[6.0Luver]

So i am trying to buy my mom a range rover, i dont make alot of money but since they are now somewhat cheap, i am sure i can swing it. I just paid off my current lexus gs and i still live at home with my mom. I live rent free and dont pay any bills, i found this beautiful range rover on craigslist and a RR is my moms dream car. The price is right at 6K and didnt get a good look at the miles. My current plan is to cut my insurance on the lexus and focus on paying off the car. In the process i will be driving the RR as a DD until i pay it off. It will be my moms weekend toy but my concern is if the car will get to me to work and back reliably for the first year so i can pay it off.

Some questions i had are

When things start to fail, is it still drivable? Any limp mode?

Is it the engine or the transmission that like to fail?

What are used engines and transmissions going for?

Anything to replace or upgrade ahead of time?

I am pretty handy and like to work on cars. I am sure the majority of the work will be done by me. So moral of the story is i see RR has a bad rep when it comes to reliability, i just want to know if it is as bad is people make it out to be. Cars break, thats not uncommon. I am just worried about down time cause i want to pay it off within the first year.

 

[iconoclast]

everything you stated equates to a recipe whose end result is disaster. focus your time, energy and money on something else.

 

[MARK_C]

Like anything a lot depends on how it was treated through its life, was it maintained properly, was it beat on, etc. That said need to know which generation you're looking at, the BMW 2002 to 2005, the Jaguar/Ford 2006 to 2010, or later. All of them are subject to air suspension issues, but 95% of the time, that's just a wear and tear item with the air bladders just wearing out and causing the truck to lower to the bump stops. Guessing on the somewhat cheap statement I'm going to guess its a BMW version, or at best an 06 model. Need to know what you're looking at.

 

[KeptMan]

Range Rovers are for grown ups. Get your own place and pay your own bills. Or pay your mom rent so she can get her own Range Rover.

 

[ldollar]

While your heart is in the right place, I have to advise you to stay away from Range Rovers. If you buy one for $6k, you will probably pay at least that much to keep it running for the next year, and the year after that, etc. I am sure your mom would rather have you send her on a dream vacation or two than buy her a car that is sure to take years off her life. Best of luck to you in whatever you decide to do.

 

[woofster]

Not to turn this into a financial advice thread but based on the bits of data provided in the initial post, buying a $6k (which is on the low end) RR probably isn't the most prudent financial decision. I would opt to drive the debt-free Lexus until your savings comfortably allow you to purchase an additional vehicle. It's never comforting to be at one's financial threshold, especially if the funds are spent on a depreciating asset like a car.

All that said, if the allure of the RR is too much to resist, I say go ahead with it but perhaps sell the Lexus privately to offset some of your purchase costs. Good luck in whichever decision you choose.

 

[NRL1029]

It's nice that you want to do something for your mom but I caution you as the others said, I love mine but I knew what I was getting into. You can't have one of these on a budget unless you can do the work yourself and even then you will still spend some coin on parts and time. They are very appealing and tempting now that prices have become affordable. As someone else said if it was taken care of then that's good but even then they can be very fickle especially 03-05, but I love my 03 and she has been good to me so far with almost 150k but not 100% trouble free. The key to these owning these vehicles is awareness. Hope this helps.

 

[axle]

My guess is you are looking at a BMW engined 2002>2005 in which case all financial advice aside ( and it's sound advice) off the top of my head for the milage you will be looking at check;
PSV hoses have been replaced , if not be aware
Plastic timing chain guides have been replaced , if not be aware
water cooled alternator has been replaced , if not be aware
Sealed for life gear box has had regular oil changes , if not be aware
Diff oils and transfer box oil has been changed , if not be aware
Rear electrical units under leaking tailgate have been kept dry , if not be aware
Suspension compressor revised or changed , if not be aware
Suspension airbags have been changed , if not be aware
Front prop shaft was replaced by Land Rover , if not ,,,, you know what by now it's probably fine.

 

[Cleggy01]

Don't bother buying a Range Rover. I made the mistake last year. And have had nothing but trouble. Mine owes me 15k but I'm gonna take a big loss on it after xmas just to get rid.


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[woofster]

Don't bother buying a Range Rover. I made the mistake last year. And have had nothing but trouble. Mine owes me 15k but I'm gonna take a big loss on it after xmas just to get rid.


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Just out of curiosity, what year/specs is your model and what kind of issues did you have to deal with?

 

[danw101]

Don't do it. These are enthusiast cars not a daily driver that you can rely to get you from a to b. It will bite.

See my threads on the issues I've had in 2 weeks and I have a car that likely needs more money then what I spent on buying it to get it working again.

Yep, I'm "that guy" that you hear about who thought he was getting a great deal on eBay but ended up with a great big liability, I have a diesel freelander mk1 hse that cost the same which has never missed a beat, get one of them!

As said previously the annual maintenance will be your budget.

Having said all that when I see it sitting on the drive, I still think to myself with a stupid grin "I've got a range rover"

Good luck!

 

[axle]

Of course this is a online forum and you will only hear horror stories so to put things in perspective over the last nine years I have had two Range Rover L322's and in that time apart from wear and tear items I have replaced one suspension compressor ( and that is a wear and tear item really ) an O2 sensor and two rear shocks . That's it nothing else and I have towed heavy trailers regularly and drive off road a bit as well . But here is the BUT , never scrimp in servicing , fix something immediately and use genuine parts, it's not cheap and as they get older it doesn't get much cheaper .

 

[b348xyx]

well i have a very inclusive warranty and every claim so far they have paid out for. totaling six claims.. over 4k they have paid out over 2 years.

Worth the money as was under 1k to take policy out.

so as you can see they can get expensive when things fail. of course if i did not have warrenty most likely got work done cheaper but still costs alot.

running costs MPG aswell are pretty bad.. looking 10-15mpg around town.. 22-23 good run.

hope that helps

(but you cannot beat how they drive when they are working, amazing drive in comfort !)

 

[Cleggy01]

Mine is a td6 3.0 06 plate vogue. The car has just done 100,000 miles. I have owned it six months and have had the following problems:
Failed fuel pump.
Failed mass air flow sensor
Height sensor failure on suspension which then required the suspension recalibrating.
Faulty ignition switch.
Snapped driveshaft.
And I'm sure there are more problems that I have had that I can't think of.
Don't buy a Range Rover.


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[RRToadHall]

Pft, with high mileage the only thing I can see out of the norm is the snapped drive shaft. Sounds more of an issue with buying a worn example instead of make issues.