Hi all. I'm in the market for a 4 by 4 and weighing up X5 3.0d se, RR tdv8 or Q7 3.0tdi.

I have just sold a Cayenne S which I had for 18 months and loved it but got bored of 12 mpg in town.....

I have to say that my default purchase was to be an X5 and on its own, it seems a really good car. In its own way, its imposing, muscular and does the job well.

I didn't really take to the Q7.

For completeness, I thought i would go and see a FFRR.

I'm posting here because i can't be the first to be weighing up these cars.

I saw a pre facelift 2006 supercharged RR - they happened to have one at the car supermarket i went to for viewing an X5.

I was totally blown away by the interior and presence of the RR. It made the others seem distinctly low rent.

Now in terms of value for money, a tdv8 was c65k new in 2007? They seem to be now early £30ks. Same price as a £44k X5 costs same age.

Quite aside from being classier beyond compare, almost regal - they seem to be relative bargains. Am i missing something?

From what i've read, the reliability problems seem to have been sorted too for the TDV8 - is this right or will the RR cost a lot more in fixing problems than what i'd imagine would be a trouble free X5 (like the Cayenne was).

Would appreciate hearing from owners.

Thanks

PS - lots of questoins - where are the best places to search for a 2006, 2007 TDV8 - is it worth paying the premium for a main dealer car? Can an extended warranty be purchased if i buy privately? Are there good specialists to use for ppi? Thanks!

I don't own a SC but do have a 4.4 on gas.
Your post touched on why I searched so long for my car.

Presence and finish.

Everything else is low rent.

Good luck, I drove a SC what a great car, 400 BHP too!! 15MY SDV8 Vogue SE

Hi Lone Ranger, I've just posted my experience of exactly what you are going through, on your other thread,


Hi, I went through exactly the same process that you're going through, I thoroughly investigated and test drove each of those cars, including the Merc GL, and in the end the FFRR was by far the best option, overall. The newer 2007MY with a TDV8 was the best option. The only thing that is annoying for me, is the dated technology. Don't get me wrong, it is all actually very good, works well, and quite advanced in a way, but I guess I need the 2010 model to satisfy all my desires.....but then thats just a bit out of my price range
Good luck.

Anyway, I've had my FFRR VOgue SE TDV8 for only 4 months, whilst it still had the Landrover Warranty, and in this time, I have had 1 big issue in that the SatNav just stopped working, the antenna went faulty, very strange I know, but to cut a long story short, they replaced that under warranty. Besides that, I had water in the rear lights and the top stop light, which they also replaced under warranty. Car is 100% now, and I must say I love it. I was a bit worried at first with those issues, but all is good now, the engine and mechanics are rock solid and it's very reliable.

I would say that to get one with the balance of the 3 year manufacturers warranty would be a must, certainly for the first part of your ownership, as that is when you will find the issues, and that was invaluable to me. Mine has a further 6 month extended warranty from Landrover, but beware, the extended warranty is done by a 3rd party company, and it is not half as comprehensive as the Original factory warranty, and only the basic mechanicals seem to be covered.

I spent a good 6 months looking for my car, and got to see a lot of crap. Almost bought 1 from Saxtons, but glad I didn't because it was not 100%. In the end I found mine from a private sale on Autotrader. I also used this site, which was brilliant too.

http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/list.asp?s=184

Good luck, and I hope you too find a good example of the best 4x4xFAR.

Click image to enlarge

Thanks for the replies really useful information.

Can I clarify one thing. if I buy from a main dealer, they provide a 12 month warranty. Are we saying that that warranty is not the same and not as comprehensive as the original 3 year warranty when new? If so, I will alter my radar slightly and look for a minimum 57 plate car privately rather than an older car from a main dealer.

Thanks

For me just look at SAppies picture...... Enough said

Youve already noticed the presence of the RR over the X5

The TDV8 is a great lump! TDV8 HST Sport **Current**

4.4 V8 Autobiography and 22" wheels **Gone**

Re the Warranty, my car came with an original Land Rover Extended warranty that states "unlimited" on the certificate. (regarding spending limits). But in my experience, and what others have experienced, it is not a straight forward authorisation process, and I know that they won't cover a lot of things that the factory warranty covers. Can anyone else out there give us any examples of the Extended waranty and their experiences either positive or negative? It would be better to get one that has at least 6 months on the original warranty, but then obviously the cost of the car will be a lot more. The bargains are to had post the initial 3 year warranty.

Yes I've noticed that cars still within the 3 year warranty are a jump of a few thousand in price. Part of me thinks that surely an owner would have got any issues rectified just before the warranty expired but the peace of mind with the original warranty may be worth having if the subsequent warranty is not as good. Currently own
996 GT3
E320CDI wagon
BMW C1

Previously owned
Cayenne S
993 C2
500 SEC
C180 wagon
XR2i