2006 LR3 with over 200K miles

[jwest]

jwest, truth in advertising though man....how has your LR3 been modified? Didn't you have some German suspension mod for a while? Yours was as kitted out as any I'd ever seen, as early as anyone's....so some of those mods may not have been vetted.

Excuse me? No, not at all. Good grief. It isn't really helpful to post untrue ideas to paint a different picture from reality. The German suspension mod never became available here anyway. I've actually seen several lr3 and now 4's all practically identically built.

Truth in advertising is that I've used this thing VERY lightly. I got my jollies in the 96 Disco years ago and have zero interest in seeing how stuck or screwed up you can get a Rover and still make it home. I see no sense in that.

In fact, it's all the people using those stupid "rod mods" and then straining parts in tough trail conditions that are more likely to be causing problems on their vehicles than me.


"vetted" mods? You cannot be serious! My "mods" bolt on and alter nothing. Furthermore, my mods are no different from the ones everyone is using now such as your basic ARB or Kaymar bumpers. Aluminum plates, RS sliders, etc. It's only this spring where I ever went larger than the ubiquitous 31.5" BFG.

 

[jwest]

... but I think a lot of that speaks to high maintenance costs of the LR3 without knocking its reliability....because we are not talking about issues that leave you stranded or the vehicle un-driveable. I had a shock go out (maintenance) in the middle of the forest, with over-sized tires and somehow wheeled my way out of there and drove the vehicle home another 50 miles (reliable).

In other words I think the LR3 can fairly be characterized as "high maintenance" and "reliable" at the same time.

What "maintenance" do you think is available for a shock? These go out because they are low quality/light duty components used in a great idea/design.

As for being "stranded", yes, we are talking about premature failures which in turn reflect on "reliability". Air suspension just "decides" to say "pull off the road, we're worried about something" and reduce your power, applying brakes or whatever to force you off the road? I don't think that's cool and I'm not the only one to have seen it happen.

A radiator fails at 40,000 miles? 98% highway, not even city. You have to realize that I have driven across the US 7 times and my "local" trips are out of the city 2-5 hrs each way. I take it super easy cornering, stopping, starting off, etc.

When my vehicle has weighed the most, it is for a short period of time and then much of the weight removed, not unlike towing or hauling the allowable cargo weight. The LR is supposed to be built FOR these uses, not beat up by them into a state of consistent failures.

Mainly, these vehicles are fantastic values for the used buyer but are a huge joke on those of us who bought one new. Right now, I feel like I've got a really great machine worth about $30,000 and it's a lot of stuff for that $ but unfortunately I spent about $90,000 to get here. So yeah, I'm grumpy about it but let's go camping anyway

 

[jwest]

Ever get quoted for brakes at 4mm? I personally know several owners that have, and the technicians that did so, with the justification that it will not make it to the next service interval.

, even if yours has needed extensive repairs, and I also strongly recommend extended warranties, as these are expensive to repair.

Well, I guess mine hasn't needed what I would call "extensive" repairs, but it's the items that failed which seem crazy and it all of course started after about 50,000 miles. It may also be that I got really lucky with my 96 Disco which is still running strong at over 230,000 miles. These new vehicles probably have 2x the items to go wrong so relatively speaking, they are clearly more reliable than the old ones were by proportion of systems and parts.

I will say one dealer, Lynnwood Rover tried to say my freaking differential NEEDED replacement NOW, and that was around 45,000 miles during a potential trade-in inspection. Interesting that the shop foreman at another dealer, WITH the information I relayed to him, said "no, it's totally fine" after listening with a stethoscope and all that. He said the only odd sound was coming from my RS sliders reverberating against the frame which should have been obviously the source. Crested 70,000 this week and I don't hear any grinding so I guess Lynwood Rover was full of BS.

The Tacoma dealer said because I needed new rotors when we did the pads this time I might as well run them out as long as I didn't feel grinding so they didn't really try to push that one either. They did let me know each time over a year with them going from 4-3-2 though

 

[RoverGuy7]

It sounds like you have found a good dealer/adviser/tech combo, a lot of owners are not as lucky, dealership or indi shop, it can be difficult.

Considering the failures common with the older models(head gaskets, engines themselves, driveshafts...) I still very much stand by my point of these being reliable, when maintained properly. You said that your ac compressor was replaced? Yeah, that is a pricey repair, and not very common among them. Radiator, somewhat common, I agree, not the best quality part there, but I would bet there are several honda or toyotas out there that have had a ac compressor or radiator replaced as well. They do have their quirks, and the occasional electrical issue that can cause trouble, but it really is not often that one of these will leave you stranded, at least without a fair amount of warning before hand.

Also, $4k in repairs over the course of however many miles really isn't that bad, all things considered, when each of those repairs are probably right around a grand. I never said they were cheap to keep on the road, most repairs are expensive on these, and most other LR vehicles.

But back to the topic at hand that started this, I would not be scared of a higher mileage one ~200k, as the repairs that it will most likely need, are the same repairs that one with say ~120k would need. As you pointed out, you've had low mileage failures of many things, a higher mileage one may be much better in the long run, save several grand on purchase, and yeah, you will probably end up putting that back into the truck to get everything right, but once that has been done, it will be a good truck, as long as it has been maintained well for the first 200k miles.

 

[umbertob]

I just sold my 2006 normally aspirated RR Sport yesterday to a local, fellow LR enthusiast, after nearly 8 years of ownership and 208,429 miles on the odometer. I had RS sliders and 18" wheels with A/Ts on, all other mods were minor or purely cosmetic. Maintenance performed by the book, no more, no less. Other than wear and tear stuff such as batteries, brakes, etc., I went through 2 EAS compressors (one under factory warranty, one on my dime at 150K miles), a front shock absorber, 3 sets of front and 2 sets of rear sway bar bushings, 1 set of front LCAs, 2 front wheel hubs. That's about it! No EAS disasters, no blown diffs (I had rear lockers, too) or tranny. Never once got stranded anywhere, most reliable vehicle I've ever owned. The engine still purrs like a kitten and the transmission is still smooth as butter, I have no doubt that car still lots of miles left in her. Hope my new LR4 is half as reliable as my old Sport was, and I'll be a happy camper.

 

[Houm_WA]

@jwest: my point by putting "maintenance" in parens after referencing the bad shock is that it needed to be replaced, so that speaks to the overall maintenance needs of the vehicle; while the fact that the LR3 could still get me home speaks to its overall reliability.

...and what makes you say that the shocks are "low quality?" That seems like a statement from the hip. I got 104,000 miles out of mine, with oversized tires and plenty of difficult trail use. I think that's a pretty solid service life, and I haven't heard of any of these failing in "normal" use. It's been mostly off-roaders like myself.

I remember pictures of your LR3 looking very tall, and you being (one of) the first to sport taller tires, even with measurements showing 13.5 or 16.5" (I don't remember which) of ground clearance. I don't remember how you accomplished that extra lift. The only reason I even ever heard of the German suspension mod was because of you and your posts. So, are you saying that you never had that installed after all? How did you clear those 31.5" tires? How did you produce the ground clearance that you measured and showed in your pics? Did you lower it onto a cinder block to put it in Super Extended Mode and then take a bunch of pics? ....doesn't seem like your style.

Oh, and I generally like the LR crew in Lynnwood. I think they are honest. They aren't correct all the time; and I often have to "help" them diagnose things that aren't "book repairs," but they are good people and take good care of me, at least.

@roverguy7: Dave, how many differentials have you seen or replaced on the LR3 that have actually FAILED to operate? Yes, they were getting replaced and were noisy...but was the end result if people didn't respond to that and change them?

 

[RoverGuy7]

I have never seen one completely fail, not to say they haven't, but not once at a shop I was at.

The worst I have seen was vibration due to bad bearings, that failed due to a leak, and low fluid. The gear noise is exactly that, a noise. I have had customers drive for a long time with the noise, as it wasn't worth them replacing it, and are still driving them, I'd say longest I can quote is around 35k miles past diag. The noise will get louder over time, and there is a definite distinction between a gear noise and a bearing noise. Bearing noise needs to be repaired, as eventually it can either lock up, or separate, which would cause a complete failure. A gear noise is from bad wear on the pinion/ring, and is an annoyance, and will decrease efficiency of the unit, but it would take a lot of 'work' for that to cause a failure.

 

[jwest]

I remember pictures of your LR3 looking very tall, and you being (one of) the first to sport taller tires, even with measurements showing 13.5 or 16.5" (I don't remember which) of ground clearance. I don't remember how you accomplished that extra lift. The only reason I even ever heard of the German suspension mod was because of you and your posts. So, are you saying that you never had that installed after all? How did you clear those 31.5" tires? How did you produce the ground clearance that you measured and showed in your pics? Did you lower it onto a cinder block to put it in Super Extended Mode and then take a bunch of pics? ....doesn't seem like your style.

My lr3 was never any more "tall" than the next one. I made myself a set of shorter rods to see how it would work, tested in the driveway, and then never put on again.

By saying I never had anything from Matzker and it's never been available in the US, I already said I didn't have one installed.

Clearing 31.5" tires? Maybe you are confused. This is the standard "up" size everyone uses, even when a dealer has the lr3 equipped to show off on a rock out front. BFG AT 265/65x18. Doesn't rub anywhere and is the most common size used other than maybe 285/60x18 which is wider and almost as tall.

My "style" is to get the most out of a vehicle with the least amount of unnecessary stress on it's structure or systems. I have posted several times that one reason use of rods is stupid is because they place the vehicle into a permanent higher stress (due to annoyance of changing back and forth people leave them continually). They actually gain you nothing more than what the air suspension system is already capable of giving you when in super extended mode. This higher than off-road mode can either be induced by running aground or by placing blocking under the frame and lowering onto it to make the system choose to go higher.

This is in fact easier than screwing around with rods and leaves you driving a proper height when on the road again. The only reason I found this solution is because I like to sometimes photograph from the roof using a tripod and wanted perfectly zero sway which you can only get if fully on bump stops or on supports like jack stands under the frame or sliders.

I tried it once and the vehicle raised upon which I said, "ah ha!"

Extended mode gets you only about 13" clear under the front belly pan. I think the rods brought up 14" but I wasn't willing to accept the long term issues the rods could cause.

65,000 miles out of my brake rotors is a testament to my style of slow and easy going on the vehicle. It may look like a toy but it's also one I depend on to get me where I want to go.

 

[Houm_WA]

Good, informative post; thanks. I am not confused about tire size. 31.5 will clear, but most folks who run that size also run some kind of lift/mod. I agree with you on the technical aspects of the rod-mod, but I wouldn't go so far as to call it "stupid." It works...and is perfectly effective for lots of people.

 

[Quijote]

I know many don't make a distinction, but to me, once you move outside of "appliance vehicles" like Camry's and Accords, you need to expect more maintenance expense and reliability issues. The more you push the envelope, the more this is the case.

I happen to be fairly handy, though not a proper mechanic. To me, worn brakes, frequent oil changes, spark plug changes, brake fluid flushes etc don't scare me at all. Even some suspension component change or electric motors aren't a big deal.

So to me, if a car doesn't leave me stranded, and I can diagnose and replace the part in an afternoon, I just don't see it as a big deal. Especially if the part cost is a couple to a few hundred and this sort of thing happens once or twice a year on average.

If it is an engine internal, some forsaken PCB, or a control module that costs $2k in parts plus an expert to diagnose and repair, then yeah, that sucks. If it leaves me stranded well before it should, that sucks too (coolant system or alternator or starter motor failing inside of 80k miles for example).

I don't follow the LR3 forum much, but I follow the LR4 and I hardly see any significant issues with that car and it has been out basically 4 years now.