Potential Rover owner here.

I am looking for a rig that can be 1) daily driver (85 miles/day, nearly all highway) 2) Moab-quality wheeler. Not yet ready personally for the Moab Rim level trails, but getting closer all the time. I get out only a couple of times a year (unfortunately).

I found a 1996 Disco with 129K miles.

Here is summary from ad of its mods.
MODIFICATIONS INCLUDE: OLD MAN EMU LIFT, REAR FOX SHOCKS, REAR ARB AIR LOCKER, ROVER TYME MODS, ROCK SLIDERS, CUSTOM BUMPERS, PIAA LIGHTS, ROOF RACK, NEAR NEW 33 INCH BFG ALL TERRAIN T/A'S ON BEAD LOCKED WHEELS, OPTIMA BATTERY

So, questions I have are:

Is a 12 year old Rover a decent option for long drive daily driver without looking at expensive and frequent repair bill?

Do the mods it has sound like will hold-up? I am assuming stock axles and transfer case.

Some non-Rover owners I have talk to don't recommend that age Disco due to reliablity issues and feel that axles, transfer case up-grades are a must. If either of those are really the case, than obviously not the rig I need.

Thoughts, please.

 

I like my rover but I would have to say this one probably isn't for you. 85 miles a day and you'll be filling up almost once a week with 91 octane gas. That's expensive! I have also heard to stay away from those model years as well. Rovers require a close eye on maintenance or you could be looking at expensive repairs. At 85 gal/day with an average of 16 mpgs highway you'll be filling up weekly. I couldn't afford that. Maybe you can.

 

He'd be filling up twice a week.
With those tires, roof rack and the extra weight of the mods you will be lucky to get 16mpg.
The DI IS a very reliable truck, my '97 has 174,000 miles on it and I would drive it around the world without a second thought.
If you do buy the Rover, then buy a Civic for the daily driver. Drive the Rover every Friday to treat yourself and to keep it working well.

 

do you like motorcycles? buyin the rover could be good justification to your SO that you need a bike... unless carrying things with you are a part of your commute... then there really isnt any way to convince anyone that that would be a good idea...
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Small **** live

 

that's exactly what i was gonna say when i read the original post.

bikes are a blast, and they're inexpensive to run... not to mention that they get insanely good gas mileage compared to cars.

you can even get a trailer-hitch thing that would let you carry it on the back of your Disco...




"16 mpg highway" is if you have no roof rack and drive 55 miles per hour. I have a roof rack on mine and i get about 12-14 highway if i'm going 70-75mph.

 

i want a moped... when i lived in hawaii i found out they buy the old rental ones and fix them up... the day that i was passed on the highway by a guy on a moped doin a wheelie at 80 miles an hour was the day i decided i had to have one... and those things get like a million miles to a gallon...
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CuteHelga

 

I love my Rovers too, but for long commuting I drive my Audi. I agree with Spike I would take it anywhere around the world where roads were not my only mode of travel.

 

I agree with the others and I love my Rover too. But it is not my first choice for a daily driver, especially a long commute like that. I got 17.3 mpg on my last road trip in the Rover but that was with a 20 mph tail wind. My full size Dodge with the hemi actually gets better fuel mileage than my Rover. And the roof rack and extra weight of the add-ons are going to hurt fuel mileage even more. Get the Rover as a weekend toy and find a better commuter vehicle.

 

then again, it is fun to drive the rover... that's one advantage of having your car be a hobby- it makes even commuting fun. so yeah, you'll pay more to drive but you'll be enjoying yourself more.

it would take a lot of driving, even at 15mpg, to make up for buying a beater sedan or something just to commute it.

then AGAIN... it's nice to have a second vehicle in case you're doing a project that involves the truck being laid-up for a bit. for those of us without great working situations; even simple jobs take a lot longer then they would at a Specialist's shop...





ok that was kind of a ramble

 

I currently commute in my 2003 Mitsubishi Montero Sport. Gets 16-17 mpg, so it sounds like the Rover would be a little more expensive in fuel, esp the jump to premium over regular.

When gas was over $4/gallon this summer the plan was to buy a commuter. Makes it a little harder to justify a payment at $1.79.

So I guess my biggest issue is the reliablity. Some folks obviously love them, others scream "stay away".

What are the main things I should be looking at in one this age to make sure I am not buying a problem?