Questions for purchasing...

[Sako]

Hello-

Name is Andy, current military (ARMY), married, all the good stuff. Anyhow, had a few questions for you gentlemen as I am looking into getting a used LR3 for my wife to truck around in while I am away for a year or so. First off, we have been looking at 2005 and 2006 used LR3's, trying to get something with under 40k miles. What are the things I should know before buying? How is service? Any major issues? I know the gas mileage is not so great, but any other major concerns? Common repairs/problems and costs associated with such? Any further info I didn't cover but should know...

Thanks so much for the help, as it is much appreciated. I take off the 23rd of this month, so time is limited, and we are getting rid of our mercedes and she will need something before I am gone, as the only other car we have is an original Austin Mini Cooper edition and two motorcycles lol, needless to say she needs to get in something quick.

Thanks ahead of time for you help.

 

[drzjoint]

ive got 45k on my o5 and love it

 

[richpike]

Hello-

Name is Andy, current military (ARMY), married, all the good stuff. Anyhow, had a few questions for you gentlemen as I am looking into getting a used LR3 for my wife to truck around in while I am away for a year or so. First off, we have been looking at 2005 and 2006 used LR3's, trying to get something with under 40k miles. What are the things I should know before buying? How is service? Any major issues? I know the gas mileage is not so great, but any other major concerns? Common repairs/problems and costs associated with such? Any further info I didn't cover but should know...

Thanks so much for the help, as it is much appreciated. I take off the 23rd of this month, so time is limited, and we are getting rid of our mercedes and she will need something before I am gone, as the only other car we have is an original Austin Mini Cooper edition and two motorcycles lol, needless to say she needs to get in something quick.

Thanks ahead of time for you help.

Hi Andy,

First, thanks for serving our country - we greatly appreciate it.

WRT the 05/06 LR3s, there are a few things you should watch out for, but nothing that should keep you from buying either. Our '05, a fairly early model, has been (IMO) fairly reliable, with minor issues. Most have been handled under recalls, etc. Here is what you'll want to check/do once you buy one:

1. Make sure it has a recent alignment. Many 05s and even some 06s (I believe) came from the factory with the alignment set incorrectly - the LR3 is a heavy vehicle and will eat through tires if the alignment isn't correct.

2. There was a gas tank recall on some 05s - make sure that has been done.

3. There were some issues with the air compressor on 05s - not sure how to tell if this will be an issue or not, but something to keep in mind.

4. You'll probably have to replace at least the brake pads every 20k miles or so - easy job. The dealer is expensive, so I'd take it to an independant shop if you can't do it yourself.

5. There are some weird electrical things that you just get used to. Every now and then our cruise control won't work. The dealer has replaced about everything cruise control related - didn't matter. You have to turn off the car and turn it back on and it will work. When it is really cold out, sometimes we'll get weird messages on the information display, but they go away once the car has warmed up. I've heard this is likely when the battery is about dead. There are some other minor things, but nothing that is unusual in a European car.

6. I believe there was an airbag recall - you'll probably want to make sure that is done too.

7. Some of the 05s and 06s had an issue with the transmission where you would almost come to a stop and then accelerate (like coming to a red light that suddenly turns green) and the transmission would sort of "thunk" in to gear - this is easily fixed with a SW update.

Those are the major ones I can think of. Even with these issues (all relatively minor IMO), it is still the best car we've ever owned, and I've owned Touaregs, BMWs, Audis, Infinitis, etc. We love it. My wife feels safe. It can go anywhere, haul anything and still cleans up awefully nice. Great car. And you can get them for a steal right now.

The only thing we regret is not getting the 3rd row - I'd highly encourage you to get that. We've got the nav, xenons, etc - all awesome. If you can find one with those, I'd say grab it. And if you ever expect to take it off road, the HD package (with locking rear diff and full size spare) is cheap insurance.

Good luck!

-Rich

 

[PicnSav]

Andy,

I have an '06 HSE with 25K miles and none of the problems that Rich described. But,it's time for the front brakes to be changed, rears are still good.
My biggest problem is the arms that open up the sunroof are cracked in several places. This is the second time, I had the first sunroof replaced in January, so I would check those.
One more thing, I wish I got the HD package and 18'' wheels, now that I'm using my LR3 for offroading.

Good Luck and take care.

Greg

 

[nwoods]

I just answered a similar question recently, and archived my response on my blog:
http://blog.nextstepdesigns.com/?p=78

 

[lilredpo]

Thank you, as well!!!

Maybe look for one with remainder of free service maintenance. Might cost more for newer, but save in the long run.