February 2, 2022: Our journey began when my power steering pump went out on my 2008 Land Rover LR2. Larry's was able to get me in, we fixed the pulley issue for $671.29 (photos below).
September 15, 2022: After the work and friendliness, I took in my other Land Rover, a 2006 LR3, for some shaking in the steering wheel. They found a lot of things wrong that needed to be fixed, and after a month and $3,044.31 (photos below), we were good to go.
September 23, 2022: Brakes were bad on the LR2. Paid Larry $1,126.60 for repairs (photos below)
December 2022: LR2 pulley broke that was replaced. The part was under warranty, so I only had to pay $224.13 for the repair.
January 13, 2023: Brakes were making some noise on the LR3. Paid $493.57 for a replacement at Larry's. I am still under the illusion they are the best and are looking out for me (photo below).
March 16, 2023: LR2 is making noise again. They say the pump needs to be replaced completely now, along with a vacuum pump they found to be leaking. Had to order the parts from Land Rover, quoted me $3,307.44 total for both. I said no thank you, this car has over 190,000 miles and would be costing me more to fix than sell at this point. (photos below).
March 31, 2023: Starting to become curious about why things are costing so much and why we are finding ourselves here so frequently. I asked them to look at the LR3 brakes again because the shaking in my steering wheel never resolved. They call, saying it is the brakes. I'm told the parts they put on weren't OE equivalent (although my bill states they are) and they have previously stated they will not use salvaged or non OE parts on any fixes thus far. I was told the brakes couldn't handle the supposedly hard braking, in the three months and less than 3,000 miles I put on before needing all brakes redone. They stated replacing the warrantied parts would, "make it worse," as they couldn't hold up the first time. I was told all they could do is order Land Rover OE parts instead. I was quoted $2,642.91 to do the front and rear brakes completely. I said no thanks, as this price seemed too high.
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During this most recent time they were looking at my vehicles, I was able to use a loaner car (which I will say has been a great service they provide, that I wish more mechanic shops would provide). The storms knocked off the rearview mirror and broke the glass. I told them I obviously would pay for this. They called me, said that they originally found a mirror for their 2009 Chevy Impala at about $550.00, but found another, "used one they can paint to match and install," for $217.68. I respectfully paid this price, although I felt it was also high. I then decided to look up what a mirror for their 2009 Chevy Impala loaner would be. I found used ones with a quick internet search for under $30.00 (photos attached).
After having these experiences with Larry's, I decided to ensure the prices they were quoting me were accurate. I contacted Land Rover in Louisville, the nearest location and where Larry's ordered the parts from in the past. I had the brakes for the LR3 quoted (the ones Larry's quoted me at $2,642.91) from Land Rover, and they were able to get me those parts for $640.23. I was shook, that means I was being upcharge that much on the parts from Larrys, or somehow being charged $2,000 dollars in labor (1.6 hours required for the front and 1.0 required for the rear). Land Rover gave me a quote to do the brakes there for $1,263.72, almost $1,400 less than Larry's.
I asked them to quote me for the LR2 parts as well, since Larry's had such expensive quotes. They quoted me $993.46 for both parts, much less than Larry's ($3,307.44 total with work). Photos and quotes from Land Rover below.
I asked Bryan about this when he called to tell me about the mirror. He said sometimes those dealers give individuals better deals than the shops, which through my experience and having a brother who owned a mechanic shop in another city, that is not typically true. Shops are normally the ones to get the discounts. I also did not feel that "discount" would result in a $2,000 price difference in quotes. I asked him why they didn't offer to replace the warrantied brakes from the LR3. I wanted to know why my only option was to pay almost three thousand dollars, again. He said they did not offer replacing the warranted brakes with the same parts they chose to use because they wouldn't work. I then started discussing the overcharging I felt was happening and questioning why I was paying for new parts when I was given a warranty on the previous parts that were used, and failed. It wasn't until I had done my own research on part prices, brought up my warranty that was never addressed, and questioned their pricing that he offered to put on the parts from Land Rover (ordered by me) for free on my car.
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