Americas Who 'dailies' a Grenadier? Good, bad, and other experiences?

[shiv.nandak]

Is the $1,000 oil change and service interval for a new Land Rover Defender (from LR sales agent) a reality for the IG too?

LR sales agent is lying lol. I've been changing oil for my wife's Range Rover at the LR dealership and it's less than $200. It's now at 80k miles and that's all I've done besides a transfer case fluid change.

Also, the Grenadier has been great as a daily driver. In stop and go traffic sometimes it holds 1st gear which is a bit jerky, but great in every other aspect. In fact it is more comfortable than my wife's RRS.

 

[AnD3rew]

Personally, I would really like to get a 'good' Diesel. However, the modern versions with all the emissions controls have some huge repair costs and a lot of downtime in my experience in the USA.

It can, but I have had diesels with EGRs for 20 years, with DPF for 7 years, this is my first with AdBlue, but I have had zero issues with mine. But I try to limit the daily drive short runs and save the diesel for the road trips.

 

[Tom D]

I’ve passed the 10,000 mile mark in mine now, daily driver, I have done some bigger trips in it too including an 1800mile round trip to the alps. I have had a couple of minor issues (the heater not working properly and an issue with the central locking / door sensors) . The car is great to drive, it has plenty power for towing and handles a heavy trailer better than any other vehicle that I have owned. The footrest doesn’t bother me, and I find the car very comfortable to drive. The longest leg of our alps trip was about 12 hours, I wouldn’t say I felt fresh after that but was impressed how comfortable it was. I don't think I would have felt any fresher in any other car to be honest. I’m very happy with it.

 

[Coullabus]

I’ve passed the 10,000 mile mark in mine now, daily driver, I have done some bigger trips in it too including an 1800mile round trip to the alps. I have had a couple of minor issues (the heater not working properly and an issue with the central locking / door sensors) . The car is great to drive, it has plenty power for towing and handles a heavy trailer better than any other vehicle that I have owned. The footrest doesn’t bother me, and I find the car very comfortable to drive. The longest leg of our alps trip was about 12 hours, I wouldn’t say I felt fresh after that but was impressed how comfortable it was. I don't think I would have felt any fresher in any other car to be honest. I’m very happy with it.

I know what you mean! It really is a good tow vehicle. I used to tow a twin-axle caravan on 500mile legs with a 2008 Defender 110. That was OK. But the Grenadier is excellent.

 

[scamluka]

I assume this is in regards to the Land Cruiser, Those are pretty basic assuming you are talking about the older ones.

Not sure what you mean. I had a '20 LC as mentioned above.

Also, took

Drove mine to the mountains and back over the weekend. About 500 miles roundtrip. It's (somewhat reluctantly) replacing a '20 Land Cruiser HE (sold to a friend so I can buy it back if I'm not completely delighted with the IG). It has much more effortless power going over the passes (Eisenhower tunnel, Vail Pass, etc.) than the LC. In fact, I was able to use the cruise control for much of it. Not something I did with the LC. Seats were very comfortable.

The climate control is awful...unbearable at times. Hot or cold within one degree adjustment and constantly whistles. The front camera error light (telltale cluster) goes on and off randomly. Occasionally the triangle with the exclamation point would come on with no explanation on the display. Dials and switches are cheap and generally don't have a great "feel". Not real satisfying. Maybe I'm spoiled though.

I haven't taken it off-road yet, but I'm sure that's where it will shine.

Took it on a 2nd trip to the mountains this weekend. This time the roads were wet and slushy in places. Is anyone else seeing the issue with the road grime splashing up on the side windows to the point that you can't use the side mirrors at all? Definitely a design flaw and needs to be addressed. I would stop and clean the windows and they would be to this point in a half hour. Driving on I-70 can get dicey in foul weather anyway, and this makes for some white-knuckling.

 

[Jiman01]

It happens. Unless you're going perfectly straight every time your tire sticks past the wheel well it's going to kick up stuff. A wider fender flare, mud flaps and/or side runners can mitigate it, but when it's sloppy there's no preventing it.

 

[Coullabus]

It happens. Unless you're going perfectly straight every time your tire sticks past the wheel well it's going to kick up stuff. A wider fender flare, mud flaps and/or side runners can mitigate it, but when it's sloppy there's no preventing it.

All committed Defender devotees are used to that as ‘normal’

 

[Catpaw4x4]

Not sure what you mean. I had a '20 LC as mentioned above.

Also, took

Took it on a 2nd trip to the mountains this weekend. This time the roads were wet and slushy in places. Is anyone else seeing the issue with the road grime splashing up on the side windows to the point that you can't use the side mirrors at all? Definitely a design flaw and needs to be addressed. I would stop and clean the windows and they would be to this point in a half hour. Driving on I-70 can get dicey in foul weather anyway, and this makes for some white-knuckling.

How do you expect IA to address this issue?

 

[Catpaw4x4]

It happens. Unless you're going perfectly straight every time your tire sticks past the wheel well it's going to kick up stuff. A wider fender flare, mud flaps and/or side runners can mitigate it, but when it's sloppy there's no preventing it.

Not a design flaw ... just what happens in certain weather conditions.

 

[Jiman01]

Not a design flaw ... just what happens in certain weather conditions.

I know, I was just responding to @scamluka

 

[j.ironfab]

Not sure what you mean. I had a '20 LC as mentioned above.

Also, took

Took it on a 2nd trip to the mountains this weekend. This time the roads were wet and slushy in places. Is anyone else seeing the issue with the road grime splashing up on the side windows to the point that you can't use the side mirrors at all? Definitely a design flaw and needs to be addressed. I would stop and clean the windows and they would be to this point in a half hour. Driving on I-70 can get dicey in foul weather anyway, and this makes for some white-knuckling.

Thanks for you input on the Gren in Colorado. I have driven over the passes for years and I can't remember any car getting that bad on the front windows.

Does the Gren have headlight washers? The spray here is just nasty in the winter and can build up on the headlights pretty quick.

 

[scamluka]

Thanks for you input on the Gren in Colorado. I have driven over the passes for years and I can't remember any car getting that bad on the front windows.

Does the Gren have headlight washers? The spray here is just nasty in the winter and can build up on the headlights pretty quick.

Agreed. And no it does not have headlight washers. I've driven many cars, trucks, SUV's in the mountains in snow and rain (mud is to be expected) I've never had a problem where I literally can't use my mirrors. I would expect they would have addressed this after the millions of miles of testing (along with a whistling climate control that doesn't control the climate). To answer the other question above, I would expect them to address in the next model. I like this truck a lot, but it likely isn't the right vehicle for those who expect to put a lot of highway miles on wet/snowy roads.

 

[Catpaw4x4]

Agreed. And no it does not have headlight washers. I've driven many cars, trucks, SUV's in the mountains in snow and rain (mud is to be expected) I've never had a problem where I literally can't use my mirrors. I would expect they would have addressed this after the millions of miles of testing (along with a whistling climate control that doesn't control the climate). To answer the other question above, I would expect them to address in the next model. I like this truck a lot, but it likely isn't the right vehicle for those who expect to put a lot of highway miles on wet/snowy roads.

There is an equal issue with RHD TMs - material obscuring visibility between the RAI and furthest extent of wiper coverage on Rt side. Wipers were not "reversed" in direction vs. LHD models. I'm sure there are plenty of members who can a test this being an issue (or not) ... I have only seen pictures and read about the issue.

 

[FlyersFan76]

Who drives their Grenadier in more of a daily role? Or, has taken a long trip in one?

My car appears to be totaled so, while I was looking at a Grenadier as a possible overlander and special occasion choice, it dawned on me it might be a good primary vehicle choice at this point. I was shopping an IG against an older import Toyota Series 70 Troopy or distant thoughts about a good Land Rover Defender 110 (which is an oxymoron in some circles ).

What sort of real-world city and highway MPG are reasonable expectations? How about routine maintenance costs? Is the $1,000 oil change and service interval for a new Land Rover Defender (from LR sales agent) a reality for the IG too?

So, is the IG a crazy choice for a daily driver? Or is it just a premium option with relative costs like a Mercedes or BMW sedan? Or, would I be better off with a Porsche Macan for daily duty with an IG dedicated to Overlanding and vacations in general?

My first oil change on my Defender was at 15,000 and cost $ 570. My second oil change at 24,000 was $ 256.

I traded my 2023 Defender with 30k miles for the Grenadier and it is my daily driver. The Defender was/is a unique vehicle design. Are there a lot on the road sure but it isn't an SUV that looks like other SUV's.

The Grenadier is fantastic and comfortable to drive. No different or harder than any other vehicle I have driven.

 

[grnamin]

Daily driving my Grenny. Twice it happened when switching from heat to cold, the aircon started blowing loud raspberries like a giant toddler. Hasn't happened again. I think the louvers or whatever they are are made of a flexible material like rubber. I don't see solid surfaces blowing raspberries.

 

[shiv.nandak]

Not sure what you mean. I had a '20 LC as mentioned above.

Also, took

Took it on a 2nd trip to the mountains this weekend. This time the roads were wet and slushy in places. Is anyone else seeing the issue with the road grime splashing up on the side windows to the point that you can't use the side mirrors at all? Definitely a design flaw and needs to be addressed. I would stop and clean the windows and they would be to this point in a half hour. Driving on I-70 can get dicey in foul weather anyway, and this makes for some white-knuckling.

I had this issue in a snowstorm. But I eventually figured out that the combination of front defrost and rear defrost mitigated the issue. Always keep the rear defrost on because it heats the side mirrors. As far as the front defrost goes, it works well but the cabin gets too hot. So unless conditions are really bad, I use fan speed 3+, vent setting in "defrost", auto off, and temp as high as I can tolerate.

 

[MrMike]

It can, but I have had diesels with EGRs for 20 years, with DPF for 7 years, this is my first with AdBlue, but I have had zero issues with mine. But I try to limit the daily drive short runs and save the diesel for the road trips.

We run modern diesels for our work vans and my last vehicle, 200 series has 300K klms on it. To say modern diesels are costly is IMO wrong. We regularly get 500k klms from our vans without issue.

 

[Jimxyz]

Pretty much a daily driver. We’ve got 2500 miles on in less than a month. MPG is 15-18. I love it as a DD. It’s a little tall for some garages and the steering takes some getting used to. The mirrors could be larger and a front camera would be great. It’s also odd that you can’t lock the doors except from the drivers seat. Finally, it really needs a keyless ignition. But it drives nice, has great torque and looks amazing!

 

[Nick68]

It can, but I have had diesels with EGRs for 20 years, with DPF for 7 years, this is my first with AdBlue, but I have had zero issues with mine. But I try to limit the daily drive short runs and save the diesel for the road trips.

How much Adblue is left in the tank when the 'Adblue Reserve' warning comes on? Is there some way of calculating how much is in the tank apart from waiting for the warning light? Anyone know what the range is while driving on 'reserve"?

 

[Jeremy996]

How much Adblue is left in the tank when the 'Adblue Reserve' warning comes on? Is there some way of calculating how much is in the tank apart from waiting for the warning light? Anyone know what the range is while driving on 'reserve"?

You can show the anticipated AdBlue range on the dash as one of the voluntary displays. It seems to give warnings from around 1000 miles in the UK.