Class action

[HeavyFoot]

Just my 2p but...I have one of the last of the proper Defenders and until we got the Ineos out family car was an L663 Defender which was catastrophically unreliable, (driveshaft 42k, engine 40k, turbos 40k, craksharft pulley 30k, several batteries and electrical faults) the Ineos is far better. I wasn't that impressed with the dealer, but have had a few minor warranty repairs which were dealt with easily. My local dealer closed so now its a 2 hour journey to the next one, but its not the end of the world, I could get it done locally but prefer to put in a little effort to ensure theres no question on the warranty.

Steering is absolutely not an issue for us and easy to get used to, my Mrs uses her old Defender regularly over the 10 years we've had it so jumping in the Ineos is easy, she absolutely loves it. We live on a farm so its great there, but mostly its on the road doing the school runs etc.

It does, like any car, have its flaws, but I've had many low run cars over the years - 10 Lotus, Alfa 4C, McLaren etc and all these cars had a few finish issues, but kind of goes with the territory. I think the Ineos is actually better put together than all of them, which for a new company is pretty impressive in myu opinion.

I think it comes down to perspective. With some of the cars I've had in the past and suffering with the new LR reliability and dealer issues, the Ineos feels like a step forward. If youre coming from something more mainstream then perhaps it may be quite frustrating.

Do you still have a 4C? I think there are 4 of us on the 4C forum that have Grenadiers. I think it takes the same type of person. You have to enjoy the experience!

 

[Dokatd]

Statistically the number of driveshafts that break per hundreds of thousands of miles driven is really low. I suspect there are other issues that have a much higher failure rate that you could worry about. This SUV is a version 1.0 and it's probably a bit unfair to expect Toyota reliability and service from the company. That is just reality....

I am about to set out on a 4 or 5 day roadtrip that is probably about 1200 miles or so and honestly am not worried about the driveshaft breaking... Maybe I am dumb, but I have spent enough miles (18,000 so far) that I am not worried about it...

Well, everyone's mileage varies both literally and figuratively. Lifted trucks go seemingly between 7000-20000mi before having issues. Stock trucks seem to go up to about 50k miles before the shaft gives up. But many stock trucks have lost the shaft in far far less mileage.

I won't say it's coming to get you, but the odds are better than worse. Reports of failure on both stock and modded trucks are mounting rapidly as people are putting more miles on. But if you never really stretch your trucks legs maybe you will get lucky putting on the highway miles in a 4x4 truck.

 

[Shopkeep]

Well, everyone's mileage varies both literally and figuratively. Lifted trucks go seemingly between 7000-20000mi before having issues. Stock trucks seem to go up to about 50k miles before the shaft gives up. But many stock trucks have lost the shaft in far far less mileage.

I won't say it's coming to get you, but the odds are better than worse. Reports of failure on both stock and modded trucks are mounting rapidly as people are putting more miles on. But if you never really stretch your trucks legs maybe you will get lucky putting on the highway miles in a 4x4 truck.

When you say there are “many” and “mounting rapidly” reports of stock trucks being affected just how many are you talking about?

 

[Dokatd]

When you say there are “many” and “mounting rapidly” reports of stock trucks being affected just how many are you talking about?

I am not the one to ask because I don't use Facebook etc. But there have been reports from across the globe of stock failures. There are reports of dealers keeping them in stock to fulfill the need. Most failures are likely not even reported online as most owners aren't nerds like us.

So I can't state a number, but I can say the frequency in our little group is getting higher every month. I can also say that failure is not a lifted vs stock issue, just that lifted trucks have an accelerated timeline of failure.

 

[C-Mack]

Curious when we’ll start to see rear driveshaft boot failures appear? Rear driveshaft is running at less stressful angles for sure but as the miles pile up across the existing fleet wouldn’t be surprised to see a few start cropping up.

 

[Skydance]

I think that's why half the complaints about the vehicle don't cross over very well and then the accusations of fanboys start.
What is acceptable to one nation is a disaster to another and then vice versa on the next complaint. You would only use a dealer 100 miles or more away if it was the likes of Ferrari or Rolls Royce and they collected and returned your vehicle on a covered low loader. Otherwise you just buy the local brand.

I think if it’s your only work vehicle or daily then it would be an issue. Not everyone has the luxury of having a fleet of cars in their garage.

 

[Dokatd]

Curious when we’ll start to see rear driveshaft boot failures appear? Rear driveshaft is running at less stressful angles for sure but as the miles pile up across the existing fleet wouldn’t be surprised to see a few start cropping up.

I'm not sure the rear will max the boot out. Now the C-clip issue I don't know.

 

[Oscar786]

Sadly everyone just comes back and makes excuses or downplays the vehicles major faults. There are too many willing to play FanBoi. If people were honest with themselves and not accept super compromised designs we could get somewhere, but I doubt that will happen.

Yes have to agree . I’ve actually got a loan Ineos which is a brand new 2025 and the heating issue is still there , so that’s not fixed yet . The excuse Ineos give you regarding the heating is … majority of the customers are happy and the whole heating mechanism had to be compromised due to space issues . This is not acceptable. It’s looking doom and gloom for us owners who bought the first batch of the 2023 models .

 

[Roach]

For the US a class action could work.

@Earthwatcher, maybe you should add a poll to gather some numbers. The forum is a small sample but you will need to show commonality.

Also will need to demonstrate one of; diminished value, unreimbursed repairs or economic loss. From what I’ve read this should be easy but what makes it a bit more complex is it’s all over the place; doors, leaks, hvac, squealing pumps…. Another poll might help to sort out how typical the issues are.

If somebody picks this up it’s not going to be huge (like a VAG class action)….even IG fans will join the suit but total cars sold is small. What’s different to me is it’s not a single issue but a number of issues. Maybe diminished value is what to lean on as it might be big.

Just this thread alone might provide a group the clues and also kick IG into gear, ie: 10k loss per unit is bigger than fixing leaks, squeaks and tweaks (oh my).