Hey guys. After spending a couple of months scouring the internet, I finally decided to join here as the information seemed very reliable.

I'm 22 and am moving out to Portland, OR for Grad School. I've always loved Rovers, but have never been in a position to purchase one. In fact, I'm still not, but as a graduation present, my folks are going to pony up $30k for a car of my choice. I'm looking for a LR that can take me over most terrain and snow. I'm not into "serious" off-roading like bolder crawls, etc. I WOULD like to be able to get up Mt. Hood year round. Obviously, I'll probably have to buy used, so I have a few questions.

1) Is Certified Pre-Owned the way to go? There seems to be a premium charged on those vehicles.

2) I would like whichever model I settle on to be able to carry two kayaks. Is this even possible?

3) My first choice is the LR2. There are more of these low-mileage in my price range. I've seen that roof mounts are difficult because of the open roof design.

4) Does the LR3 really get as bad gas mileage as indicated? (I'm coming from a Prius, so I'm prepared to take a massive hit, obviously)

5) Are the LR3's as unreliable as people say? I know that any car takes work and money to operate, but some people seem to be having tons of problems with these.

I appreciate any and all of your help. I can't wait to finally own a Rover. Thank you.

 

I would seriously reconsider spending 30 Grand on any used Land Rover.The primary reason I say that is that you are still going to suffer a LOT of depreciation on that vehicle during your first two to three years of ownership PLUS a pretty sizable maintenance cost every time it needs anything.

You would be better off either buying an older Discovery that has already depreciated significantly more and still have the majority of that 30 Grand left over to do maintenace and upgrades.and still have about half of the 30 grand left after all that.

For 30 grand you get a really nice Series or Defender that would possibly appreciate in value.

Or buy a brand new Kia Sportage and still have 15 grand left.

 

I stumbled across this posting and thought it would be a good one for you to look into, it's in the price range you quoted and definitely a very desirable Rover.

http://seattle.craigslist.org/see/ctd/1957324914.html

Take a look at it and give it some serious consideration. I think it would outdo any LR2/3 made.

 

Did you find one yet?

 

Go with the LR2 they seem to be bit more reliable and holding their value.