We are thinking of purchasing a 2004 disco for a daily drive that we can also have fun with but i have read that the disco is not reliable. What if anything can be done to improve the reliability?

 

keep oil in it

 

And coolant.

 

Maintenance, maintenance and more maintenance. Not just preventive but pro active as well..

Follow the check list for the major service do it and don't ever run the engine when hot or over heated, not even for a few minutes.

Invest in a ultragauge or a OBDII bluetooth scanner with the Torque app to monitor your coolant.

If you really want to improve reliability invest in a new engine with top hat liners. Other wise buy it cheap have fun with it and replace the engine.

They will run quite a long time if you take care of them. The owner of the Indy Rover shop here in town has a Disco I with the original engine with over 400K on the odometer. The lead mechanic has a Disco II with 375K on the odometer original engine.

 

I'm about to roll over to 140k miles and the only things that have broken on my vehicle are directly related to beating it off road.

It's not any less reliable than any of the jeeps I work on.

Finding one that was owned by an owner that knew what they were doing is big. Things like a proper front drive shaft and a non leaking coolant system are invaluable.

These aren't really vehicles you that you just drive. They need work and if you do a little here and there they are dependable and sturdy with an amazing history and culture behind them.

 

It's pretty simple. No kidding, this is what I would do if I bought a new Disco today.

Assuming the truck is in good running order:

1) replace/rebuild the front drive shaft
2) rebuild the coolant system - new hoses, thermo (use 180 degree, not stock), fan clutch. Also replace belt, idlers, and tensioner. Replace radiator and water pump only if necessary, though the radiator should probly be replaced if original. If you do replace the pump, go ahead and replace the oil pump, or at least the timing cover gasket and front seal. Don't use orange Dexcool, use a green coolant that is aluminum compatible.
3) replace crankshaft position sensor. It'll fail eventually, might as well start with a clean slate.

finally

4) new head gaskets - Sort of kidding, I wouldn't actually do this. It seems like the majority of the head gasket failures are slow water leaks, so at least you'd have a chance to get home and get it fixed. But it's something to bear in mind is that around 100k miles these things blow head gaskets, and it seems to be ~$2500 to get them replaced. If you do it yourself, it's way cheaper, but 12+ hours of work.

 

I would agree with the above, and you will become more familiar with your D2 than any vehicle you have ever owned if you have not been previously mechanical minded. I was attentive to my vehicles, but never got to know the things about my vehicles like I do my D2, and I feel more comfortable in repairing, planning, and travelling with the new knowledge and skills I have. Those skills also transfer to future vehicles and other vehicles in your family at some level.

You will want to have a good assortment of tools, standard & metric or begin to create one, which in my mind is a good thing, if you do not already have a good collection. The downloadable workshop manual in PDF format and this forum and others are invaluable, but you have to read and come to your own understanding. Everyone is not the expert they appear to be on the Internet With the knowledge I have gained I have expanded the repairs I am now willing to tackle and on those I still do not have time/space/skills to perform, I am still a better informed consumer when going to a mechanic. This is paramount in the Land Rover repair world.

 

Piggybacking on Rover_Hokie's post, one great thing about these trucks is they are surprisingly simple and easy to work on. So despite their maintenance issues, they are really a pleasure to own if you do your own maintenance.

If you don't work on cars and don't want to learn, seriously, you should buy a Toyota.

 

Thank you for the replies, it sounds like many of the people who have the most issues are lazy in their maintenance and treat it like a 1987 civic. I have owned a few turbo Volvos and this seems to be the same. A few well known quirks/repairs of common failures and proper maintenance and you will run for ever. Do you think this a fair assessment for a newbie

 

Every vehicle is going to fail at some point. But there are Land Rovers that have ridiculous numbers on there odometers still plugging away.


With out sounding rude, I think Land Rover sorta underestimated the average american car buyer, in thinking that preventive maintenance is more than gas in the tank and oil every 3000 miles.

These things need TLC they need to be maintained.