What to look for in 146,000 miles
 

I'm going to take a look at a '01 Disco SE. The asking price is $3500, and it has 146,000 miles. What are some of the major problems areas this vehicle should likely have seen by this point that I should check out. I'd like to know if these areas have been tended to yet or not. I'm looking for my first LR, so I need a bit of guidance. Thanks.

Headgaskets.
If they are not changed yet, then they probably need it.
Probably the check engine light is on - misfires.

at 146 i bet the headgaskets were done already. although $3500 seems high to me. I see 03/04's for that price. i would offer 2 grand

Ok, great. Thanks for the responses. Edmunds.com has it around $2650 or so in a private party sale if I put in the correct options. Nevertheless, quite a bit lower than $3500.

Other things to look at would be everything on my major service list, posted at the top of this section and, tired radiator and the need for a new one alone with a 180 degree t/stat and coolant pressure cap. Then there is internal engine wear and a good chance your time chain is stretched and the oil pump gear set should be replaced.

Wow, quite the list. Thanks. I wish I had a friend that knew more about this that I could drag along.

The air springs on the rear assuming it has SLS would be one. The stance of the truck should be level. If is sagging in the rear you're probable looking at $400 to replace the air springs.

Definitly check the front drive shaft to see if its been rebuilt with greasable U-joints(all 3 of them). Not that it's a major expense to rebuild it, but we warn all new members of the danger of ungreasable u-joints from the LR factory wearing out and breaking. Inturn sending the then wildly flailing drive shaft through your Transmission case. That would be expensive.

Thanks. Did all Discos come with SLS? If so, by the time they get to 100,000 miles, is it safe to assume that they have been, or should soon be, replaced (probably with coils)?

My bags failed at 136,000. So no, I wouldn't just assume that they have been replaced. Not all Discos came with SLS. Some came with just a regular Coil Spring Suspension, and some SLS equiped Discos have been retrofitted with the Coil Springs. Just depends on what route the previous owner went on the repair if they failed. The Arnott air springs are the product you'll want to replace them with. They have a limited lifetime warranty and are available at Advance Auto. The Advance Auto website had 20% odd total order coupon code listed on the home page yesterday. That'd make them a lot cheaper. Hopefully the bags in place are ok.

A less than $400 dollar repair and I got to keep my Self Leveling Suspension, which is VERY nice when pulling my 24 foot Wakeboard boat. HEAVY aint the word! haha

The bags seem to be the only weak link on the Self Leveling Suspension. Everything else seems to be pretty hardy. After you get those Arnott bags you'll have peace of mind. I would take this into consideration before switching to springs. The SLS is a very nice feature/option.