Not the worst - probably the most mis-understood....

Nowt wrong with a P38 aslong as you understand and get to grips with the complex (for mid 90's) electronics....

The P38 was a departure from the Land Rover norm, trying to compete with the new Mercs and Jags out there, LR took a different approach and tried to make a luxury road car into a 4x4, and succeeded in the most part, but in typical LR fashion it was done to a budget with iffy switch gear and dodgy electronics that were not fully understood, even by the people who designed and built them.

The P38 was rushed and ill planned, but still remains one of the best luxury 4x4's of its time. The build quality was pretty good, even if the parts attached to it (the venerable V8's and the weak Autoboxes on the Diesels, suspect electronics) were pretty weak.

Not many P38's suffer Chasiss rot, and treated well and moisturised, the Connolly Leather is far superior to the modern stuff used nowadays.

A well maintained and cherished P38, still looks the part nowadays and will still turn heads with a stainless exhaust and that V8 burble!

Don't write off the P38 as 'The worst LR product ever' just because some magazine decides it to be so, LRM aswell as LRO are not the most accurate of publications!
 
I don't think any of the models are great. I remember being on an off road day in my old Classic and discovering that my carpets were getting wet due to a hole in the floor. The L322 seems to be heading the same way as the P38 judging by the posts on here. When Range Rovers get old, they become a whole load of trouble whichever way you look at it. Still, keeps me busy tinkering on the weekends :)
 
Anyone that owns a P38 will or should be aware that it's unreliable but that is why we love them right ? All the whinging in the world will not change that. Put up or shut up. All cars go wrong and more often than not is is down to poor maintenance IMO, and can't believe the amount of owners buying these luxury cars for peanuts and expecting to just throw a bit of fuel in :rolleyes:
 
anyone that owns a p38 will or should be aware that it's unreliable but that is why we love them right ? All the whinging in the world will not change that. Put up or shut up. All cars go wrong and more often than not is is down to poor maintenance imo, and can't believe the amount of owners buying these luxury cars for peanuts and expecting to just throw a bit of fuel in :rolleyes:
+1000.....
 
Surely the way to look at this is what the car was like when it was made; ie new.

When any Land Rover is new (with the exception of the very old ones) it doesn't break down short a freak factory mistake.
So new Land Rovers should be judged on their style, capabilities, impact and so on. By those standards any Range Rover or Discovery scores highly. The L322 for example brought a modern take to the fabulously handsome P38's styling. The latest model has taken 21st century technology to a classic design to make the best standard off road vehicle available today.
But not all so... one took the great classic British nature of classic Land Rovers' engineering and styling, and threw it away, deciding that electronics could completely replace decent mechanics, and covering its chassis in footballer's wives' phlegm. And worst of all, its styling has managed to pollute the future of the P38's descendants.
The worst Land Rover is the Evoque.
 
A very misunderstood car.
When they work, they have a greatness feel about them. Somthing very rare in a car that kind of gets under your skin.
A shame that the electronics were never developed to be robust enough and not enough design work went into it. Also it is not and was never ment to be a 300TDi Defender. That is a different market vehicle.
 
Surely the way to look at this is what the car was like when it was made; ie new.

When any Land Rover is new (with the exception of the very old ones) it doesn't break down short a freak factory mistake.
So new Land Rovers should be judged on their style, capabilities, impact and so on. By those standards any Range Rover or Discovery scores highly. The L322 for example brought a modern take to the fabulously handsome P38's styling. The latest model has taken 21st century technology to a classic design to make the best standard off road vehicle available today.
But not all so... one took the great classic British nature of classic Land Rovers' engineering and styling, and threw it away, deciding that electronics could completely replace decent mechanics, and covering its chassis in footballer's wives' phlegm. And worst of all, its styling has managed to pollute the future of the P38's descendants.
The worst Land Rover is the Evoque.
What planet are you on? The L322 is one of the worst cars in the JD Power survey for new car problems.
I went to a LR promo day for the P38. The P38 packed up, the Gaylander got stuck and the Defender lost it's exhaust:rolleyes:
 

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