what is wrong with these cars (or there owners)
 

hi all, first post.
I am 20 now and when i was younger my parents had a 96 discovery. Pretty much all throughout junior high for me.

i loved it, i can't remember there being any issues when we had it except it didn't like the engine being washed and after a while the florida sun killed the paint, sunroof gaskets, and the headliner.

So i've pretty much always wanted one since then but i have a big question about them.

Why is it nearly all of the cheaper ones have broken engines and sometimes trannys?????? Wth is going on? Is there a really common maintenance item that is overlooked or is there a big weak spot that breaks anyways??

Most either just say "needs motor" or its a head gasket.
I love british cars and need an SUV but im wondering why there are SO many broken discoverys out there.

thanks all

we don't maintain them. we expect them to roll on forever with no maintenance. little things break which create bigger things.

i have that 96. i love it.

I have a 96 also, and love it. I guess head gasket replacements are pretty common on these, but not a show-stopper, especially if you can do it yourself. Maybe a lot of people blow a head gasket and then figure it's not worth fixing it on an older truck.

The key is to find out why it needs a new engine. I bought a jeep from a guy one time who stated it needed an engine and alls that was wrong was a brand new plug wire he put on and it was broken. he never thought to re check the wire.

If you find a cheap disco that needs a little work you'll be miles ahead to learn the truck by fixing it yourself.

"needs a new engine" can mean a lot of different things

these things are so cheap now that theyre rarely every maintained like the $30-40k truck they once were. its not cheap to maintain one properly and many 4th and 5th owners (or who knows how many.... by now...) neglect to take care of them.
then, much to everyones surprise, it ends up overheated somewhere needing a new engine, or someone whos never thought to change the transmission fluid or filter ends up needing a new transmission.

nothing scary going on, just total lack of proper maintenance. much like many other (formerly expensive) used high(er) end cars.

my recommendation would be to avoid the temptation of the super roachy cheap ones you see all over craigslist and find something that was maintained most of its life, with records.
theres no such thing as a cheap discovery and youre better of buying one you can use right away that wont leave you stranded some place.

You buy a $2500 truck, drive it for a year and the head gaskets go bad, dealer wants $3000, indie shop wants $1800, the truck is only worth $2000 at most in running condition.
So on Craig's List it goes.
DIY head gaskets are $500 and a long weekend, unless you are IHScouts, he can do them after work before driving it to the bar.

Well I bought a heap in April 2011 and it cost me 500.00 it had sat for a year turned over but would not run, it is a 97 disco 5 speed, exhaust was falling off and so on it had 209,000 kms. I fixed the sender unit and drove off. A year and a half later 1200.00 invested after the purchase and it is my favorite ride on and off road. before this one I would not touch a landrover because of their rep. but I would drive this one across country. and I maintain it they are really quite simple and somehow I am reliving my childhood through this hunk of great metal. Just this past weekend we got it stuck in the woods with no means of getting it out after five minutes of thinking I told my passengers to sit up on the hood about 350 lbs of weight put it into 1st and that truck crawled it's way out . whatever you put into it ,it will give you back in spades.

why is that common??What is the cause?
Is there a weak spot in the cooling system or is the stock head gasket just poorly made?

I am not new to british cars, I own an 88 XJS that was parked for 13 years and neglected even before that.

I am pretty sure it is mostly a case of people buying a luxury car on the cheap and thinking there is something mystical about it. Or they are the type of people that typically drive chevy cavaliers and don't take care of them either, but what do really expect whenever you see a car like that??

So many cars, especially british ones, get bought by people who truly can't afford them and they react very badly to it.

If you think about it MOST of the 80s-90s mercs you see driving around are in horrible condition but they are hanging in there. British cars, from my experience, have much more character and respond to when you are good and bad to them in a much more exaggerated fashion than other types.

So i understand all of this in looking at a land rover for 2500 dollars, I was just wondering i guess why the problems always seem to be the same because some specific thing should be making it happen if it is a recurring issue that the "engine is broken".


Also any links to GOOD and permanent fixes to the headliner??? Can it just be replaced with a better quality adhesive the second time round or is there some other solution?


thanks all.


also scale of 1-10 how hard are they to work on ??
I'm just curious, nothing seems very daunting to me after working on the cramped engine bay of an xjs :)

Me, and a few others, have just ripped off the fabric and sprayed the backing with bedliner/rubberized paint of choice.

Its not the most civilized fix, but it does the job and is permanent.