I am not an engine or oil expert. I would however expect the (1) Make of the engine (2) displacement (3) number of cylinders (4) Towing/Driving style - to make a difference?

If you are driving an OCTA V8 “the hot way” it’s probably a different story than my IL6 diesel that only rarely hits 2000rpm?

I have read somewhere the 2 liter / 4 cylinder diesel Ingenium engine needs careful oil servicing according to LR guidelines to avoid problems. I haven’t heard the same concern on the 3 liter / IL6 diesel - but maybe I have missed something? I would appreciate any insights on this engine in terms of reliability / servicing.

 

Thanks GavinC very helpful. And the context of your duty cycle. Mine is mostly around town and long highway drives. Not towing, not heavily laden.

I do agree that 21k is a long cycle. I do an interim oil and filter at 10k then the service at 21k. I've got to nearly 21k in a little over a year so it's just for the high miles

I have the 21k coming up. Might do a blackstone to get a baseline

Thank you.

 

no worries.

Im far from knowledgeable on this topic so a generous pinch of salt and other particulate contaminants with my ramblings is advised.

 

Nothing specific to the model to have as I don’t even have a Defender (yet) but some general anecdotal data points. My driver Disco 2 has 186k miles on it. I change the oil every 3k. It runs like it’s brand new. It uses some oil, but it’s a toy, so I don’t much care. We are on our second Range Rover Sport Supercharged (L320 and now L494) and have been nuts about oil changes (with high quality oil like Motul) every 5k miles religiously. 140+k miles on the L320 when we sold it and never had to do timing chains (an issue on the earlier versions of that engine) and just did one in her L494. Oil came out really black and runs noticeably better after the change.

My Jeep doesn’t use a drop and it’s at 115k and I bought it new. 5k mile oil changes religiously since I ordered it. I’ve done 5k mile oil changes in the S4 I bought new and it is immaculate. Same with my motorcycles and on and on. I’ve never done a Blackstone evaluation, but I’ve never once had a vehicle with an engine issue over all the cars I’ve ever had- many of which were well north of 150k miles.

My point is, there is NO WAY I’d follow guidelines on fluid changes the OEMs state. On my Jeep, I do diffs, transmission, and T case at 15k, and that thing is used HARD off road and has towed to its limit well over 20k miles and generally lived a very hard life. It was shown that the timing chain issue with the Supercharged Jag engine was based on oil breaking down and the tensioners hogging out the guides. It’s similar with the old school Rover V8 that the tappets can wear over time causing the engines to tank with broken down oil. Earlier versions of the engine in my S4 had rocker arm failures, some of which are not just due to the bearing design, but also to oil breaking down and the bearings not being lubricated well enough.

Again, I thought it was well known that engine and other moving part oils break down over time. Preventative maintenance is not expensive at all when you do it (no way I’d trust a dealer to do it either because even when I lived in Germany, the Audi dealer admitted to using bulk oil- read: not high quality), and I’d rather have to deal with the software issues that come up as opposed to mechanical failures. Any dealer that tells a customer it’s wasting money proves my belief they are not to be trusted.

But this is my opinion supported only by my anecdotal evidence, which seems to date to serve me well.

 

I have a D250 and D300 straight six diesels. The recommended maximum service intervals are not for the engine oil which has its own monitoring and change warning system which usually indicates a much shorter oil change interval. Mine cover about 10,000 miles each annually so I find it convenient to have the dealer service each every two years but I choose to change the engine oil and filter myself at the 10,000 mile point, which is annually. I also choose to change my ZF transmission oil and the transfer box oil at less than 60,000 miles. I’ve just changed the ZF fluid at 55,000 miles and by the L405’s fourth birthday, at 60,000 miles, I have the fluids and filters ready to change the engine oil and filter [dealer will do the 70,000 service], the transfer box and both axle differentials. 1,500 miles to go.

 

I get my oil changed at a reputable indy. I've owned the Defender for 10 months and just got my 2nd oil change done. I'll keep getting it done spring and automn. Best part is that he does it properly by taking the skid plates off and from the drain hole. Not just sucking it up and leaving the metal shavings to add-up.

I believe LR service intervals is designed for the people that lease or trade before the end of warranty, knowing that they'll make more money down the line with failing engines.

 

I agree completely. The oil used in these vehicles is top quality top performance fully synthetic which is designed, with sufficient filtration and the absence of dilution by fuel, much longer than 20,000 miles. However, like you, I do 10,000 mile oil changes between 20,000 main services. Heck I ran a Land Cruiser 100 series which had recommended 4500 mile oil change intervals for over 200,000 miles on fully synthetic diesel 10W/40 oil at 10,000 miles oil change intervals and it was scrapped with the engine still running as new with no need to top up between changes. It was age and the need to pour money into its braking and trick suspension system that condemned it, not any discernible drivetrain wear whatsoever. In hindsight I should have paid up and got it back on the road where it would now be at 300,000 miles without a doubt. Time and technology move on though and the 200hp 400Nm Toyota consumed fuel at 23 miles per UK gallon while my current 250 and 300 hp LR and RR have far more power and torque plus more efficient transmissions and average 33mpg each. The fuel running cost alone was also a deciding factor. The fuel running cost alone was also a deciding factor. That’s £8000 more fuel cost per 100,000 miles on top of the £8000 it would have cost to put the Cruiser back on the road and rust was taking hold on the front wings and one back panel at the time, which is not surprising on a then 21 year old vehicle