Disco 2 purchasing help.....please

[Cairns888]

Hi All,

Firstly my name is Jim and I have had 2 Series III Landy's a while ago. Actually drove around Australia in my ex-army FFR one. I can still feel the corrugations!!!!.
I am in the market for a Disco 2.
Firstly I like the shape and they seem like a comfortable compromise for a off roader and a school taxi. Also not too big for small tracks. I have a 'new' 4 x 4 at the moment and I am selling that as it is too nice to get bogged and scratched.
I am thinking about 2002-2004 models. Also I am keen on the V8!!!!!
I know it is more fuel but the purchase price seems to be a lot less compared to a diesel. What about spares are the V8's cheaper?

I know there must be a heap of people asking the same thing but there is a lot of rumours about these cars re: electrical issue's so I though I would ask the people that actually own them and love them to see what I should look out for. I don't like rumours and prefer to hear it black and white.

Any info would be greatly appreciated.


I like the 2 below as they have low km's and V8's


2003 LAND ROVER DISCOVERY S 03MY SUV Private Cars For Sale in VIC - carsales.com.au (http://www.carsales.com.au/private/details/land-rover-discovery-2003-14419278?base=1216&vertical=Car&cr=21&page=2&eapi=2&__N=1216%201246%201247%201252%201282%204294965541% 204294965540&num=15&silo=Stock&sort=%7EOdometer)

2002 LAND ROVER DISCOVERY SE 03MY SUV Private Cars For Sale in QLD - carsales.com.au (http://www.carsales.com.au/private/details/land-rover-discovery-2002-14724052?base=1216&vertical=Car&cr=8&eapi=2&__N=1216%201246%201247%201252%201282%204294965541% 204294965540&num=15&silo=Stock&sort=%7EOdometer)

Thanks for taking the time to have a read.;)

Cheers

Jim

[Disco Muppet]

Tough call on those two.
Less Kms vs more toys.
Both facelift so both will have the CDL linkage.
I'm a Td5 guy through and through, but don't let that deter you (wait till OffTrack arrives for that :p )
AFAIK the diesel is easier to work on.
You'll certainly get more for your money if you're spending say 15k looking at V8s rather than Td5s.
HTH
Cheers
Muppet

[mattyg]

I'd get the navy one with the extra gear if it has a good service history and nothing too major wrong with it.

It's looks awesome. Dvd player for the kids, Got thousands of $ worth of offroad goodies and ACE (active cornering enhancement) - means it has hydraulic sway bars that make it corner very flat and then go slack off road for more articulation.

One thing to check with vehicles around those km's is if its had its major service or not. $1000ish dollars saved or lost right there.

[simonl8353]

Both look good, agree with DM, its a tough call.

The dark blue has sagging headliner, but the lighter one will not be far behind as these come unstuck at about 10-12 yrs old.

nothing in the k's to make a difference.

Curious to see where the winch cable is and what's under the seat covers on the dark one.

The dark one has the steps, lift, bullbar, which alone adds $3k of bling at a minimum.

if no history, allow $$ to change rad hoses, fan, radiator and waterpump, say $900. at 10yrs it just makes good sense.

And check the front prop has either been replaced or has had greasable uni's fitted.

Dark blue one

[Rok_Dr]

Also check the stickys on the d2 page and the good oil for info.

You certainly get a lot more for your money if you buy a V8 and often lower km as well.

My recommendation is to go for the update model as it was the last of the series and most niggly issues were sorted. As muppet points out they also have the centre diff lock as standard. WRT to V8 or Td5.... that is a personal decision and usually comes down to purchase price vs fuel economy.

Both the V8 and Td5 have their mechanical idiosyncrasies, but after almost a year in a Td5 after a owning a V8 soft dash classic for 7 years, I don't think there is a lot in it $ wise. Electrically there are no glaring issues. But I do recommend if you are mechanically inclined that you get a nanocom or hawk eye diagnostic tool as it will save you a lot of time and $.

Otherwise usual second hand car buying rules apply, ie good documented service history, pre purchase inspection and a good sleep before making a final offer.

So good hunting they are a good car and you'll get a lot of 4wd for not much money.

Cheers

Steve

[Datt]

Hi, I have td5 for sale that may be of interest. See here http://www.aulro.com/afvb/vehicles-sale/170119-2003-disco-2a-td5.html
I haven't really tried very hard to sell it but price is quite negotiable if its what you're after. Feel free to contact me if you want a no frills run down on it.

Matt

[Disco Muppet]

Hmm.
Quick breakdown.

Dark one has:
Deluxe winch bar
Winch
Steps
OME lift
LR tank
Dual battery
brake controller
exhaust + cats
DVD player
new head unit
Seat covers
Drawers
Cross bars
Snorkel
Steering + Diff guard.

Doing some very rough calcs that adds up to just under 10k worth of bling.
That's not bad at all.
It is an S model, i.e basic trim.
Also listed Drilled/grooved front discs, appears to have UHF and it's got the rear ladder. Has ACE, and if it's a 7 seater then AFAIK that means it's got SLS.

All in all, quite a well set up vehicle and you're getting alot for your 15k.
Assuming no history, going off what simon said, allow roughly 1k for preventative work and for arguments sake, $600 for a HD drive shaft that can be greased.
So without on-road costs, 17k ish.
Which is pretty good.

Light blue one gets you leather seats, 24k kms less.
You lose ACE, and if you want to put anything like the toys on the dark one on you're going to be getting quite a bit above 17k not including preventative work and on-road costs.

So it depends.
Do you want a sunday driver to build up as per your specs with lower KMs but requiring more money spent, or do you want to take something that has potentially been used and abused off road, and is already set up for the sake of turn the key and away you go.
I'd pick the dark one.
Good luck :)
Cheers
Muppet

[Cairns888]

man oh man. AWESOME stuff. I will re-read and chew through all that and post a reply.
No bad V8 slagging as yet which is good. I see it as a $ saving when you buy and it will take a fair few km's to make up the difference with fuel per 100km + you get POWER.

Cheers and keep them coming.

[Disco Muppet]

man oh man. AWESOME stuff. I will re-read and chew through all that and post a reply.
No bad V8 slagging as yet which is good. I see it as a $ saving when you buy and it will take a fair few km's to make up the difference with fuel per 100km + you get POWER.

Cheers and keep them coming.

Add a couple of K for LPG, talk to ozscott, pedro, roverlord, etc.
They'll tell you all about V8s and LPG for better bang for you buck, quite literally.

[northiam]

Or this
eBay Australia: Buy new & used fashion, electronics & home d (http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=151029603203&ssPageName=ADME:B:SS:AU:1120)

[OffTrack]

Add a couple of K for LPG, talk to ozscott, pedro, roverlord, etc.
They'll tell you all about V8s and LPG for better bang for you buck, quite literally.

Pedro hasn't been brave enough to share how many bucks from his latest bang.

[simonmelb]

Hi Jim,

The only other thing to consider is effective touring range. If you plan to do another big lap then you should think about the effective range of a v8 vs TD5. In our 9 month lap in our chipped td5 we never needed to carry extra fuel but definitely would have were we in a v8 I some more remote areas such as the Limmen NP. Remember in a well tuned td5 you can have power and economy, but you will have to look a bit harder to find one with all the goodies these V8s have.

This one would be worth a look if you could stretch your budget:

Lots of nice goodies and you never know what offer they would take :

http://www.carsales.com.au/private/details/LANDROVER-DISCOVERY-14684237


Happy searching.

Cheers
Simon

[Tombie]

man oh man. AWESOME stuff. I will re-read and chew through all that and post a reply.
No bad V8 slagging as yet which is good. I see it as a $ saving when you buy and it will take a fair few km's to make up the difference with fuel per 100km + you get POWER.

Cheers and keep them coming.

It takes about 1/2 to make up the difference ;)

As for power - when did they install that in the V8 models???? Lol

[OffTrack]

No bad V8 slagging as yet which is good.

The main instigators of slagging are V8 owners so that is hardly surprising.

[biggin]

The main instigators of slagging are V8 owners so that is hardly surprising.
You're not instigating another slanging match are you?
I hope Eevo isn't reading this.:p

Go the dark blue.
You would end up wanting to buy all that extra stuff anyway.:cool:

[OffTrack]

You're not instigating another slanging match are you?


No, just making an observation based on threads over the last 3-4 months.

[worane]

Yep me too. I would love the leather but all those goodies ,.... Wow! Can't knock them back. No brainer really.
Good luck with your choice and welcome back to the land of rovering.

[Rok_Dr]

Yep I'd go the vic one with aftermarket accessories. It also has ACE.

Qld one is not an SE. Stereo, rims, seats, trim etc says its a 7 seat S with an aftermarket leather upgrade.

Not enough difference in the Kms to worry about. Budget about $5-600 to re do head lining.

Cheers

Steve

[Eevo]

I hope Eevo isn't reading this.:p


if it aint a v8, give it to your mate.

edit: holy crap, 24.5k! i got my v8 for 12k-ish with lots of goodies. imagine how much 12.5k can buy