Can JLR bounce back?

ONE huge issue that JLR have not addressed is that year after year they feature on or near the bottom of the reliability rankings. Ever since Land Rover got involved in electronics (remember the P38A?) reliability ratings have plummeted. magazine concurs with my above statement.

My most recent Land Rover purchase was a 1993 Range Rover 300Tdi. Every time I look at a new or newer model I am put off by the poor reliability. I will wait now to see if the Grenadier has better reliability though I am losing interest now that they have decided to manufacture it in Europe and not in the UK. By the way my Range Rover has done 144,000 miles so it is just run in.

Neil Carter Which?

respectively. So, these three size are by far the most commonly used in my workshop. These sizes of bolts and nuts increasingly appear as flange types, with a smaller head. For example, an M10 flange bolt can have a 15 mm head or a 13 mm head, depending on application.

Land Rovers commonly have rusty bolts and nuts, which means the heads are very prone to rounding off under the force of a spanner. For this reason, I mostly buy Hex (or 6 point) sockets, which are better at getting rusty fixings turned without losing grip due to rounding. For fixings in good condition, 12 point sockets are definitely more convenient and faster (to fit onto the bolt head), but will easily loose grip on a rusted head.

With that said, there are some bolts that can only be removed or tightened with 12 point sockets or wrenches, for example later brake caliper bolts or the bolts that hold the brake disc to the hub.

A good range of socket extensions are invaluable for reaching fixings in tight spots and the type that have ‘wobble’ ends are excellent.

Finally, back to that Halfords Socket set. It is (I think) a 200 piece set of an excellent variety of sockets (1/4” drive, 3/8” drive and ½” drive), ratchet spanners as well as Allen keys and the like. The quality is excellent and the no quibble lifetime guarantee is exactly that – I have, on numerous occasions, gone to the counter with a broken socket, worn out ratchet and been handed a brand new replacement without question or producing a receipt. The full price of the set is £349.