600,000 and Counting !

[bruce p38]

Otto the 95 GEMS P38a

Celebrated his 600,000 Km just recently!!!

Second engine and trans and still going strong (touch wood paneling)

Good for me !

My they all reach such distances

Bruce

[p38arover]

Fantastic!

[poleonpom]

Wow, congratulations, this motivates me to keep going with mine

[daf11e]

That's fabulous mate....I'd be happy with half that!

[d2dave]

About 8 years ago at the Southern 80 ski race at Echuca I met a guy who was introduced to me as Otto. This bloke lived bayside Melb and he owned a 95 P38.

So is this you or a big coincidence?

[loanrangie]

When i saw the subject i was going to say thats not bad for 4 engines and 3 trans :p.

[TheTree]

:D:D:D:D:D

[finallyrangie]

Wow, that's a very impressive milestone, definitely going to keep going with mine now, you have given us all something to aim for!

[bruce p38]

d2dave I believe Otto is the previous owner who lived in Rosebud. I make it a point of naming cars and boats after the first owner for luck. Full disclosure he clocked up most of those k's and I inherited his legacy with this p38 His maintenance and mechanical work by Dave Manning at Rovacentre in Skye, says all the good things about owning these cars
Thanks for all the kind words

Bruce

[redandy3575]

Otto the 95 GEMS P38a

Celebrated his 600,000 Km just recently!!!

Second engine and trans and still going strong (touch wood paneling)

Good for me !

My they all reach such distances

Bruce

Oh Bruce, that doesn't count:D

Second engine and all.

If it was the original engine, i'd say thats a milestone.

[bruce p38]

Oh, now come on !!! Anyway it's a kilometerstone��

[Grumbles]

Wonderful! :D:D and on a GEMS too. :cool:

Just curious here -

- any idea how many kays the first engine and tranny lasted for?

- second time around around = brand new items or rebuilt?

Thanks for sharing.

[bruce p38]

Not sure about the engine ks but he was rebuilt with step sleeve liners
And the transmission was a rebuild as was the transfer case and diffs
Bruce p38

[bruce p38]

Hey ! What do us mean " and on a Gems too "
��

B p38

[TheTree]

Wonderful! :D:D and on a GEMS too. :cool:
Thanks for sharing.

I think he means that a Thor would not have got that far because they are so :censored: hard to work on :wasntme:

Steve

[Grumbles]

Hey ! What do us mean " and on a Gems too "
��

B p38

Just that it's a theme on here that when people ask about buying a P38 a common response is don't buy a GEMS but look for a Thor. As if they are a poisoned chalice.:D

[TheTree]

Just that it's a theme on here that when people ask about buying a P38 a common response is don't buy a GEMS but look for a Thor. As if they are a poisoned chalice.:D

I think it's probably partly rr.net and the "troublesome GEMS system" quote!

Steve

[d2dave]

As if they are a poisoned chalice.:D

They are aren't they? :)

[davidsonsm]

Unfair. The only time mine had given me trouble, is through my own fault. Messing about with things myself.

[d2dave]

You must be very lucky.

[Scouse]

The only people who think GEMS RRs are more problematic than Thor RRs are people who haven't owned a GEMS RR.

[TheTree]

There is a thread on here I started "bosch v gems" and it seems it's all pretty much a myth based on the owners in this forum anyway

Steve

[d2dave]

The only people who think GEMS RRs are more problematic than Thor RRs are people who haven't owned a GEMS RR.

Scott. I have never owned either but I was considering one a while ago and I lost count the amount of hours I researched them.

My only reason for considering one was due to the price, a $100,000+ car for $10K-. Now there is a good reason for this and we all know why.

Now being in the same profession as you but a bit older and now retired from it, long before I even became a LR/RR tragic it did not take me long to realize that Lucas products were ****.

Now with all the dramas that are related to the P38, if I was going to buy one, to me it became a no brainer when I found out that they changed from Lucas to Bosch during the P38's run.

And I am sure that LR had a reason for this, and my guess is that they were desperately trying to eradicate the P38 unreliability reputation.

My son (lrdan) recently came across an opportunity to get one at a good price and after much deliberation between him and me it was decided to buy it, based on the fact it was Bosch.

Prior to him purchasing this vehicle I was never a big fan of the P38, but have got to like them.

Now let me ask you this, as stupid as it might be.

This is a hypothetical. LR have two factories in the UK. Both are simultaneously producing P38's, one Bosch and the other Lucas.

You walk into a stealer to buy one and you have a choice as to which factory it comes from. If you have knowledge about the two, the answer is obvious.

As a side note. When Leyland back in the early 70"s came out with the P76 it was not long before it got the nickname P38, as it was only half a car.

I could not believe it when I found out that LR had called the the updated RR Classic a P38. Obviously they had not heard of the P76's nickname back in the UK.

[TheTree]

And I am sure that LR had a reason for this, and my guess is that they were desperately trying to eradicate the P38 unreliability reputation.
The reason is not desperation it is because BMW now owned LR



This is a hypothetical. LR have two factories in the UK. Both are simultaneously producing P38's, one Bosch and the other Lucas.

You walk into a stealer to buy one and you have a choice as to which factory it comes from. If you have knowledge about the two, the answer is obvious.
It depends upon whether you want the latest model of the RR or do you want a vehicle which can be repaired and worked on by a home mechanic and will run for years to come?

Personally I want the second option and the GEMS fits the bill much better, all jokes about the prince of darkness aside :wasntme:

Steve

PS: If you are worried about Lucas *** then be worried about the brakes and many other bits on your Bosch P38 :eek:

[Scouse]

The Bosch injection system (and that's all that's Bosch) has it's benefits in drivability but there's absolutely no improvement in reliability.

The problematic areas of the P38 (EAS & HEVAC) are the same throughout all models.






I don't really mind the reputation - the last GEMS P38 I bought was $1800, registered, on the road, drove it home.
My wife's P38 was only $4000 8 years ago (when it was 10yo).





I could not believe it when I found out that LR had called the the updated RR Classic a P38. Obviously they had not heard of the P76's nickname back in the UK.Did Land Rover actually call it a P38?
I worked with Land Rover from 1989 - 2013 & I had never heard of the name P38 until I joined this forum.
In dealer land, it's always been an LP Range Rover (it was New Range Rover for a while but that didn't last long).

[bruce p38]

Anyway,Gems Rule ,Otto Says
Bp38

[finallyrangie]

As far as I was aware land rover never called the second generation range rover a p38, but the development work for the vehicle was based in building p38a on the work site, so unofficially people called it the p38 project. If that's rubbish I am happy to be corrected.

Gems is easier to fix and bosch is a bit more reliable, take your choice, as has been said, neither are perfect

[TheTree]

As far as I was aware land rover never called the second generation range rover a p38, but the development work for the vehicle was based in building p38a on the work site, so unofficially people called it the p38 project. If that's rubbish I am happy to be corrected.


As far as I know that is how the P38A tag came about, it was also officially known as the MKII range rover

The P76 goes they were actually a pretty good car but it was terrible timing to launch a V8 when the oil shock hit in the 70's

Steve

[FANTOM P38]

FWIW guys ive had my 95 P38 for several years now and have had no problems engine/electronics wise with one exception - which most here know about.
Definitely not Land Rover or Lucas fault its just a non - drinker!:(
Me, I prefer scotch.:D
Having said that I know of a couple of "thor" enthusiasts that have had ongoing engine issues. Enough said!

[d2dave]

Gems is easier to fix and bosch is a bit more reliable, take your choice, as has been said, neither are perfect

Tell me more as my son has a Thor. Why is it harder to fix?

And TheTree, my dad bought a brand new top of the range P76 executive. It was the biggest piece of junk I have come across.

I wont go into details here as it would be hijacking the thread.

[TheTree]

Tell me more as my son has a Thor. Why is it harder to fix?


I suggest you read the GEMS V Thor thread but a few examples

1) accessing the coil packs to change plug leads

2) Accessing the engine temperature sender

3) Anything to to with the inlet manifolds and plenum.

I could go on but I think you get the idea

Add the fact that the GEMS system can be modified, tuned and chipped easily

And don't start me on the fuel delivery system with the pressure relief valve instead of a return line.

They do have 4 wheel traction control and side air bags which is an advantage.

My father had a P76 and it was a great car, but they soon got a bad reputation, a bit like LR really :wasntme:

Steve

[RR P38]

That was a TYPO its was meant to be $600,000 spent:eek:



Otto the 95 GEMS P38a

Celebrated his 600,000 Km just recently!!!

Second engine and trans and still going strong (touch wood paneling)

Good for me !

My they all reach such distances

Bruce

[bruce p38]

So those green numbers are a tab on money spent not ks travelled ?
B p38

[finallyrangie]

So those green numbers are a tab on money spent not ks travelled


Now it all makes sense, the empty bank account, all of it!

[d2dave]

Yep. The dial on the speedo is a dollar meter.:)

[bruce p38]

The GrapeVine recently informed me that this p38s previous owner crashed his L322 and bought a Pajero !!!!! So that's it then, there is no God ! ��

B p38