Should I get an LR4?
 

Hi everyone,

I'm looking for an honest answer to whether I should get a 2013/2014 LR4? I am a recent law school grad at a big law firm and have always loved the LR4. Everyone has warned me about terrible gas mileage, car expenses, and reliability issues that should cause me to turn my head and get an audi or merc instead. Only one people say is worse is BMW.

Therefore, I was wondering are these legitimate concerns?

Thank you in advance

The LR3 and now LR4 only have a few known issues and for the most part they're not terribly expensive to rectify. They're much less catastrophic than the common issues in older Discos.

2013 and 2014 have different engines and possibly drivetrain setups, so that's something to be aware of if you're thinking of those years.

2010-2013 have the 5.0L Jaguar V8 that has been proven to be very reliable other than the water pumps that have almost all been replaced by now. 2014-2016 went to the supercharged V6 that has a touch less power but a touch better mpg (as in 1).

With the change to the SC V6 in 2014 they went to a single-speed transfer case as standard for the first time in the Discovery/LR line's history and the 2-speed transfer case was an option with the HJD package.

Congrats on the fresh degree and position. If you want one, buy the cleanest one you can find with a solid maintenance history at a licensed dealer or well known independent shop. Sending it to the local dealer for a Pre-Delivery Inspection is always a good idea too. But in general, the LR4 has proven to be quite reliable in comparison to past LRs/RRs.

Yes - I'd agree with JWA. Fuel economy is really low ... but aside from that I've found it incredibly reliable and a great car. Mine is a 2010 with the V8 and has 70k miles on the clock now

Find a good independent shop for brakes, oil etc as dealer is costly.

Note that the new discovery is about to come out in the Us and replace the LR4. Totally all new, so I would imagine LR4 prices will take a hit. Maybe try and use that for negotiation leverage.

I break it down into 3 tiers

1) If you can or enjoy turning a wrench, Buy something older than a Discovery II, IE a Disco I, RRC, Defender. All are rough vehicles but reliable and easy to fix, but require very frequent maintenance checks.

2) If you can turn a wrench but are limited on time, ability, or both, Look at a Discovery 3. They are easy to maintain but have several maintenance items that are harder to service if you're an amateur. They drive extremely well and have aged quite well when compared to newer cars. Best V8 they fitted to any land rover (4.4 NA). Many, many computers but mostly bulletproof.

3) If you flat out do not want to turn a wrench, or can rarely spare time to fix a vehicle or make emergency repairs in the event of a problem, go for something new, WITH a warranty (LR4 being a good example). They are complicated, harder to fix, etc. Warranty is required. With one of these you could literally just make sure it isn't leaking fluids on the ground, has oil in it, and coolant. If it breaks they give you a loaner. Newer probably will not break unless you're an idiot. They are reliable but complex machines.

Yes they get crap mileage. They are overbuilt and heavy. They are not unreliable, but IMO became way too complicated after the end of the Discovery 3, which was already hard to maintain unless you have a large budget.

I HATE the stupid dial shifter thing all their vehicles have now. 2013 was the last year with an actual shift stick thing. Otherwise nice car, just a more luxxed out LR3.

Hi everyone,

Thanks for the replies! I think I'm going to go for it. I've test driven a bunch of cars and none just compare to the comfort and quality of the LR4s interior. I think I'm going to go for the V8 though...great engine and I dont trust those spinning shifters.

Update…
 

Was wondering if you still have your 2010? I might be purchasing a 2011 with 101k on it. Good service record. It was regularly serviced and cleaned at the LR Dealership!