Land Rover - Division Of Ford Motor Company Ripoff GPS Navigation Horrible Customer Service Mahwah New Jersey
In 2003 I leased the top Land Rover model (the Discovery HSE) for my small business. The reason for choosing the top model (many $thousands more) was because it had GPS Navigation.
Anyone who knows anything about GPS Navigation realizes that the data quickly grows stale, so it's important to subscribe to an update service. We were told that was automatic with our purchase and that we'd be informed whenever updates were available, typically every six months.
When that didn't happen, we contacted Land Rover, who told us "real soon now" for THREE YEARS. This year (2006) we finally penetrated the Land Rover BS machine and found the manufacturer of the GPS system, Harmon Becker (a division of Harmon Kardon). We learned that Land Rover had dumped Harmon Becker as a supplier in 2003, making no allowance for updates for its existing customers.
They also had made the system COMPLETELY PROPRIETARY TO LAND ROVER, so no updates will ever be available.
When we contacted Land Rover's Executive Offices and suggested that they take some responsibility, an executive assistant to the CEO of Land Rover told me to open my owner's manual and turn to a specific page. That page contained the disclaimer stating that Land Rover reserves the right to make changes to their products without the obligation to incorporate them into past products. The assistant smugly told me this meant I was on my own and Land Rover had no obligation to do a thing.
So -- if you're planning on purchasing anything from Land Rover, or from Ford, which is its parent, be warned. You can purchase a very expensive vehicle (the Discovery HSE, which my video production company leased as a field production vehicle, cost over $40,000) and they'll cheerfully abandon you and tell you "YOU'RE SCREWED! NOT OUR PROBLEM!" Be sure you're okay with this if you're thinking about buying anything from them.
Peter
Stamford, Connecticut
U.S.A.
2 Updates & Rebuttals
Peter
Stamford,Connecticut,
U.S.A.
Why a Land Rover?
#3Author of original report
Thu, August 24, 2006
To be honest, the preferences of the individual who would be the primary driver of that Land Rover were honored -- that's the reason why we selected it (that, and the fact that it met our needs quite well).
As to an on-dash aftermarket unit versus in-dash -- we've used GPS for years (going back to the very early 90s when we used a notebook computer based system). This time around we were going for something "cleaner," with nothing to get knocked, broken, or lost. Given the amount of shuffling around that happens in a vehicle devoted to TV or video production, that was worth a lot.
It just never occurred to us that the manufacturer would abandon us like this.
Oh -- they also screwed up our credit. Take a look at
ripoffreport.com/reports/ripoff207580.htm
Thomas
Anderson,South Carolina,
U.S.A.
Why did you buy a POS Land Rover?
#3Consumer Comment
Wed, August 23, 2006
There are better 4X4 etc. available (better includes less trouble and more reliability).
Nonetheless there are MANY GPS systems available. You put them on the dash or windshield for a headsup display. And you can "update" (buy a new one) every year! Cost? Oh.... $600 for an excellent one with MP3 and voice anouncement of upcoming street names and so on. A really excellent one. As in, from the leader in GPS....
An in-dash GPS makes no sense, one reason being what you have learned. Another is the 1 to 1.5 year lag between the design of your indash unit and when you receive the vehicle, because all engineering must be completed and frozen well before the production line starts.