Hello,
I'm in the market for a used Land Rover LR3 and have found one that has the mileage, options, and price I'm looking for (a 2008). The thing is, the CarFax report has shows "air suspension checked" several times throughout the years but no notes of anything being fixed. Would this be a common check for the dealer to perform or is this a sign of a reoccurring issue?

Perhaps more concerning though is that the history shows the "short block replaced" at 46k miles. Now, for me this is a red flag, but I like this car so I'm hoping someone can tell me this isn't as big an issue as I'm thinking it is. I know these cars need to be well maintained to last so my fear is that a previous owner allowed fluid levels to run very low or otherwise improperly cared for the car. The car does have 40k miles put on it since the engine rebuild, so I'd like to assume nothing else was damaged from whatever the cause of the rebuild was.

To those of you who know your way around an LR3: are there known issues that would cause and/or result from the short block replacement?

Thanks.

 

I cannot imagine it's common. Maybe one of the hoses blew and the thing overheated. As solid as the LR3 V8 engine is, I wouldn't be worried about the short-block replacement, assuming it was replaced by someone that knows what they are doing.

 

Ive had my LR3 for almost 5 years now, and have only had to replace the following:

- Air Compressor
- Thermostat Housing
- Replaced Lower Control Arm Bushings with PolyBush

Im @ 140K miles and the thing has been the most reliable Rover Ive owned.

I have not heard of them needing a new short block, but usually when they do that early on, it is likely due to a manufacturing defect and not a recurring problem.

 

@LR3Philly: any chance it is the "short" EAS Valve block and not the engine block?

@WNYErik: how do you like the Polybush? Any issues with the 4ETC or other suspension functionality when off-road? Also, I'd love to see pics of your LR3 with 33" tires on it. I've only ever seen one other LR3 with 33s. What kind of mods did you have to do to fit them? What tires are you running?

 

Thanks guys.

I test drove it today and had an LR dealer inspect it. The check engine light went on while test driving (error codes PO174, PO171) as well as the tire pressure light. It also had some body shake at 60mph+. The (Non-LR) dealer selling it said they had already corrected the alignment to stop the shaking but I found that it remained at highway speeds. The inspection also found that the front lower control arm bushings were quite worn (in need of replacement soon). Also a minor oil leak, and the steering wheel is off-center.

houm_wa: You were correct! Nice call. The dealer pulled the records and it was the "short valve" that was replaced (done at a LR dealer). Apparently it was incorrectly entered as the "short block" when submitted to Carfax.

So, good news is the engine was fine but the other issues that arose leave me questioning whether this particular LR3 will be trouble off the lot.

 

You cannot get a good alignment with bad LCA bushings. It's going to eat tires.

 

Jafir is right; replace the LCAs and then get it aligned. The error codes and CEL could be related to a throttle body or MAF needing to be cleaned. I'd be put off by the oil leak; hopefully you can get that resolved.

 

Yeah, where was the oil leak from, did they say?

 

Jafir: They didn't say but I've decided to walk away from this one.

Thanks for all of your input guys, it was very helpful. There were just too many questionable issues with this vehicle. I looked at another LR3 SE today and think I'll go with it instead. 70k miles, spotless carfax with all scheduled maintenance and oil changes performed at the dealer. It's a few thousand more (it is $18,000) but on this vehicle I think that's well worth it.