Which RR would you buy ?

[martinozcmax]

Hi,

I am thinking of swapping my dear old 93 Disco 200 Tdi for a Range Rover.

The Rangies I have been looking at in my budget are 2002 to 2005 Vogue diesel models. The newer ones have more k's on them.

I have had Discovery's for 15 years and know the models quite well however I'm not very up to spec on the Rangies.

I know at some stage they went to the BMW diesel engine (TDV6?) and I'm sure all the knowledgeable people on here can give me some pointers which I'd very much appreciate.

So the question is what would you buy if you had the choice and what parameters would you use to make the decision ?


Thanks for any help you can give me.

Regards


Martin

[PaulP38a]

Hi Martin

A few questions that will assist us in responding to your question:

What do you want to do with the Rangie?
Is it purely a town car for cruising and shopping?
Towing?
Dirt road driving?
Off-road bush bashing, sand, mud and water?

How much maintenance are you prepared to do yourself, or are you happy to let a workshop/dealer do it all for you?

What aftermarket accessories are important to you?

A side issue: 2005+ L322 RR are CAN-Bus systems, meaning different diagnostics equipment is required from earlier models. 2002-2004 L322 RR models use the same bus as RR P38a, Disco 2 and FL1's.

If I had my choice... a 2007+ RRS Supercharged V8 (black of course) for city and highway driving, and a somewhat modified 99-02 RR P38a V8 for everything else... I'm half way there ;)

Cheers, Paul.

[HangOver]

apparently the 2002 is the one to go for but i can't remember why, I think maybe it was something to do with the traction control or something like that, someone will put me right.

[PaulP38a]

Can the ABS/TC be disabled perhaps? Now that would be a nice feature when you are off-road at times. I've been in a couple of hairy situations where I really didn't want the TC/ABS to help me stop in its own good time :o

[martinozcmax]

Hi Martin

A few questions that will assist us in responding to your question:

What do you want to do with the Rangie?
Is it purely a town car for cruising and shopping? Mainly
Towing? Towing a fibreglass 17ft boat
Dirt road driving? Some
Off-road bush bashing, sand, mud and water? None

How much maintenance are you prepared to do yourself, or are you happy to let a workshop/dealer do it all for you? Happy to do regular servicing work myself

What aftermarket accessories are important to you? Not important

A side issue: 2005+ L322 RR are CAN-Bus systems, meaning different diagnostics equipment is required from earlier models. 2002-2004 L322 RR models use the same bus as RR P38a, Disco 2 and FL1's. Understood thanks

If I had my choice... a 2007+ RRS Supercharged V8 (black of course) for city and highway driving, and a somewhat modified 99-02 RR P38a V8 for everything else... I'm half way there ;)

Cheers, Paul.

Thanks Paul

[PaulP38a]

My gut tells me that a 2003 L322 Vogue (3.0L BMW Diesel) would be the go...

My heart tells me a 2002 P38a HSE 4.6L V8 would be more fun to drive, cheaper for parts and easier to work on yourself.

I'm sure that some of our L322-driving buddies here will have more to add on the virtues of the 2003-2005 models.

In either case, all RR's from P38a on have Electronic Air Suspension as standard. It will be your best friend when carrying a heavy load, or your nemesis if you don't look after it.

You already have a Land Rover, so you know these things can be a jealous and finicky mistress ;)

Lots of useful info on different model Rangies over at Range Rovers (http://rangerovers.net)

Cheers
Paul.

[p38arover]

Did the front diff/tailashift recall apply to all early L322 models. If so, make sure it's been done or can be done.

See Front Differential Recall (Range Rover Mk III) (http://www.rangerovers.net/repairdetails/drivetrain/diffrecall.html)

[martinozcmax]

Did the front diff/tailashift recall apply to all early L322 models. If so, make sure it's been done or can be done.

See Front Differential Recall (Range Rover Mk III) (http://www.rangerovers.net/repairdetails/drivetrain/diffrecall.html)

Thanks Ron, I wasn't aware of that I'll check it out.



Martin

[Guillocuda]

The only Range Rover/Land Rover I'd own is one the same year and set up as mine...1986 3.5i V8 4-speed auto 4-door 'low-line'. :)

[jsp]

I am starting to think about replacing my 95 P38 and are in the same boat. I look about and some of the 02/03 L322's might be in the budget in 3-4 months time.

The questions I have are the pro's and cons of the diesel versus the petrol. I have had LPG and have no issues with an LPG converted V8, and have looked and found the BMW 4.4 seems to run fine on LPG.

I guess it comes down to I have never owned a diesel and really have no idea of the maintenance from a home mechanic point of view, or even if it can be done on the L322's.

My P38 has just been diagnosed with worn rings, and I have a feeling if I go in after them I will end up replacing the whole car if I just keep adding the little worn out bits to the list, and its not in the best body/interior condition either.

The only reason I have been able to keep my P38 for 9 years now is because I have done most jobs myself, heater cores, air springs, new becm, water pump, radiators, valve block etc and I am unsure how this compares to running a L322. I am hoping people will say a L322 will be less troublesome than an early P38.

My main uses are day to day city driving, with reasonable amounts of highway country driving, with 3 or 4 long trips (2000k's plus) a year. I am not a big off roader, but once in a blue moon I try and drive over things I shouldn't.

Diesel versus petrol for me isn't about going faster or launch speed at the lights, but about being able to afford to drive 500/600k's a week on my wage and keep the car on the road.

I have been looking at things like the cost of insurance/tires/rego etc, and are just in the early stages of thought about it all.

I am wondering if there is meant to soon be a whole new shape range rover, which if I wait 9-12 months will then cause all the L322's to drop another price bracket?

I would LOVE another P38, but I have lost trust in the 4.6 and that's something in my mind I wish to move on from. To many people rebuild them, too many people cook them, too many people have early worn out motors (like mine).

just rantings

[martinozcmax]

I have been servicing my diesel disco with no trouble for 3 years. Just the normal stuff, oil and filter changes, fluids and brakes. Possibly even easier than the V8 Disco I serviced for ten years as there is no electrics (sparks, distributor etc). So I wouldn't let the servicing put you off. I'm looking to import from Japan, miles cheaper and seems pretty easy at least to me anyway. They have Disco's deefers and RR's. IO'd use an escrow service and a local importer who also does the vicroads clearance and rego. Around 2k all up. Still tossing up what to get though.

[rangie85]

I've somehow got myself into the situation where I have one of each, 85 Classic, 95 P38 and 2002 L322.

The 3.5 V8 twin carb Classic is great for chucking around off road and not really having too worry too much about. The RR purist in me thinks this one is the best, it's the real deal. However, it's loud, slow and comparably appalling fuel consumption compared to the others.

The P38 for me is the most stylish, before it became too Range Rooney / Toorak Tractor. It has the most comfortable ride of the three and in will still tow well. If these three cars were produced now, brand new, the P38 would be my choice. However, the early versions suffer from being new enough to be electronic this / electronic that which is great in the luxury stakes, but let's face it, it's a Range Rover, and things do go wrong, and the older the cars get, the more often the quibbles are. As it is with my 95, it's at the stage where its new enough to be expensive to fix when I can't do it myself (which is more frequently than most I imagine, I'm not particularly mechanically minded), but old enough to go wrong reasonably frequently.

This is what led me to the L322. The early models aren't vulgar like the newer ones in my opinion, I'm not a fan of the new supercharged series grill and such. The 4.4 l v8 Beemer engine is great, but would benefit from an engine balance (it's on my list to do).

My advice based on your requirements would be a 2002 / 2003 Vogue, with the Diesel, you will be able to tow easily, get better fuel economy, and still have a decent offroad vehicle for when the mood takes you. However to my mind a RR isn't a proper Rangie without a V8 under the hood, head or heart it's up to you. However, if you're buying with your head, get a Landcruiser, but that's not why we're here :)

yours, IMHO

[Rim]

JSP,

The L322 diesel is a dream.. I live in the city and do about 1000km / week. Avg fuel is <10L / 100Km. It has all the power in the world; all the comfort to sit in a traffic jam; all the ability to go scrub when needed.

Rim
__________
L322 '06 Range Rover Vogue TD6

[tebone]

HI there,
the l322 02-05 diesel you can't get in a vogue, only the 4.4 petrol but some diesels are optioned upwards. Diesel is cheaper to run fuel economy wise but the purchase price is alot higher to get a low km car. Another way to look at it is if you buy a 4.4 vogue for $6000 less than a diesel but with all the added extra's. If you allow an extra 50ltr/1000km travelled and X it buy $1.5 per litre = $75 per 1000 kms more than a diesel

$6000/$75=80 x1000kms=80,000kms

It would take 80,000kms travelled to be square with a diesel.

Just a thought

regards Paul

[Gazz]

I have been servicing my diesel disco with no trouble for 3 years. Just the normal stuff, oil and filter changes, fluids and brakes. Possibly even easier than the V8 Disco I serviced for ten years as there is no electrics (sparks, distributor etc). So I wouldn't let the servicing put you off. I'm looking to import from Japan, miles cheaper and seems pretty easy at least to me anyway. They have Disco's deefers and RR's. IO'd use an escrow service and a local importer who also does the vicroads clearance and rego. Around 2k all up. Still tossing up what to get though.

Martin

do you have any prices, I ahve been following a Facebook site called Ozzie car rip offs and I was unaware that you could import direct from Japan

Gazz

[martinozcmax]

Martin

do you have any prices, I ahve been following a Facebook site called Ozzie car rip offs and I was unaware that you could import direct from Japan

Gazz

Gazz,

Unfortunately when push came to shove I discovered you can't import unless it is an exotic sports car not already sold here. :mad:

Martin