Newbie with problems!!

Hi All, been looking on the forum for a while now but just bought my first Range Rover so thought I should register and ask for some advice! I bought the car (04my 4.4 Vogue with 89k miles) privately and got it serviced by a main dealer - Inspection 1 with a general checkover. This is what they reported:-

1 Sump plug tight to come out - thread worn
2 Rear wiper arm fouling the spoiler and washer inoperative
3 Gear selector illumination not lit
4 Squeek from steering eminating from rack
5 Some corrosion on rear metal brake pipe above diff - advise to clean and seal
6 Slight dampness around transmission sump
7 Oil leak - rear diff area
8 Auto transmission metal pipes badly corroded
9 Slight play steering rack
10 Transfer gearbox oil leaking badly
11 General corrosion on underside of vehicle

This is my third adventure into Land Rover ownership - the first a Freelander 1.8 had the head gasket problem, the second a Discovery TD5 had (among many, many other problems!!) a head gasket failiure and now I'm wondering if my third Land Rover is going to be trouble again.

Fortunately my wife hasn't seen the report (yet!!) but I would really appreciate any thoughts/advice as to how serious all of the above sounds to you guys in the know

Thanks

Nick

Private sale......my 10p is that he knew all the faults and flogged it to you.

Sounds like it's got more like 189,000 on it, hate to scare you, but it sounds like it's seen more action than the 89,000 it's showing.

thanks juiceyv8 - think I might need that 10p!!!

Sounds like its had a hard life/been un-cared for with that list of faults.

I think the last bloke didnt give a **** about it. How long did he own it for........????

hi spacekid2009, you might be right but I did check the service history with the main dealers that did them and the old mot's seem to back it up? not got a good track record with landrovers though !!

juiceyv8 said:

Sounds like its had a hard life/been un-cared for with that list of faults.

I think the last bloke didnt give a **** about it. How long did he own it for........????

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he had it for about 2 years and seemed like an ok bloke.........?

There's nothing on the list that couldn't be easily sorted out with a few afternoons work.

Most likely the corrosion will be surface and if caught now will only require a clean up and some protection reapplied.

nickt68 said:

he had it for about 2 years and seemed like an ok bloke.........?

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seems a lot of faults mate.Where in the country are you??

Find a good independant buddy.

juiceyv8 said:

seems a lot of faults mate.Where in the country are you??

Find a good independant buddy.

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I'm in Hertfordshire so would appreciate any recommendations for decent independant - horrible feeling that he may become a close friend

If thats the list from a main dealer I don't think its that bad.... A few oil leaks and change a few rusty pipes a good days work or two..

I also dont think the list is that bad, it all depends on what you paid for it.

Buying it privately you probbaly saved quite a few grand from the main dealer forecort price, i dont blame you for doing that because it's what i would do. It now leaves you a few quid to get the little bits and bobs put right.

They are lovely cars and i hope you enjoy the range rover experience.

bob

As has already been said not alot really. IMO first mistake is going to main dealer as with huge over heads and a lack of work about I would say they want ya money? Get underneath and look, even if you done have mechanical experience common sense will tell you if oil leaks are bad of not? Little bit of oil can make a big mess! If in doubt wash the areas with some petrol and monitor for a week or so? If in a week it very wet then it is quite bad if after 3 months it's only slight then not too much to worry about. As it's been serviced all items such as transfere box should have been topped up should be fine for now? Items such as rusty pipes just need a
clean up smearing with grease etc.where abouts in herts are you as I'm on bucks beds herts border near tring and know a couple of independents.

Thanks guys for the opinions - relieved to see lowfat, bob.lydon and ROBV8's posts - it was looking scary on page 1

Rob I'm in Harpenden not far from you so any recommendations for independants would be handy

HANG ON A MINUTE!!
You handed this over to a main dealer and basically said - find fault with this.
What a surprise, they found some faults!

Engine - get a new sump plug and see what happens, I don't see any comments about cracked heads etc.
Transmission - clean it off and keep an eye on it, clean the corrosion off the pipes and slap some paint or underseal around. I don't see them saying that it doesn't select half the gears.
Cooling system - no faults found . . .
Suspension - no faults found . . .
Body corrosion - No faults found . . .
Under body corrosion - get down there with a bucket of Waxoyl
Transmission selector doesn't light up - come on!

Stop worrying about these, enjoy driving the car and, like any piece of machinery, keep an eye on it, lubricate where necessary and replace the bits that need it, when they need it and when you can afford it. Until then enjoy driving one of the most enjoyable (on so many levels) cars on the road.

Wot he said^^^^^^. I had a "safety" inspection on the new green disco. Frightened the life out if Daftlett. You gave to read between the lines. Assume that they are looking fir work. Must landies have oil around the gearbox/tbox area. Slight corrosion on brake pipes - it's 6 years old ffs. A tight sump plug and a light not working - wow . - most landies don't mention those, coz there are so far down the list of faults.

Stop worrying. Prioritise that list, do the simple faults ( lamp, wiper arm etc) and just work yo way thru them .

Thanks again for the help guys. As mentioned in original post had bad experience before with LR's! Got the seller to service it at main dealer as it needed one and then spoke with service manager before handing over my cash He said it was a good car for the age but when the invoice and service sheet with notes came through the post a few days later it had all the points previously mentioned on! Hoped that all was fairly ok but thought I'd get some advice from the experts (you lot!) to make sure I hadn't dropped a clanger!!
The Mad Hat Man - is the wiper fix and gearselector bulb an easy fix and will I find info on the forum on how to do it?
Thanks again all

nickt68 said:

He said it was a good car for the age

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thats the whole point - it aint a new car - its got some wear and tear.

As for wiper arm - get someone to turn it on and watch it - yu should be able to see where it fouls. maybe look at another motor and see if it is any different.

None of those problems sound too bad to me. If that's all they could find wrong then I'd be pretty chuffed!

As suggested by everyone else, just prioritise and fix the issues as and when.

Plenty of advice on here and rangerovers.net have plenty of walkthroughs and tips.

Don't be afraid to get your hands dirty - they seem quite intimidating to begin with but they're really not that bad when you get started and you can save a fortune doing bits yourself.