stan wrote:

dont worry, i'm going to put all these related threads as 'stickys' so they will be at the top of the page...

thanks Kevin, thread 'sticky-fied'...  ... - .- -.




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GraemeS wrote:

The original part numbers have been superseded 4 times so I suspect that LR has been aware of shortcomings in at least earlier versions.

Ladies & gents, i managed to replace the unbroken side front knuckle yesterday, i attach images of the cracks in this one, days , weeks maybe months but not years before it would fail, i strongly urge all you people with a L405 thats 7 years or older or 100,000 miles to A, investigate or B, replace before disaster.

I actually found my main dealer to be the cheapest for the parts surprisingly ,
LLR146341
LLR146343
Both £415 each ex VAT
Get yorself new top arm bolts LKYG000230
I also got new bottom arm nuts LLR034221 x 4 £10.84 ea

I bought both sides lower & front lower arms from LR parts and bought OEM ( Delphi ) they were £100 each cheaper plus a new Britpart driveshaft as mine got pulled out in the road going collapse, given its done 100k i saw no point in chancing it & given i will likely move the car on next year i saw no benifit in going OEM / Genuine for 10,000 miles

Allow £1300 - 1400 for a DIY job
BTW you need commercial spec torque wrench and impact gun to do the job, drive shaft nut is 350NM and lower arms 290NM
You get a new wheel bearing in the knuckles so a OEM one of them is around £130 each so justifys the Knuckle cost, online cheapest i found was £600 + and they were for superceeded parts so go MD if you have sense, also put some grease in the joint and bolt hole, just clean the threads before you put the nut on else you will hydraulic the threads, drive shaft has to be free'd off the hub to change the knuckle, so again, proper tools as it will be seized in the hub, not a difficult job, but freeing the arms and drive shaft is big tools and experience, if in doubt pay a proffesional, it still wil be cheaper than a recovery.

Click image to enlarge

Click image to enlarge

I've only mine a few weeks and I think I am out of range (2018MY) butty good lady was driving us and she has a habit of turning the wheel to full lock while stationary; I always crawl before applying steering. As many of the failures seem to be at low speed, is it damage/wear that is caused when these big heavy lumps are stationary with the steering then applied?

If that is the case, a preventative measure may be to always crawl before applying steering. Just a thought, could be rubbish First time FFRR owner

Thanks for the write up, glad you got it sorted at a not too bad price...  Pete

__________________________________________________
2014 L405 Autobiography SDV8 4.4 Loire Blue Ebony interior
2011 L322 Vogue SE 4.4 TDV8 Baltic Blue. Parchment over Navy Interior. Sold
2012 L322 Autobiography 5.0 Supercharged Ipanema Sand, Jet Interior. Sold
2002 L322 Vogue 4.4 V8 Epson Green, Ivory over Aspen Interior (Fatty Offroader) Sold
-Click for Project Fatty off roader-

Sadly nothing to do with turning the steering wheel stationary or rolling, it's due to chemistry, the reaction of water and salt on the bare unprotected steel pinch bolt holding the top arm ball joint , the corrosion from the steel eats the aluminium knuckle right where it sits, in the thinnest part of the casting, look at the pictures I have posted, the acid residue builds up, and like freezing water in a cast engine block the pressure causes the cast to fracture... Nothing but a poor design, the two lower ball joints are in solid bores, only the top is open to the elements... It will effect all models throughout the lr brand as the discovery, defender and sport are all the same design... If grease was applied, then this wouldn't happen, but jlr have a good track record at not using rust prevention or covering vital components or ground points... Saves 50p per build, only bothered about any vehicle working for 3 years then after that hard luck, no manufacturer is overly worried about longevity or reliability after three years, but jlr are in the premier League with their flagship for woeful build quality and reliability after 3 years... The only fools are people like me who have been buying them for 35 years, and still don't learn SDV8 2015

Had a light metallic noise on slow manoeuvring decided to have a quick look as I’d been aware of the failures reported on here. Surprised to find a crack given mine is a 2018 vehicle with a VIN well outside the range quoted in another post. Called LR assistance and vehicle recovered and repaired. Thanks for multiple posts by forum members which alerted me to check etc.

Click image to enlarge

That’s a real concern on a 2018 Really glad you caught it in time, you must be over the moon.

This forum is great, has me obsessing over things like this and rusting out sunroof drains  Sold - Bell a 2015 MY16 Loire Blue Autobiography 4.4 SDV8
Previously George a 2007 MY07 Java Black VSE 3.6 TDV8
Previously a 04 MY04 Defender 90

This is opening a bigger can of worms! I would be concerned the other side could fail in the very near future and of course warranty repairs they wont touch it unless it's also cracked. Unless common sense prevails
What's the history of the car ? much off roading etc accidents etc 2018 SE SDV8 4.4 Byron Blue

@Range Rover LSE:

Wow! 2018? (by the way, your profile says 2017, but still)
This could be a worry to us all, (depending on history as Kot has said, but given most L405’s see only on-road use) We should all be regularly inspecting these parts for our own safety.

Interesting to see how this pans out in the future, it was my understanding that affected parts were 2015-2016, and that design changes had been made to later vehicles?
There is the caveat that if the top knuckle is over-torqued on assembly, it can result in the same thing happening, irrespective of design. “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” -where’s the fun in that?

Profile updated, thanks for spotting that. I’ve had mine since about 20k, now showing just short of 60k, it does about 15k per year motorways and A roads. No off-roading other than towing caravan onto pitches at 5 van sites. It has full LR service history and leads a “cosseted” life while with me. The other side has been carefully checked and shows no sign of any cracking etc. Also the replacement is to the same design as far as I can see.

Click image to enlarge

Paranoia has just had me don my glasses, grab a torch, and nip outside to check mine (2017/47K)
Pleased to say all still looking good, no sign of any cracks or white staining, and a nice uniform 1mm gap.
I have been treating mine with ACF50 and recently treated the whole underside with lanoguard after hearing about this issue and the other galvanic one (chassis to body mountings).

I ‘ll be checking these at every car wash from now on. “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” -where’s the fun in that?

What’s the ball park cost of a preemptive replacement? Keep debating about updating to a L405 but this is just another potential issue to consider. 2012 tdv8 Westminster arrived Jan 19 gone Dec 23

200 TDi discovery bobtail gone
RR classic v8 bobtail gone
300 tdi Discovery 3 dr gone

Bob, price for a knuckle is about £700 ish, it comes with a new bearing...

All the pictures I have seen of failed ones showed an old crack one side of the pinch bolt then a new crack when the other side of the pinchbolt finally failed.

It appears you do get some notice, keep an eye on the joint, which is easy as you can see it above the tyre, and you "should" avoid dramatic failure...

A thought to remember though is that hundreds of thousands of 405's were built and it seems only a very small % have had the failure...  Pete

__________________________________________________
2014 L405 Autobiography SDV8 4.4 Loire Blue Ebony interior
2011 L322 Vogue SE 4.4 TDV8 Baltic Blue. Parchment over Navy Interior. Sold
2012 L322 Autobiography 5.0 Supercharged Ipanema Sand, Jet Interior. Sold
2002 L322 Vogue 4.4 V8 Epson Green, Ivory over Aspen Interior (Fatty Offroader) Sold
-Click for Project Fatty off roader-