Oh no, since I'm 30 years in the industry there's no way I'm going to be able to give you my "lifetime anecdotes", I don't have the free time.

Though I'll include a couple of funny personal ones.

Of my 4 Jeeps, three were (are) completely trouble free, the only one that broke (and it did so maddeningly/constantly) was a 98 XJ Classic.

Also our Mini broke a few times, but it was horrendously abused by my wife and bounced off of multiple things, or sometimes just smashed into where it sat, so I hardly blame it.

Interestingly 5 of my 6 Harleys have been near perfect, only the first was much bother. And the data has started to catch up, though I heard for many years (while mine were trouble-free) how they weren't supposed to be. Similarly our Ducati has been perfect... ironically it has been my BMWs that were most troublesome and some of my Moto Guzzis.

But I absolutely buck at the idea that "maddening to diagnose" is common. Sure IT CAN HAPPEN, but it's so far from the majority its not funny. Especially if you're dealing with an experienced tech who has access to the proper support. Then again, there are so many hacks and those who succumb to the temptations of flat rate and parts swap instead of really doing the work, I can see from where some of this comes.

< shrugs >

I simply don't believe the high level statistics tell us much.... but we may both be suffering from some conformational bias there.


< shrugs again >

 

Oh crap, you all are going to cause me to start trying to remember all the vehicles I've owned over the last 40 years of driving. There was the 4x4 Sportsmobile van that I sold to a stripper or the VW Rabbit that I left on the side of the road & donated to a not-for-profit, never to be seen from again. I guess in all of it, the ONLY one that I had any significant trouble with was a B4000 Mazda pickup that I had. I literally replaced the transmission 3x under warranty. For the life of me I can't recall any significant issues. (Don't ask me about that truck! I was young, dumb, and poor - always a wicked combination).

EDIT: Oh! There was the Pontiac Sedan that my wife owned. Pre-marriage I was driving her in her car (she asked) to a dinner date and the engine caught on fire. That was exciting! But it was long after any warranty issues on that POS.

 

Look, we all know the Defender (Land Rover) faults. If this was any other Chevy or Ford, we wouldn't even give it the time of day with an average Consumer rating of C-. But, it's a Defender. And who hasn't coveted one since they were a little boy? It's like that tramp in high school. You know she's been sleeping around with everyone and you guys are not even compatible, but you still want to sleep with her.

 

See, this is why I don't feel like I really fit the core Defender demographic. Before this I had only ever owned Ford vehicles. Were they always flawless? Nope. Were they still mostly trouble free? Absolutely. I read some of the complaints on here, and I'm shocked at some of the things people get really upset about or notice, so maybe my standards are just different (and not judging people - we all have our own requirements and expectations). For example, someday I'll have them fix the keyless entry antenna, but it's low priority and I can just stand slightly turned so it senses when I'm at the drivers door. No big deal. I know it's hugely annoying for others.

I didn't even know much about the Defender until my Bronco order got severely delayed, so I didn't really lust after one, but I was lucky enough that I was able to get one mostly how I wanted it (only lost the 11.4" screen), and delivered in 3 months, and I'm happy with it.

 

I can't take these JD surveys seriously. I mean every time I look at these things I'm stunned at what I see. My History? For starters Buick Skylark was the most unreliable POS I ever owned, dumped thousands into that including a rebuilt motor and then the rebuilt motor blew. Ford escorts were terrible, I had two, I replaced my own fuel pumps, every other month in the summer it would burn them up, they always ran hot and always leaked oil from the head gasket. Had the head gasket replaced, still leaked oil. A Pontiac Lemans between those two escorts wasn't bad, I rear ended someone and totalled it. Honda's build quality was very solid, when I worked for Hertz they had the entire Ford and Mercury fleet which I drove every model of both to and from the Airport daily, they had two Hondas and that's all, a Prelude and an Accord, they were light years better build quality and materials than any of the Fords. Always wanted a Honda someday. Met my wife in 2000, she had an Accord, she was all over me in that thing first date, lol, I proposed after a week, stone cold reliable the Honda was. I think I replaced an O2 sensor in it myself and then we traded it for a Corolla. So that's where we got into newer vehicles in 2005, she got a Corolla sport and I got a Camry. I liked the Corolla Sport better, really nice little car. Camry was ok, super bland though but after 30+ years of unreliable transportation I was ready for bland. 3 months into it my first new car and I hit a deer, exploded the windshield in my face and significant front end damage to the left front end, even after the collision work it still blew bits of windshield at me through the vents. Wife gets rid of the Corolla for a couple of Scions in a row, absolute junk, I soured a bit on Toyota myself after that. I jumped ship to a VW diesel sportwagen in 2010. Nice car, we had two kids in a row by then we needed a wagon. Four years later I hadn't put a penny into that thing, just a set of tires. By that time I'm a VW fanboy so step it up to a Audi Q3 in 2015, again very positive experience here, probably the best new car 40k can buy then and now. No problems, but a little cramped for my long legs, I put a set of tires on it in three years and then went for a Q5 lease in 2018. Great car the Q5, dual clutch was a cool step up from the Q3. Had a couple of brake harnesses that went bad on it and threw a fault code but that was all covered under warranty. No complaints with the Q5 other than no remote start and obviously you can't modify the leased vehicle. So that brings me to the Defender, my first custom order, local JLR dealer bought out the Q5 lease early over the summer when my 2022 90 arrived. Saved me a bit because I was over on mileage anyway. Defender? I love it. I do have a flaky rear tail light already after 7 months and 9000 miles but it's drive-able until a loaner is available. It's intermittent, the rear taillight works fine sometimes and goes off completely sometimes, always works for braking and signaling though. I really like my Defender and no regrets yet, time will tell. If it gets bad I may end up back with Audi someday or just go low-budget new vehicle for a while, save some money.

 

Sorry you feel that way, I feel that you have a lot of hate toward land rovers or the owners

 

We own a Kia Niro, and it has been a revelation. It's shockingly quick off the line, and we can easily crest 60mpg+ in the summer, upper 40's and low 50mpg's in the winter. It's not a sports car, but it handles pretty crisply, too. The trunk/folded-down storage space in it is ridiculous, quite frankly. We put gas in it once a month despite its small gas tank, and it just works really well. I suspect the Kia owner crowd will keep growing as they keep producing surprisingly amazing vehicles that stay under the proverbial radar.

We've had one issue with it - an exterior drainage plug/line got gunked up and blocked. Otherwise, bulletproof so far.

We ordered a Defender and I'm fully ready for it to be leagues below the Kia in reliability. Expectations.

 

People will overlook quality control issues and nightmare dealership encounters to own (likely lease) a Defender, because its appearance stands above the crowd in a sea of SUV's that all look the same. The one thing Land Rover got right.

 

Disagree about that being "the one thing." Yes, it looks a bit different. It's also a great drive that delights and surprises. They're much more nimble than they look - especially the 90 - and the P400 is obviously much faster than it needs to be. I haven't driven a P300, so can't speak on those.

Annnnd.. my local dealership has been great thus far. You must have really had a sour experience or just hate the brand. Unfortunate situations happen everywhere.

 

Totally agree. I find myself going into the garage several times a day just to admire it. But of course we love our vehicles. We researched them, test-drove them, read lots of reviews, watched lots of videos. That’s why we chose the Defender. Saw a Bronco parked near me the other day, and was very unimpressed, can’t see what all the fuss is about, and why their prospective owners are willing to endure long waits like we all did. But, we all have our own visions of what we like, and I respect others choices, also. I am still impressed and amazed every time I get in it with its appearance, tech, performance and ride. For a heavy vehicle like Defender to reach 0-60 in approximately 6 seconds, and have such a responsive and agile feel is quite unexpected. I’m always being approached by people wanting to know more about it, admiring it. And my local dealership has been great too although I’ve only been back once for a minor software update and replace a trim piece that had the slightest imperfection you had to be six inches away and point it out to even notice. They replaced it no questions asked the next day. Yet I read so many posters disgruntled about things like auto/start stop needing disabling at each startup. Yes, I would like that option too, but I’ve yet to see a recent vehicle that doesn’t mimic the Defender’s operation. It soon becomes second nature, so I’m conditioned by now. Just driving and enjoying.