hello everyone, i recently purchased an 04 disco se in monterrey blue in south carolina. the vehicle was originally purchased and titled in florida. it seemed like a complete babydoll, just a perfect nugget of a rover, i have always wanted one since i started driving. i paid 5k under book for it and promptly returned to NC where i am stationed as an active duty marine. i drove for about 2 weeks and then a series of maintenance issues struck me. one day the HDC and TC and ABS lights came on, they would stay fully lit for 10 minute sor so and then shut off. well it turns out the ACE pump hand never been properly maintained and it locked up which caused the serpentine belt to be thrown from its track. when it did this i was on I-40 cruisin at about 75 mph, the belt flew off and cut both of my ACE hydraulic lines for the axles, blew the master cylinder and the brake booster. i have since had them all repaired to the tune of $3100, which in retrospect isnt so bad i have paid more for stupid mistakes in my youth. Once the disco was completed i picked it up a few weeks later and it drove like a dream, it was raining that day and i was almost sideswiped while returning home from the mechanics shop and had to force a stop, well the ABS and TC lights popped on again for a few minutes, cleared up very well after that and continued to drive very well. i parked it for a few days, and when i returned to it to take it out for a drive it began idling very very strangely. it would get up to say 40 or 50 and then if accelerating from there it would vibrate the entire car. it turns out i had a cylinder misfiring, simple enough just change the spark plugs and should be good, too bad you need a few specialty tools to do so. not a nig deal i bought the appropriate plugs and took it to a shop, at this point i had decided that i was going to try and sell her. i figured that for the year model and mileage it should bring close to what i paid for it, never been off road yet, sadly, non-smoker. the mechanic who was to change the plugs broke 3 of my plug wires, graciously he paid for their replacements and all i had to cover was time spent. the mechanic then tried to hoodwink me and say that i was not getting the necessary compression from my motor, the standard compression for the 4.6SE motor is 120 PSI per cylinder the mechanic said that i was getting 40PSI, which means that the motor wouldnt even fire up. Shady shady. At this point after looking fully at my options i have decided to give it one more chance because i truly wish to convert this road rover into a serious trail and off road machine. i am posting thhis story because i need a little guidance on what to do and maybe some advice from people who have had issues like mine. Primarily i only want to get rid of the 18" wheels that it came with and replace them with the stock 16" land rover wheels with aggressive tires, i want to add a brushguard-however i want the brushguard to also be the bumper, because i know that i will probably damage it, i mean i want to replace the stock D2 bumper witha brushguard bumper replacement with a plac underneath for a winch, because i know that i am going to get stuck often because i am new to off roading and want to learn to do it properly. unlike some whiskey tango redneck with his big lifted ford, lol. i also want to put a roof rack on top with places for fuel and water cans, bike racks and possibly spare wheels and tires. Essentially when i finish it, i want it to be suitably ready for a week or so long trip in mojave or the wilderness in general. im definitely fresh meat at this people so please be gentle

 

First off, check the front driveshaft before it blows up and shreds your t-case and tranny. Since you are planning on using it for off road use I would reccomend a Tom Woods. I don't have any experience with the "three amigos" so you will have to search the forum for that but there are a ton of threads on the subject... I say keep it and fix it up.

 

Did you goto a Land Rover/British cars specific mechanic? I would highly recommend that you not just goto any standard mechanic. If it were me, and I lacked the knowledge to do the work myself, I'd advertise for someone that is into Rovers that was nearby and have them come help you do the work for a negotiated fee. You'll spend far less than you would at the mechanics, and learn invaluable information about servicing the Rover yourself. If you drive a Rover in the US, and can't work on it yourself, you will almost certainly be purchasing the entire vehicle twice over before you're done with it. The good thing is that they are extremely easy vehicles to work on. It's the diagnosing of problems that's a real pain in the butt - but that's what wonderful forums like this are for - to help.

Also, since the parts prices for Rovers here in the US are nothing short of extortion - the next time you get a duty station in Europe, it would be advisable to take a jaunt over to jolly ole England and buy a few pints for the chap sitting next to ya. Having 'cousin Richard' send ya cheap rover parts for your birthday is a godsend . Or better yet, having 'cousin Betsy' send em is even more inviting! lol

 

Before you replace any more parts, ask on here what to recommend. Magnacor wires are the best, and Bosch +4 platinum plugs. Stock plugs are fine, but +4's are better. Magnacor 8MM wires stand up to the hot engine bay better than stock.

The compression issue sounds like a load to me as well. It is tough to replace the wires without removing the intake. There is a write up on here about doing it. The search works ok, but isn't the best. If you get stuck, just ask.

Research what you want to do before you get into it. A brush guard won't protect much. Sounds like you are looking towards an ARB bull bar to mount a winch, in which case you will have to upgrade you front springs to accomodate the extra weight. If you look under the general tech tab, there is a list of common Rover suppiers. Parts aren't too expensive, and they are readily available.

I say keep it. They are falling fast, with gas prices going up. You will hate/love it and never sell it.

 

I cant see straight...run on sentence.

 

Haha, i am out here stationed on Camp Pendleton and a week or so after a bought my Disco II my ABS/ DH/ and TC lights came on. Next an idler pulley blew and shredded my belt as well. Funny similar story at two very different coasts/ bases.

 

at least there were periods and commas.