what to buy

[cam]

hi new to the site and i'm looking to buy a 4x4 and wanting a proper one i think land over is the way to go so a discovery is something that i would look to buy but do i buy a v8 petrol with a gas conversion:eek: or do i buy derv if i buy derv is it a 200 or 300 tdi whats the difference between 200 and 300 tdi :rolleyes: see i told you i was new and still learning so could you kind people out there help many thanks :D

[jen.s.f]

We've all been here!!!
And don't worry, you never stop learning when it comes to Land Rovers.
Might help a bit if we know what you intend to use it for. Is it for an every day road vehicle, green laneing or off roading. Do you intend adding any mods. And obviously, how much do you want to spend?
We are new to the world of Disco's, but we've had a Series III and a Defender in the past. We decided to go for the Disco purely because it was more practical as an everyday vehicle than the 90, but would still make a nice toy for the weekends.

[manthing]

Its a whole world of compromise :rolleyes:
disco is a fantastic 4x4 in any format,
but,
diesel against petrol????????????????
add lpg loose boot space :( , but cheaper :D
petrol do NOT like water :( , but are faster and sound grand :D
diesel do not like to be rushed :( , but will pull a house over at tickover :D

as been said, wot you gona use it for????????

[cam]

every day use mainly but maybe a bit of green laneing to start as for mods after a time but the vehicle is the first port of call which er go's without saying and will have about £5000 to spend but unsure if thats enough to get a good one but i understand that a fsh is a must is that correct ?????? like i said new to all this but i will get there i think !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Roger Whittle]

I too am new to the Land Rover game, although I've already made my decision and bought one. My Series 2 Disco is a TD5 Automatic and because I use it for work, someone else is subsidising my indulgence. I couldn't justify any form of Land Rover as a pure toy. The 4 litre V8 must be much more fun, but I couldn't imagine pouring that much fuel into a car I use in London most of the time. Maybe next time I'll get the V8 and convert it straight to gas. The TD5 is a very smooth engine - it just will not be hurried. It will cruise at about eighty, but will be increasingly reluctant if pressed for more. The good news is; it will keep you out of the clutches of the GATSO cameras. I haven't calculated it exactly, but I think my Disco is doing about 24 - 26 mpg on a mixture of longish journeys and short, in London traffic trips. The characteristic Land Rover poor steering lock is not the problem I thought it was going to be and if you can get it in to a parking space, it's easier to slide out of and in to than a lower saloon car. I have to be careful getting too close at the back when parking - I need to get my tools and test gear out and that rear door is a mighty portal. I haven't managed to go anywhere off road that would even make it break sweat. I've been through slushy mud that would poleaxe an 'ordinary' car in three feet, but the Disco might just as well been on a dry road. I've been told by ex-Dubai/Saudi 'Dune Bashers' that you will give up long before the Disco does (if you know how to use one properly.) The best bit is being up high, looking over the traffic, or seeing things over hedges you never knew were there. I am far less tired and crumpled up after a long journey and the other corresponents are right - it'll climb a wall in idle. A week or two ago I had an electrical problem with the Autobox and I only had third gear, although I didn't know it at the time. I had adults in all seven seats and I was towing a two ton trailer. A bit sluggish I thought - not surprising staring off in third gear going uphill. Discovery rules!

[manthing]

Cam
for that kind of money you should be able to pick upa good 300TDi, auto's generally comand around £1k more than manwell's but "should " be better engine /box wise as the is less chance of abuse with an autobox,
ask about timing belt
check all the twidly bits
check the diff lock ( stubby gear stick in front of big sticky thing)
LORI did an artical across the range about picking up a 2nd hand LR see if you can locate a copy for the disco buyers guide

****** me I sound like I know wot I'm actually talking about...dangerous :D

[Henk Coetzee]

The characteristic Land Rover poor steering lock is not the problem I thought it was going to be and if you can get it in to a parking space, it's easier to slide out of and in to than a lower saloon car.

When I first thought of getting a Disco, I was warned that it has the turning circle of the Queen Mary. This is not far from the truth, but you adapt quickly. I had been driving 4x4s for a good few years before I had the priviledge of driving one with power steering. Air conditioning came later. I still tend to compare everything to a late 70s Cr**ser pickup.

I haven't managed to go anywhere off road that would even make it break sweat. I've been through slushy mud that would poleaxe an 'ordinary' car in three feet, but the Disco might just as well been on a dry road. I've been told by ex-Dubai/Saudi 'Dune Bashers' that you will give up long before the Disco does (if you know how to use one properly.)

This has been the best part of the Disco for me. Full time 4WD and decent suspension make things easier than you would think. The other day I was driving through some thick sand, and it suddenly dawned on me that I was... well... driving through thick sand. It didn't feel out of the ordinary or particularly special. I also drove on some tarred highway, which also didn't feel that out of the ordinary.

I also recently had the opportunity to drive the same piece of road in the Disco and then be the passenger in an old cart-spring T*y*t* H*l*x - FWIW, a highly capable offroader. They should have kidney belts as standard equipment.

I am far less tired and crumpled up after a long journey

This was one of the deciding things about the Disco for me. It is really really comfortable to drive long distances.

Henk

[cam]

thank you all for your help so what is the differance between the 200 and the 300 tdi the only thing i can see is that the 200 is a little older but is it better or worse

[manthing]

the 300 is the more refined of the two but they are about the same power output, whereas the 200 is a good unit but suffers from the tractor label a little?
the 300 is said by many in the know as the best, most bullet proof ( not literaley) and most practical deisel engine LR have ever made, and as far as I know is still available on brand new Disco's and Defender's in Other World Markets (OWM) as it is fixable by and known to many a "bush" mechanic.

200+auto, 300, 300auto
Power bhp@rpm, 111@4000, 111@4000, 120@4000
Torque lb/ft@rmp, 195@1800, 195@1800, 221@1800
Compresion ratio , 19.5:1, 19.5:1, 19.5:1

Main gearbox on
200 = LT77(S)
300 = R380
all auto had ZF 4HP22

The Transfer box (Hi-Lo) on all is the LT320T.

the auto box had a power boost in 1996 and yes you can feel the differance.

out else? :D

[manthing]

on a personal note, if I had a few more beer tokens laying around I would go for a late 300 rather than an early TD5.

[jen.s.f]

We were told, when we bought our Defender, by those who know (??), that you are better off with a late 200tdi than an early 300tdi. I presume the same goes for Discos. The later years of the model have had any problems ironed out, plus you might get some of the refinements they are testing out for the next model eg: our Defender was one of the last 200's and had the cross drilled gearbox as in the 300.
Good service history is always usefull, as is long MOT, but no guarantee. The best thing is to have a good look before buying. Obviously you get more for your money buying privately, pay you money and take your chance, but buy trade and you should get a warranty, you'll pay that bit more, but if anything serious does go wrong you've got cover (or should have).

[Henk Coetzee]

Good service history is always usefull, as is long MOT, but no guarantee.

I've always wondered about this one. A "full service history" generally means that an agent has stamped the book and, one presumes, changed oil and filters at the correct intervals. The service book doesn't have pages for broken cam belts, warped heads and so on.

The service schedule proposed by Land Rover also doesn't have the fixes like cambelt pulleys, brass radiator plugs and so on that should be done on a Tdi.

So, while a full service history is an indication that a vehicle was well looked after, I wonder how indicative it is of the true condition of the vehicle. This is where the good look comes in.

[cam]

just read that last post and must say i had never looked at it that way but sure it does make some sense but on the other side of the coin like you said it does show that the last owner/owners have looked after it so you can only presume that they looked after things that do not show on the service book. which then got me thinking are the disco's as unreliable as some people make out i meen everybody has problems with any vehicle i know i have,is this just bitter people having abit of expensive bad luck or is it fact they do go wrong alot,should i not be worrying about how much fuel they use because they spend more time in the garage?????????????.

are parts on par with other car spare prices or are they a lot more expensive,i would think maybe a little more but not to over the top.
all these things are little things that you have to take into acount i suppose as not everybody can afford to just throw money problems can they,well i hope not if so i,m doing something very wrong any way a little something for you good people to chew over and any reply is good good or bad ;)

[Henk Coetzee]

which then got me thinking are the disco's as unreliable as some people make out i meen everybody has problems with any vehicle i know i have,is this just bitter people having abit of expensive bad luck or is it fact they do go wrong alot,should i not be worrying about how much fuel they use because they spend more time in the garage?????????????.

This sounds like the beginning of the great Land Rover reliability discussion. My take on it is that there are lots of old Land Rovers in use. Here in South Africa we have plenty of people with Series LRs, RR classics and so on who use them for overland trips throughout Southern Africa. Of course, a 30 year old vehicle is going to break down occsionally, but these are used to show that all LRs are unreliable.

Then there have been some spectacular problems like the cam belt pulleys and radiator plugs on the 300Tdi, some of the early Defender gearboxes which made it to South Africa etc. LR have probably produced more than their fair share of these. Speak to someone in the know and find out what you need to know about whatever you buy. My Tdi Disco came without a detailed service record, so I had a new cam belt and pulleys put in when I bought it.

are parts on par with other car spare prices or are they a lot more expensive,i would think maybe a little more but not to over the top.
all these things are little things that you have to take into acount i suppose as not everybody can afford to just throw money problems can they,well i hope not if so i,m doing something very wrong any way a little something for you good people to chew over and any reply is good good or bad ;)

Car parts are expensive. For some reason, independent parts suppliers are able to survive selling parts for much much less than LR agents. This seems to be the case worldwide. I needed a brake vacuum pump recently. The local independent dealer sold this part at about 1/4 the price that the agent did.

Finally, because Land Rover models tend to look the same for many years, any problems with one model, one year etc. will tend to be associated with many years of production. I recently was warned about the electronics in the transmission on my Disco, and problems with traction control, just waiting to happen. I've got a Disco 1 - no electronics no traction control. I'm probably prejudiced this way, but I would prefer not to buy a simpler older vehicle than a more complex one with lots of electronics.

[jen.s.f]

All cars break down, not just Land Rovers!!!! I know it's a bit of a joke with us all that you mend something only to find another problem, but this can happen with any vehicle. When you think that many of us on this forum are driving vehicles over ten years old and also giving them some punishment off road, things are bound to break!!

As to parts being expensive, it's just a case of shopping around. The indicator stalk on our 90 broke just before we sold it, so we phoned our local supplier. We were quoted £85+vat :eek: . We phoned another suplier, who's about 45mins from where we live and got the same part for £35 including vat, even if you take into account fuel costs we saved around £60. Also with Disco's there are plenty of parts to be found secondhand which can save a good few beer tokens.

[cam]

so all in all they are thes ame as any other vehicle well thats some good news i suppose, now all i have to do is find a good one and find it all out myself.

can most things be done and when i say most things i mean common problems which there must be some be done by a d.i.y mechanic like myself or does it have to be done by so called profesionals,(you know the ones i mean them that have you spending a futune on tying to find a problem just going through a process of elimination replacing this that and evrything instead of just doing some investigation work !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)
whoooops did i sound a bit bitter about dealers then ????????

sorry about all the questions maybe i should stop asking and just get off my behind and get one and learn for myself so thats what i will do :eek:

i will keep you updated on what i get and then start with more questions when and if it goes wrong thank you all that have posted any replys its been most helpfull :D

[NewBloke]

I've got (and it's for sale ;) ) a 93 L Disco with a 200tdi and the engine is the second most solid thing in the whole car after the chassis - regarding which which the MOT tester told me that he's never seen one that old and that solid.

Gearbox pah. 200 tdi live forever.

Agree with the above poster that said they'd rather have a late xxx than an early xxxi

[Henk Coetzee]

so all in all they are thes ame as any other vehicle well thats some good news i suppose, now all i have to do is find a good one and find it all out myself.

:eek:

All in all they are certainly not the same as any other vehicle ;).

Insofar as they have their strong points and their weak points, they are similar to others. All we've really looked at in this thread is whether they are as bad as other 4x4s. We haven't really got onto how good they are yet. When it comes to crossing obstacles, you will often hear a driver of another vehicle proudly explaining how he got through everything that the Land Rovers could.

can most things be done and when i say most things i mean common problems which there must be some be done by a d.i.y mechanic like myself or does it have to be done by so called profesionals,(you know the ones i mean them that have you spending a futune on tying to find a problem just going through a process of elimination replacing this that and evrything instead of just doing some investigation work !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)


On a Disco 1 yes. 100% user serviceable parts inside. There are a few little bits of electronics in the airconditioning and so on, but by and large it is a relatively simple machine. The Haynes Manual has a rating of what various grades of DIY mechanic can do. Diesel pumps and gearboxes seem to be complex, rather than proprietary, but the rest of the vehicle is designed to be serviced. For the more difficult stuff, there are independent mechanics who can fix anything at way less than the dealers will charge you.

[jen.s.f]

......And to add to that if you join a local Land Rover/off road club you will always find someone willing to give you a hand with anything you can't manage yourself.

[cam]

do you know how i can find a local club in mt area which is near ipswich suffolk thanks:D

[manthing]

try http://www.slroc.com,
:D