Hello,
Has anyone been at the crossroads of deciding to reject/retain their D5?
We bought an approved 18mth old HSE Lux with great spec less than 6 months ago. Its spent 2 weeks, a further 5 weeks, and now still at the dealers after another week, to fix brake, tailgate alignment, and ongoing condensation (already replaced screen ) and battery faults (new battery just fitted). Love the car when we have it! Legal advice is can reject or negotiate.
Anyone have experiences to share?
Thank you
To keep or rejection - within 6 months.
-
Cheshire Land Rover
- Posts: 2
- Joined: Mon Apr 10, 2023 8:42 am
Yes I have.
In 2018 I bought a very low mileage 2016 Discovery 5 Si6. It was a major investment for the family and to enable easier UK based holidays, camping trips and a new dog.
Size, quality and keeping value were important in the decision to buy it.
I researched reviews and I went into it aware of low mpg and huge servicing, parts and warranty costs. I was prepared to go with this investment as it was a Land Rover, loved and highly rated by the motoring media with reviews not highlighting any significant reliability issues.
I foolishly thought that the higher value of such a car would have a commensurate higher quality.
The car is a dream to drive on long journeys. Driving performance is very good except for the well known lag when pushing hard down on the accelerator. If you've got 300 miles to go on the motorway, in the dark and it's raining, it's a lovely car to be in.
Size and cabin comfort are superb.
The above is only applicable of course when it is road worthy.
Unfortunately my Discovery 5 has been the most unreliable car I've ever owned. It is appalling.
I won't go into every single detail but in summary the following all had it off the road for ridiculous amounts of time:
1. Fuel pump failure
2. Driver window falling into door leaving car completely exposed to weather and security risks. This was "fixed" by Land Rover and happened again a year later.
3. Passenger front window falling into door leaving far completely exposed to weather and security risks.
4. Air conditioning failure.
5. Hands free phone link has never worked.
6. Failure of keyless entry locked out of car.
7. Frequent suspension fault light, LR dealership say nothing wrong with suspension.
8. The old favourite, windscreen leak. Well, I say leak, it was more like a hole. Water didn't drip in, it poured in.
If my experience of Land Rover dealership was in any way positive, I may have persevered. It wasn't. My experience of customer service was frankly the worst I have ever known. From trying to charge me for Adblue when I purchased the car (it's petrol not diesel) to suggesting I should wait 9 weeks and then pay £3,500 to replace the leaking windscreen ( "It's such a long wait because it's a three day job to take the console out and we're doing a lot of them at the moment!" ) it was terrible.
Over 4 years of ownership, the car was off the road for 2 to 4 weeks every year. I need a reliable car.
My advice is buy a tarpaulin to put over the vehicle to keep it watertight!
The only positive thing about the whole experience was that the car kept a reasonable amount of value when I sold it. I can't understand why because they are appalling cars. It's a shame, but they got key basics very wrong on what could have been a cracking car.
I've moved on now, got a reliable Toyota RAV4, and I'll never go near a Land Rover again.
In 2018 I bought a very low mileage 2016 Discovery 5 Si6. It was a major investment for the family and to enable easier UK based holidays, camping trips and a new dog.
Size, quality and keeping value were important in the decision to buy it.
I researched reviews and I went into it aware of low mpg and huge servicing, parts and warranty costs. I was prepared to go with this investment as it was a Land Rover, loved and highly rated by the motoring media with reviews not highlighting any significant reliability issues.
I foolishly thought that the higher value of such a car would have a commensurate higher quality.
The car is a dream to drive on long journeys. Driving performance is very good except for the well known lag when pushing hard down on the accelerator. If you've got 300 miles to go on the motorway, in the dark and it's raining, it's a lovely car to be in.
Size and cabin comfort are superb.
The above is only applicable of course when it is road worthy.
Unfortunately my Discovery 5 has been the most unreliable car I've ever owned. It is appalling.
I won't go into every single detail but in summary the following all had it off the road for ridiculous amounts of time:
1. Fuel pump failure
2. Driver window falling into door leaving car completely exposed to weather and security risks. This was "fixed" by Land Rover and happened again a year later.
3. Passenger front window falling into door leaving far completely exposed to weather and security risks.
4. Air conditioning failure.
5. Hands free phone link has never worked.
6. Failure of keyless entry locked out of car.
7. Frequent suspension fault light, LR dealership say nothing wrong with suspension.
8. The old favourite, windscreen leak. Well, I say leak, it was more like a hole. Water didn't drip in, it poured in.
If my experience of Land Rover dealership was in any way positive, I may have persevered. It wasn't. My experience of customer service was frankly the worst I have ever known. From trying to charge me for Adblue when I purchased the car (it's petrol not diesel) to suggesting I should wait 9 weeks and then pay £3,500 to replace the leaking windscreen ( "It's such a long wait because it's a three day job to take the console out and we're doing a lot of them at the moment!" ) it was terrible.
Over 4 years of ownership, the car was off the road for 2 to 4 weeks every year. I need a reliable car.
My advice is buy a tarpaulin to put over the vehicle to keep it watertight!
The only positive thing about the whole experience was that the car kept a reasonable amount of value when I sold it. I can't understand why because they are appalling cars. It's a shame, but they got key basics very wrong on what could have been a cracking car.
I've moved on now, got a reliable Toyota RAV4, and I'll never go near a Land Rover again.
Thank you. It makes my experience seem positively mundane!
I don’t know why I remain loyal to the brand. It’s definitely heart ruling the head. I’d always bought from the same branch of the dealership but this time I went to a different location of the same group. But they obviously run as separate business units so I’m now caught between the poor after sales from the selling branch, and good customer service from my local branch which is doing the repairs, which is probably why I’ve stuck with it so far. That, and loving the drive (when I have the car).
I was investigating an XC90, but may look into the RAV…
I don’t know why I remain loyal to the brand. It’s definitely heart ruling the head. I’d always bought from the same branch of the dealership but this time I went to a different location of the same group. But they obviously run as separate business units so I’m now caught between the poor after sales from the selling branch, and good customer service from my local branch which is doing the repairs, which is probably why I’ve stuck with it so far. That, and loving the drive (when I have the car).
I was investigating an XC90, but may look into the RAV…
-
Cheshire Land Rover
- Posts: 2
- Joined: Mon Apr 10, 2023 8:42 am
Finding a local dealer with good customer service is huge and always makes a massive difference. So well done and I hope it continues.
The XC90 is very nice, we tried one out, but in my opinion it's overpriced for what you get. After my Discovery 5 experience, reliability became my most important criterion in buying a new car hence the Toyota. The 4WD off road is great as well.
The XC90 is very nice, we tried one out, but in my opinion it's overpriced for what you get. After my Discovery 5 experience, reliability became my most important criterion in buying a new car hence the Toyota. The 4WD off road is great as well.
