Looking at the LR4 for a family hauler

Sal123 said:

My ideal scenario would be to buy an LR4 for $35-40k with 35k miles or less and spend no more than $2000 per year in maintenance. Am I delusional or is this realistic?

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Both parts of your objective are reasonable. I did this exact thing 3 weeks ago. After a week or so of research on cars.com I found a 2013 LR4 HSE with 30K miles (still under warranty until January '18). It was at an independent dealer of upscale preowned vehicles in Bayside, NY. I drove up from DC in my 2011 LR4 and traded it in on the '13. Have fun seeking out your new ride and as others have mentioned, enjoy the chance for a little road trip if that is feasible for you. Re the $2K annual maintenance budget, that also sounds about right when you consider the cost of brakes, lower control arms, tires, oil changes (please do your own, it's fun), and miscellaneous stuff. Hopefully you don't have more than one of those first 3 items hitting you in any given year but it could happen. Good luck!

Sal123 said:

Can you buy a non CPO LR4, then have the dealer certify it and buy a service package from them?

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no. has to be a trade into the dealer/dealer trade/dealer auction. This is due to certain items being needed in order to be certified, like the tires need to be new (or damn close), the battery needs to be new (i will get to that in a minute), and maintenance needs to be performed. They then roll that into the price, so you end up paying for it anyway....I tried hard to get LR to CPO a private vehicle that I wanted to buy, that person would have had to trade it in then it would have to go through the whole process. I think it's still the best bet compared to some 3rd party warranty you can buy...the CPO has no deductible, they typically replace items instead of repair them and they use all OEM parts (plus you get the loaner perk)

Okay. So the battery on a CPO. Here's my experience. I had a warranty item repaired and when they went to start it up the battery died. They wanted me to pay $550 for a new battery (YES A NEW BATTERY) --- I grabbed my paperwork showing that the battery was "new" 3 months ago when they certified it. Don't get screwed by a dealer that may have someone lazy inspecting the cars, check to make sure that the CPO items are in place. You can go to the LR website to see all 165 points.

Sal123 said:

So I could buy an LR4 anywhere and have a dealer check it out for me? How about Craigslist? Like this one - https://newyork.craigslist.org/mnh/cto/d/2013-land-rover-lr4/6393793629.html
I think getting a CPO car would be the safer route to go for me, but I don't mind getting a pre-owned vehicle for the right price.

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I’m not too familiar with a 2013 but I wonder why seller has two pieces of paper concealing something in last photo?

Frank

This is all great info. Keep it coming!
Say I go the CPO route - it seems I am stuck buying whatever is on landroverusa.com. Correct?
If I go the independent party/dealer/LR dealer route - looks like best strategy is to buy as low as possible with as few miles as possible, since it's not CPO.
Any recommendation for non dealer shops in the NYC area that service LR4s? Ideally there would be one I'd be able to take to for inspection before I buy a vehicle.
Do all the LR dealerships sell maintenance packages? This might be expensive but would give me some peace of mind and keep my costs fixed.

Sal123 said:

Say I go the CPO route - it seems I am stuck buying whatever is on landroverusa.com. Correct?

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No. If the second owner is selling a CPO vehicle, that CPO warranty is transferable to the third owner. You could get one like this and have a CPO warranty for 6 years from the first owner's purchase date or 100K miles, whichever comes first.

https://www.autotrader.com/cars-for...V&searchRadius=0&makeCode1=ROV&modelCode1=LR4

I live in Kansas City, also bought mine sight-unseen in Greenville SC. Flew there and drove it home.. The dealer (Masarati) sold me a warranty that has paid for itself twice over now- and I still have 32k and 3 years to go on it.. LCAs, new injectors, door lock, etc..

Mike

Frank8 said:

I’m not too familiar with a 2013 but I wonder why seller has two pieces of paper concealing something in last photo?

Frank

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I see a business card tucked in by the parking brake switch, and a chapstik and what appear to be more business cards in the cubby. I suppose they could be trying to conceal something in rather hamfisted fashion. More likely they just didn't tidy up the interior before taking the photos. I also saw something jammed in the pocket behind the driver's seat.

I love the ebony interior on the LR4. It's what I had in my 2011. I love the contrast between black exterior and almond interior that I now have, but there's something very masculine and timeless about Land Rover's black interior finishes.

Pfunk951 said:

I live in Kansas City, also bought mine sight-unseen in Greenville SC. Flew there and drove it home..

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That's a heck of a road trip (900 miles?). But I'm with you; it's fun and everyone should do it at least once if you have the time and the wherewithal. I did it once to take delivery on a new car (found the exact model and trim I wanted 4 hours away and wasn't patient enough to wait for a factory order at a local dealer). Then again for this latest LR4. It's a cheap thrill driving off in a new-to-you car knowing that your trip home is several hours away.

cperez said:

That's a heck of a road trip (900 miles?). But I'm with you; it's fun and everyone should do it at least once if you have the time and the wherewithal. I did it once to take delivery on a new car (found the exact model and trim I wanted 4 hours away and wasn't patient enough to wait for a factory order at a local dealer). Then again for this latest LR4. It's a cheap thrill driving off in a new-to-you car knowing that your trip home is several hours away.

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Funny ... I did the same opposite direction. Found the exact 13 Lux I wanted from a Mercedes dealer in DC. Had been traded in and wasn't even on the lot yet. They wouldn't take a credit card but said they'd hold it one day. Drove to JFK, certified check in hand (no time to arrange financing), salesman picked me up at the airport, drove to the dealer at 11pm, he opened the place up, we took care of the paperwork and less than an hour later I was on my way back to NY in my new car.

Is gas mileage an issue for you ? The 2010 -2013 LR4's are a little bit thirsty on gas. If you will be doing a lot of city miles around NY, I will recommend to get the 2014 upwards.