Finally got rid of the thing. I'll say with complete honesty, the Discovery II may be one of the coolest cars on the road, and surely is hands down the most fun vehicle I've ever driven, but jesus christ, they are objectively terrible in terms of reliability. I nursed that bitch with ALL of the fluid changes, proactive repairs, and so much more (like $8k down the drain in 2 years) and it still was constant check engines, odd noises, and leaks.

I WILL SAY, the only time it EVER left me stranded was when I ran it out of gas for thinking I could make a round trip between my home and the ski slopes on one tank of gas --- I was about three blocks from my street driving back when it ran out.

Further down the road I fully plan to buy an identical DII and either swap out the engine with a 350 or have it re-sleeved right off the bat with an inline tstat setup, but for now I bid goodbye to the Disco family.


Unfortunately I still have the fever though--- What do you guys think about a 1990 RRC with 150k miles and no rust? I'm torn between a RRC or a Jeep Wagoneer......

 

Once you go LR, you can't go back....
I would go with the RRC. I've seen some go over 300k miles, no joke...

 

I have a 225K D2 with zero CEL's no 3 Amigo's all electronics work properly and the only issue it has is slightly faded paint on the roof and a crack in the drivers seat......

I've spent much more $$$$ keeping an 05 Jeep Wrangler on the road vs any of my LR's. Not all LR's are perfect and it sounds like yours fell into that category sadly. Worse vehicle I've ever owned was a brand new 01 Nissan Xterra which I finally had enough after I basically lived at the crappy Nissan dealership for 72K...

If you think diagnosing a D2 is fun wait for the true Lucas "Prince of Darkness" electronics and the 14CUX engine control system with it's little code read out if it's even still there. I did have a 94 RRC that was close to flawless, but it would throw a silly engine idle speed fault that I never truly solved. The 3.9L or 4.2L are just as good of motor's as any NAS 87-04 LR.

I went from LR's to Jeeps for a bit, and I was truly upset at all the hype surrounding Jeep's and being reliable and well built... More like unreliable and cheaply made. I am back with 2 LR's and after some small tweaking to get them where I wanted them I just get to drive them and enjoy them. I also like driving the Kalahari D2 knowing it's 1 of 150 ever made in Yellow vs the 1,000,000 cookie cutter Jeep's running around that aren't special at all.

 

I've had a jeep, too and it wasn't as special as an owner as it was as an observer. I hated it. And it had a 350 in it!

I think the worst part of a Disco II is the engine. Second worst part is the electronics, but in fairness I thought the electronics were great for the first ten years and only lost faith when I realized how they could stand in the way of an engine swap (to a different engine) and performance enhancing mods. Maybe I don't have one of the good ones, either.

I remember when the dealer told me that the rover engine was like a diesel because is had gobs of torque but not as much horsepower. Hmm. I don't think that statement stands up to much scrutiny, except that it is true that it doesn't have much horsepower. It doesn't last like a diesel. It doesn't get the mileage of a diesel. It isn't as easy to fix as a diesel. A diesel Volkswagen jetta has almost as much torque.

Still, I'm at sticking with it as a point of pride (that I can keep it somewhat running despite its many challenges) and I'm always sorry to see anyone pack it in. OP, I sympathize and am sad to see you go, but I won't be joining you just yet. I agree with the previous poster... Get an RRC. They don't call them classics for nothing...

 

RRC's are great, but I love the D1/D2 looks better myseld. If u want a RRC type setup there is always the 94/95 D1 with the 3.9L. RRC guts & Discovery Body Style. RRC's I see are over-priced and normally beat up. However you can find cheap early D1's in great shape.

Sorry to see a LR owner go, but take care & maybe we'll see ya again in the future.

 

RRC huh? And you think your Discovery had issues. Take it from a guy that actually owned a classic era Range Rover, THEY ARE COMPLETE AND TOTAL NIGHTMARES!!! I still lust after the body style but there is no way I would ever purchase another one. NO WAY. The electronics and wiring are THE WORST ON THE PLANET!!! I remember driving down the street and smelling an electrical fire and looked down and smoke was pouring out of every seam of the dash, the cabin quickly filled with smoke and I had to open the door while driving to get it all out. I am a rover guy that can turn a wrench so it was comical at the time but damn that truck was from hell.

 

What year was it, Frank? I like the 93 and 94s because of the old school dash.

 

????

I've owned three. I currently own one. By far the most reliable and easiest to fix of the entire Land Rover line up. Aside from the defender. Simple as simple gets. And nearly every thing is field serviceable. You'll never see a 14CUX system lock you out. Or need a resync to BCM. Dead simple and reliable. Although I can't speak for the 95's. Not my cup of tea.

 

It was an 89. Total nightmare.

 

You need to buy a lottery ticket IMMEDIATELY.