ADlR3

Thank you all for your feedback and comments.

Thank you Barry for your reply and link. Unfortunately all the links for Toyota complaints in this region is taking me back to Alfutaim Toyota, and honestly speaking i lost all confidence in them. regards;

I have never felt the need to write any negativity about any car, because i am a strong believer of nothing is perfect, however when you end up stuck with no clear responses from concerned entities, i feel compelled of having people aware of what to expect. first i seriously think that this car is over hyped and over rated, and way over priced, i came to the conclusion after purchasing the 2017 VXR version supposedly top of the range with full option however was duped by the sales team starting with TOYOTA stopped having electric seats in the 2017 models for the fortuners, and the VXR's do not come with Downhill Assist Control (DAC), the interior LED lights are not for the UAE market which at a latter stage i found out to be just sales lines and they do exist on others. in my case i think i have bought a modified version of the GXR at a much higher price of the VXR now we come to the problems you face after the fact you are driving it and on the road and actually paid for it. 1- door handles front and rear: when you try closing the door on any of the 4 door panels you will have the surprise of getting a piece of the handle out of its place in your hand, issue was solved by toyota team by gluing (yes Gluing 2017 car model) them back on. 2- steering button for voice command: does not operate and no voice command can be given it just mutes the sound system. Service team response the fortuners are not equipped with this function (so its an extra useless button on the steering wheel because there is another button for mute on the steering). 3- navigation system: in numerous instances it takes the navigation about 5 - 10 seconds until it catches with direction so it tells you to turn right after the fact you have missed the turn. toyota service team response take a video of the instance so we would know what is wrong!! Map freezing is normal while driving, again toyota service response, take a video of it occurring. the system should also be equipped with a digital compass, and according to the manuals and online data should be in the center console between the speedometer and rpm under information) but unfortunately service reply was fortuners in the UAE does not have this option. 4 - sound system: the radio turns on and if i am lucky i will be able to utilize the functions without it being frozen at least once and or rebooting the whole system, service reply take a video when it happens. 5- the system is supposedly top of the line, but it has the most basic features, i think you are better of buying an aftermarket, it is not worth the extra you pay for it. i tried to find the model number anywhere to understand the basics of it, i couldnt find it anywhere or even on any of toyotas brochures and pictures. 6- back 3rd row seats: the velcro holding the seat on the passenger side is short and misaligned, every bump i go over the seat bounces down. 7- reverse camera: i have had cars with reverse camers to as far as i can remember and if it didnt have one i used to buy one, but the one in this fortuner is the darkest you will ever see, if it is bright outside you cant see what it is supposed to show you and if you are in an enclosed garage (i.e dark ) you will not see properly what you are backing into. 8- Tyre sensors, although they are primitive and like most but not all cars it will not show pressure or position of low tyres, one of the sensors has not worked for the past one month or so and the light has been on since. unfortunately i couldnt take it to the service center yet, (i will probably get another unrelated excuse). 9- Drivetrain or shaft: since day one i have been complaining about a shift shock second to first gears, and a jolt while stopped at the traffic light (not while coming to a stop, i would be literally stopped for more than 30 40 seconds) without any movement, a human reaction is check the rear view mirror to see if someone has bumped into you feeling). Service team reply that is a normal behavior of Fortuners transmission. 10- when in an enclosed garage and the engine ruining the inside of the car and outside would smell like the stench of anti freeze, although nothing is leaking but the smell is there and noticeable. i dont know and i am not sure if it is just this one unit or many others are on the market being given the same excuses, but definitely it is not worth the money, this fortunerr currently has 4000 Km. only (yes only four thousand), it just seems to be too many issues for a brand new car, i am waiting until next service then planing an official complain to consumer protection. i would appreciate it if the readers would share their experiences of problems with the same car and or dealer here in the UAE.

Thank you All for your follow up and concern, my LR3 is in week 2 now and all is going well, I have driven 2000 kilometers so far and no major issues, Hopefully it will remain that way I do have a couple of questions though and excuse the ignorance if they sound dum, when I stop on traffic lights, and want to get moving again the engine roar is too high for the first couple of seconds, is that normal for LR's or something is wrong? When on 1000 rpm exactly there is a little shaking in the engine, I am doubting one of the ignition coils, but I am not getting any codes, I went to abu sakoor in musaffah but he said he doesn't have computer reader, but he is sure it is an electrical problem and not to worry. Should I, or it can wait until I have a chance to take it to aaa or have the finances again to take it to dealer??? I am becoming more comfortable with it now, and my love for it is coming back So I will be keeping a close eye for rides to come and finally get to meet you guys. Thanks again for your support. Best regards; MM

Hi Kim; Thanks for your concern and question, actually I got the car only today, after going through hell with the musaffah mechanic, anyway to make the long story short, besides the head gasket I had a broken cam, which the dealer didn't have, so got one from sharja yards off a RRsport, hopefully I will update this post with good news next week after I try it. Hopefuly this will be the end of it for a while.

hello all, as i am still calling it a quest i thought i will just update this post my 2005 LR3 went to premier workshop and had the major service done to it costing a bundle, in addition to few recommendations that needed to be done, however due to low finances, i opted to postpone, i drove the car for a couple of days and had a blown upper water hose, towed it to the dealer again, they ended up changing the whole cooling system, from hoses, radiator, coolant tank to fan, with pressure test and the works (supposedly). few days after, early in the morning before starting the engine i checked the coolant and it was down, opening the cap it was under pressure. again i took it to premier, they said they need to do an overnight pressure test wtf they said they did a pressure test when they hit me with an 8k invoice the second time. next day they gave me the news of cylinder number five leaking water, it might be a liner or a gasket and a high quote of starting at 6k but might be more depending on the findings after they open the head. took the car from premier and sent it to a place named Crystal in musaffah where i have seen a lot of RR's under repair. and gave me a quote of 4k and a one week for the job, now my lr3 is laying there being worked on. the irony is that from the time i have owned my land rover i have not been able to drive it for more than one week all together i hope that this will be the end of it visiting the mechanics for a while

Thank you for the advice nutbolt, I read somewhere that I should also have the cam belt changed, given the car age, do you think I should pint that out to premier or they will know what is needed. Service history was with altayer up to 80k the balance 40k is unknown :-/

well as posted before i was on a quest to finding an LR3 that was reasonably priced due to tight budget, the reason i chose the LR3 was because i wanted a Land rover that looks great and has a modern look, can use for a daily ride and at the same time be able to take offroad on the weekends. well started with a real neat wouldnt beleive its a used vehicle type of cleanliness and shape, took it for document preparation at adnoc the same day but heard a metal to metal sound, took it to premier, 2 days later they hit me with an estimate of 30-35 thousand dirham job so that deal didnt go through. my quest was over on Wednesday, when i found a 2005 HSE model purchased originally from Al Tayer, it did have a lot of kilometer on the clock though, apparently has been off road a lot of times, and needed new tiers but after testing it numerous times from a day before and on Wednesday in traffic and off road, i decided to go ahead and buy it, the transfer was done Thursday, changed the tiers at upgrade, changed the oil and oil filter at castrol, gave it a good wash insideout because it was a mess, drove it back to abu dhabi with a smooth ride and amazingly comfortable for a 2005 that looks like it has been abused model with no noises or rattling. stopping at a couple of petrol stations on the way just to check engine compartment and power train, everything was nice and cool. Friday morning, started it and went to carrefour did some shopping, on the way back i had a christmas tree decorating the dashboard and all kinds of chimes ringing. and messages starting with low coolant, to differential overheat and everything in between, stopped the car immediately and turned the engine off although the temperature gauge was only on half, opened the bonet and everything was okay or i didnt seem to see anything, the reservoir coolant bottle was full. I managed to get home, with the low coolant level message on the screen, gauge on half and the airbag red light on the dash, checked the engine again but this time i kept it running, sure enough the coolant bottle was empty trying to put a finger on what exactly might have happened, since i dont have any option but to take it to Premier tomorrow but i also want to be able to sleep i did a little search on everything that has to do with LR3 on the net, i found out that the christmas tree might have been due to water residue from the day before when i washed the car (big NO, NO never wash your engine), i did a hard rest to the ECU but unfortunately i cant drive it to test if that worked or not, due to the low coolant issue. the airbag red light is due to loose connection from under the driver seat might have triggered it when i moved the seat when i got into the car, i checked that and sure enough the light was gone. the coolant level issue, i found a puddle under the front driver side directly under the coolant tank, so i am thinking it might be a crack in the tank or something in that vicinity, the hoses looks, feels dry and okay around the engine, and radiator, the oil is clear, i couldnt get to the transmission oil to check if the coolant is escaping through the lines at the transmission cooler. now since i dont want to be testing anyone here in abudhabi that has not been known to any of you Land Rover Owners, i think my best bet is premier motors, and i better prepare myself for another home mortgage back home to be able to pay them well folks that was my first couple of days experience with the LR3, i know i didnt buy a brand new car, and i was expecting some trouble, but not that soon

thanks khalid; i do like the google consultant thing, do you happen to know the name of the shop? and what the hell did you google for, i have been trying to google before i posted here, but came with nothing. but anyway thanks.

hey guys; does anyone recommend anybody who is here in Abu Dhabi for the service of Land Rovers besides Premier Motors?? i know everyone speaks highly of AAA in Dubai, but is there anyone here in AbuDhabi? Thanks;

Thanks for the offer, and the kind welcome, I sure will if there is a ride next weekend, as for my current (which is an ex now) has been sold, the new owner will be picking it up Sat. I am closing a deal on a 2006 LR3 with very low milage hopefully it will go through before next week.

Hello everybody; i just joined, i dont own a LR YET, however i am in the market for 2004 Disco, or an LR3 to be my daily ride and weekend stress relief. i thought of joining here read what can be read before i make my purchase since i am on a tight budget. My name is Mohamed from Abu Dhabi, i have been in the gulf region for 8 years, 4 wheeled in too many car makes but never a landy i know i have been missing a lot. i have seen some of your vehicles in the desert, but never had the chance to meet any of you, hopefully soon i will i had the opportunity to be on a couple of rides with the DOC, and secretly admiring his Disco which slowly made me fall in love with Land Rovers. Thanks