What's with the crap reviews? Are land rovers really as bad as every review out says it is. Has this been this way since ford took over? What models/years are worth buying and building up? Thanks for any feedback....

Go to Discoweb.org, that site is more oriented to those type of questions, But to answer it a 99d1 is your best option out there..

Quality went to crap around the 1974 time frame.

Reliability is shit thats why you tear them apart, fab new parts, weld, modify them and replace everything with stronger shit.:flipoff2:

to answer your question X2 on discoweb.org.

Quality went to crap around the 1974 time frame.

+2

more like mid 68

Quality went to crap around the 1974 time frame.

It depends on what type of quality you are alluding to.
Build quality has always been Third World standard or below.
Quality of transmission design and durability?close to the worlds worst.
Quality of suspension design? Series models were very ordinary to piss poor in areas. Coilers? up there among the best.
Bill.

thanks guys!

Land Rovers are so unreliable that I own six of them and three of them run pretty much reliably.

None of them have fewer than 100,000 miles, and one has about 220K.

The one with the highest miles is so unreliable that I regularly drive it more than 500 miles one way just to go wheeling.

Nope, they just aren't very reliable :flipoff2:

I keep two around so my son and wife have something to drive when the Jeeps are down.

The one with the highest miles is so unreliable that I regularly drive it more than 500 miles ''ONE WAY'' just to go wheeling.



Exactly! if they weren't so unreliable you would be able to drive that 500 miles,go wheeling, and then drive 500 miles home again, instead of just one way.
Bill.

for nearly 30 years my employer provided me with a new LR 10 every few years. I've had the last of the Series 3 right through to Td5.
The company is a big buyer of LR's as well, probably running about 300, and talk to any of the drivers and they'll all tell you their horror stories.

OK, they worked for their living and sometimes had to drag heavy generators and mobile pumps across rough ground, which they could do - when they were running.

From day one they were all rubbish, the doors didn't fit, they leaked water, they broke down and were constantly being recalled for something.
You wouldn't mind, but it was the same shit on every one in some cases, like why did I need to wear waterproof trousers to drive in the rain?
That was genuine third world quality control.

The 300Tdi had engines every year, don't get me started on the Td5!

I love off roading, and being a Brit' I should love Land Rovers as well.
But despite having access to buying them cheap, I won't. I have owned a Range Rover which I loved and I'm thinking about buying another, but the Defenders - sorry.
It's such a shame, they are truly great vehicles. But I want to drive them not fix them constantly.

Dave

Buy a Toyota. I did. And I've never looked back. The guys here are the exception because they are "so damn hardcore GI they make me sooo Horny!" (at least they like to think they are). But the reality is most folks use their 4x4 like I do - for getting to the mountain and for bad two track on camping trips, at most. A buddy asked me why I didn't buy a RR when I bought my FJ and I told himt eh answer was two words: Toyota reliability.

I have a 109 and it is super reliable. Starts every time, and teh Cummins (US made) engine, sends power to teh NV 4500 (US made) transmission, thence, teh English T case, through the (US made) driveshafts) to the (English) axles, and out to the US made wheels. The US made electrical system is relaible. Interestingly, the T case leaks. Imagine that!

I tired of having greasy fingernails after about five years. Clients were not impressed. So my 109 is supposedly for sale and the FJ is the daily driver, with the 20 year old volvo. Leaving the ski area when it is 15 degrees has never been more comfortable....

So yeah, ina word, LRs have always been unreliable. If you want reliable, buy a Toyota.

Seriously.

Simon/

The guys here are the exception because they are "so damn hardcore GI they make me sooo Horny!" (at least they like to think they are).

:shaking:

Avoid them like the plague...........Buy a Land Cruiser!



Merry Christmas!

i've got a landcruiser (well lx450, same thing) and a RR, i'll take the RR over the LC any day...my RR has a much better ride, better handling (on road), better brakes ( the LC are crap), interior is actually made much better, better trans, engine feel, and no comparison off road (both are stock).

LX isn't a real Cruiser I'm afraid bud. Keep it gettin groceries with the rest of them. Real LC's died with the 60 series (some say the 80 series).


Frankenrover

(owner of one slightly modified and very reliable D110, and two cruisers (BJ42, FJ60).

ps. If you have to ask if LR's are reliable. Look elsewhere for your vehicle needs. They aren't right for you.

ps. If you have to ask if LR's are reliable. Look elsewhere for your vehicle needs. They aren't right for you.

If you need reliability, buy a Toyota. If you want Romance and a cult following, buy a Rover.

If you need reliability, buy a Toyota. If you want Romance and a cult following, buy a Rover.

Were you uttering romantic whisperings to your Land Rover when it left you stranded a few times in Oregon?:flipoff2:

Come on Paul, each vehicle has a cult following, but then again, so did Jim Jones:grinpimp:

I like to watch nature and travel programes on the TV, and I play a little side game as well.

Spot the LandRover!

Sorry guys, but where it counts in remote and hostile territory the Cruiser rules.
Try getting parts for Rovers in Africa, people I know who have used Rovers for expeditions will never use them again, they broke and then they couldn't get parts.

I use a lot of Rover parts on my competition trialer, because they're available and cheap to me. I can pick up Rangey axles for about $50 a pair, but I usually get given them.

I like Rover's, they are good when they are sorted out by an enthusiast who is prepared to modify them and maintain them. Which is what 'you guys' are doing.
It's just such a shame that Solihull didn't get it right in the first place.

Dave

LX isn't a real Cruiser I'm afraid bud. Keep it gettin groceries with the rest of them. Real LC's died with the 60 series (some say the 80 series).

The 450's (96 and 97 only), were a rebadged FJ80, just had softer springs, and revalved shocks, nicer leather, better soundsystem and a more "finished" interior. Mine was ordered with the FJ80 springs, and shocks. The 450 has the same straight 6, trans, xfer case, same solid axles, same crappy brakes.

We only use it for a kid hauler anyway, which it does do very well, so it doesn't really matter.

Were you uttering romantic whisperings to your Land Rover when it left you stranded a few times in Oregon?:flipoff2:

Pilot error does not count.

Nearly every failure and stranding by my Rovers has been due to pilot error.

Trust me, I could fawk up a Toyota as well!

And people pay you to wrench on their trucks?

Oh man! ;-)

And people pay you to wrench on their trucks?

Oh man! ;-)

LOL, If folks gave me money to work on my own trucks, they wouldn't break as often.

LOL, If folks gave me money to work on my own trucks, they wouldn't break as often.

PT...the trick is to get enough people to pay you to work on their trucks that you don't have to drive your own, being on a non stop test drive, so to speak......at least thats the way it works here.

Drop off truck with FULL tank of fuel

give me direct access to your bank account

I'll call you when it's done .....:flipoff2:

The 450's (96 and 97 only), were a rebadged FJ80, just had softer springs, and revalved shocks, nicer leather, better soundsystem and a more "finished" interior. Mine was ordered with the FJ80 springs, and shocks. The 450 has the same straight 6, trans, xfer case, same solid axles, same crappy brakes.

We only use it for a kid hauler anyway, which it does do very well, so it doesn't really matter.

Yeah but you said LX470, which is a wussy ass IFS cruzah...

For once I agree with Bill. If you have to ask you don't need one, you don't want one and you should get a Toyota. It's the only way to wheel and have a life.

I have had several fj40s and fj55s and many land rovers. I like them both. Both vehicles have their strong points, both have their weak points. You cant convince me that either is "more reliable" than the other. My daily will probably always be a land rover.


Toyota has been constantly improving their product for decades while land rover got it right from the begining and has been fucking it up ever since.

I have had several fj40s and fj55s and many land rovers. I like them both. Both vehicles have their strong points, both have their weak points. You cant convince me that either is "more reliable" than the other.


Yeah but to a large majority of people a Rover means something imported in the last 18 years. While for some of us a Rover means something that hasn't been imported for over 32 years.:D

Toyota has been constantly improving their product for decades while land rover got it right from the begining and has been fucking it up ever since.

Man, that is spot on and refreshing to hear. I always get branded as a heretic when I mention LR and FJ40 in the same sentence on LR forums...

Matt Nelson

I know alot of them have issues with leaking fliuds,rusted tranny lines,clogged cooling sytems(those I suspect some idiot added the wrong type of fluid) yeah they go for while but you can follow them by the trail left behind.I would say go for Yota Land Cruiser hey look at all the war zones that they are in the and howthose suckers keep on trucking plus I had a 73FJ40 myself it was better than my friends CJ by far dont leak lie crap and dont have to take a bank loan for a frickin water pump.Hey if the militany islaimists use it its goota work and its offically endorsed by Allah oh look at the animal chanel I see yota all over the place.

I know alot of them have issues with leaking fliuds,rusted tranny lines,clogged cooling sytems(those I suspect some idiot added the wrong type of fluid) yeah they go for while but you can follow them by the trail left behind.I would say go for Yota Land Cruiser hey look at all the war zones that they are in the and howthose suckers keep on trucking plus I had a 73FJ40 myself it was better than my friends CJ by far dont leak lie crap and dont have to take a bank loan for a frickin water pump.Hey if the militany islaimists use it its goota work and its offically endorsed by Allah oh look at the animal chanel I see yota all over the place.

Wow you must have blinders on.

I saw more Rovers in one year in Iraq then I have in 40 years elsewhere. There are a large number of military's currently using Rovers, like the USA, Great Britain, Poland, Saudi, and Australia to name just a couple. Oh and Sadhams Republican Guard had them also.

My 2yo is constantly yelling "Rover" as he watches his animal planet. And yes he does know the difference, he calls land cruiser Jeeps :flipoff2:

Oh and by the way thats the first time I have ever seen someone list a ball hitch as part of their build :laughing:

hitches are the best anti traction devices around great fo hang ups just like gas tanks I use it to pull broken VW's off the trails:barf: so lets both have a laugh:D

I know alot of them have issues with leaking fliuds,


Rovers don't leak. They just like to mark their territory.

Sorry, My "typo", i edited and corrected.. I have a 450... I agree 100% regarding the 470. We just got the 450 to haul the kids due to the third row

Yeah but you said LX470, which is a wussy ass IFS cruzah...

For once I agree with Bill. If you have to ask you don't need one, you don't want one and you should get a Toyota. It's the only way to wheel and have a life.

:shaking:

Dude lighten up. The comment was aimed at this page having guys on it that use, abuse and repair rovers, and like the hell out of them. I still have my 109. I like rovers a lot, but I think everyone knows they lack relaiability. The comment was tongue in cheek, good natured pitching of shit.

And so I am sorry if it offended your apparently fragile sensibilties.

Mea Culpa.

Simon

actually I would say that the rover guys here are pretty honest if you ask me. On reliability I would say pretty much general jist of this thread has been right on the money.. That said you can maintain even a late model Rover to be pretty reliable I think, with a couple replacement parts here and there and a AA plus card especially :)

But when buying a used vehicle reliabily can be an issue on any vehicle reguardless of manufacture due to previous owner(s) care or abuse.

I like to watch nature and travel programes on the TV, and I play a little side game as well.

Spot the LandRover!

Sorry guys, but where it counts in remote and hostile territory the Cruiser rules.


well i take my rangie to the sahara regulary, only time i need to take the toolbox out is when nissans and toyotas need to be fixed. no probs whatsoever, and have you ever seen a standard toyota in the dunes? too heavy, too low, they are not made to be excellent off roaders, they are made for bad tracks and then the damm leaf springs will brake. pulled two 80's out of the dunes because the front axles broke, no four wheel drive.

ok, the rangie is somewhat modified and well maintained, and it needs to be.
watched a programme on tv the other day, two hzj 78 setting out for a expedition in the desert. just after leaving, one came to a sudden stop, turns out that the ring gear in the front diff broke.

doesn't only happen to rovers. in the end rovers aren't as unreliable as their reputation just as toyotas are not as reliable as people think they are.

Eh, I had a 97 Toy T100 Old people owned it It had a HUGE book of service reciepts it was maintained FAR beyond factory specs had a supercharger:smokin: BUT it went through 2 belt tensioners in a year and a half. The wiring coroded to the rear taillights, I have had older toys that I abused horribly and they kept kickin one even caught on fire when the battery tray broke when I was at a bad angle. Put the fire out WITH WATER and she was ready to rock burnt wiring and all. I had an 04 disco that intermitently died and the interior was rover pieces, horn buttons, ash tray window switch cover ate fuses etc I have had 2 94 disco's still have one and I use it to go to work 30 miles each day and I use it hard most of my days off I drive it about 110 every 2 months to an offroad park to really hit it hard and she never fails has been awesome. Put plenty of miles on it. Pick your poison I just really like my rovers every time I wheel among the millions of toy trucks and cjs and wranglers I stand out and its a great conversation piece

doesn't only happen to rovers. in the end rovers aren't as unreliable as their reputation just as toyotas are not as reliable as people think they are.

My fathers 100 series landcruiser had it's diesel injection pump die at around 10,000km. The stereo decided to eat cd's and not give them back, intermittently it decides to drain both of it's batteries down so far the dash lights won't even go.

Of course today my rover spat apart the turbo oil feed line and pumped 3l of oil onto the exhaust manifold. Those parts are japanese (isuzu engine) and were held together with australian hoseclamps.

Fixed that and felt it wallowing on the way home. One of the rear koni shocks unscrewed it's shaft from the top eye.:mad3:

I kinda like Broncos but they breaks as well oh my wife says I am obsessed with Broncos and all the Products Ford made wit the exception of V6 and I4 powered units..:evil:

I just picked up another '89 RRC to replace my old '89. This one has only 100,000 miles on the clock compared to 190,000 on the old one. The new one has sills and other chassis parts still intact, which is nice.

I got it for $676 on Ebay due to bad brakes. It was local. The seller was a woman who know nothing about these cars and had mechanics who knew just as little.

For her, it was the sad end of a maintenance nightmare. For me, it was a step up...

She didn't change the front pads. They wore out and the right front cotter pins let go and a piston pushed out. That and a drivers seat control issue is about it, for now...

for now...

:laughing: The two words that should be a mandatory suffix to every sentence ever uttered or written about Rovers. :laughing:

Humm,

I think it was said best,

"Rovers are almost always broken, but almost never broken down."

If you can do basic car repair, they are quite cost effective. I priced RRCs against exploders and grand cherocars, and the initial buy-in was much less for the Rover compared with vehicles of similar mileage. Of course, mine is my wife's daily driver and doesn't see wheeling abuse.

You could hold out for a Avro car.:trooper:

Gentlemen (you too Pendy:flipoff2:):

There comes a point in the life of every Land Rover owner's life when they have to realize that one fo their trucks MIGHT just be taking up way too much time repairing the recurrent issues.

I'm afraid I may have come to that point last night...

The wife's LWB has failed her yet again. Yesterday, the battery was dead when she left work to come home to fix my dinner (yeah, right!). When I finally got home, I realized the puddle lamps were remaining on. When I depressed the door switch, I could hear a relay under the dash click, along with one in the rear loadspace (WTF???).

As I had a truck in the shop needing attention and it was getting later every minute, I did what every Rover owners does in such times, I pulled the fuse. Little did I know this also defeated the radio, something up with which my wife will not stand!

If the house sale goes through, we're buying her a Toyota and it's unlikely to be an FJ Cruiser.

I'll keep the LWB just because we all know I'm a masochist.

Sorry fellas, there is a point where you have to pull the plug.

Oh yeah, Sunday when we were going out to look at houses, the drivers door mirror was running constantly:confused:

Peace,
PT

It obviously goes both ways but it is about percentages.. This is why '95 discos are as little as $2500 in some places (I found a beautiful 5 speed '95 for $4500 here locally the other day, no apparent problems), but a '95 80 series is closer to $10G... I am not clearly saying one or the other, by default, but generally things do matter.. Here is a story from the other side of the pond, for what its worth...
http://forum.ih8mud.com/showthread.php?t=128676

"Rovers are never completely broken or completely repaired" - that's the beauty about them - what would you do with all that spare time?

Sorry fellas, there is a point where you have to pull the plug.


:crybaby2:

:crybaby2:

X2

:crybaby2:

Had a Bronco I had to cut lose from my wallet once I still have it or well parts of it rear end was shot but rebuildable dont care for 8.8's much I like the 9 inch's or 60's and the body,rusted out,and the frame,same as body when to the scrap yard.Of course it brought less in weight do to all the gunshots it took,preformed my own mythbusters, and rusted out floorboards.

X2

iT'S NOT ME THAT'S WHINING, it's SWMBO...

To be honest, she is more than justified in her exasperation after all of the minor issues her truck has had in the recent past.

When you pull the plug, make sure it is an organ donor.

To those who say the LC died at the FJ80, i'll say youre wrong, The UZJ100 has a 100 body on an 80 frame and axles with a diesel. Its sold everywhere but here. Too bad.

And I have FZJ80 axles on my D2 and the 80 brakes with 35s stop better than D2 brakes with 32s.

iT'S NOT ME THAT'S WHINING, it's SWMBO...


:crybaby2:

:crybaby2:

We've discussed this before Ike, some day, you might understand. Give it another 20 years and check back with me-if I'm still around.

Damn kids:flipoff2:

PT

I was previously unaware of the correlation between getting older and being a whiner

I was previously unaware of the correlation between getting older and being a whiner

No, but there is a correlation between age and wishing to have positive relationships with one's spouse.

(Old Fogey voice on) You'll learn (old fogey voice off)

positive relationships with one's spouse

And how exactly does whining achieve this?

So wait, what's Beth want to drive?

Get her one of whateverthecrap that is and you're home free to keep annoying yourself with the LWB.

Hell, you've gotta have something to keep your blood presure up or you'll just pass out :)

just bought the wife a newish d2 from a nevada congressman no less......
it looks great and runs like any rover should. 'broken, not broken down'.

i have just developed an intimate first name relationship with little rover shop here in town that i had heretofore not known about (didn't need test book with a 95)

now i am $700 down in just the rubber bits that go in or on the engine. belts hoses etc. i know every vehicle needs this stuff at the over 120k point obviously, but a radiator hose shouldn't cost $70. oh well.

paul already called me an idiot, but i still could never have got a comparable vehicle for twice what i paid for the d2. and it still runs awesome with all of its little issues.

i just happen to live in a state that won't even test the emissions if the "service engine light" is on.

oh by the way, it is the valley pan gasket that i need to replace.

To those who say the LC died at the FJ80, i'll say youre wrong, The UZJ100 has a 100 body on an 80 frame and axles with a diesel. Its sold everywhere but here. Too bad.

And I have FZJ80 axles on my D2 and the 80 brakes with 35s stop better than D2 brakes with 32s.

That particular beast is generally known as the 105 series cruiser.

The 100 series gets the factory turbo, awesome brakes but unfortunately IFS too. What it lacks in articulation it can often make up for with momentum.

It can't be that hard to throw a solid axle and 5sp in the front of them. But probably easier to put a decent turbo on the 105.

i just happen to live in a state that won't even test the emissions if the "service engine light" is on.


That bulb took me about a minute to remove in the RRC. :evil:

its not the bulb. they plug in an obd 2 reader and bam. any codes.....off you go.

even thought i would be sneaky and clear the codes in the parking lot of emissions.......but oh no then the neat little rover computer says its "not ready to be tested". ecu has to go thru a series of cycles, buy which the codes then come back.

catch 22.:mad3:

aaron,
That is what i did last time i got plates. I made a visit to the local rover shop in town and drove down the emissions testers and passed. The very next time I started the truck the light was on again. Lucky I guess.

Page 3 pretty much says it all

http://www.jdpower.com/corporate/news/releases/pdf/2006133.pdf

The Land Cruiser 100 has 2 models in the rest of the world: the GX with solid front and rear axles and the model with IFS we get here the: VX. drove both of them in Zimbabwe when i lived there. There is also a Land Cruiser Pick up model which looks nothing like the 100 series.

The Land Cruiser 100 has 2 models in the rest of the world: the GX with solid front and rear axles and the model with IFS we get here the: VX. drove both of them in Zimbabwe when i lived there. There is also a Land Cruiser Pick up model which looks nothing like the 100 series.
why do we get the shitty stuff?
then toyota has the audacity to put the retarded fj cardboard bullshit in the mags that try to tell me that ifs is a superior design.....




falls under the ''piss down my neck and tell me its raining'' category:rolleyes:

why do we get the shitty stuff?
then toyota has the audacity to put the retarded fj cardboard bullshit in the mags that try to tell me that ifs is a superior design.....




falls under the ''piss down my neck and tell me its raining'' category:rolleyes:

Toyota obviously beleive that the USA is a softer market, as evidenced by the fact that the fully floating rear end and 4 speed trans was introduced in Australia and presumably most of the rest of the world around 1974, many many years before it was available in the US.
Anyway this thread is supposed to be about ''LandRover reliability'' an oxymoron if ever there was one.
Bill.

There is also a Land Cruiser Pick up model which looks nothing like the 100 series.

Do you mean the 70 series landcruisers which are used mainly for industrial and mining?
http://www.ebroadcast.com.au/ecars/Toyota/70.html

Do you mean the 70 series landcruisers which are used mainly for industrial and mining?
http://www.ebroadcast.com.au/ecars/Toyota/70.html

And just about every builder, plumber or other self employed tradesman in Australia it seems.
Bill.

Roger, the 70 series Land Cruiser. My father-in-law had one that was converted into a 12 pass version that he used on safari and to drive to Mozambique and South Africa. He traded it in for the VX with a turbo diesel.

"Anyway this thread is supposed to be about ''LandRover reliability'' an oxymoron if ever there was one.
Bill."

I think your right, but as anyone who owns or owned a LR knows that it is a futile argument and we either relish the fact that we have to work on our "Landys" or bought Toyota's, or like some of us bought both.

And with all due respect, the LCs are no more reliable. I've had this conversation with a few old time 4WD mechanics in Aus and they agree that all brands have stupid design faults that never get fixed. The Toys are no better than anything else. And from 5 years of driving is an "all makes" club in Australia, I will guarantee that the Nissans and Toys broke more often than the Rovers.