A Tough Decision

[davman]

Hello All. Your input please.
I find myself in two minds about which D4 to buy. The SE or the HSE. I can hear you already saying yeah tough decision, but I am caught in two minds.

1/ Do I buy a SE optioned with Sat Nav, Rear Camera, IPOD connection.
OR
2/A base HSE which has all of those options fitted as standard.

The price difference is about $7,000.

Now the additional features in the HSE don't really matter to me, I am probably more thinking about resale value of a SE versus the HSE.

Penny for all of your thoughts.
Cheers

[HangOver]

HSE will always go for more, even when its old and clapped out, if you in the market for a RR/Disco I'd be looking for the cheapest HSE I could.

But I guess it depends on lots of variables, in general thought you pay more for HSE.

[Disco4SE]

Hi davman, the SE is going to be more saleable as it is in that affordable price range. You will get more for the HSE but it will be out of reach for most. Trying to justify the extra spend is always hard.

[discomaniac]

Hi davman, I just went through the same decision making process. If you are worried about resale value, just remember, generally no matter what additions you have on your SE you will only get a SE price for it in the end. Even if the Nav, Audio and Camera addition add up to over $6000 originally.

Drove a mates HSE a few times, once you use the HSE "extras", they are nice to have. Rear air wasn't big on my list, but it cools the cabin quicker. Memory Seats work well when you have different regular drivers. Front Parking sensors may just save a scrape some time. Mood Lighting at night time in the doors sold me on the HSE, just feels different.

So if the budget can stretch that for go the HSE. If not, the SE is great too.

Just my thoughts.
Discomaniac

[trobbo]

I think it depends primarily on how long you plan to keep the vehicle and what condition it is when it comes time to sell. The longer you own it the closer the resale value of the two will become.

The D3 market will give you a guide as to how quickly the prices come together. I recently purchased a second hand 5yo d3 hse for about the same price as an se. Sure there are hse's of the same age that people are trying to sell for more than an se but they are either sitting on the market for a long time or are in dealers and over priced.

for example when I was shopping a set a budget of 50K and diesel. That put me in the 05 or 06 market. there are 8 cars still on car sales that I can remember were there when I started seriously looking in Jan this year. Only two of those are SE's (although I was concentrating more on hse's cause prices were similiar). The car I ended up buying was a 1 owner and was being replaced by a 5.0 ltr rrs (important to me cause it meant the guy hadn't got the irrits with it or land rovers). It cost the guy 105K new. I bought it for 41K. That's a lot of money to lose, but probably normal depreciation for 5 years.

The things these stopping cars from selling is:
lack of service history
90,000+ km
lack of some sort of warranty
many but not all are v8's

A couple of the v8's that I saw that did sell more quickly had low km's and were immaculate. Of course price helps as well.

So in the D3, the market is looking for the the tdv6 with full service history
and less than 90,000 km's. After that people start to decide between cars based on options. Options may get you a few extra dollars in resale, but generally I consider those options as being the difference between someone buying my car or someone else's, cause after all you CAN live without them.

In the D4 second hand market I am sure it will be similiar. The biggest question will be if people favour the 2.7 for the ability to fit 17 inch rims or the 3.0 for pure enjoyment.
Let's face it, most people who spend 50+K on a car wont take them seriously off road but live in hope of travelling some time. For these people I think the 3.0 will be the engine of choice.

[Disco4SE]

Davman, sounds like the others have passed on some good advise.
If you do go the SE, make sure that you get rear air. I didn't have it in the D3 but have in the D4. Makes a huge difference and costs very little as an extra when ordering the vehicle

[DiscoWeb]

Davman,

Really Tough choice, your life must be suck right about now ;)

However, I do not think resale should be a determining factor in your decision making.

IMHO a used HSE might sell slightly faster and at a premium to a used SE in similar condition and with similar KM's but it will be no were near enought to close the the $7,000 premium.

So you can either;

Buy the HSE if you want all the fruit;

or buy the SE, add the extra bits you want (MAKE SURE THAT INCLUDES THE E-DIFF) and spend the $7,000 on fun bits, good wine or both.

I would and did go the D3 TDV6 SE and I am still enjoying the nice wine and not missing having to manually move the seats etc.

Hope this helps.

Regards,

George

[davman]

Thanks guys your opionions are awesome. Keep em coming please.
As I will buying the car through by business, I don't tend to keep cars for too long. I always say "This is a keeper" but tend to change them over every 18 months or so. So going on my past experience, I won't be keeping it too long.
Cheers

[trobbo]

well that makes the decision easy then, it is a hse with active rear diff. It is white and has the 3.0 ltr... and you can sell it cheap to me when your finished :D

[davman]

DID IT.
Ordered a HSE Today. Delivery in October.
Thanks for all your advise and help.
Heres hoping it is reliable and can tow my large van without any problems.
Cheers everyone.

[Disco4SE]

Congrats davman. You won't be dissapointed.
Don't forget to send some pics

[trobbo]

cool, I'm sure I'll enjoy... I mean you'll enjoy your car when it arrives. congrats :thumbsup:

[discomaniac]

Congrats, good decision. Now the wait, just like me. :cool:
Give you some time to "Shop" for those accessories.

discomaniac

[Watpub]

DID IT.
Ordered a HSE Today. Delivery in October.
Thanks for all your advise and help.
Heres hoping it is reliable and can tow my large van without any problems.
Cheers everyone.

Hi Davman,

Congratulations - placing the order is a big step. I placed mine in December and it arrives next month (can't wait!). Seeing you're in Melbourne though I thought I'd word you up so you don't fall into the same trap I did.

The dealer I went through is hopeless - couldn't organise a p-up in a brewery. Make sure you see and sign off on the order THEY place on LandRover in the UK just to make sure everything you want has been included. I gave the dealer a purchase order with all of the options I wanted and they forgot to order my car with the sunroof - it was there in black and white on my purchase order. I only found out when I got the build details after it had been built!:mad:

[davman]

Watpub, that must of hurt. What did the dealer do to fix it - anything?
Nice to know which dealer you ended up getting it from?
Cheers

[GeorgeK]

Congrats Davman on your decision to by the HSE. I went through precisely the same decision exercise last Jan. However for the opposite reasons I arrived at the same conclusion. My HSE has arrived in Sydney and is slated to be in my hands in about 10 days. Yes I am excited.
I agonised over the decision long and hard. I compared makes and models of Japanese as well as some European marques etc. My wife and I are retiring at the end of this year and I will have some cash in my skyrocket. The reason I chose the D4 HSE is that I intend to use the vehicle as a caravan tug towing a new bigger caravan and doing a very slow lap of Oz. As well we will be travelling some long distance dirt road tracks e.g The Tanami and Oodnadatta Track and the like. My wife and I intend to live in the van for the next 3 - 4 years stopping only to do some part-time work when I get bored. When I compared what extras I needed e.g towing aids etc the price difference between the SE and the HSE worked out to be about $3K. I then thought bugger it why not go for it. The only extra I ordered for the HSE is the surround camera system. When I saw the photo of the 'fish-finder' during a river crossing I said this has to be the toy for me! Seriously though I wanted the surround camera for the towing assist functions.
I am the opposite to you in that I intend to keep the D4 for many years as I probably won't be able to afford to replace it. I will be on a military pension from Jan 2011 and therefore the car I buy this year needs to be reliable and long lasting etc. I wanted a vehicle with comfort and style that will age with dignity (not unlike me :)) and one that is as 'future proof' as can be. I could not go past the D4 HSE. The resale value does not mean much in my situation.
I currently drive a 2004 Paj that I bought new and towing a light caravan and I must say the combination has worked well for me. The vehicle has done over 162,000 kms without missing a beat and it drives really well. I still like it very much but it simply does not have the towing capacity I need for the new van.
So out with the old Paj and in with the new D4. I am sure I have made the correct choice but only time will tell me about its longevity.
I hope you enjoy your new HSE as much as I hope to enjoy mine.
Cheers
George

[Disco4SE]

Hi GeorgeK, good decision given your use etc. Hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoy mine
Cheers, Craig

[Watpub]

Congrats Davman on your decision to by the HSE. I went through precisely the same decision exercise last Jan. However for the opposite reasons I arrived at the same conclusion. My HSE has arrived in Sydney and is slated to be in my hands in about 10 days. Yes I am excited...


Hi George, I agree with Disco4SE - great choice for what you want to do. That's basically what I want to do with mine - except I'll probably be using the camera to watch out for crocs!

I ordered a similar vehicle (HSE, camera, etc) in December. Is your delivery date a firm one or are you working off the original contract? I suspect both our vehicles were probably built around the same time (April 28 for mine - gonna have birthday parties in the future:D) and therefore will be shipped on the same vessel. I've not heard boo from my dealer but this has been their form since I ordered the car. If yours is a firm date I'll give my dealer a rev up...

Regards,

Ron

[GeorgeK]

Hi Ron,

I'm not a happy camper. I just wrote a reply and a computer gremlin struck and I lost it all. Oh well I'll try again!

The short answer to your question is that my information is a firm date. I'm sorry that your dealer is not keeping you informed. My dealer is very professional and keeps me informed by email of every development in the vehicle's creation. The story for my Disco is that it landed in Sydney on 14 May. I attended my dealer on Thursday 19 May and he confirmed, and I saw it for myself on his computer, that transport had been booked presumably moving it from a holding yard and he expects into the dealership Monday or Tuesday 24 or 25 May. Allowing for the installation of a caravan brake controller, the creation of a separate cable and anderson plug for power to the van's batteries and yet another cable for the video feed from the Disco to the van's rear camera I expect to take delivery of the vehicle late during the week commencing 31 May.

I don't really care how long they take s long as they get it right. I am patient and besides I still have the Paj I spoke about earlier.

It appears that you have ordered your Disco at least a month before me so I would certainly give your dealer a rev up! My guys are very good and keep me informed all the way.

I hope your vehicle delivery goes smoothly and perhaps we can swap Disco-caravanning-travel stories later.

Cheers

George

[Watpub]

Thanks George,

Don't forget to post a few pics of your new arrival. I'll give me dealer another rev up to see what they say.

And yep, I'd be glad to share the caravanning stories - might even have to catch up for an ale on the road somewheres.

Regards, Ron