Hello,
I have been considering a 2023+ Defender 110 V8 for the past few months and I have watched a number of YouTube reviews and they are all very good, but do mention Land Rover's poor reliability reputation. Being mostly unfamiliar with Land Rover, I thought I'd take to the forums, like I do venturing into any "new-to-me" car, and see what ownership experience has been like for those that own them. I have test driven the V8 model a few times and I really like the way it handles, accelerates, and even exhaust sound. This would be more of a daily driver for me, but also something I could use to go to the snow, desert, etc. If anyone would care to share their ownership experience, good and bad, I would greatly appreciate it. Thank you in advance!

 

The 5.0-liter AJ133 V8 that is used in the Defender has been on sale since 2009. Early engines are known for timing chain issues, mainly caused by the 15k mile oil change intervals. I had a 2011 LR4 that we bought new with the non-supercharged version of this engine, and in the ten years and 95k miles we put on it, there were no timing chain issues, as I changed my oil every 5k miles. The timing chain guides were updated in 2012MY vehicles, but they still aren't perfect. If you take care of it and frequently change your oil, (every 7500 miles or less) you won't have to worry about the timing chains going bad. The water pumps and coolant crossover pipes are another issue with this engine, which is something JLR hasn't updated. They are prone to cracking, and once they are replaced, they will go bad again. I went through three sets of crossover pipes in my ten years of ownership, with the original pipes going bad at 29k miles, and replaced them again at 63k and 90k miles respectively. I think there are now aftermarket metal pipes that you can get to fix this problem, but I haven't looked much into it. Another problem I had an alternator go bad at 77k miles, but that was easy and relatively inexpensive to replace. Other than these issues, the engine is pretty solid, and you can easily get over 200k miles out of it with routine maintenance.

 

We have a 2016 Range Rover Supercharged with the 5.0L, the vehicle has 44,000 miles on it and get's an annual service at the dealer given its low use. The only repair ever done with this Rover beyond regular maintenance was an oxygen sensor at just over 40,000 miles, which was covered under the emissions warranty.

Whenever you get on the gas with this vehicle it is hard not to grin. My wife and I have had 10 Land Rovers over 30-years we haven't seen the maintenance nightmares people love to discuss, which in my opinion are overblown. I can give you plenty of personal experience stories of BMW, Mercedes, Audi, and GMC headaches I've lived with.

A friend of ours has a 2016 Jag XJL Supercharged 5.0L and she refuses to get rid of it, uses an M3 now as a daily driver but the XJ is kept as a road trip car because of the space it provides and what they feel is excellent reliability.

 

Thank you all for the great feedback. This is excellent and what I was hoping to hear. I know people like to loosely throw things around about a brand's reliability without having any firsthand experience. I feel like those days for most car manufacturers are in the rearview mirror. The Defender 110 V8 would be something that I would plan to keep for a long time so this is great to hear happy owners. I just love the exhaust when you hammer on it. I'm hoping in the coming months I'll find the right one. Thank you all again.

 

Pretty much same feedback from my side. I have driven 6 cars from JLR and never had any issues at all.

 

I've had four of the AJ133 V8 cars over the past 12 years - three Jags with the supercharged engine and a LR4. It's just wonderful engine to drive! Did 100k miles on two of them. My current ones are 5 yrs and 2 yrs old and loving them!

We went for the P400 in the Defender. Came from a Discovery with the V6SC. The P400 is silky smooth and great power delivery too.

 

I really appreciate all of the great feedback. It was super influential in making my decision. With that said, I was able to score a recently trade-in, a 2023 110 V8 Carpathian Edition with only 5,800 miles. It was pretty immaculate and it worked out with a trade I had as well. I absolutely LOVE driving it. I have been driving it nearly all day. Wheels and tires are next. Going with a 20" wheel and more aggressive all-terrain tire. Thanks again for all of the feedback. I look forward to engaging more here on the forum.
-Chris

 

Congrats on the your new truck! Great choice, if do say so myself.

 

Car is great, brakes are super annoying. The Brembo brakes squeal at low speeds and also sometimes squeal at low speeds (3 - 5 mph) - mainly the front brakes. I replaced rotors and pads at like 8000 miles and it did nothing. Dealer says it's a condition that I have to live with ...

 

The V8 has high-performance six-piston front Brembos. Performance brakes aren't quiet. The brakes on my Porsche are noisy, as well. If you want quieter brakes, try swapping out the pads to something less aggressive.