New to the Disco world, what have I bought?
 

Hello Everyone! This is my first post on this forum and basically looking for information on what I have purchased. I EBay'd a '96 Discovery with 106K miles. I picked it up in Philly and drove it home to Birmingham, AL (~1,000 miles and 19.5hrs). I honestly did not and still do not know much about Land Rovers. I got a good deal and went for it. With that being said, I need some input from the experts (you) on my Disco. And yes, I have used the search function!

1. Where do I get an owner's manual? It did not come with one, only an introduction video. How about a repair manual? A good technical repair manual, so I can do my own repairs.

2. I notice slack when I shift from P to R or D, etc. and get a nice clunk. I put the tranny and diff in neutral, set the parking brake, and checked the U-joints. The joints look fine, but I found the front driveshaft to have a good deal of slack in it. I have rebuilt many rearends and I suspect the ring gear and pinion are bad. Which brings up another question...

3. Does it have LSD in the front and rear? Would there be additional driveline slack felt (by hand) because of the LSD?

4. Where is the suggested place to buy parts? I live in Alabama and Land Rovers do not seem to be that popular. We have a dealer here in Birmingham, but they have already scared me with a quote of $750 for a full 30,000 mile service.

5. I have a two button remote and it doesn't work. I replaced the battery with no change. I found instructions on 'initializing' remotes, but it doesn't seem to work. Any thoughts?

6. If not LSD equipped, does it have TCS via ABS? How do I activate/deactivate?

7. Power radio antenna doesn't work. Common? I manually pulled the antenna into the up position and can now pick up stations fairly cleary. Not a big concern.

8. Both sunroofs worked fine until today. The front sunroof will now only pop up and will not fully open. I did not see a restriction, so I am curious if there is a problem with the switch.

9. Just how capable are the Disco's? The video showed a lot of extreme offroading, more than I will ever intend to experience. But there is a trail ride this weekend and I plan on attending. Any thoughts before I head out?

Thanks in advance for the information to be provided! As you can see, I don't know much about LR's, but feel free to ask me questions concerning:

A. Computers/technology
B. Machine Automation (GPS/TPS, Graders/Dozers/Pavers)
C. MegaSquirt EFI (successful MSnS 'Extra' on Datsun 280Z)
D. Getting your wife to agree to let you buy a car off of EBay :D

RE: New to the Disco world, what have I bought?
 

i just scored an owners manual for mine off of ebay.

i just bought what is supposed to be the entire service manual for series one discoveries off of ebay. if it is good i'll burn you a copy. just pm me.

the diffs front and rear are open, you can only lock the transfer case to split the power 50-50.

before you take it out give it a good service. i just replaced the battery and plugs on mine and clean up a bunch of stuff and the truck runs better than i thought it would.

RE: New to the Disco world, what have I bought?
 

I can't answer your technical questions but I can answer how great the Disco is offroad. Even a stock Disco can do an awful lot offroad. If you put mud tires on it you can do a little more. I would, however, get the service. LR service is notoriously expensive, however, if you keep them maintened well, they will last quite a long time.

How many miles are on your Disco? You mentioned 30k service. Is it that low?

You might also want to keep an eye out for oil leaks. LRs are known to have oil leaks. I've heard people say, "If it ain't leaking oil, it's out of oil." As long as you keep an eye out and make sure you have enough oil it's more of an annoyance than anything else.

Congrats on your purchase. Don't worry, there are plenty of smart people around here and other forums where you can get a TON of technical information about your new Disco.

The Rickster

RE: New to the Disco world, what have I bought?
 

Ok, 1st off, great purchase...as far as the sunroof go, yes, probably a switch problem, the series 1 did have some electrical issues and as far as the roof goes, it pretty much transcends to the series II also. Get as much as you can from Ebay but, also check out Atlantic British...www.roverparts.com as well. Also search the forum to see who has bought what from where. Yes, your disco will go pretty much anywhere, probably more than a J##P will, just go slow. Good advice also to drop the fluids and change the battery. As far as the remote goes, there are directions to do it however, it's hit and miss. Your best bet is to take it to the dealer. $750.00 seems a bit high for the 30k service...I'm due soon for the 60k service and I was quoted about 700.00 from my dealer and that's a pretty involved service. Do as much as you can yourself, learn to depend on the local Checker/Shucks/Autozone to pull codes when they pop up, they'll do it for free, I just learned a $450.00 lesson with the mass airflow sensor...(stupid stupid stupid me)...anyway, any other questions, I'll be glad to help find the answer.

On a standard Disco Series I, the only lock is the central lock operated by the Transfer Box Lever.


ETC (traction control) manages slip and directs torque in place of the diff lock. In this way, it technically accomplishes the same thing as center, front, and rear diff locks using the ABS brakes and a computer. The Disco I has no ETC system and needs to have the diff locked in order to be capable. The Disco does have advantages over, like a Jeep, in suspension travel, axle articulation, heavy duty components such as frames, axles, hubs, etc, water capabilities...on and on. Land Rovers and Range Rovers never have used front or rear lockers in the past because with axles locked together halfshafts, diffs, and driveshafts can all get destroyed, plus you can't steer, etc. Land Rover has always relied on ETC since 1992 for the Range Rover and 1999 for the Disco (II). ETC has the advantage of sending torque to the wheel with the most grip, but it won't break anything. However, it is a poor system since it reacts only when grip is lost in the first place. Also, with lots of continuous use, it can overheat and shuts down temporarily. Finally, being electronic, it can fail. Other manufacturers of exceptional 4x4's, do use the diff locks. The Mercedes-Benz G-Class and Unimog can lock all three diffs together. I mentioned the new Wrangler Rubicon, although how hard-core this machine is I don't know...The new Land Rover LR3 (Disco replacement) uses auto-locking center and rear diffs, and the Hummer (H1 & H2) use a combo of diff locks and traction control.

RE: New to the Disco world, what have I bought?
 

ok so you guys are all talking about the service stuff.. sorry to be a newb but, is this service something that can be done at home or does it HAVE to be at the dealer? Also, when I buy one im probably going to be looking for milage in the 80s or so, is that stupid or should I be looking lower?

RE: New to the Disco world, what have I bought?
 

Thanks for all of the information!

On the question of miles, it had 106,400 when I picked it up in Philly. Now has 107,800.

RE: New to the Disco world, what have I bought?
 

where you from bro? Im about 20 min from philly

RE: New to the Disco world, what have I bought?
 

Birmingham, AL :D I picked it up in Philly and drove it home.

RE: New to the Disco world, what have I bought?
 

Well, obviously, the lower the miles the better:) Howerver, 80k is nothing, these things will run forever if you take care of them. Yes, they are fickle machines, they all have some of the same quirks, then, they've got their own personality too. If you feel comfortable enough doing minor (or major) repairs, you won't have any problem. Believe me, these vehicles will go anywhere without hesitation. I've owned just about everything under the sun, including j**ps, f**ds, GMC, C***y and a T***ta...they all had problems, from the tranny and transfer case exploding to the tranny cooler line splitting and frying the tranny...with one oversized and overpriced American SUV, long block swap, front and rear diff/axle replacement...I feel more comfortable in my 2000 disco II than any other vehicle I've ever owend. A lot of it has to do with the people that own these vehicles, we're a close knit group. Don't be afraid to ask questions.

thx
allen

RE: New to the Disco world, what have I bought?
 

hah yea but higher the miles lower the price too :D but your right, i dont mind doing repairs, I have a RX7 keep in mind haha. I have to drop my tranny this weekend and fix a stupid pilot bearing that I spun at the track, I think that would be considered a major repair on my end, but Im also rebuilding my motor once she goes as well hah. Thanks for the help man, I LOVE the new range rovers in fact its my desktop and screen saver lol