My cousin and I used to take our trucks to West Coast British, Mike Green. If you know Mike, he is a LR Guru (and a decent vintage motorcycle racer).

I had a '96 Disco. My cousin had a '96 D90 and a '98 D1. We had both had them since new.

At one time (2004), when both of us brought in our trucks for service, we talked about the new LR's. Mike did advise that the older ones, like ours, do not have the crazy electrical systems and are relitively easy to repair. The newer LR's are highy complex and have too many "gizmo's" to go wrong. Yes, it will keep him in business, but the relality..stick to the old ones ('98 and lower years). So, any pre-98's should all be good regardless, just keep them in good shape and they will treat you good.

I kept that in mind and recently bought another '96. Yes, it has electrical issues, but I have the feeling i can resolve myself.

 

BTW....I like T&A also....just need to be sure they are of the legal age....

 

Any Tuesday in April of 98!! best 23 trucks every produced.

 

Ok, this allows us to better help you.
Lucas is the company that made the electrics for Land Rover, early Land Rover.
If they have the V8, whether it is the 3.5, 3.9, 4.0, 4.2 or the 4.6 it is the "Buick" engine from the '60's.
Now DO NOT confuse this with it actually being a GM engine.
Short history lesson, GM wanted a light weight engine for their mid sized cars, so they developed the 215CID (cubic inch displacement) engine, they made it out of aluminum.
It was not a huge success so they sold the engine (meaning the castings/molds/whatever and blue prints) to Mercruiser who was looking for a lightweight inboard boat engine.
A all aluminum V8 is light, has power, and its a small displacement so it does not take up alot of room.
They were used as a twin engine set up on ocean going power boats, like for sport fishing etc.
When Mercruiser upgraded they had the engine sitting around, Land Rover wanted to enter the sport utility market so they developed the Range Rover (Classic, was not classic at the time) and they needed a engine, snobby snob who rides a Stallion does not want to pull up to the market in a clattering diesel
So the Land Rover 3.5L V8 was introduced, it had a single carburator for each bank of cylinders and had plenty of power, I think it was in the 150 horse power range.
Full time 4x4, lots of comforts and the sport utility market was born.
That very same engine was used upto 2004, it has been "refined" over the years, fuel injected and emissions junk added.
So when people say "that old Buick engine" that is what they are referring too, and they say that because these engines are nothing special, just a old push rod motor doing what old push rod motors do, and that is be simple and reliable.

So as for the best year of the Discovery, that is up to personal choice.
Again I prefer a '97 Disco with a topless redhead.

 

I'm partial to a '96...

 

Shadow,

You really seem to be fixated on the DII. Spend some time reading up on the DII forum. They have the "improved" front driveshaft that is famous for the sealed ujoints that eventually dry out (actually get baked out by the cats), fail and wipe out the transmission case by punching a hole in it and damage the cats too when they come apart. Or the 2003 with the bad oil pump ranges, that if under warranty, the entire engine was replaced. After warranty, it's the owner's ordeal.

The differences between DI's are all very minor. The Star Wars Lucas and the Lucas Electircs are not the same Lucas. If George had done it, there would be lots more graphics, and probably a fantastic sound and video system.

Any DI is going to have worn suspension due to the springs fatigue with time. If you are going to get another DI, you may want to hold onto most of those parts that you are hoping to piece out due to the fact you will most likely need them for your next one unless you buy one that already has been redone. Unless you want to pay retail for all those same parts again...........

If you made the decision to part it out due to your steering issue after doing all the upgrades, then maybe you should get serious. Look before you leap is the best advice I can offer you. Slow down, take your time. There is no majic answer to your plight.

 

I love Ed's theory... No Monday or Friday rigs for me thanks.

But now for the serious and simple answer. '94 / '95 Disco was the best. And since I just don't feel like typing out the many reasons why that was the best model you'll just have to trust me on this.

 

Spike,
Thanks for the history lesson - I had run into a few articles mentioning the "buick" V8. Being a mostly GM guy - I couldn't remember ever hearing/seeing such a "small" aluminum block V8 in any GM product - Buick or otherwise - Now I know the "whole story" - Thanks again for shinning the light!!!

Cosmic,
Since joining the "LR Disco" family 2 weeks ago with the purchase of a 94/95 Disco I must whole heartedly agree with you. :-) For me, it's just the fact that it's the one year I own.

In Peace and Agape,
Trav...

 

+1...I'm with this guy. This is my second '96....

 

I would have to agree that the simpler the better. So the 95 being a lot simpler than the 96 and newer that have more sensors and more complex issues, the 95 and earlier would appeal to me even though I own a 97.

As far as early US aluminum engines go, I had a 64 Lemans (same body as the original GTO) that sported an aluminum 326. Very quick and fairly powerful as well. There was a lot of experimentation back then.

Kaiser also made a lot of aluminum power plants and some body panels.

When did GM begin, I remember when Buick, Oldsmobile and Chevy and Cadillac were all independent companies before they became General Motors.