Why Not Spend the Extra $12? (Post #585) 9/13/2019

We’ve all been there. If you haven’t, you will. You’ve been stopped dead by a failed part. In this case my friend JagGuy’s wife. JagGuy was absent from one of our weekly lunches, this time he missed out on a greasy cheeseburger from Tucker’s. He was waiting with his wife on the tow truck to arrive to haul one of their Discovery’s to his shoppe for a repair.

The culprit, a failed serpentine belt pulley. Sorry, I can’t say serpentine with out thinking about this clip fromĀ The In-Laws (1979). (Wiping tears of laughter away) Okay…

failed pulley

In any event, the Discovery went away on a flatbed of shame.

flatbed of shame (2)

The failure was a serpentine pulley made out of some fiberglassy like substance and hope. When he texted me, I immediately recalled my 1993 Ford Ranger pickup that left me stranded on a Sunday at the Seminole Travel Stop on east I-40. The pulley on the Ford was made of the same stuff. It was shredded. Not quite the same fail as Mrs. JagGuy’s but yeah, failed just the same.

The replacement part, in the case of the Ford was 12$(US)…..TWELVE EFFING DOLLARS. Guess what the replacement was made out of….STEEL, with a real bearing. In the case of the Disco…25$(US) and 80$(US) overnight shipping. Guess what I bet JagGuy will be buying for his 2000 Discovery? It’ll be a replacement pulley, BEFORE it fails.

This gets me to the point I’m trying to make? When the stealDealership is popping me an extra 500$(US) for heated seats, THAT ARE ALREADY INSTALLED – just add switches (50$(US)), why not spent the extra 12 dollars and put in a pulley with some quality. Yeah, yeah, I’ve been in the business world for many, many years, I get all that failed part dealership profits blah, blah, blah. But just once, once, I want the brand I love, defend, dare I say worship as a fine overland luxury vehicle, put a tiny bit of attention to detail, and eliminate these kinds of failures.

Ever shut the door on a 30 year old Mercedes Benz? It sounds the same today as it did the day it rolled off the factory floor back before the internet was invented. Why? attention to detail. Ever wonder why the Toyota guys continue to drive their rigs well into the high 300,000 mile range? Freakin’ attention to quality, that’s why.

Why? Land Rover, why? You have released a “new” Defender. I’ve watched the videos, Richard Hammond telling us why it is freakin’ awesome. Really? how many parts did Land Rover go the cheap route on on this new vehicle? The forums will be littered with posts in 5 years with the evidence.

I’m going to tell you, if you haven’t replaced your serpentine belt pulley on your 1999-2004 Discovery’s do it BEFORE it fails you. Trust me when I say this, fiberglass and hope will fail. You’ll be replacing a crap part with a steel part that should have been installed on it’s birthday. And better yet, you won’t be stranded 100 miles from the nearest tow truck, or 2 hours from a tow truck coming to get you at the mall, 3 miles from home.

Thanks for letting me vent, thanks for reading, and Happy Rovering.