First and foremost, thank you everyone who posts useful stuff on this forum...seems to be alot less BS and smack-talking than usual which I appreciate.

That said, I got my first Disco (actually first SUV ever) for our family vehicle last month. Reasons for choosing?
*Expecting our first kid
*Can't drive my boxster year round
*Have two great danes and this is the ONLY truck out there with good clearance in the back (yes, im eccentric lol)
*My wife liked the quirky nature of the truck (yes, she's just as wierd as me)

After checking out 10 trucks in a week, we finally decided on this particular no-frills S '04 with 121k miles for $5k. Mind you, I knew NOTHING about english cars (im a porsche/bmw guy) and nothing about trucks really, and this was really really cheap for a truck (moreso for a '04 disco) so it was a gamble....but I was up for a challenge.
As usual, I started scouting out forums, found you guys, and went to town doing everything I could when my wife would let me 'run errands' for a few hours (in our house, thats going to my local mechanic or hiding under a vehicle in the garage)

What have I done in the first 60 days:

*Replaced T-Stat
*Oil Change (Syn Mobil 1 5-40)
*Front/rear diff (Syn 75-90 Royal Purple)
*Trans Flush (Mobil 1 Syn...made a HUGE difference)
*Brake Fluid Flush (Mobil Syn)
*Coolant Flush
*Front Pads/Rotors
*Got a nice spare cover from Brit Atlantic
*Somewhat over-the top wood trim kit (applied some pieces, didnt want to be too tacky haha)
*New valve/wheel caps
*Polished headlamps and inconspicously drilled passenger side (fixed the condensation problem 100%)
*Repaired a tear in the vinyl
*Kingsbourne wires and plugs (I NEVER want to do this again!!)

More to come!! Thanks guys for all the help

 

Well done, except for the 5w40 part...

I'm one of those who got a brand new engine at 40k (under warantee) due to the oil pump issues in 03's.... The dealer broke my engine in with 5w40 synthetic... which I questioned but continued with as they insisted 5 weight oil was what the factory called for... the camshaft lunched in 45k miles. now I use Rotella 15w40.

Were I you, with 121k on the clock, I'd switch to the Rotella.

Do a search on this site, your truck will thank you!

 

rebuild the front drive shaft with greaseable u joints before it explodes. i use rotella in my truck, synth oil just costs too much and doesnt help with all the great knocks and pings.

 

X2 all of the above order a new shaft or rebuild yours asap.

 

Thanks for the feedback guys; agreed on the 5w-40...wanted to give it a try for starters because rotella was out of stock when i went to the closest store otherwise that's what I normally use.

FYI the 5w40 has caused some drips, the stuff is just too thin for this truck

 

Take out the synthetic.
May cause more harm than good.
I ran Synthetic in my Discovery I for years.
I don't think it was smart.
It dirties up the synthetic very fast.

Suspended particles in the oil are either:

Oil not working and metal is in the oil

or

Oil is cleaning out dirt and crud.

In my case I could not tell which one.

At 138,000 miles when I did the head gaskets on the D1 -
I would say - the engine had a good amount of crud in it.
Mostly Mobil 1 synthetic.
I use Rotella 10w-40 now - period.
And Wix filters.

The local indy rover place changes the oil for $25 and that's fine with me.

 

Cool! Welcome to the club. There are plenty of smartasses and ******** here too myself included haha but there is plenty of good info mixed in usually haha.

As far as what you need to know about English cars is this: They are as simple to fix and as unreliable as American cars, but with the same part cost and limited availabiility as German That said, they are wierd and quirky and probably one of the best and most fun cars you can get your hands on... IF AND ONLY IF you keep up with the maintence!

Last time I check Cincinatti is a pretty cold, windy winter area no? These cars are perfect for that. They are heavy and underpowered, but drive it like you know that and youll go places most people cant ever hope too. Make sure you take care of your cooling system, get some decent tires, make sure your battery and wiring is in check, and you should be fine.