Hi, I just bought a 1998 Discovery 1 today and it needs some work. I got it for under 3k, but it's gonna need some work. My biggest problems are:
- Neither of the sunroofs work and the front one leaks
- The AC isn't cold
- Defrost doesn't work
- Needs a new starter (starts most times, but not every time)
- The panels on the dashboard are loose and can come out
- The rear bumper is off
- The front drive shaft is not connected but I have it and just need to connect it
- The drivers seat doesn't slide back
- There is no panel for the passenger seat controls
- And the biggest problem, the key gets stuck in the ignition 90% of the time. I don't know what to do on that.
So if you could please help me then that would be great!
Thanks!

 

Welcome.

Download the shop and owner manuals, they are linked below and called the "RAVE".

You paid a high price for a truck with those miles and issues.

If near a u-pull-it junkyard, you can get seats for like $30. Seat from a D2 won't fit. Passenger seat from a D1 will fit, lumbar **** will just clear the door pillar.

Not starting every time. Is that when it gets warmed up or after being parked for a few minutes?

AC most likely needs a simple re-charge with refrigerant.

All of your major issues can be found on this forum with the search button.

Be sure you understand that the heat gauge should point at 8:00 ish, above 9:00 is overheating. An OBDII scanner is much more accurate.

You will want to read thru our tech area for lots of DIY repair methods.

 

Indeed, this forum has a wealth of information. Either use the search, or just start scanning all of the threads page by page, reading into the ones you're interested in.

I'm fairly new to Land Rovers (lots of car history though) and so far I've gone through 200 pages of threads. I feel like a Discovery mad scientist now.

Also, yeah you paid too much... I got mine a couple weeks ago, 95 with a 5-speed. Saggy headliner and some tail wiring that needed attention. Paid barely over 1k.

 

In my humble opinion, if you liked it enough to pay that price then the price you paid is perfect. I paid close to $60,000 for a brand new HUMMER that was worth less than half that much 6 months later due to market depreciation, and I wont even go into the financial loss (in depreciation & interest) on new Excursions, Grand Cherokees, or the Harley edition F-250 to name a few that I just needed to have before dusting off my 84 Dodge Ramcharger which I bought brand new in 84', and had a blast not worrying about the occasional dent or ding from bouncing off trees before driving it to my office on Monday. I ended up selling for more than I paid for it new when I was done to someone that just had to have it.

The guidance given here was absolutely correct; use the search button, and ask questions for clarification. There are experts all over this site that will point you in the right direction. Now the last piece of advice I can give you is... patch, seal off or live with the things that won't make the Discovery get you to where you want to go any better & fix the important things that need to work or will just make things worse. Once that's done, deal with the rest.

No lie, the Discovery life is interesting (man, I wish I could figure out my temperature gauge issue), but the utility, ride and the harsh weather capabilities make my Discovery better than any of the other 40 some vehicles I've owned since I was 16.

 

I'll throw my $.02 in and be done. If you can get your money back, do it. Anything more that $1000 for a D1 in that condition is too much in my opinion. Having a D1 in that condition as your first car and daily driver is a bad move.

You'll need the RAVE, and a good set of Standard AND Metric tools.
-Used good starters are cheap. D1 and D2 take the same one so finding one around $35 shouldn't be too hard.
-Put your bumper on so you're legal
-Check the ujoints on the driveshaft and consider replacing them while its out. 2 new ujoints may run $25.
- Get it mechanically sound and then start picking away at the small stuff like Defrost, etc.

 

DON'T forget pull up the fronrt cvarpets and rear cargo carpet and behold the rust lol

 

Thanks to everyone for the reply. Today was my 18th birthday and I went and got a few parts. I mistakenly said under 3k in my first post. That was a typo. I paid a little under 1800 for it all together. I did consider trying to get my money back, however my father (the one who paid for it) said I need to wait and not be to hasty (he's right). I have decided to fix as much of it as possible without dumping too much money in to it and go from there. So far I spent 144 dollars at the junk yard and got a rear bumper, new sunroof, and a few more small things. I have go to get some new tires though. The over sized ones that are on it now rub too much and have lost tread. It turns out it was just a fuse on the A/C. I already fixed the seats, and I found a post about how to fix the ignition and got that worked out as well. I plan to spend a lot of time on this forum. But I really do love my truck and plan to spend a lot of time on it. Thanks again for all of your help so far.

 

I also forgot to mention that it has brand new u-joints. It rides and drives pretty well. Its just small things that are holding it back.

 

They are awesome trucks. Mine went from a beater trash/dog hauler to my primary hobby and trail rig. They WILL **** you off at times so be prepared. And if your like me you will be constantly fooling with it and modifying it