What to look for when buying a Land Rover Discovery
#62
To get best mpg and best performance and least problems run the high dollar stuff. From the owner's manual:
Expect mpg around 12 - 15.
Can it run on regular? Certainly. Just will have more problems in the long run. A Rover is not "cheap to keep" .
USE ONLY UNLEADED FUEL
Octane requirements
Always use PREMIUM UNLEADED GASOLINE
with a CLC or AKI octane rating of 90 or 92
(95 or 96 RON).Octane requirements
Always use PREMIUM UNLEADED GASOLINE
with a CLC or AKI octane rating of 90 or 92
Expect mpg around 12 - 15.
Can it run on regular? Certainly. Just will have more problems in the long run. A Rover is not "cheap to keep" .
#64
Well I was looking to buy a DII to replace or sit next to my CJ7 but man after reading this it sounds like these things are money pits. Granted the Jeep is no better but from what I have read are these even worth it?
I am a tree shade mechanic to say the least so would a DII be out of my leauge to fix up and work on. The u-joint/gasket issues seem like an easy fix, but ECU problems sound like a real headache and can they be prevented or is that something that is just a matter of time??
I am a tree shade mechanic to say the least so would a DII be out of my leauge to fix up and work on. The u-joint/gasket issues seem like an easy fix, but ECU problems sound like a real headache and can they be prevented or is that something that is just a matter of time??
#65
Well I was looking to buy a DII to replace or sit next to my CJ7 but man after reading this it sounds like these things are money pits. Granted the Jeep is no better but from what I have read are these even worth it?
I am a tree shade mechanic to say the least so would a DII be out of my leauge to fix up and work on. The u-joint/gasket issues seem like an easy fix, but ECU problems sound like a real headache and can they be prevented or is that something that is just a matter of time??
I am a tree shade mechanic to say the least so would a DII be out of my leauge to fix up and work on. The u-joint/gasket issues seem like an easy fix, but ECU problems sound like a real headache and can they be prevented or is that something that is just a matter of time??
The big difference is in cost of parts when you do have to fix something. But prices aren't too terrible and are brought down as the larger parts suppliers grow. Bputah.com, roverparts.com, rovahfarm.com and many others.
You don't find as many LRs in the pick and pull/you wrench it type of junkyards. But there's a couple guys on these forums that specialize in parting out old LRs.
If the dealership and computers scare you, I haven't had any issues and I think that is actually the majority of owners. You Only hear about the problems on here: nobody starts a thread "everything worked fine today". There are independent LR shops that can work on the vehicles too. I've only had to go to the dealer to get a part that nobody carried online.
Like any vehicle, if maintained properly you'll have years of use. If one lets it go to ****, then expect costly problems.
Plus you've got all of us here!
#66
Looking at 03 Disco
Hey guys,
I'm looking to become part of the Disco family and i'm looking for an opinion on one i recent looked at
It's a 03 Land Rover Discovery SE with 91k for 6500.
Besides a few cosmetic dings it seems to be in pretty good shape and drive well. Didn't hear anything out of the ordinary.
-I did notice that i could not ship into 4lo lock or 4hi lo, but shifting into 4lo wasn't an issue. do you think that would be an easy fix?
-Also, the front drive shaft didn't have the grease-able ujoints but seemed good info to on drive til i could have it replaced.
-I found some service records and the head gasket already had to be replaced once... at 13k. I didn't see anything else, but i doubt all the records were there.
-There was also a tad bit of oil. nothing on the pavement just two drops on the pan. I drove it around for a bit and let it sit and talked to the guy and there was only a single drop on the pavement after 30 min. need a new gasket maybe or just normal Disco 91k behavior?
-I didn't see any milk on the oil cap so hopefully nothing is mixing.
-One thing that did spook me a bit was the steering fluid bubbling in the reservoir. That doesn't seem normal.
So with all that... Think it's an iffy buy or do you think it would be worth it?
I'm looking to become part of the Disco family and i'm looking for an opinion on one i recent looked at
It's a 03 Land Rover Discovery SE with 91k for 6500.
Besides a few cosmetic dings it seems to be in pretty good shape and drive well. Didn't hear anything out of the ordinary.
-I did notice that i could not ship into 4lo lock or 4hi lo, but shifting into 4lo wasn't an issue. do you think that would be an easy fix?
-Also, the front drive shaft didn't have the grease-able ujoints but seemed good info to on drive til i could have it replaced.
-I found some service records and the head gasket already had to be replaced once... at 13k. I didn't see anything else, but i doubt all the records were there.
-There was also a tad bit of oil. nothing on the pavement just two drops on the pan. I drove it around for a bit and let it sit and talked to the guy and there was only a single drop on the pavement after 30 min. need a new gasket maybe or just normal Disco 91k behavior?
-I didn't see any milk on the oil cap so hopefully nothing is mixing.
-One thing that did spook me a bit was the steering fluid bubbling in the reservoir. That doesn't seem normal.
So with all that... Think it's an iffy buy or do you think it would be worth it?
#67
Hey guys,
I'm looking to become part of the Disco family and i'm looking for an opinion on one i recent looked at
It's a 03 Land Rover Discovery SE with 91k for 6500.
Besides a few cosmetic dings it seems to be in pretty good shape and drive well. Didn't hear anything out of the ordinary.
-I did notice that i could not ship into 4lo lock or 4hi lo, but shifting into 4lo wasn't an issue. do you think that would be an easy fix?
-Also, the front drive shaft didn't have the grease-able ujoints but seemed good info to on drive til i could have it replaced.
-I found some service records and the head gasket already had to be replaced once... at 13k. I didn't see anything else, but i doubt all the records were there.
-There was also a tad bit of oil. nothing on the pavement just two drops on the pan. I drove it around for a bit and let it sit and talked to the guy and there was only a single drop on the pavement after 30 min. need a new gasket maybe or just normal Disco 91k behavior?
-I didn't see any milk on the oil cap so hopefully nothing is mixing.
-One thing that did spook me a bit was the steering fluid bubbling in the reservoir. That doesn't seem normal.
So with all that... Think it's an iffy buy or do you think it would be worth it?
I'm looking to become part of the Disco family and i'm looking for an opinion on one i recent looked at
It's a 03 Land Rover Discovery SE with 91k for 6500.
Besides a few cosmetic dings it seems to be in pretty good shape and drive well. Didn't hear anything out of the ordinary.
-I did notice that i could not ship into 4lo lock or 4hi lo, but shifting into 4lo wasn't an issue. do you think that would be an easy fix?
-Also, the front drive shaft didn't have the grease-able ujoints but seemed good info to on drive til i could have it replaced.
-I found some service records and the head gasket already had to be replaced once... at 13k. I didn't see anything else, but i doubt all the records were there.
-There was also a tad bit of oil. nothing on the pavement just two drops on the pan. I drove it around for a bit and let it sit and talked to the guy and there was only a single drop on the pavement after 30 min. need a new gasket maybe or just normal Disco 91k behavior?
-I didn't see any milk on the oil cap so hopefully nothing is mixing.
-One thing that did spook me a bit was the steering fluid bubbling in the reservoir. That doesn't seem normal.
So with all that... Think it's an iffy buy or do you think it would be worth it?
Regarding maintenance, I just replaced my engine (04 DII) and the guy helping me was amazed at how much more complicated the DII was from the DI. Whether you're an ASE rover technician or tree-shade mechanic, having a DI will make the difference between an easy job and a hard one, or a hard one and an impossible one. I love my DII, but I don't know that you really sacrifice that much getting a good condition DI. If you are set on a DII, the one's without SAI, SLS and ACE are of course less complex and offer more room in the engine bay to work.
Last edited by Dan7; 05-03-2013 at 12:35 PM.
#70
I have purchased a 1995 Discovery 1 with about 150k miles. Do these vehicles require alot to keep them on the road? I have already had to replace the feul pump, brakes, rotors (not yet complete) And now there seems to be a spark problem. What is a "Tight budget"?
This forum is amazingly helpful thank you all
In love with a 1995 Discovery 1 with about 150k miles that may hate me