Selected Usenet posts from rec.autos.4x4
last
updated 97.8.1
Discover sustains Costly
Damage in insurance industry study of "fender benders."
Built in England, the Discovery also
exhibits a distressing tendency toward reliability problems. We receive
lots of horror stories regarding Discovery reliability via e-mail, and
Automobile magazine wrapped up a long-term test with a very troublesome
1995 model recently. ... accompanied by gear noise and other aural annoyances.
Worse, this power plant is rated for 13 mpg city/17 mpg highway, and that's
with a light foot.
Lackluster Crash Test Results. The National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration (NHTSA) awarded
the 1996 Discovery only 3 stars compared
to the Ford Bronco's five stars.
Seriously, there are a number of features to recommend the Discover. I
even owned one (a year of frustration, anger, and boredom, waiting for
roadside assistance and monthly repairs). Besides the shortcomings noted
in the literature (sluggish acceleration, one of the lowest fuel-economies,
pronounced lean when cornering, long stopping distance, defective trim,
cheap parts, hard to clean), I've noted the following:
Perhaps you have something to add to my list of "Good things from England?"
or maybe a Swahili translation of my "Top 10 List," or maybe you
just want to share your Land Rover horror story ...
You can
Dual temperature controls seemed neat, but when the car warms up
you have twice as many knobs to adjust: difficult because the cup holders
block access while spilling your drink into the radio!
Gotta use your keys both to open & close the fuel door.
who figured this out? Most cars have a lever to open, just slam it shut
The lock freezes when wet. Unfortunately, you won't notice this till your
tank is near empty (did I mention the poor gas
mileage?)
No "door ajar" warning light
Complex Clearances Difficult to Use
there are 3 different clearance heights, depending if roof racks installed,
sunroof closed, etc.
denominated in Inches, while all US signs are in Feet & Inches
PROCEDURE: you're headed towards a questionable bridge, flip down the visor,
figure which of 3 configurations apply, convert 79 inches to feet, and
compare to posted height. If you can't make it, lower the sunroof, recompute
new clearance, compare, and apply brakes if necessary! Be sure to caution
others (parking valets, drivers borrowing the car): they may need calculator
to drive this car. ; - )
AbysmalReliability
At 13,564 miles, the hood won't open, key won't operate lock
At 21,942 miles, the hood rattles, AC won't work, and steering wheels squeaks
At 23,183 miles, found leaks in value cover gasket, valley pan, front &
rear transfer cases, crank seal, and power steering line.
At 23,191 miles, key stuck in lock, can't open gas flap
At 24,381 miles, engine won't start, check engine warning light on, door
loose and rattling. Door lock doesn't work, transmission indicator out
At 24,727 miles, engine won't start, door still won't lock, update water
ingress kit
At 30,333 miles, engine surges and dies, new oil line installed
In one year I went through:
4 windshields, 3 digital clocks, 3 rear window spray nozzles (they break
off in the carwash), 2 radiator hoses, several burned-out warning lights,
distributor coil
The hood rattles at speed and then won't open
Sunroof won't open
Plastic trim is cheap and falls off
steering column trim replaced twice, carpet hold-downs break off; replacement
parts unavailable
