My 2010 RR HSE was getting EAS faults and the the suspension was lowering/raising on it's own, so I took it to my local LR dealer.

Got a call this am from the Service Rep.

Tell me the ticking my wife said she heard means it needs a time chain/tensioner, $3300! I said "they determined that from ticking?" she said well, that and the mileage (95k) probably means you need to do it..

On top of a quote to change the front right Macpherson strut for $2100 (EAS was going nuts, it's leaking)

A quote to change my brakes (again?!?!) I just had them done less than 10 months ago, 10k miles by them

On top of a quote for a wheel alignment for $500

Not happy.... The car is pristine, but ~9k if fixes for a truck with a book value of $17k. WTF?

I found a local guy who works on RRs, and he says he's never had to change a timing chain on a 2010 RR because someone "heard ticking".
Also said he could do much better on the strut.

I'm confused what to do here. I love the truck, still have some financing left on it (I bought it off lease), it looks GREAT.

 

probably correct about the timing chain/ tensioner. they are usually pretty noisy. i would imagine a $2100 quote for both sides, this was just one side? they are usually done in pairs. something i would check on.

 

We are talking about a very slight ticking sound, similar to when you use low octane gas. No error codes, no power loss, nothing, etc, my wife mentioned the ticking noise in passing. A 3rd party mechanic I spoke to said he's never had to "proactively" changed nge a timing chain because of a "ticking noise", and that it's my local RR dealer just trying to fear me into doing completely uneccessary work. There is very low probability that a timing chain has a spontaneous failure and that you will get codes, engine noise, etc. The quote was for replacing the timing chain and tensioners, plus labor.
with the strut (Macpherson adaptive version) they are quoting $1500 for one strut + $550 in labor to change it. I see these things prices from $500 (rebuilt) to $1200 (OEM new), so I'm assuming they probably are putting me on the very high side of a quote.

$200 to clean carbon from the throttle body (uh, no) and $500 for a wheel alignment. Seems excessive to me.

 

i still would bet the ticking is from the guides, like i said they get noisy especially around that mileage. the tensioner loses its tension and the chains slaps the guides. doesn't mean you have to change them right now but it could get worse, they have updated the guides for that motor that are suppose to be better when you replace the guides and tensioners. as for the strut, any reason why they wont replace just the bags? it sounds like you are saying they are wanting to replace the entire assembly? should be a bag kit that comes with the hardware, bag and seals.

 

Yes. I understand now. It's the Jaguar 4.0l AJ8 engine in the 2010 RR HSE, Plastic timing chain guides, plastic bases on the time chain tensioners in a 14K engine...lol. They wear/split, causing play in the chain.
I had an old Porsche 944, and was bewildered why they used plastic gears for the sun roof.

New ones are all aluminum.
With the strut, they are replacing the entire assembly, got them down to $1900 (although that's probably still high).

 

2010 isn't a 4.0, but the all new 5.0 V8, hence all these problems. Timing chains on these aren't a "wait and see" situation. They should be done when they get noisy. The rattling that is heard (I have not heard yours) is the chain slapping on the guides. Once the chain gets enough slack, it will make contact with the oil jet at the crank gear and damage it, further compounding the problem. The worst one we did, slapped so hard and for so long, it actually broke two of the bolts for the passenger side guide. The customer continued to drive until one of those broken bolts wore a hole in the front timing cover. By that time it had jumped time and was towed in. These problems won't hit a "plateau" where you can just ride it out, nor will it get better.

So it isn't a matter of them selling you stuff you don't need. You likely need it all. You just need to find a better price. The dealer is only going to sell you a new Land Rover strut which is very expensive. I've had mixed luck with "remans" so I tend to go NEW as well, just not Land Rover.

 

Notice on the front cover, that the one bolt wore a hole through the cover and the second broken bolt was starting to (shiny spot on cover).

Passenger side chain guide: two broken bolts

Broken guide bolt wore hole in front cover.

 

we replace bags all the time. we almost never replace the entire strut. that is why i made mention

 

I instructed LR to replace that right strut (had them bring down the total cost to $1800). Since they told me they need to "order the part". I'm going to take your advice and call them today and ask why they are not just changing the bag. I'm sure I'll get some explanation that they don't just change the bag, yada yada...
I've found an LR mechanic close by to me in St. James (Expedition) and my plan is to bring the vehicle to them with the laundry list of other items that LR said needed to be done.
appreciate all your help and guidance with this.

 

Well, well, just got off the phone with LR...
Me: Hey, someone told me you just need to change the bag, not the whole strut.
LR: "Sure we can do the boots only, but we recommend doing the whole strut"
Me: Based on what, is the strut damaged or worn?
LR: No, basically we recommend it based on the mileage. Your strut looks fine, we just recommend doing the whole thing at that mileage.
Me: How much is the boot only? Will it solve the issue?
LR: Certainly. It's $600.
Me: Then do the boot only. As a matter of fact, change them on BOTH sides.

Is it me? It pays to do research. Thanks for the help. You've saved me a BUNDLE.