Hey all,
I am a female college student who decided to get rid of my saturn for a land rover...and now I am wondering if I did the right thing! I need to hear some positive things about Land Rovers, and although this may not be the best car for me, I really really want to love it because it is SO beautiful! If anyone has any tips and pointers in maintaining this car and giving it the TLC it deserves (which I know nothing about cars at all!) Please let me know! So far my mechanic has told me of numerous leaks, and a problem with a leak in the rear main seal...but do I need to fix these? (it's so expensive) Or is it more important to just make sure the fluids are full at all times? This car HAS to last untill I am done with college (2yrs) and has 114K, Any tips on how I can maintain this car would be great! Thanks!

 

Well all Rovers leak the Disco I's more than the others.
The good news is you just need to check the oil more often .
Try a high mileage oil it may slow down the leak.
Find a Rover club and join , they can help with the little stuff.
The Disco I parts are cheaper that Disco II parts and easier to work on.

 

How do I find a Rover Club?

 

Check www.solihullsociety.org/

 

I have owned a 2002, 2003, 2004 Discovery. My 2002 had rear main seal leaks. It was a big job. I find these cars are very high maintenance and will never own another one without the manufacturer warranty. I just owned a 99 Range Rover HSE for several months with no warranty and had to sell. It had blown head gaskets and other major problems. I agree they are great cars and I have owned many and they all have problems. My brand new LR3 already has suspension problems. I hope you have a lot of money because you are going to be in the shop quite often and Rovers are fairly expensive to fix. If you love it as much as I do you just have to put up with it.

 

I agree if one owns a rover deal with it I love my disco 1 alot to bad i'm not with her right now because i'm in Los Angeles. One thing i've learned about discos and rovers in general they are like women they are strong well bulit and just a joy to be around and look at but with that they need to be cared for but one can rest asure when you need her she won't let you down. Treat her right and she will last until death do apart.

 

Yes Rover's require a lot of upkeep but they are not impossibly expensive as some would have you believe. My fiance and I are both college students living in New York City and we just bought a 97 Disco. It has had a lot of problems but we have been able to find good affordable parts and great reliable mechanics to do the work when we can't do it ourselves. Do some research, make some phone calls and scour the internet for resources. For example, we were on a road trip to Denver for Christmas. Somewhere in the middle of Kansas we started having problems. We made it to Denver ok, but the Disco needed work to make it home. Instead of heading for the dealer (who was booked for weeks anyway) we made some phone calls and found a wonderful mechanic who loved rovers as much as the people on these forums. He took it in and had us up and running again later that evening. He explained everything thouroughly and was very honest and a damn riot to talk with. He's part of a network of Rover mechanics around the country and may be able to recommend someone for you. His name is Dennis Williams and his site is www.lindenengineering.com. Don't worry too much. It seems overwhelming but there's a lot of support and info out there for you.