The oil pump thing is more or less a myth. The ones that had issues blew up practically as soon as they rolled off the lot. That said, all D2s should have their oil pumps replaced every 80k or every time you have the front cover off because they ALL had oil pump issues to an extent.

 

I was almost considering the red truck till I went and looked at it. After looking at it, that's a 2k truck max. The tires are small, the lift is the cheapest available (terrafirma, which gets the job done but their shocks are trash), the hood is mismatched, oxidation on the roof as you said, and a salvage title. If it weren't for the RR engine (mileage?) and recent HG job this would be an $900 truck and the ARB bumper and roof rack make up about $600 of that.

 

I like the look of the 03. Paint looks good, leather doesn't look terribly worn, price isn't exceptional but it isn't bad. Invest in a cheap OBD2 reader and test drive it for an hour with the AC on, in traffic if possible. Watch the engine temperature with the reader. Bluetooth ones are cheap on amazon, but they only work with android. Temps over 210 are bad ju ju. Temps over 203 means it needs a cooling system refresh. New coolant and either a genuine 180* thermostat or an inline thermostat. Temps below 203 and you're good to go.

Once that's good, pay an indie shop to give it a good once over. A GOOD once over. Assuming that goes well, get it. I paid $3800 for my 03 and it was near identical in condition. You should be able to get that one for a similar price.

 

Thank you Alex_M. And everyone on this forum. You guys are like family. I pulled a CarFax and saw a lot of documented service visits from Land Rover of Dallas, Land Rover of San Jose and finally Land Rover of Redwood City. The last dealer visit was at 119,000 miles. I think the 03 is a strong contender. I going armed with my ScanGuage 2, when I go test drive it.

God Bless, everyone on this forum. Thank you, so much for your help. I will report back on what I find from the test drive.

Mark

 

Question for you Alex, isn't the 2003 the one year that came with no CDL option on the transfer case? I know some 2002 didn't and in 2004 it started coming with a dealer option.

When I was looking for mine I tried to stay away from the 2003 because of this, do you know if it's all?

 

TF shocks haven't let me down yet.... Now OME Nitro's and their POS bushings hmmmmm indeed they have...

 

Not sure if your dead set on a D2 but someone local which I'm sure is in NCLR because I think I have wheeled with him before is selling his Range Rover. It looks like originally you were budgeted for spending a little up in the 5-6k range. This one you may be able to wheel and deal with and it's pretty decked out already for most anything you may want to do.

https://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/cto...190047773.html

 

P38's are dirt cheap compared to D2's right now!

 

That's correct as far as I know. I always forget if it's 02 and 03 along with part of 01 (I actually think it's this one, but could definitely be wrong), or if it's 03 and part of 02 as you said.

That being said, I'd still take a nice 03 that has been dealer serviced for the first 120k of its life as opposed to an 04 or a 99-01 that appears nice but has a questionable history. It's not terribly difficult to retrofit. Just takes time.

Also, I'm pretty attached to the 03-04 not only because of the facelift but also because of the 4.6 and the slightly beefier transmission.

 

Yeah that's what I remember reading. Half of 02 and all of 03. If I could be picky and buy all over again I would definitely go with an 04. Better looks, motor, CDL plus the improved calipers and master.