By Joseph on Tuesday, March 20, 2001 - 06:14 pm: Edit

I am looking for a Discovery in Seattle, WA. Three of the states dealerships are owned by the same company. I have heard mixed things about them. Any thoughts?

By Rob Land on Wednesday, March 21, 2001 - 06:41 am: Edit

I actually had a fairly good experience with Land Rover Spokane. I was looking at a 95 Disco in Missoula, MT and traveled to Spokane to see what they had. They had plenty of later models but they were a little out of my price range. I told the rep I had met (Andy Roberts) what I was looking at and he said that if I gave him the VIN, he would run a check on the dealer service history. Well, I was traveling to Orlando and when I called him from there (2 days later) he immediately faxed the information to me. I also met the Service Manager (Rick Jacobs) and a parts specialist (Kris Schmidt). They all were very helpful. Perhaps they were just trying to sell me one of their vehicles! Since LR Spokane is owned by the same people, I hope this has helped. They were courteous and attentive to all my questions. Call them if you would like at 888-337-1155. Let me know if you have any more questions.
Rob Land
95 Disco

By Britt on Wednesday, March 21, 2001 - 02:25 pm: Edit

I bought my 97 SE from Land Rover of Portland and had a very good experience. I would also give the service department 4 stars (Bryce is your man)they take very good care of me.

By Moe on Thursday, March 22, 2001 - 08:55 am: Edit

Joseph, I have mixed experiences with Seattle area dealerships. The Seattle city dealer has been renovating for about 2yrs. So they have been a bit disorganized, but it is easier to get a service appointment there compared to Bellevue. Bellevue appears to sell and service more vehicles. They have satisfactorily completed a lot of extended warranty work on my `96, but I have had a few problems there. One tech left behind a greasy rag under the bonnet. Another said I was a quart low on oil when I wasn't--maybe he was thinking about another Disco. They tried the old customer/warranty double bill: attempting to charge the customer for a temp fix only to hit the warranty some weeks later for the real fix. They told me they were going to reseat a faulty ABS sensor and charge me 1 1/2hrs for it and clearing the codes. I made them replace the sensor under warranty--no charge on my part. The Bellevue tech advisors are very polite but they do not always listen to your requests, even if you include them on paper! That said, Bellevue has also correctly diagnosed and repaired over $3k in warranty work in just 1 1/2yrs.

These comments shouldn't seem unusual. Dealerships will politely take your money (or anyone else's) and the $85/hr does not always buy you an experienced tech.

Have you thought about buying from a private sale?

Ian