would give massive peace of mind when some damn gremlin keeps playing with the electrics.
Lastly, we are flirting with a vogue RR but don't think we will get as much for the money. Got a classic, p38 and mkII which all seem to cost plenty to keep on the road, how much more or less will a d4 be!?
Thanks in advance...
28th Dec 2013 12:01 am
dans
Member Since: 20 Jan 2013
Location: Norwich
Posts: 30
Land Rover reliability is excellent nowadays. Nothing like they used to be. I've had my 2007 d3 for 5 years and 108k miles with completely trouble-free ownership!! Had many more problems with other more reputable German brands !
D4 will be a great car. Try to stretch to an HSE which usually hold their money better...
28th Dec 2013 12:27 pm
Russell
Member Since: 24 Aug 2007
Location: Kent
Posts: 10564
Try to stretch to the 8 speed box if you can really smooooooooooooooooth. Look on this forum as there have been a few on here for saleMY17 D5 1st Edition Namib Orange
MY15 D4 HSE Kaikoura Stone
MY12 D4 HSE Nara Bronze Sold and gone
MY11 D4 HSE Stornaway Grey Sold and gone
D3 S spec Silver Sold and gone
Tow bar, full length roof bars, side steps, tow bar storage unit, surround camers.
D4 camera club
28th Dec 2013 12:41 pm
vroomvroom
Member Since: 16 Jan 2010
Location: cheshire
Posts: 128
As above 8 speed (255 bhp engine), with circa 25k miles, XS and still under land rover warranty can be had for a midge over you budget. (Early to mid £30's)
We've had ours 15 months and absolutely nothing has broke, stopped working or fallen off....the DAB reception is a bit flakey...
28th Dec 2013 6:50 pm
Hairy Dan
Member Since: 19 Jan 2011
Location: Co. Durham
Posts: 12319
I'm now on my second D4 (possibly ordering the 3rd soon) and I have to say they have been the most reliable cars I have owned The 8 speed is nice and so smooth but the 6 speed is no slouch either, the only extras I would not do without are heated steering wheel and remote timed climate but these are easily added after the fact.Cheers Ian
--------------------
Club N.E.R.D.S
Kielder 4x4 Safari
Discoless
28th Dec 2013 6:58 pm
vroomvroom
Member Since: 16 Jan 2010
Location: cheshire
Posts: 128
Interesting you have ruled out cream leather...ours has "almond" and we find it really lifts the interior..
Extras we enjoy...rear camera, privacy glass, Bluetooth, iPod & USB connection
Stuff we miss (our last was a HSE)
Xenons (saying that the projector lights on the XS are pretty good)
Electric seats, particularly the arm rests
We get an easy 30mpg
28th Dec 2013 7:05 pm
Robbie
Member Since: 05 Feb 2006
Location: ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Posts: 17932
The key message is that there are no particular pitfalls in buying a D4. With nearly 250k pre-production test vehicles out there they got the D4 right.Land Rover - Turning Drivers into Mechanics Since 1948
Member Since: 03 Jul 2006
Location: Oberon, NSW
Posts: 6922
You should start exercising your grin muscles now as it can be shock for them otherwise when it arrives. “There are only three sports: bullfighting, motor racing, and mountaineering; all the rest are merely gamesâ€
Ernest Hemmingway
D4 3.0 Active Diff, Adaptive Lights, High Beam Assist, Surround Cameras, Privacy Glass.
D3 2.7:Adaptive Headlights,Electronic Rear Diff,ARB Bar,Blaupunkt Speakers,JVC Powered Subwoofer,Removable Snorkel,Mitch Hitch,Pioneer After Market Head Unit,Steering Wheel Control Adaptor,Remote Adjustable Supension Rod System, Taxside Dual Battery System.
28th Dec 2013 10:22 pm
galwaygreen
Member Since: 30 Oct 2011
Location: plymouth
Posts: 6525
we had similar thoughts to you........about second hand.....but at 65 years now just wanted trouble free motoring...soooooooooooooo
it was a new one.
gs with cream leather
8 speed and the best bit 3 YEARS WARRANTY.
up to 3500 miles now....absolute crackin....
if you really want to convince yourself get to solihull LRE spend £225 and enjoy 3 hours of playing and learnin
good luck
28th Dec 2013 10:37 pm
Roadrunner13
Member Since: 27 Dec 2013
Location: Oxfordshire
Posts: 3
Hi Everyone,
thanks for the great feedback. whilst i know you are all honest i cant see many on this forum are likely to slag them off too much, they go to other websites for that!
we test drove one today, XS in almond and green, there is no doubt about it, it was lovely. i can see why they are more than the other options out there. I was impressed with the acceleration and the car is genuinely very well thought out and put together. the visibility was v impressive, can see so much more of the tarmac around you than the XC90 we tried later.
We are yet to decide where to buy one from if indeed we do, i have quite a few contacts in the trade but yet to decide if the cheaper but no LR Warranty concept will be worse than the more expensive but dealer backed idea. Any thoughts here?
Ref the seats, Almond did look much less child nightmare than we first thought it would, does brighten the cab up a bit too.
i have always done privacy glass anyway for the dogs but the XS we drove today had that. Reversing sensors are already in fitted and i am lucky that my wife is very good at reversing (has her HGV) so not so worry about the camera - more to go wrong in 5 yrs time... I did mention putting some spots on the front to improve night driving but this was not greeted with much of a smile from the Mrs, have to see how that goes!
Done a few off road courses and grown up on a farm so know what they can do. we wont be pushing it that much off road, its on road that i am keen on.
we called back in at the Volvo dealer to have a look at the XC90 (swear word on this site?!) it is cheaper for a reason, felt much more basic and cheap inside. My Bro has one and his thoughts along with forums are, 'they do the job but that is all'. its no frills motoring so i cant imagine us going far with that.
Plan to look at X5 and tourag as well just for comparisons. Not about so spend 30 k of my own private cash with out doing the rounds.....
thanks for the feedback everyone, exactly why i love these forums, i have the same help in the Subaru equivalent, all the honest john literature in the world does not mean as much as owner feedback!
29th Dec 2013 6:03 pm
Canburne
Member Since: 15 Jan 2013
Location: Devon
Posts: 2036
Quote:
I did lots of research last year - I need a big 4WD with loads of space, that could tow 3+ tons on grass/rough tracks if necessary and was good for long hauls/motorways. BMW X5 ticked all the boxes except useless off road, Merc ML250 same and if you want a proper Merc you need to go up to G at nearly double the price. The Toyota Landcruiser has been ruined in the back with the addition of electric third row seats which loses masses of space and depth, good off road but not so good on road.....
Absolutely no contest - the Disco 4 wins hands down. My decision is still absolutely right a year later......
A reply I made to a recent similar request. I would also add I have seven retrievers and needed rear space for a large dog transit box without need to fold the second row seats down. None of the other compared. I would agree completely with what you said about the Volvo too. Also looked at the Tourag but VW don't see to be able to get reliabilty right at the moment as I was very glad to see the back of my Passat and the space in the back was useless due to the slopeing boot
29th Dec 2013 6:14 pm
nigel207
Member Since: 26 Mar 2009
Location: Nottinghamshire
Posts: 1359
Also, if you buy from a Dealer, you'll get at least a year's warranty. Otherwise, consider an after-market warranty. Personally, these days I wouldn't entertain any expensive/complex vehicle without.
29th Dec 2013 8:00 pm
pagoda
Member Since: 13 Aug 2009
Location: Not London Anymore (or the US for that matter)
Posts: 1929
After black and light interiors with children, I'm in no doubt that the lighter one is best. Most crisps, custard creams and other wife/child induced crap blends in well with light leather. On black its a nightmare. I have seat covers on permanently in the back from day 1. Always.PAGODA
29th Dec 2013 8:13 pm
fat bloke
Member Since: 07 Aug 2006
Location: OXFORD
Posts: 1255
If that was the one you viewed at cumnor? They come with 1years warranty and if you push see if you get 2 yrs free servicing that stratstones are doing
29th Dec 2013 9:04 pm
gensetsteve
Member Since: 01 Jan 2014
Location: hampshire
Posts: 340
Had a D4 for a few weeks 65k on the clock had an easy life. Absolutely love it, big question mark over reliability. Not experienced any other problems yet but do know I will be changing the diff and gearbox oils every 30,000 miles. If I bought a new D4 I would get the lot changed at 1000 miles and probably on the second service as well. I think some of the diffs fail due to a little metal swarf turning into a lot of swarf in a very small amount of oil = grinding paste.
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The 8 speed is nice and so smooth but the 6 speed is no slouch either, the only extras I would not do without are heated steering wheel and remote timed climate but these are easily added after the fact.
