I have been researching Discovery's for some time and have finally decided to get one. I am a strong hobby mechanic with a lot of experience in general.

I have pretty much narrowed my search to 1997 or 1998 models based on what I have learned so far, but I'm open to any clean, well kept and well documented D1.

Here is my Dilemma:

I stumbled across a really clean 2003 D2 that is a "pig in a poke". It shows very well, looks like it was never off road, no rust, interior is near perfect, exterior is great except for damage to the passenger side headlamp assembly ( it needs replaced). The underside of the rig looks really clean, no rust or corrosion, just some typical light road grime/dust. It has 153k mi.

Here is the kicker. It will not start. The Bettery is dead. When I hook it up with a set of jumper cables and do some tests, everything appears to work, but when I go to crank it, the starter does something I have never encountered. I sounds like the starter motor is turning slowly as if under a significant load, but not turning the engine over at all. I cannot here the bendix move at all either.

What scares me is the possibility that the engine is seized, but I more suspect something is wrong with the starter. Like I said "pig in a poke".

Anyway, I'm inclined to walk away from this even though I can get it for dirt cheap. Of course I have to dive into the deal and haul its dead carcass into my shop before I can troubleshoot it. It is ridiculously cheap which entices me, but if it ends up with major issues, it will no longer be cheap!

If anyone has any advice regarding how I can confirm there are no huge issues, that would be good, but at the end of the day I think I should stick to my original plan.

The owner swears up and down that this car ran perfect until he ran it out of gas, then this issue began and it has not run since (about a month).

Can I get a wrench on the crank and rotate the motor by hand? That would tell me a bit. What is strange us that the starter turns, but very slowly, maybe when he ran it out of gas he fried the starter trying to reprime?

I can get this rig for under $1000. Maybe it's worth taking a stab at it?

Obviously I'm waffling. Please take pity on me.

 

check the vin against the 03' engine/oil pump failure list from LRNA.

if it's outside the VIN range I would offer him $600. You can get $550 from a recycler for the entire truck. you can get a used starter and swap it out for under $100 from one of the trusted parts guys.

Did you check the fuses? I had a D2 that had a very similar problem and one of the fuses was burnt out, once the fuse was replaced it ran great.

 

Walk away... not worth the possible headache that could turn your 1k into a series of nightmares running upwards of 10k.... mileage is too high as well. IMHO.

 

If you removed all the spark plugs should be able to turn with a wrench. Or starter may turn it. Will seller allow you to pay for an indy inspection, including trip by wrecker to a shop? So when cranking now the belt does not move? But IMHO there are a lot of Discos that might be in less questionable shape. Starter in miy D1 draws 285 amps when cranking, need a good battery.

 

I'm going to take this approach:

Get the VIN and run it to see what I can learn about the vihicles history.

If it does not have any big black spots on the VIN history, I will offer a deal just slightly more than he will get from a recycler (about $600) and haul it home.

Aside from the oil pump issue, are there other items to be aware of the can be denoted by VIN?

From what i know so far, this car belonged to a older lady until about a year ago. It was purchased in Vegas and so has always been in the southwest. It is not baked and shows signs of beeing kept very clean/stored indoors.

My thinking was that if this rig made it 153K, it must be fairly solid..Having to freshen up the motor is not a deterent. When it comes to offroad rigs, I'm inclined to be intimate with the vehicle before it fails offroad so I have a fighting chance of repairing it trailside.


As far as costing 10k to get it going, I have no intention of dropping it off at a dealership. could it really cost that much to freshen up the motor, or swap in a servicable transmission if necessary? Enlighten me. I may be a deer in the headlights in my estimate of the worst case scenario..I figure if I poke around a bit and discover it is a total bag of worms I can cut my losses and scrap it..

Anyway, thanks again, Great forum. I am anxious ot get into a Discovery soon. If not htis one, there are plenty more out there...

Regards,

Mike

 

I say go for it! Research the vehicle history via a carfax and confirm weather or not the VIN is in the notorious bad oil pump range or not (most vehicles effected by bad oil pump **** the bed within the first 1000k or less, so if the Disco has 150k then I bet its just fine). Next pay for a pre inspection on the Disco. Depending on the results I'd say make a best offer for the truck, tow it home and start troubleshooting the starting issue and keep us informed and up to date. If its a reasonable priced fix to get the truck working again, and with your mechanical experience then it would be worth keeping the truck! But if the Disco ends up eating to much money, either sell it for scrap or part it out and get your money back. Alternatively you could keep it as a donor truck then buy a better condition Disco and use the donor for any needed parts.

Either way good luck and welcome to the forum.

 

Again, the VIN range on a 10 year old truck really is a non issue with the 2003's. It would have exploded long ago if it was in the range, and would have long since been fixed, or had a brand new engine installed.

Any 03 with over 60k is going to have the same issues as any other Bosch engine.

I don't know why you guys keep bringing up this issue.

Could we all please quite scaring people away from 03's with outdated information?

The only reason to avoid an 03 at this point is if you want a CDL. and thats only a matter of money to change.

 

Hey I'm not trying to scare him out of getting this 2003 Disco in question. But he has the right to know for the sake of knowledge. And I think I put it kindly above " most vehicles effected by bad oil pump **** the bed within the first 1000k or less, so if the Disco has 150k then I bet its just fine)"

 

for under a 1000 I would buy it and fix it, so what if it's in the death vin it has a 150 k on the odometer hello!!!!!...chickens.

 

yea sure you can buy if for 1k or less. Then lets say you need a new engine..thats what. 4-7K, plus a new front prop shaft, radiator, plugs wires, thermostat, fluids, hoses, maybe O2 sensors, how is the suspension doing...tires are they in good shape-roto-flex coupler. Ok so thats it, now you have to do all the work and or pay for some of it. you add it all up, you have somewhere around 8-9K if you do it all yourself. plus purchase price.. or... you can look for one that is on better shape engine runs lower miles and costs 5-7k. Its your money its your time. have fun we will always be here to give you an opinion. and of course help when replacing all that is bad. I know It might be something simple and only cost you 1k. personally While i do enjoy working on my truck and am glad I know how... I prefer to drive it.