Is this blog influential?

After having been flagged us one of the top 50 blogs impacting brands by the Times, I thought I would post an update today!

I haven't maintained this blog much since Land Rover refunded my money after the second Discovery 3 failed on me. I have left the blog up so that the conversation is maintained. If you want a summary of my whole ordeal please read this post. Feel free to browse the latest comments too. Most contributors to the site have had similar experiences to me: poor product quality, lack of customer service. Others come to the defence of Landrover having had a faultless experience with their Discoveries. Others are doing product research, about to buy a luxury SUV.

I was interviewed by a journalist yesterday who asked me whether I thought this site had impacted Land Rover's sales numbers. By how much I can't say, but there are a few emails I have received that explicitly thank me for keeping this blog up and running as its saved them from being a Land Rover customer. Take this one received in the last fortnight:

I was just about to consider a Range Rover Sport as I had a BMW X5 for a while and was well impressed. I have owned Land Rovers before and I have to say they haven't been a patch on the BMW. I just stumbled on this site (Amongst others) that have done nothing but slate Land Rover and Ford, who are clearly in some Business Trouble... I now know I will be visting the BMW showroom next week for a New X5 and least I know it will also be worth something after three years when I come to change it too! THANK YOU FOR HELPING ME NOT MAKE A BIG MISTAKE! Sorry to those who have, Jon

Its such a pity that my offer (which is still standing) to Land Rover to take over this site as a customer forum hasn't been taken up. I had hoped that they could use this site (which gets thousands of hits a week) to enter into a open and transparent conversation with their customers. All brands and Motor Vehicles have issues, but Land Rover isn't committed to opening a dialogue with their customers. What a pity, because their customers are doing it without them!

Comments

[jon]

Interesting you say the BMW X5 was good, here in the Middle East a lot of them have disappeared due to the high servcing costs. Thye were very popular when they wer efirst realseded. I knew the service manager for one of the agencies, he said it was not uncommon for them to rack up bills of 2/3 Sterling equivalent on their annual service!!

[Karl S]

7 Months and 2800miles in and still battling to get an intelligent response from Land Rover, The local Dealer is in agreement that my complaint is valid along with many of there customers with the same complaint. The Excess brake residue that collects makes the £30,000 vehicle look just like a five year old £3000 banger. I am intelligent enough to understand the principles of stopping a 2.7t vehicle, and have owned vehicles of this size without this issue; however the Land Rover engineers obviously do not understand the principles of centrifugal forces and the capture of the consumable particles caused by the braking action. This may be an issue of vanity but the wheels look rubbish.

[Dan]

Hi.We also have big problems with our diso 3 in South Africa!! Ours burt out after LANDROVER took it for a spin! We had a new windshield fitted and had it serviced with Land Rover Bloemfontein. To our disgust they phoned us and told us that the disco is now a mere 2,7 ton of trash.

[Eric Cullen]

As a Land Rover Defender owner here in Australia I find it quite sad the way that Land Rover Australia now market their vehicles. Maybe if Land Rover had stuck to what they do best ie. Manufacture farming type vehicles from meccano sets they wouldn't be in the strife that they are in today. This blog is a typical example of the cafe latte type owners that their marketing gurus are aiming at. A huge country like Australia certainly needs a rugged 4WD, the Defender surely fits the bill. But what have they gone and done? Close down most of their rural dealerships and pathe the way for Toyota to reign supreme out here in the bush. My nearest dealership is now 600km away in Adelaide, and you know what? I hear that they are taking away the franchaise from that dealership too (maybe there's something I don't know)
I have had problems in the past when I owned a Freelander so I can certainly understand where this disgruntled owner is coming from.

[Freddie Sirmans]

Just browsing the internet, very interesting blog

[Gavin Hill]

Hi or should i say that to people i think are stupid

what i see on this website is mixture of comments most are good saying themselves being landrover owners enjoy there discovery and it being very reliable i work at a landrover dealship[ and last week picked up a 1998 discovery that was heavily abused off road and had 191000 miles on it how many cars from other brands do you see that with also these other brands that are coming out with so called 4x4s for Eg lexus new 4x4 thing clearly states in the manual if the vehicle is taken off road it will invalidate the warrenty lol what a joke if you are going to moan moan about something worth moaning about like the price of fuel

[Hafiz Qureshi]

Another disillusioned LR Discovery customer.

We bought our 2nd discovery, new in October 2003, because we were so impressed with our previous, P Reg, disco. Since then, we have been nothing but disappointed with the utterly poor quality and cheap materials used in the cabin, (and on the exterior!!) poor workmanship, for example, sharp edges on the poorly fitted pastic panel work in the centre of steering wheel (take a long drive, and you need a good hand massage!), bits of fascia coming loose and falling off every time a door is shut ( OK, have you tried gently shutting a discovery door, it just does'nt work!), rust coming through minor stone chippins, rust leading to paint peeling off black steel bars bewteen the rear door windows (this should never happen in a under 4 years old car in this price braket, especially what is claimed to be a ruggid off road vehicle - hahaha!!) etc etc... I could go on for pages but Iam sure you sure you have got the gist of it!

To add to all this, it has also seen more than its fair share of various mechanical faults and niggly problems.

Pretty roughly used vehicle, I hear some say. Well it has actually done less than 17 K miles since new (only evere used for school runs) and has never been taken off road (Heaven forbid!!!)

We filled in several surveys and complained about the poor quality but there has never been a satisfactory or helpful response.

Will we busy another Discovery - well the answer is a big NEVER even if it comes free with some cash.

[paul Brown]

You bunch of sad gits! I have owned 2 X Volvo XC90, 2X Disco 3 1XQ7 and 1 X X5. (Each covers 20k over 6 months - I own a car rental / leasing company).

As an OFF ROAD vehicle nothing comes close to the Disco. As an MPV nothing comes close to the Discovery.As an exec cruiser nothing comes close to the Discovery,as an all round family car nothing comes close to the Discovery.

The XC90 is a nice bland car, the X5 is a posuers car and is just a big estate with no off road ability - just buy an 530D Touring and get a real car.

The Q7 is a technical tour de force - well made, well built and powerful - but soulless!

The Discovery is way better than the other in terms of refinement, ability - on and off road, practicality and ease of use. It is not without fault - a bit underpowered however neither of mine ever let me down in terms of reliability or quality which is more than can be said for the Volvo - regular electrical faults, the X5 - poor quality paint and various trim problems plus a gearbox failure.

The Q7 - my current car has been OK save for a fault with the CD / AMI connection and several other electrical gremlins.

Dont be fooled by a few disgruntled owners opinions - spec the Disco correctly and use it as it was meant to be used - you will love every minute (ps find a good dealer that is not in a major city, the small country ones know the car and understand customer service.

[celeb]

>

[Virdi]

Questions:
So how can one manage and survive to have a used discovery then?
Any suggestion please?
Please don't say don't get one?
Thanks

[Freddie Sirmans]

Just browsing the internet, your blog is very, very interesting.

[Worst4x4]

Looks like nothing has changed over the years.

http://www.worst4x4.freeservers.com

[Lori]

Since starting my campaign to get Land Rover to replace the transmission on my daughters 2002 Freelander, it is very intresting how many people have the same problem. Seems to me that with that many bad transmissions Land Rover would admit to installing faulty transmissions and do a recall of 2002 Freelanders!!!

[Dizzy Blonde]

I live in the Middle East and have a 17 year old Defender - I have been wondering if I should buy a new one or not, but as mine is a complete star and runs really well (unless it rains! - fancy a landrover defender not liking the rain)both on the road and in the desert dune bashing, I am going to get her resprayed and give her interior some TLC and I look forward to many more years of driving her.

Would be great if my daughter (2 years) could learn to drive in her, and at the current level of reliability, this is likely!

[David Scott]

I had a Land Rover Freelenader that was a total piece of crap. No joy working with the dealer (Land Rover Peabody in MA) so I traded it in for an Audi Q7 which I totally love. I'll never buy another new Land Rover.

I also have a 1973 Land Rover Series III which is great.

Go figure.

David

[Dave R]

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[Steve]

Hi I have owned various vehicles 3 defenders and a couple of range rovers one being a sport.
Land Rover exchanged one of the Defenders for me after I contacted the MD. The Range Rover Sport covered 20k miles with no problems. Had 2 BMW X5s and 2ML Mercs. Mercs were nothging but trouble X5s were OK but not as good as the Rangie.

I must praise Land Rover sorry

[Bertahkh]

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[James Chapman]

Land Rover must sell 100's of thousands of their vechicles each year and the majority of owners are finding the service, support and value of their vechicles to be of the highest quality.
I have owned a Land Rover for the last six years without any need to call upon them to solve any problem. My interaction with the Land Rover dealers and service centres has always been excellent and their staff are always courtious to me.
So now maybe you understand that out of the 100's of thousands of owners, you have only got a few disgruntled people who feel that they need to comment on your blog posts.

[raz]

Hello, I have a 20.000 km Disco 3 with mechanical problems already. The sad thing is that, when I asked to the service, they sincerely told me this is not an accident. Most of the Disco 3 have the same problem that mine had, and there is no hope from Land Rover. What a shame: offering this quality under this brand!

[raz]

Hello, I have a 20.000 km Disco 3 with mechanical problems already. The sad thing is that, when I asked to the service, they sincerely told me this is not an accident. Most of the Disco 3 have the same problem that mine had, and there is no hope from Land Rover. What a shame: offering this quality under this brand!

[DanesWood]

I work for one of the major motoring organisations in the breakdown control centre and I've noticed a pattern with Range Rover automatic gear boxes failing.
In the past few weeks I've spoken to several customers who've had to be recovered after breaking down.
One guy had his 5 year old vehicle totally maintained from new by his supplying dealer yet after just 50,000 miles on his 5 year old car it needed a new automatic gearbox and Land Rover wanted £6000 to do it.
He spoke to Land Rover customer services who were totally unwilling to make any sort of goodwill gesture, so guess who won't be buying another Range Rover.

[David D]

Land Rovers, you either love them or hate them. If it's the later, buy something else and drive off into the sunset and do us all a favour.

[Danny Kennes (Belgium)]

What a lott of bullshit!!!!! Do you have any clue how to drive a car????
Since the introduction of the Discovery 3, I've driven several of these cars. And believe me, we use them intensive. At the moment we have a fleet of 10 Discovery's on the road for the company... Never, ever the smallest problem with them. Ans guess what, all of our personell use a Blackberry in their car... Every car does an avarage of 65.000 km per year and are used to tow till the max (3500kg). So don't tell me all Land Rover Discovery's are bad. It's just a matter of luck. At the company we allready had Mercedes, BMW, Jeep, Volkswagen and Renault. We can only conclude that Land Rover is the most reliable brand we had till now. Believe it or not, but we have the prove.
Maybe the PDI in Belgium is better? :-))
Don't judge me on my knowledge of the English language.

[Land Rover Sales]

Sorry to hear the news very bad experience on your part. I have had 7 Disco and no problems.

[Michael]

I have owned a land rover Defender for at least 11 years and in this time it has been worked hard and I mean really hard, it has pulled loads of up to ten ton on black soil roads and the couple of times it has been bogged the only vehicle that could get near it to pull it out was a 260hp 4x4 case tractor. I have owned landcruisers, Nissan patrols, and Triton's and they are all toys!!! compared to the Landrover!!!!!!!!!

[alan]

Iv owned my disco 3 for 3 years now,apart from little niggles, faulty reverse censors, sqweaky brakes,the amp gave up, which were all in first 12 months of purchase and rectified by conway land rover,its a dream to drive,its a 4x4, a people carrier, motorway cuiser all in one, i for one cant part with it, drive one and you'll want one!

[phill ashworth]

Any body had any trouble with discovery 3 with a manuel box ref towing-i have a 07 plate and i struggle to set off with any more than a tonne payload-i have had land rovers all my life-this is an on going problem with stratstones at bury-phill33@btinternet.com

[jonjoe]

what a load of rubish you talk have sommthinge against land rover i am on my 6th in 18 years with no major probs st all

[rakael m.]

my sister and i owns a 2000 and 2002 discovery. both our problems w/ the disco is a leak from the sunroof. is this a problem that all the discovery owners have encountered with? it got to a point where it was badly leaking that it messed up my stereo system.

[Keith Thomas]

Interesting Web page. For the last 3 years I haver run a Kia Sorento as a working vehicle. I regularly tow 2500 Kgms. to and from UK/Spain. Absolutely no problem except for one breakdown caused by dirty fuel, resolved immediately by a Spanish Kia dealer. I thought I would change to a vehicle with more towing capacity and thought of A Disco 3. Why pay a fortune for hastle though? I am ordering a new Kia!

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[Jon]

Well what can I say - feel that someone should say some good about landrover as they certainly deserve it.
I currently own a Disco 3 - having owned 3 of them now, and also 3 freelanders over a 12 year period.
I have owned X5 also, which have to say, was the worst car I have ever driven, only kept it 5 months before getting rid of it, hated it.
In my 12 year history with landrover, never once have I had a fault or problem. The disco 3 is a truly fantastic car,the best I have ever driven, the drive, the look, the feel and not to mention the off roading. You would not ever talk me out of land rover, and was so shocked to find this site.
People put on here how they feel sorry for people with Disco 3 - that brought a smile to my face! But in anycase, thought id post a point on here, no doubt it wont get on the site, because im not saying what you want me to hear!
Incase you are wondering, bet he only does the school run in it. My annual mileage is 30k! Up and down the motorways most days.
Thank you for your time and good luck with your X5's!!!! lol.

ours goes fine, not a hiccupp, and good value at 45k

[Tony]

I've just replaced my 1994 Discovery which covered 167,000 miles and never let me down with a 2005 Discovery 3 HSE and I am pleased as punch with it. I'm a very proud Land Rover owner.

[SC]

I have to tell you I purchased a Land Rover LR3, fully loaded the whole deal, A 43,000.00 investment. You would think buying a high end vehicle would take some of the headache away but this vehicle has been nothing but problems from day one. I have had to take it for one service or another 13 times, which includes a 2.5 hr drive to and from and then the same to pick it up. So much for buying a high end vehicle.

[Napolean Swineheart]

I bought a new 1998 Discovery LSE
$38K out the door. Except for the
on/off knob on the radio breaking
it has run flawlessly. I have taken it way back in the back country hunting, over some terrible terrain and it worked great. Oh yes I have 156,000
miles on it. The 4-litre V8 is
a little weak and gets just fair
mileage but the whole package is
excellent. I won't need to buy another. The local dealership has
given me first-class service.

[John in Oz]

I am on my 3rd Disco and my experience as written here is straight down the line.

2000 TD5 Manual (Bought at 20K sold at 90K)some manual trans selection problems, not major, turbo hoses loosing re-inforcement otherwise no problems.

2003 TD5 Auto. (Bought at 55K sold at 90K) Headgasket leaking, more transmission problems than you could jump over. I am told the head is common at 130K. Never made it to a scheduled service without being in the shop at least a couple of times with some drama. To be fair on the transmission, the fluid was burnt when I had it changed just after I bought it. No excuse for the head gasket, everything was done that should have been.

Disco 3 06 V6 SE Petrol (Bought at 16K-). No serious problems. Two minor gripes door seal has split slightly and optional door protection side moulding is poorly fitted causing some minor interfence with front door. Standard tyres are terribly thin and attract punctures like nothing before. I am contemplating replacing them all.
Poxy spring clamps on hoses still there.

So far we are going OK. Beautiful drive, put silence to a lot of people who were smirking at me when I turned up to a 4wd Club meeting in my stock 4WD.

I wash mine once a week so the brake dust isn't a real worry.

Had a great laugh at that comment.

cheers,

[Dave Mcdade]

Took delivery of a Discovery 3 HSE one month ago. Great car no problems much better than the XC 90 i traded it for. Very happy with it.

[Dave Mcdade]

Took delivery of a Discovery 3 HSE one month ago. Great car no problems much better than the XC 90 i traded it for. Very happy with it.

[You]

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[richard hazelgrove]

It seems to me that car manufacturers in particular are very cavalier with thier customers.
A while ago I bought a Chevrolet new - I know , should have known better and after 9 months during which it would just stop for no apparent reason - I bit the bullet and cut my losses - I will never buy a new car again. Too many times when I was transporting kit for my team building company www.teambuildingsouthern.co.uk did it die on me.
I now drive an oldie but goodie Jaguar XJ40 (1990) with a volvo 850 for the dirty stuff.

[landrover discovery]

Its strange but we get many requests for the 300 series of Landrover Discovery and most don't want the TD5 version. It seems the 1994-1999 version was a landmark and from there on in went downhill. It wasnt without its problems of course. Few dont seem to have the headlining coming down around your ears for example!