For those that have been following my 'Stuck in France' post I am wondering what my next step should be.

I had a Merc 300 and then 320 CDi which were reliable and I loved. Then went for a 2012 FL2 for towing a RIB up and down slipways. Reliable and good car except boot far too small for regular long trips to France and Spain. Then went to RRS 2011 HSE TDV6 which we love but first an oil leak £2,500 later luckily WD paid most of the bill. Just had a catastrophic electrical melt down in France (see posting) which took two breakdown lorries to literally winch it on the truck with all wheels locked. 2 weeks later fixed at LR La Rochelle another £1,000 although WD paying about £650 for this. The actual breakdown recovery was about £400 which could not be reclaimed from anyone. Now wondering what I can rely on.

Looked at Disco Sport but seems like a lot of early electrical problems and then we have the unknown new engine coming along so thought I would stay well clear. Later this year I will also look at a Merc ML350 CDI Eco about 2 yrs old as much for the excellent 30yr European breakdown cover as anything else.

I need as reliable a 4x4 as one can get, comfortable, good for towing up slippery ramps, long distance tourer, no worse MPG than I get now (25mpg), no worse tax than I pay now. I will take out parts warranty, must also cover Europe for up to 100 days. Have not got European Breakdown (silly me) but will in the future; most likely RAC who cover up to 90 day trips. Sadly cannot now take out whilst I am still in France, so will have to wait for my return.

My dilemma is to pay more money to go to a newer Merc ML350 CDI better MPG, performance etc (reliability ?) or stay with what I have and hope it was bad luck but take out all the warranty and breakdown cover I can get. Look at a Disco Sport which I am not sure of yet.

By the Way - LR Assist do not cover long enough trips in Europe otherwise would have opted for that.

Please all advise on ways forward.

What about a Disco 4? I've had a couple in the past. 31mpg, more space inside, 7 seats. Reliability seems ok. I did plenty of miles in Europe in them without issue. You could peruse the disco forum here for feedback.

For european breakdown you need to join the German outfit "ADAC" who will repatriate etc. There was a lot of chat about this on the Freel2 forum and other forums from satisfied customers. You can also use it for UK cover too. And its a good price too Do some research to make sure it works for your circumstances etc

I'd stick with the RRS and get a proper LR Warranty not WD. My mate's uncle works for LR and his advice when I bought my 2012 RRS was "Make sure it has the 2 year warranty!!!"

Hunters @ Guildford have been nothing but impeccable for me.....to date  Visitor from fullfatrr.com
* GONE. 2012 RR Sport HSE SDV6 Orkney Grey. Now being piloted by RRSTDV8
* GONE: 2011 4.4 TDV8 Full Fat. Amazing piece of kit.
* Current. 1974 Lightweight 2.25L petrol. Old skool
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A D4 is the same as the RRS - reliability is as good as the same (at least in theory).

If you want greater reliability, you have 2 choices:

1) Something smaller/lighter

2) Something more crude/less refined

The catch is, people often end up selling a car for these reasons, just after they've fixed all the issues...

With the later 3.0-engined vehicle, you have a considerably better and more reliable vehicle than the pre-2010 incarnations. It's an expensive vehicle to buy, and that is refelcted in maintenance and running costs. They're not unreliable, just expensive to maintain. There's also an unparallelled network of enthusiasts and good indies around with great knowledge to help with issues.

We have no warranty on the D3, and we're about to fork out for a TC, and turbo, plus other stuff. It gets far too much money spent on it, both on maintenance and mods, but I won't sell it, because we can't afford a D4 yet and there's absolutely nothing better to drive, more practial, safer or better for towing.

As many LR owners will tell you, it's also nice to spend time fixing them!

There's a reason we all put up with it.  Visiting from DISCO3.CO.UK
2006 Discovery 3 TDV6 Auto HSE Zambezi Silver

Just remember how it great a RRS feels when you're cruising down the motorway or around town, You cannot deny the driving experience is second to none, and the cars always turn heads. You won't get that in a Skoda Yeti


The above example assumes you're driving on the 1 day a year your car is fault free

Quote:

You won't get that in a Skoda Yeti

You might...but they'd be turning the other way.  Visiting from DISCO3.CO.UK
2006 Discovery 3 TDV6 Auto HSE Zambezi Silver

Lost for Words wrote:

A D4 is the same as the RRS - reliability is as good as the same (at least in theory).

If you want greater reliability, you have 2 choices:

1) Something smaller/lighter

2) Something more crude/less refined

The catch is, people often end up selling a car for these reasons, just after they've fixed all the issues...

With the later 3.0-engined vehicle, you have a considerably better and more reliable vehicle than the pre-2010 incarnations. It's an expensive vehicle to buy, and that is refelcted in maintenance and running costs. They're not unreliable, just expensive to maintain. There's also an unparallelled network of enthusiasts and good indies around with great knowledge to help with issues.

We have no warranty on the D3, and we're about to fork out for a TC, and turbo, plus other stuff. It gets far too much money spent on it, both on maintenance and mods, but I won't sell it, because we can't afford a D4 yet and there's absolutely nothing better to drive, more practial, safer or better for towing.

As many LR owners will tell you, it's also nice to spend time fixing them!

There's a reason we all put up with it.

I thought Disco's and RRS's were basically the same car?

DrRob wrote:

For european breakdown you need to join the German outfit "ADAC" who will repatriate etc. There was a lot of chat about this on the Freel2 forum and other forums from satisfied customers. You can also use it for UK cover too. And its a good price too Do some research to make sure it works for your circumstances etc

I'd stick with the RRS and get a proper LR Warranty not WD. My mate's uncle works for LR and his advice when I bought my 2012 RRS was "Make sure it has the 2 year warranty!!!"

Hunters @ Guildford have been nothing but impeccable for me.....to date

DrRob wrote:

For european breakdown you need to join the German outfit "ADAC" who will repatriate etc. There was a lot of chat about this on the Freel2 forum and other forums from satisfied customers. You can also use it for UK cover too. And its a good price too Do some research to make sure it works for your circumstances etc

I'd stick with the RRS and get a proper LR Warranty not WD. My mate's uncle works for LR and his advice when I bought my 2012 RRS was "Make sure it has the 2 year warranty!!!"

Hunters @ Guildford have been nothing but impeccable for me.....to date

DrRob wrote:

For european breakdown you need to join the German outfit "ADAC" who will repatriate etc. There was a lot of chat about this on the Freel2 forum and other forums from satisfied customers. You can also use it for UK cover too. And its a good price too Do some research to make sure it works for your circumstances etc

I'd stick with the RRS and get a proper LR Warranty not WD. My mate's uncle works for LR and his advice when I bought my 2012 RRS was "Make sure it has the 2 year warranty!!!"

Hunters @ Guildford have been nothing but impeccable for me.....to date

Some have suggested the new Disco Sport but my thoughts on this are:

I too read all the industry reviews of the DS and got very excited and looked good in the showroom as well. (Not driven one) but I have also followed the DS Forum from day one and sorry but I do not think it is a pretty picture. I even got as far as speccing one out with the salesman at our local dealer and talking part exchange etc but when I could not have 5 seats, full size spare wheel and tow bar (fixed or retractable) I cancelled the order.

Reading the longer term reviews ie 4-7,000 miles I think LR still has not got it right. I want a less sophisticated RRS without things like low range and diff lock and all the extra weight stabilisers under the rear . Less complicated air suspension and the car would be cheaper, less C02 therefore cheaper tax, more MPG but most important more reliable like the FL2.

Disco Sport would not make me change from RRS.

nigel52 wrote:

Spending time fixing them is for older vehicles and enthusiasts.

Quote:

Not sure why one would want to swap a RRS for a Disco 4 not really more reliable; maybe slightly more rugged.

Yes, that was what I meant by that bit. Half empty vs half full.  Visiting from DISCO3.CO.UK
2006 Discovery 3 TDV6 Auto HSE Zambezi Silver

LR customer retention is well above industry average and heading to towards industry leading. LR owners are buying another LR.

Just stick with LR, Or buy a different 4x4 but wish you were driving a LR every time one passes you.

nigel52 wrote:

I need as reliable a 4x4 as one can get, comfortable, good for towing up slippery ramps, long distance tourer, no worse MPG than I get now (25mpg), no worse tax than I pay now. I will take out parts warranty, must also cover Europe for up to 100 days.