Hi - my name is the same as my username and I'm a British Expat living and working in the Middle East (United Arab Emirates). Cars are my hobby - especially British cars - and I've had a string of MGs, Triumphs and Jaguars. I currently own a Jaguar -type and two Jeeps here and a 1969 MGC GT back in the UK, a car that I have owned for 25 years.

I've been offroading in Jeeps for the last few years and currently have a 1996 ZJ Grand Cherokee and a 1995 XJ Cherokee. My plan is to get rid of the XJ and the S-type and replace them with a Discovery2, which will share off-road duties with my ZJ.

At the moment I'm doing research on what to look for when buying a D2 and I'll update you when/if I get one.

 

Richard
Marhabbah keef halik?

Nice to read you are in some good off road country (UAE).
I lived in the ME for 12 years mostly in Iran/Iraq and Jordan.

All the ME is good Landrover country and I had two Series 3's which served me very well and shielded me from a "head on and tee bone" between Alex and Cairo.
My best trip by LR has to be from Baghdad to Amman, then up to Damascus (El Isham) then down to Dammam onwards to Port Said via Akabah (ferry). Then up to Alex then ex down to Juba in the Sudan. After all that lot make my way back to old Baghdad on the original bus road. No problems just a puncture near Jarash in Jordan.
T/V

 

It'll probably end in tears. 2003 Discovery 2 V8 with just under 200,000km on the clock. Full service history. Should be getting it monday

 

Purchased just 2 days ago, this is the closest that I am likely to get to a Rover (my first "love") out here - a 2003 Land Rover Discovery 2 V8 auto. Just under 200,000 km and (supposedly) a full dealer service history. Proper Rover V8, permanent 4WD, hi/low range transfer box, ACE, hill descent control, traction control, coil springs (not self-levelling airbags), 7 seats, climate control, decent stereo (Harmon Kardon I think) and black leather interior (ouch in summer!). It does, of course, come with a few "issues":

ACE actuator leaking (£55 plus postage from UK)
Interior light and cruise control not working(switch problems, I think)
New tyres needed soon - at least 2, probably 4
One rear door central locking actuator broken
Slightly damaged front bumper
Rear lower quarter panel trims damaged
front scuttle damaged
One external A pillar trim missing

Typical Land Rover, then - broken electrics, broken plastic trim, oil leak. Other than that it seems OK. Being a later model it doesn't have the "Marina Flap" door handles, which is a bit of a shame.

I'll try to get some better pictures in daylight but one thing that made me smile is that when I registered it the Traffic Office gave me a new plate which was in fact, the same number as my old Alfa 166 (which must have been de-registered sometime since I sold it - probably scrapped). Who says that they don't do re-cycling out here?

 

What is the covering over the air filter box and hose near the MAF? Some kind of heat shield for desert driving?