Potential new P38a owner

[disco gazza]

Hi all P38a owners,

Have a question that hopefully you good people on this section of Aulro can answer.
Have been looking at upgrading my current car to something a little bit more comfy(not that the D1 is uncomfortable) for my retirement years.

If I buy a P38a;
a) am thinking of the 4.0ltr not the 4.6ltr. Is that the better engine of the 2
b)Will be doing alot of the maintenance myself to save costs-except if something major happens.
c)Am I mad to get a P38 for my retirement years? :eek::angel:
d) Looking at getting a late model,depends on how much I can save over the next few months.
Have been reading alot of the problems that can inflict these particular models over the last few weeks and they all seem to go back to maitenance(or the lack there-of).

Thanks

cheers

[TheTree]

Hi Mate

Dive into the madness with the rest of us it's a great ride :p

Others here will have opinions on which engine is best, it is said that the later model Bosch controlled models are more reliable, but plenty of people drive the earlier models with n problems.

You will get plenty of help from this forum and rangerovers.net so working on it yourself is a viable option.

The only other advice I can offer is to look for one already on LPG and wait until the right one comes along !

Best of luck
Steve

[Robsrod 58]

Ditto all of the above.

I have trusted mine with a reputable Landy mech, (as I'm not a spring chicken anymore) have done for 2 years now with no real issue and I'm more confident of its reliability also its not that expensive in the long run.

One other thing the guys I go to both drive P38's so they are right across all their known issues and can diagnose quickly any fault and repair at reasonable cost, quicker than I can with my Hawkeye anyway!

Rob

[disco gazza]

Talking of LPG, I used to own an xy ute that I put gas on.After xx miles I had to get the valves done on it because they weren't the hardened ones.
Will that be the case if I get one already fitted with gas or are the valves strong enough.

Thanks

cheers

[Robsrod 58]

Talking of LPG, I used to own an xy ute that I put gas on.After xx miles I had to get the valves done on it because they weren't the hardened ones.
Will that be the case if I get one already fitted with gas or are the valves strong enough.

Thanks

cheers
Valves OK, I had gas injection installed on mine after I bought it and have had no probs after 20 months. Its smooth running and a smooth change over from petrol to gas

If you go for one just make sure it is gas injected and not the the old vaporiser type.

Rob

[RR P38]

If you like them ......GET IT.
There is a really nice looking 4.0 on Victoria rd just before Iron Cove bridge.
I prefer all the extra fruit that comes with the 4.6.
You are dead right on the maintenance, they are not cheap to run, but is any 4wd, if you are up for spanner work its not too costly so long as you have parts ready to go before something fails.
As far as Im concerned these engines are great so long as the major issue doesnt rear its head (liners).

[benji]

If you've got the choice definately go a 4.6 over a 4.0. In 93 Rover started grading the blocks by cylinder wall thickness. The blocks with walls 2.6-3mm (3mm being perfect) were designated as 4.6 blocks, whilst the 4.0 got the more un-even walled ones (2.2 -2.6mm if I recall correctly). So, if an engine happens to overheat, it won't take as long for a 4.0 to start having problems.

The Bosch engines seem to suffer less problems - maybe they had fixed the problem by then, and maybe the slight design changes in the Bosch cooling system helped too.

The valve seats and stems are made from a stelite metal (vanderlite? or is that the rings?) so they don't suffer valve seat recession or guide wear - if any or at all. The v8s are very good here. The GEMS vehicles (the ones that are pre-O2 sensors anyhow) will run quite happily on single point LPG - that's what mine is, and i'ts wonderfully simple to fix.

Your spot on with maintanance, that's where most of the problems arrise from - especially cooling and eas. Servicing is pretty much the same as the Disco, and the air suspension.

Don't be put off by the suspension and electrics - there's no black magic to them. People only diss these vehicles because they don't understand them. But they have proven to be, and are, very reliable if they are looked after.

Don't let eas problems put you off buying one; but if I was to buy one with a leaking heater core again, I'd take a second think.

[Keithy P38]

I'm with benji!

Spend the money on a well maintained 4.6, spend a bit more bringing it up to top notch and you'll be laughing.

[Robsrod 58]

Ditto benji!

The only point i would make about running on gas is that injection is more economical and able to tune better than single point. Other than that ditto-----

[disco gazza]

Thanks for all the info guys.
I was originally put off buying a P38a because of the problems that the public/car guides had with them,but after reading through this section as well as other sites(rr.net especially),I have come to the conclusion that if well maintained and serviced properly,they are a great car.
Time for some serious saving.:D

cheers

[Keithy P38]

I think there's only one sexier vehicle than a P38 - the Sport!

If you get the P38 you get the looks, charm, personality and capability all in one package!

[disco gazza]

Hi Keithy P38,

Hate the sports,didnt like it when it first came out,still dont like it. :censored:

To my way of thinking,if your going to get a Rangie,get the full fat version.:p:D

cheers

p.s. yet to see the new version lol

[PeterH]

If you don't mind getting your hands dirty every now and then, you can drive like a king for a very reasonable price!
I own a 2001 HSE 4.6 and I couldn't imagine driving anything else...except for maybe an L322 one day :)
Mine is a daily driver, I also love doing longer drives in style and comfort.
I don't do a lot of off roading, but it's nice to know it does have awesome capability in that department.
I have come across many of the common problems over the last three years, most of those I have been able to rectify myself, with the great advice from the very helpful people on this forum, and rangerovers.net.
A good, knowledgeable local parts supplier is a real bonus, as you will alwyas get the right part, but many forum members like to obtain parts from the UK or ebay without too much drama.
One thing I highly recommend is a faultmate extreme code reader, just plug it in under the passenger footwell and it will tell you what is going on, which is a big plus when trying to diagnose any issues and also uncovering any problems you may not be aware of.
Like anything, you learn as you go, you cant beat the satisfaction of fixing it yourself. It has come to the point now where I get nervous letting anyone else do anything to it!
When a mechanic does the work, they put in what ever parts they want to, when you do it, you can hand select which parts, oils etc yourself, plus you know it's been done properly and when.
Keep a good record of your maintenance so you know what was done and when.
If you live in the Melbourne area you are welcome to take mine for a drive to give you a comparison for any test drives you might do.
Good luck with it!
Cheers, Pete.

[benji]

So true Rob, I really would like injected lpg for the economy and probably more power.

The Sport.... sexy! Only about as much as a cane toad. The Evoque though, mmmmm (now ducks for cover).

[disco gazza]

The Evoque is fine for the inner city slicker,not for the outer burbs/ country folk.
Altho there's quite a few evoque's that live up the mountains. lol


cheers

[BathurstTom]

If it built to run on unleaded it should have hardened valve seats - designed not to have the lubrication of lead and should therefore be fine with Gas.


Tom.

[benji]

Mmm, not necessarily; take the nissan 4.5. They run happily on ulp, but put them on lpg and the heads have big problems.

[PaulP38a]

Having had an early 4.6 P38, and the later 4.0 and 4.6, I will take the 99+ Motronics 4.6 V8 over the others any day. My 4.6 is better on fuel than the 4.0 and has more useable power IMHO.

Definitely recommend getting a FaultMate or Nanocom for peace of mind to read/clear faults and tweak settings.

Rebuild the EAS Valve Block and compressor when you get it, then plan to rebuild them every year or two onwards as a maintenance item. Install an EAS Emergency Bypass kit or carry 4 schrader valves on 6mm push fittings in the glove box for further peace of mind.

[poleonpom]

I drive a '96 Gems 4.6. It is my daily driver.
In truth, I'm not as up to date with the maintenance as I should be, I don't yet have a Nanocom but know I should have one. I do change the oil regularly and check everything thoroughly.
I've got pretty good at diagnosing and fixing things as I go along including EAS, heating pipes, blend motors etc. As an amateur it's pretty straightforward.
The only time I have broken down is when I got a flat on the Westgate. RACV said to me that all Range Rovers were flaky, I asked him how many he had been out to and I was his first! Bad rep...and all I had was a flat.
I take my P38 out everywhere, just got back from the High Country and took her up into the hills offroad with no issue (Fry's Hut and SheepFlats).
If you like fiddling with cars, the P38 is great. An absolute must is the Eas bypass kit.
Enjoy.

[benji]

We we're up the high country at easter. Was very impressed with the engine braking. Not sure about the Bosch, but gems turns the fuel off on over run.

[redandy3575]

The Sports is a poor mans Range Rover on a Disco 3 chassis, not the real deal like the vogue. The Sports is also not as off road capable like the vogue or the disco for that matter.

With LPG, I've been advised by numerous Land Rover mechanics to avoid the older LPG systems altogether and to go with the injection type as a minimum.
Reason being, the cylinder heads will not tolerate the higher operating temperature for the long term, with warping and cracking being the end result. Don't quote me on this as I've never had or intend to get it, just what has been explained.

The Bosch motor is definetaly a better engine and to drive, but can be slightly more complex to fix due to the extra electronics involved I. e O2 sensors.

[wayneg]

The Sports is a poor mans Range Rover on a Disco 3 chassis, not the real deal like the vogue. The Sports is also not as off road capable like the vogue or the disco for that matter.


You have obviously not seen a sport being driven well off road. I thought the same as you until I was on an AULRO trip to Harvey last year. The guy who runs a company called The Green Oval Experience, Gordon, was there in his Red sport and he sailed over every obstacle where most had trouble. I was blown away with the way it performed

See WA trip reports for pics of him in action
Here`s his facebook page......https://www.facebook.com/GreenOvalExperience

[benji]

Someone will prove me wrong, but ive only ever heard of one valve being burnt out possibly due to lpg. And that was on a leaded head that didn't have the reccesed valve seats and bigger valves for ulp. That motor had over a million km onwhen it happened though. When it died it had had 1.4 million on it and ran on lpg for 28 years.
Within our family weve had 3.3million km on the lr v8s on the older style lpg systems, with no head issues other than the burnt valve.

I can't see how injected lpg would run cooler, its still 110 octane.

[redandy3575]

You have obviously not seen a sport being driven well off road. I thought the same as you until I was on an AULRO trip to Harvey last year. The guy who runs a company called The Green Oval Experience, Gordon, was there in his Red sport and he sailed over every obstacle where most had trouble. I was blown away with the way it performed

See WA trip reports for pics of him in action
Here`s his facebook page......https://www.facebook.com/GreenOvalExperience

I'd say the driver had a lot to do with it. He's obviously has skills that the others didn't, which can make all the difference. I'm sure the sport would be fine, though you'd have to get rid of the ultra low profile rims and settle for a higher profile ( if it'll fit ). What I'm saying is the Vogue is still the original Range Rover with the split tailgate and taller traveling suspension. But you pay for it!!