Any Range Rover Sport owners?

[bennyb29]

Hi, looking to hear from any members who own a Range Rover Sport (Models 2014 and above), or who know someone in close circles who own one. I am looking to gain info on their reliability in general, as well as average service and maintenance costs.

I understand the general opinion of Euro makes is the perceived lack of reliability, but I am told the newer models do not have the same infamous reputation as the earlier ones which brought on the bad rep.

I have a close mate who bought one, 2019 model and loves it. I am trying to gather info on the longer term maintenance aspects of a well maintained vehicle.

[BruceandBobbi]

Two things.

1: Using the words Range Rover and reliability in the one sentence is an oxymoron.

2: Your mate has been lucky....so far.

https://www.whatcar.com/land-rover/range-rover-sport/4x4/used-review/n17571/advice

[Scrambler]

Hi, looking to hear from any members who own a Range Rover Sport (Models 2014 and above), or who know someone in close circles who own one. I am looking to gain info on their reliability in general, as well as average service and maintenance costs.

I understand the general opinion of Euro makes is the perceived lack of reliability, but I am told the newer models do not have the same infamous reputation as the earlier ones which brought on the bad rep.

I have a close mate who bought one, 2019 model and loves it. I am trying to gather info on the longer term maintenance aspects of a well maintained vehicle.

Try AULRO, where there will be plenty of RRS owners to comment.

As I understand it, any modern RRS should be fairly reliable. The 90s Range Rovers were troublesome, and earlier ones fell into the era of Lucas "the Prince of Darkness" electricals in British vehicles. So the brand has had problems but no more so than others of the time.

AULRO covers everything from 1950s farmers vehicles to brand new Range Rovers.

[old Jack]

RR, RRS, D4/5, DS they all great 4wds to drive but they have very high service/repair costs.

They also have high depreciation cost so secondhand they look like a bargain until they need a service or repair. If you could service and repair it yourself and had access to trade price parts then it might be worth it.

Most models have 19" or 20" tyres so not that good off the bitumen, limited range to choose from and very expensive compared to 17" or 18" tyres.

OJ.

[craka]

I have a mate with RR Evoque, quite luxurious interior. Bought new and probably had for 12months now, to my knowledge he has so far not had any mechanical problems, though he did have a plastic door handle trim fall off only a little while after purchase and from memory took six weeks to get the replacement in stock.

[bennyb29]

Two things.

1: Using the words Range Rover and reliability in the one sentence is an oxymoron.

2: Your mate has been lucky....so far.

https://www.whatcar.com/land-rover/r.../n17571/advice

Brand new vehicle with warranty. I believe my friend is covered for most practical purposes. I am trying to gauge the situation with a pre-owned vehicle purchase.

While most deem a Jeep to be super-unreliable, this same friend drove his 2011 Compass for over 320,000 kms before it had to be written off following a roo accident. All this with 0 unscheduled maintenance expenses.

Try AULRO, where there will be plenty of RRS owners to comment.

As I understand it, any modern RRS should be fairly reliable. The 90s Range Rovers were troublesome, and earlier ones fell into the era of Lucas "the Prince of Darkness" electricals in British vehicles. So the brand has had problems but no more so than others of the time.

AULRO covers everything from 1950s farmers vehicles to brand new Range Rovers.

Thanks a lot for pointing me to that forum. Have registered and will spend time exploring owner reviews and feedback on there.

[bennyb29]

RR, RRS, D4/5, DS they all great 4wds to drive but they have very high service/repair costs.

They also have high depreciation cost so secondhand they look like a bargain until they need a service or repair. If you could service and repair it yourself and had access to trade price parts then it might be worth it.

Most models have 19" or 20" tyres so not that good off the bitumen, limited range to choose from and very expensive compared to 17" or 18" tyres.

OJ.

Thanks a lot for your unbiased reply. I agree with the depreciated costs, hence the thought of looking at pre-owned. At some point in life is a desire to experience some semblance of luxury. Let's see. As of now I am just gathering info and looking to learn.

I have a mate with RR Evoque, quite luxurious interior. Bought new and probably had for 12months now, to my knowledge he has so far not had any mechanical problems, though he did have a plastic door handle trim fall off only a little while after purchase and from memory took six weeks to get the replacement in stock.

Thanks craka. Was this purchased brand new?

With the door handle trim, these are not parts that fail often, so always low on stock. When my daughter and friends managed to break the rear inner door handle of my Pajero, the dealers in Brisbane that I rang didn't have it in stock. They would only place an order on payment, following which it would take 2-4 weeks or so to source it, if not more. I instead went scouring at wreckers to source the handle and bought the same off them for 1/4th the dealer price. Cant tell the difference.

[erad]

I had the opportunity to buy from a friend a 1985 Range Rover. It was my first 4WD and what an introduction to the world that opened. The Rangie had been regularly serviced - every 10000 km, but our friend only did about 7000 km a year, so it badly needed a good long hard run on the open road and a good oil change to clean it out properly. The main dislike I had with it was the horrible 3 speed Torqueflite transmission. First gear was ridiculously high - you could do about 90 km/h in first gear. Then when you were going up a hill, the engine would suddenly go from less than 2000 R/min and change into second gear, going about 4000 R/min. It was awful.

I had the Rangie for about 8 years, and in that time it took us to all sorts of places. The limiting factor was the fuel range. I had it on gas and there was only a 25 L petrol tank, so I had to take jerry cans with me. Petrol inside a car is not that safe. But it went where lots of others would wince and it did it in comfort as well. Yes, it had the Prince of Darknesss Lucas electrics, and they did give some problems, but we never had to flat top it back to civilisation. Eventually, I got sick of it leaving oil in my driveway (it was just marking its territory) and traded it on on a NL Pajero. I was able to do most of the work on it myself, and I knew what I had with it and trusted it. If I had relied on mechanics to look after it the way I did, it would have cost a fortune. Since then, oil leaks have been a thing of the past (I hope they stay that way too).


Would I buy another Rangie? Certainly not one as old as I had, and most likely I wouldn't buy a newer one anyway because they have far too many electronics for my liking. Mind you, I am not thrilled about my NW Pajero - it is far too complicated to fix up on the roadside out from Oodnadatta. I just hope that when I am next out there, it won't decide to fail to proceed. A flat bed truck out there would be very costly indeed. But with a little basic knowledge and a OBD device to read and hopefully clear codes, I hope I can at least limp back to civilisation should the need arise.

Having said all this, my NW Pajero does a wonderful job. It rides almost as well as the Rangie did, it is certainly quieter, it is more economical (except for servicing), it is safer and generally is finished to a higher level than the old 1985 Rangie. If I were to step back in the Rangie I would probably be disappointed. Newer RR, Discovery etc have come a long way since 1985 as well and their level of comfort certainly would be better than the equivalent aged Pajero, but the reliability factor is always in the back of my mind. Yes - I may buy a RR or Disco etc if the price was right, I knew its history and I was in the market for another 4WD, but if I was out looking now, it would be hard to go past a Mitsubishi product.

[Two Emms]

I know we are all about function and reliability etc but the new rangies look so nice

[Pauno]

Had a friend put +200k on a 2013 disco 4 before recently trading it in.
He had troubles, check engine lights regularly. Lucky he was a mechanic. Had something crack in the engine bay, can’t remember what it was. He sourced it himself from the UK for $2-3k but was a $5k fix at the dealer.

[craka]

Thanks a lot for your unbiased reply. I agree with the depreciated costs, hence the thought of looking at pre-owned. At some point in life is a desire to experience some semblance of luxury. Let's see. As of now I am just gathering info and looking to learn.



Thanks craka. Was this purchased brand new?

With the door handle trim, these are not parts that fail often, so always low on stock. When my daughter and friends managed to break the rear inner door handle of my Pajero, the dealers in Brisbane that I rang didn't have it in stock. They would only place an order on payment, following which it would take 2-4 weeks or so to source it, if not more. I instead went scouring at wreckers to source the handle and bought the same off them for 1/4th the dealer price. Cant tell the difference.

Yes was indeed a brand new vehicle.

[nj swb]

Some Range Rovers do go off road:

[BruceandBobbi]

Was talking to Vic Widman one day at my local TJM store Somehow the conversationgot around to his training course. He said the thing that shocked was when someone turned up in a brand new Mercedes. No it was the G wagon but the soccer/shopping trolley type.

As the driver was determined to go where the big boys went. Vic said he left enough bits lying around the course for him to start a wrecking yard.

Reckons there was many $1,000s damage.

[old Jack]

Some Range Rover Sports go to greater lengths to prove their capabilities.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uxPKl5skMDE

OJ.

[bennyb29]

Some Range Rover Sports go to greater lengths to prove their capabilities.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uxPKl5skMDE

OJ.

Watching Top Gear videos, it is evident that RRs do well off road. However, the reason they don't get taken off road much, which goes against their primary USP in the day, is the crazy cost of repairs. Green laning to some extent and soccer mom duties are where they are commonly seen now.