Hi, my range rover p38 was as good as stolen from me? Last two years had problems with car going into limp mode, got fed up so took to three land rover garages. None were able to find fault, even when limp mode was on? So parked car up in storage area and low and behold owner of lock up said to shift motor 2 months ago. I didn't have any space at home so gave him my car! Yes I know I'm a fool!!! Anyway looking out of window at home on Sunday guess what? Car pulls up opposite my house gleaming! Check gov web site it's now back on road. Absolutely gutted!!!!!

We had a P38 in for fuse 1 kept blowing been to 2 other garages third garage sent it to us who do not do electrics...bcem back to callrova twice (700€) garage through owner supplied 2 used fuse boxes both wrong or knackerd then new one...eventually we told garage its scrap as cost is escallating but in Portugal they are with a lot more than UK so owner wanted it fixed...I started a thread on here as we knew what fuse 1 ran we had dash apart stereio out as it was aftermarket and usually a problem...marty uk picked up on thread and pointed us how to check all wiring without fuse 1 powering loom...being LHD Barry was in driving seat checking instruments sterio etc I was with DMM by bcem looking at readings he lent on cubby box and reading went ape**** we did it again the same took out cubbybox and wires from window switch pack were trapped and chaffed round bolt down stud fixed in 5mins...3 months between garages 1 month with us a few hours a week tracing wires testing connections...eye watering bill...was it worth it for owner no not at all...
 
I would happily have paid to have it fixed! But my point is they said it was not fixable, so when i was not able to move car away from garage i reluctantly had to give it to them! Then they somehow were able to fix it?
 
Yes it’s amazing how that can happen! Although they could have farmed the job out to a specialist.
 
Hi, my range rover p38 was as good as stolen from me? Last two years had problems with car going into limp mode, got fed up so took to three land rover garages. None were able to find fault, even when limp mode was on? So parked car up in storage area and low and behold owner of lock up said to shift motor 2 months ago. I didn't have any space at home so gave him my car! Yes I know I'm a fool!!! Anyway looking out of window at home on Sunday guess what? Car pulls up opposite my house gleaming! Check gov web site it's now back on road. Absolutely gutted!!!!!

I would happily have paid to have it fixed! But my point is they said it was not fixable, so when i was not able to move car away from garage i reluctantly had to give it to them! Then they somehow were able to fix it?

Your first post did not explain that the car was left stored at one of the garages, that could not find the fault. Maybe you should have persevered.

Anyhow , you still decided to give it away, you could have moved it on somewhere else or tried to get it fixed again. Hardly how you could define stolen. Stop whining.

Over 2 years how much did you pay in storage fees??

Cheers
 
I would happily have paid to have it fixed! But my point is they said it was not fixable, so when i was not able to move car away from garage i reluctantly had to give it to them! Then they somehow were able to fix it?

Everything is fixable...at a cost...we said to owner its not worth the time for us to trace fault and you pay the hourly rate but he insisted...
 
I have to accept the outcome of my situation! Just a shame i lost a fantastic car, if only i had got somewhere to store it! Plus i paid £2500 for it and total loss £3500 But hey, still got my health hopefully!!!
 
I wanted a silver csw last year when I started a new job but mileage was predicted to be too high. I bought a hilux. Mileage is half what I thought it would be, I can use train on long stuff and I’m still hankering a bit, despite building a d1.
I’m now a bit gutted/hesitant that maybe it would be a silly move with the amount being stolen! Is it that bad if the vehicle is protected well? I.e. is it generally the ones without decent alarm systems etc on? My Scooby had tilt sensors and everything through a viper alarm. Would that not cover a hiab theft? Sorry this post spans two sections really but wanted a reality check!
Get a V8 with electronic ignition and a good alarm and physical defences and a tracker and it won't be so easy to steal!
 
Got fed up so took to three land rover garages. None were able to find fault, even when limp mode was on?

Depends how they tried to look for it, if limp is on then a code is recorded, could simply be they didn't have the correct diagnostics. I've got dealer level VW/Audi diagnostics, which show things that Snap-On or Bosch stuff won't show, I've had a Landy or two on diagnostics too and the LR system, as you would expect, is far better than generic diagnostics. This is where independent specialists are worth their money.

I've sorted many faults that garages can't fix, usually as I just spend the time but also as more often than not I am actually able to diagnose things properly, when mechanics now just replace parts, I am also, without sounding big headed, due to my line of business, electrically at a level far beyond most mechanics.

Frankly the problem more often than not, is that if it is even slightly complicated they cannot be bothered and just tell you some rubbish. My friendly garage where some of the guys are now friends has been working on cars when I have been there, and as soon as it is going to run into too much time they call the customer and tell them they cannot fix it and it needs to go to the dealer or an indy specialist. When he has 20 cars on the forecourt booked in for brakes and services and what not and customers expecting them back same day he is not interested in putting a mechanic or himself onto a car all day when it may just end up in a fight to get paid £500 when it has still not been fixed. So I can see where they are coming from frankly. Just not good for the car owner who needs it fixed and can't do it themselves. Gone are they days when everything in a car could be fixed with spannering so these guys are just on a hiding to nothing.
 
Depends how they tried to look for it, if limp is on then a code is recorded, could simply be they didn't have the correct diagnostics. I've got dealer level VW/Audi diagnostics, which show things that Snap-On or Bosch stuff won't show, I've had a Landy or two on diagnostics too and the LR system, as you would expect, is far better than generic diagnostics. This is where independent specialists are worth their money.

I've sorted many faults that garages can't fix, usually as I just spend the time but also as more often than not I am actually able to diagnose things properly, when mechanics now just replace parts, I am also, without sounding big headed, due to my line of business, electrically at a level far beyond most mechanics.

Frankly the problem more often than not, is that if it is even slightly complicated they cannot be bothered and just tell you some rubbish. My friendly garage where some of the guys are now friends has been working on cars when I have been there, and as soon as it is going to run into too much time they call the customer and tell them they cannot fix it and it needs to go to the dealer or an indy specialist. When he has 20 cars on the forecourt booked in for brakes and services and what not and customers expecting them back same day he is not interested in putting a mechanic or himself onto a car all day when it may just end up in a fight to get paid £500 when it has still not been fixed. So I can see where they are coming from frankly. Just not good for the car owner who needs it fixed and can't do it themselves. Gone are they days when everything in a car could be fixed with spannering so these guys are just on a hiding to nothing.

Exactly...weve got Uk plate silver shadow been there a year now fixed all the electric windows and seats quickly as it was a wedding car...didnt pay up costs of labour despite chasing him for months....he now says can we sell it and take bill off but he is unrelistic in his price...tempted to tell him its sold and it just covered his bill and storage...
 
Exactly...weve got Uk plate silver shadow been there a year now fixed all the electric windows and seats quickly as it was a wedding car...didnt pay up costs of labour despite chasing him for months....he now says can we sell it and take bill off but he is unrelistic in his price...tempted to tell him its sold and it just covered his bill and storage...
It is not good.

If I had a garage I wouldn't even touch the complicated stuff, I'd do normal mechanical stuff, brakes, suspension, exhausts, belts and oil, clutches - I can order the parts, fit them and get paid. As soon as I take in a mysterious fault from your average customer with no good intel on the fault then it's just likely to end in tears.

My Volvo developed an odd fault at 230,000miles, was a bit hesitant totally randomly and sometimes wouldn't start but leaving it over night or even an hour and she would go!

I was really busy with work so just parked it at my friends garage and asked them to sort it, a week later they didn't know what was wrong with it, however, and I know as he told me, they had just been starting it, waiting for it to show the fault and try and catch codes, it never did it for them so they never saw the fault (albeit I gave them excellent intel) I took it back and started tinkering and luckily it faulted on me while I had the computer plugged in, 2psi on fuel rail... should be about 55 on these. So I did some thinking, I could hear the fuel pump run (single pump in tank) and it ran fine most of the time with no odd noises so I tipped in some fuel, just in case, no dice. So I decided it had to be the fuel pressure regulator and decided that £45 for a new Bosch part was worth it. Fitted that and it ran fine, or so I thought, it faulted again a few weeks later, exactly the same fault, this time I had a gauge setup with fuel pressure as one of the read outs, as usual low pressure at the rail. I now needed to know the correlation between the pressure sensor and how it adapted the pressure to suit, it got me thinking that the pump must be variable speed. After some digging on US sites (My Volvo has a fairly uncommon petrol engine) I discovered that there is a PEM (Pump electronic module) that varies the voltage to the pump depending on load, it was located under the car, and it transpired that Volvo had made a relocation loom for it as it was a known issue in countries with road salt as it ate through the casing and frazzled the electronics. Right enough this thing was in a bad way. Got one from an online scrappy and that was that.

I just can't see many general garages getting that resolution to be honest. I probably spent 10 hours working and most importantly researching it and looking at diagrams, so a garage would have probably needed £45 for the original sensor, plus say an hour to arrive at that diagnoses, then 10 hours plus a new second hand PEM at £80. So that is £675 right there!
 
One of the garages is a P38 Specialist but like you say, they don't want hassle! So as they say, live and learn and watch out for bandits!!!!
 
Exactly...weve got Uk plate silver shadow been there a year now fixed all the electric windows and seats quickly as it was a wedding car...didnt pay up costs of labour despite chasing him for months....he now says can we sell it and take bill off but he is unrelistic in his price...tempted to tell him its sold and it just covered his bill and storage...

Shadows aren’t worth a lot, the best can be £15,000 but slightly tired ones in “Wedding White” can struggle to make £5,000.

Cost of repair is a major issue, it’s very easy to sink £5,000 into one and they are not “classic” enough to warrant the spend.
 
Shadows aren’t worth a lot, the best can be £15,000 but slightly tired ones in “Wedding White” can struggle to make £5,000.

Cost of repair is a major issue, it’s very easy to sink £5,000 into one and they are not “classic” enough to warrant the spend.

He wants 30,000€ for it and its not on Portugese plates and been here as far as I know a couple of years...I have an interest in the garage retools etc and just help out when needed so dont actually draw a wage...
 
Is it a Shadow 1
(Chrome bumpers) ?
Those are often worth more but it would have to be show condition to make that kind of money.
But l may have been incorrect in valuing the Shadow 2 so low. My friend in the RROC says they can make thirty or more.
But it’s all about condition, they all look nice in the pictures but value can be £4,000 or £34,000

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/333532913004
 
Last edited:
Is it a Shadow 1
(Chrome bumpers) ?
Those are often worth more but it would have to be show condition to make that kind of money.
But l may have been incorrect in valuing the Shadow 2 so low. My friend in the RROC says they can make thirty or more.
But it’s all about condition, they all look nice in the pictures but value can be £4,000 or £34,000

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/333532913004

Hmm I always think they've got a very nice face... But a disappointing backside ;)
 
Is it a Shadow 1
(Chrome bumpers) ?
Those are often worth more but it would have to be show condition to make that kind of money.
But l may have been incorrect in valuing the Shadow 2 so low. My friend in the RROC says they can make thirty or more.
But it’s all about condition, they all look nice in the pictures but value can be £4,000 or £34,000

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/333532913004

It's worthless here...UK reg been here to long no mot ...cant transfer ownership to matriculate it to expensive...Portugal make it very difficult how do I know 2yrs down the line of matriculating a 101 I bought as a non runner been here on UK plates for 15yrs got all paperwork in order now even Portugese mot but still waiting on customs and licencing agreeing that another of the around 2,400 that were built 1 has been registered here in otherwords homoligated we have the pictures of the vehicle the boss of the mot station that my agent uses printed out the pass certificate from the licence department for her to prove
that its been done here...but still waiting...
 

Similar threads