I am looking to possibly buy a 03 Discovery in Houston, Tx
it has the 4.4 V8, and 97,000 miles. looks clean. lots of Land rover records and recent thermostat and u joint changed. its clean not off roaded at all.
Here is the million dollar question, Is owning a Land Rover really as bad as everyone says? i hear all kinds of talk and bad reports and if i paid $65K and had even 1 issue uner 100K miles i would be pissed too. but i am buying a 10 yr old 4x4 for $5K i don't expect a perfect run. I have driven 4x4 trucks all my life so gas mileage at 12 mpg is not new to me.
i intend on driving everyday. but lots of hunting and pulling boats on weekend.
i am a capable mechanic. i cna change alternators, brakes, rotors and do minor repairs. i dont' think i am goon enough to rebuild an engine or pull the tranny and etc.
i dont' care if a light stays on, or radio quits, or small idiotic issues.
but i do live over 100 miles from a Land Rover dealership, but im sure i can find parts on internet anyways

is this a good decision? or are there serious issues to be aware of?

 

should be a 4.6 v8, have the head gaskets been done yet?

 

100 miles is not far enough away from a Land Rover Dealership.

Make sure you stay AT LEAST that far away!!

 

Check the VIN # and refer to the 2003 oil pump failures, if it falls in between the lines, and they haven't done it, It'd be a 8 hour job (if done by yourself) and roughly 400$ (+/-) in parts. Ask if it has ever over heated, after an overheated engine the cylinder liners slip, or if the head gasket was ever replaced. Discovery II's are a lot of work but fun and very capable trucks.

 

Their was a post from this weekend that discusses the service part of discoverys

Discovery II - Land Rover Forums - Land Rover Enthusiast Forum

With that said they drive great, they can go a lot of places, they are cheap to buy, they have great information available on them to do repairs. i would buy another.

Now with that said, watch the driveshafts, watch the coolant level, watch the oil level and do general maintance and you will be fine. OH climb a freaking mountain with it

 

All those stories about 2003's with oil pump/front cover dowel rod issues are old news.

Those problems have sussed themselves out by now. Long ago. Done story. Stop it.

I continue my vigilance in dispelling the repetition of outdated advice on the 03's. Please everyone stop repeating this nonsense.

The ONLY reason to not buy an 03 at this date is if you want the CDL which was not an option that year.

 

as the old saying goes...."everyone's got a belly button, therefore everyone's got an opinion."


To say that you will be trouble free of woes and misery is misleading, but to also say that you will have to replace the engine due to slipped liner or some other nasty event, is also misleading. It sounds as though you are capable of managing a fair amount of repairs on your own which is a good thing. And by the sounds of it, it appears as though the LR you are scouting has been maintained. It's a tough decision and hard to say. Think it through, which I'm sure you will do. Not that it matter's much, but here's my surgery list after 10 months of ownership.


-new t-stat
-new front prop
-rear sunroof rails replacement
-new steering pump
-new ignition switch
-new plugs
-new front bearing, right wheel


My disco is an '03 with the vin number in the "bad oil pump" zone. I'm the 2nd owner. 1st owner has all service records from LR dealer. I mean everything done by the book from the dealer - fluids dropped at scheduled intervals, oil changes, plugs replaced, -- I mean everything and I still got some issues upon possession. Got it in Feb. with 69k miles for $3,900. So, not looking for anyone to whip out a violin and start playing the "whinny" songs because of my surgery luist, but I still had to pop probably $2K to $3K in parts and labor in the ten months of ownership. Most of the service performed by the LR dealer. But to keep things in perspective, I also managed to purchase an extended warranty on the LR from CNA. Set me back about $4k in doing this, but I can take the LR to the dealer and have them take care of most issues for the mere $200 deductible. So, though I have spent $4k for the warranty, I've almost recouped this one time warranty fee in just these ten months of ownership.


I still have a nasty engine tick which probably is a slipped liner and "mucho dinero" to fix. But I'll live it. The '03 disco is my everyday commute car, with 84k miles. I tow it behind my Motorhome. So, no off-roading stuff.


In sum, still your call. You're bound to have issues and just be prepared for them - wallet and tolerance wise. Plus, the members here on the forum are your wing-men. We've got you covered and your "six." Good luck!

 

Wow, so all cars with 100 K have issues. All Cars with Aluminum Heads, have to get head gaskets redone at some point in time. All cars need hubs, brakes, trannys and have weird quarks.

So what really are the Disco issues:

Like most vechicles with Aluminum heads the head gasket fails far quicker than those that don't. So you are warned that at some point in time this may be an issue.

Coolant loss, because these vechiles are 10 years plus old now and because of the head gaskets, and plastic radiator the coolant system may fail at some point in time. Also, all water pumps fail at some point. So be proactive and service the parts in this system.

Finally the Drive Line, Land Rover went cheap on their drive shafts. So, the orginal drive shaft at some point in time may fail. If it fails it could cause a lot of damage. Thus, be proactive and fix it first.

All vechiles have their quarks. My Chevy Avlanche (Best Build Truck I've Every Owned), still need window regulators, hubs, tranny work, catlaytic converters, o2 sensors and so forth.

So, if I were going to buy another Discovery and I would. Ask the questions.

- Has the drive shafts been service? If not it's 600 for both of them
- What has been done to the coolant system? $300 hoses, $300 pump
- Have the Head Gaskets been done?
- Does it hold it's fluids, coolant and oil?
- Does it make a loud tick?

If it doesn't you have a good truck to start with. Service her proactively and your good to 2000k.

Pricing is up to you. But I would check craigslist first also go to NADA Guides. See what they say. This is the line for a 2003 Discovery with 97K.

2003 Land Rover Discovery Utility 4D SE 4WD Prices, Values & Discovery Utility 4D SE 4WD Price Specs | NADAguides

 

i like this
- computers and the idiotic placement of coil packs, these things are pretty straight forward. at this point, any problem you have has already been well documented by others, having the same problem.
for the million dollar question.........no! you are always going to hear more about the bad than the good. People do not tend to rant and rave about the good.

 

Hmmm, I don't think so. My pristine Jan '04 model munched it's oil pump one year ago (46k miles).