Afternoon guys. This hopefully isn't too strange an ask... but I was wondering if anyone local-ish to Malvern/Worcester would be willing to allow me to drive their 4.4 and/or 3.6 TDV8's? I'm in the market for one since I love the way they look and their capabilities, but I've not yet driven one... The issue being that I don't want to mess private sellers around and I always feel under pressure with dealers!

Any takers? I can pay you in beer!

First time I drove one I thought I'd made a big mistake ever wanting one as it was so different. Just find one you want and get used to how it drives later. 2012 TDV8 Vogue (L322)

I went to a dealer and took one for a drive. Don't feel under pressure. Walk away and explain that you are looking at 2 or 3 cars and need to see and drive them all to see which one best ticks your boxes in terms of colour, spec, condition and history.
I told the dealer I really liked the car but the colour wasn't my first choice and I needed to think whether I could compromise that. When I bought my car a couple of weeks later I messaged the dealer, thanked him and explained I had found my perfect car.

Well if you lived near me I would sort this. However like others have said, you really should not feel the slightest bit awkward buying a car from new, used, Main dealer, franchise, private etc and wanting to drive it first. Obviously if you are looking for a BLACK car only, and it's a used one and it isn't black, then that might look odd. So keep that to yourself.

Many years ago I bought new from a main dealer. Towards the end of the negotiations I said to the salesmen "Well it's now just about how much I am willing to pay isn't it" He looked at me and certainly wasn't expecting that.

The best tip I can give for buying a car......

The first one to mention a price loses. Fact.

Steve 4.4 TDV8 Sumatra Black + Ivory Leather

I went to a used dealer and tested RR, RR sports of all different years. The dealer is dodge in my opinion so wouldnt buy there as his prices were bananas. Think he wanted 14k for an 09 RR 3.6 with rust on the boot, damage and worn inside.

That said I was able to feel quickly what I liked and didnt like. ended up buying privately as I wanted the 4.4 engine.

Use the dealers and try a few but as said above, its a totally different feel than anything else I ever drove Current yokes
2012 4.4 TDV8 Westminster
2006 Disco 3
Scoobie GT wagon
Mx5 G Ltd
TT S Line
Pajero JDM Exceed

I agree with all the comments above which reminds me of testing driving my TDV8 4.4 two years ago; the air suspension is so smooth compared to other vehicles ( I had an Evoque at the time which are known to have harsh suspension) that you can’t help feeling a bit like royalty by the time you get out…. Which tends to undermine your negotiating mindset !

Now I’ve had mine a while and having carefully invested in it’s maintenance to get it in it’s sweet-spot I’ve realised that there’s no way you could tell this on a 12 year old vehicle when driving it for the first time.

So drive a few and, importantly, become familiar with how they sound; there shouldn’t be any squeaks, “churrps” or rubbing noises whilst driving, no matter how subtle.

Further, I’d recommend putting the suspension and transmission through its full function; put it in access mode and off road height; any clunks or creaks during this may be indicative of poor maintenance. Also engage and drive in low ratio; you can drive up to around 30 mph in low ratio so it’s possible to do so in a town/urban setting.

Lastly, on a 4.4, use the command shift paddles to spin up the secondary turbo. This happens around 2200 to 2500 rpm. On an open A road accelerate from around 30 up to 60 using the paddles to change up. Hold the gears to get over the rev threshold and check for smoke as the car accelerates. Smoke will be indicative of secondary turbo drain issues.

Most of all enjoy the ride !

P.S. one more thought; check out http://www.fullfat4x4.co.uk/ in Banbury about an hour from Worcester (no association). The chap is an RR specialist and also an enthusiast he’ll likely understand the needs of first time RR prospective buyers. He has a pretty good YouTube channel as well that shows his current stock. TDV8 4.4 2012

Don't let smoke from the 2nd turbo put you off a purchase as it's not an indication of any major fault but you can try it as a negotiating point on the price. 2012 TDV8 Vogue (L322)

I second Ramblin Man there and totally forgot that. On my 6 month hunt for a 4.4 in Ireland I saw one RR that actually drove quite nice, I didn't like the back door rust or wheel arch rust but I could have gotten over that if your mans price wasn't stupid. Anyways I put the suspension into off road mode and hopped out, then heard hsssssssssss and saw her sinking in the front. Went to the owner and he was a bit miffed like, "oh ive never heard that". Turned out he never put into offroad mode in his ownership.

I think it was a valve block seal failure and I walked away. some other poor eejit bought it instead!

So if you can cycle every electronic Item as mentioned by the guys and use all windows, mirrors, sunroof, heating, aircon, locks, key fobs because something will be broken if she 10 years plus.

All are fixable but youll need haggle money to repair. Current yokes
2012 4.4 TDV8 Westminster
2006 Disco 3
Scoobie GT wagon
Mx5 G Ltd
TT S Line
Pajero JDM Exceed

Problem with our cars is that you have to know what you're looking for. They are so refined that on the road test the a**e could be hanging out of it and if you've moved up from a normal car you'd never notice.

All things are fixable if your good with the spanners and have decent jack and ramps, but the thing I spend my time on the test drive is looking for rust, It's the one thing I can't do anything with.

Always take a torch, get up to full height and you can just peer through the gaps around the rear jacking point pad, any rust in there, or along the bottom of the sills, it usually starts at the rear and creeps forwards, consider walking away. Give the rear jacking pads a damn good shake, try to pull them off, literally, if there's any rust falls out or the pad falls out run for the hills.

Check the leading edge, folded in lips of the rear wheel arch folds, expect some surface rust, but nothing excessive. Run fingers down the rear arch outer edges with the door open, should be super smooth, any bubbling at all felt, then its coming through from inside and will be much worse inside the arch and double skin itself, big trouble potentially.

Apart from that, look for excess rust on the subframes, chassis rails etc. They preety much all leak oil, most are an easy fix so I wouldn't over worry about that.

Also check general alignment, if you got a mate and a ball of string measure very accurately the wheel centres to centres length on both sides, any difference at all from side to side, walk away something is twisted.

The rest is just a walkaround, see if anything looks out of the ordinary, you can't do much about wear & tear, you could be perfectly fine, drive off the forecourt and pop, a bag goes, what can you do, expect it'll hapen and you won't be disappointed.

Always prefer good Indy service book over main dealers and any invoices for major repairs like shocks, bags, gearbox servicing etc. After market warranties are pretty rubbish excepting Land Rover's Extended Warranty if you can get it.

Most important, always take a mate or someone whos got no investmant in the potential purchase because you'll fall in lovewith it as soon as you sit in it and drive it around the block. All your rational thinking goes out the window because now your lusting after it and will pretty much accept a wreck just to own it.

Don't get fixated by mileage or age, they mean nothing in a Range Rover that's been well looked after. A business car ? Well, there's no love there so likely to have been abused.

Good Luck, there are plenty very good ones out there, go for the best you can afford, but keep a big budget (at least £2k) aside for expenses each year, you'll need it. Fuji White 2012 4.4 TDV8 Westmiinster