I've done "build" threads for my 4Runner and Colorado, so I figured why not do one for the Discovery?

How did I come to Discovery ownership? I have wanted one since I was a young car/truck fanatic and saw the Camel Trophy, but I never got around to getting one. Then, last year my wife got it in her head she wanted a Defender to have as a "play" vehicle to do things and haul our two Rhodesian Ridgebacks around. Well, when she found out how much they cost, especially one that could be titled in California, she gave up on that idea. I took the opportunity to show her the Discovery and her interest was piqued. I've been friends with @longtallsally (LTS) for years and I mentioned he's had a few Discos. A text message group was set up and we began looking for one in earnest. We drove a couple here in San Diego but just couldn't find one we liked.

Fast forward to Christmas Eve morning while we were on vacation in Oregon. I woke up to a FB message from LTS with a link to a Marketplace ad for a 2000 Discovery II in a rust/copper/orange color I had never seen before. The Disco was in South Carolina but titled in Texas. I showed the ad to Mrs. Yeti and she was all in. I messaged the seller and LTS actually got him on the phone and spoke with him for about 45 minutes, pestering him with ALL the questions. He even negotiated the price down for me. All that was left for me was to call the seller and confirm I did indeed want it.
The day after Christmas, money was wired and I was the new owner of a 23 year-old British vehicle. What could possibly go wrong?? (Yes, I bought a Disco sight unseen from across the country and wired money to someone I had never met. In a younger life, I was in the Marines. Infantry. Crayon eater. No one has ever confused me with a smart person.)

I arranged for a shipping company to pick her up in South Carolina. Here she is loaded on the trailer:

LTS and I hatched a plan that I would ship it to him and he would take care of some basics to ensure the Disco was road-worthy(ish). In the meantime, I would have neck surgery and recover. Then I would come collect the Disco and drive it home. Two days later, the Disco was in LTS's hands:

It was promptly parked next to LTS's Alveston Disco:

My daughter is a Senior at Colorado State University and has my 4Runner. She picked me up at the Denver airport and drove me down to LTS's where I finally got to see my Discovery!

LTS had replaced the battery ground (earth) cable, installed a front driveshaft from GBR, and installed an Ultragauge. When I got there, we swapped in a new windshield cowl, replaced the passenger side headlight, and replaced the pulley tensioner which had grenaded on one the shakedown drives. We also replaced the belt while we were at it. (I will be replacing the two idler pullies this weekend if the rain will ever let up.) I also removed the limo tint from the front windows after I almost crashed it during a night drive because I could not see a damn thing through the tint.

After a couple of days hanging out with LTS, it was time to get her home. I left his ranch at o-dark-thirty and headed west, hoping to beat an incoming storm. Here are a couple of pictures from the trip, nothing special as I was trying to make haste and wasn't sure I really trusted her at this point.


This was actually the third stop but whatever...

I finally got home, exhausted, at about 1130pm. The trip was a bit stressful as oil was leaking from the driver's side valve cover and it developed an odd rattle. I also really missed cruise control as it's not working right now.

My impressions from the trip were generally positive. It's very comfortable to drive, relatively gutless for a V8 engine, smooth, and the visibility unmatched.

Let the "build" begin . . .

 

Once I had her home, it was easy to find the source of the rattle and exhaust noise:

I'll have to run to a muffler shop and get that welded up ASAP.

I also ordered the socket I needed (8mm 12 point) to tighten the valve cover bolts which were seriously loose. Like, a turn-and-a-half to tighten them loose. So we'll see if that stops the leaking valve cover

I got her smogged and then registered. I swapped out the spare tire cover for one with an elephant on it because my wife loves elephants.


Also, I found out the driver's side mirror was loose and flopping and would flop against the window every time I hit a bump. I looked to see if it could be fixed but no such luck. However, during my daily perusal of Craigslist, I saw a new posting for a mirror for $50. A quick haggle and it was mine for $40. The anti-rattle pad fell apart when I opened the mirror cover (anyone know the part no?), but otherwise it was a simple swap and I now have a side-view mirror that stays in place.

And that's where things stand as of today . . .

 

"So what's the plan?" I hear you ask. (I don't actually hear you, that's just the voices in my head.)

The plan is nothing too huge. I plan to get 265/75r16 tires. The current tires are kind of sketchy because we don't know how old they are and they're a brand I've never heard of before. I want KO2s like I have on the Colorado, but that size only comes in an E Load rating and the last thing I want is to make my truck slower due to heavy tires. I may go with Kenda Klevers since LTS likes them, I've heard good things about them, and they're relatively cheap. More likely though, I'll go with Goodyear Wrangler Duratracs as I can get those in the size I want in a C load.

Obviously, living in SoCal, the cooling system will be addressed. I've already purchased the Extinct in-line thermostat mod, new hoses, a Gates 22073 hose, and a FlowKooler water pump. When I install those, I'll swap out the Satan's Nectar, I mean Dexcool, that's in there for regular coolant. I've also ordered a severe duty fan clutch and Doorman fan from Rock Auto. Hopefully all of that will keep temperatures out of the danger zone even when running the A/C in stop and go traffic or on trails.

The plan includes a 2" lift and I'm currently leaning towards a Terra Firma Medium Duty lift but I'm open to suggestions. I won't be adding a winch or ARB bumper, so I won't need heavy duty springs.

I found a CDL lever and updated SLABS on eBay and those are waiting in the garage to be installed at some point.

Obviously, I'll be changing all fluids and filters where applicable. Diffs, transmission, and transfer case.

I have a new Sony stereo with Bluetooth to install so I'll have Bluetooth for tunes and phone calls.

I have Discovery 1 windshield wiper arms ready to be swapped on too.

Then there are the things which need to be repaired/fixed: The rear wiper doesn't work, rear sunroof doesn't work, headliner is sagging a bit, cruise control doesn't work, driver's side seat heater doesn't work, blower motor is squeaking, the second key remote does not work, etc. etc.

Oh, it needs a brush guard, roof rack, and rear ladder. I already found a roof rack, but I'll tell that story when I install it.

It will be used for hauling our two Rhodesian Ridgebacks (they are LTS's fault too, at least partly) around, going up to the local mountains for hikes and playing, and just general horsing around. Oh, and going on trips with the San Diego Land Rover Club.

Stay tuned . . .

 

Bests oil separator mod combined with 15-40 rotella will help slow oil leaks big time. Look at some falken wildpeaks. Buddies run them and love them. E rated KO2s suck and kill the ride big time, very rough. Duratracs might as well be paper sidewalls and really suck once they hit the halfway mark.

 

Can confirm the Falkens are very nice tires, very good off road for what I use them for and very comfortable on road plus zero road noise, it's like having street tires. Also I think they're cheaper than KO2s but I'm not 100%. Very nice tires and I highly recommend them. Also the 15w40 oil does help with leaks mine leaks out anything synthetic like a tap it just a constant flow but with the 15w40 the leak is still there but very minimal.

 

So are you all running synthetic or dino oil? I can definitely run 15w40 here in warm San Diego.

I'll look into the Falkens, thanks!

 

Today, since I'm still waiting on parts to upgrade the cooling system, I decided to install the new radio. I got a Sony MEX-N5300BT from Crutchfield and used their wiring harness. Because the harness has bulky black boxes on it, I knew I needed to remove everything to get enough room to stuff things away. I had planned to remove the "tray the factory radio attaches to, but was able to keep it in place.

First I removed all the controls, etc. from the center stack. It was a little tough until I found a couple of good videos on Youtube. My hot ticket for others is to use two old credit cards (I actually used expired driver's licenses) and cut about 4mm off the end of one so it will fit in lengthwise.

So after removal of the switches and HVAC controls, etc.


Then I removed the million screws holding the surround on. After that I connected the Crutchfield wiring harness and started working to fit it in. Eventually I got the two black boxes to settle to the side of the tray and then unplugged the RCA cables one-at-a-time to route them behind the vertical support piece. With that done, there was plenty of room:


And here's the radio installed. I like that you can change the colors to closely match the Disco's interior lights. The sound with the Harman Kardon stereo is really good and the Bluetooth phone sounds great (according to Mrs. Yeti).

I hadn't put the coin tray back in yet. I'm not too thrilled with the appearance of the trim piece below the stereo. It seems like a cheap 3D printed piece.

After I was finished with the stereo, I swapped out the wiper arms for D1 arms with new RainX wiper blades. Then I gave it a good vacuuming and called it good.

Next up, hopefully getting the exhaust leak fixed and then the cooling system when all the parts come in. Stand by . . .

 

Congrats on the purchase, one of the best colors out there IMO. Apart from Silver or Black, which almost aren't colors, Kinversand is my favorite. As mentioned, the PVC mod in the Sticky section is a must do. With regard to the cruise, once you've pressed the button with the Autobahn symbol on the binnacle the cruise "lever" pulls towards you to activate. Completely non-intuitive. If she's still inop I've parted a couple of these things and can help with spares if need be. Good luck with her!

 

LTS and I did the PVC mod, I think it was the first thing we did. Well, I guess it would have helped if I knew how to operate the cruise control. I guess maybe I could have read the manual but what fun would that be?? Next time I take her on the freeway I'll try that. LTS tried it and said it worked but would not hold a consistent speed so we'll see.

 

I'm running rotella t6 which is synthetic normally but currently running royal purple diesel as it's all I could find locally when it was time for a change. I believe your diaphragm needs to be replaced for the cruise control to work if I remember correctly when I looked at it with LTS