Thread: Felix the Disco - update

Thanks guys for your help when buying my 2003 Disco.

A bit of an update:

5 days after handing over the cash (back in Nov 2012) I went for a drive from Sydney to Brisbane (work-related). I was pleasantly surprised I could go from SYD to BNE on one tank. Nice. My 8yo daughter (legally can sit in the front now) didn't want too many stops so made the quite quickly... Maccas or Disco? She chose Disco. That's my girl
It was raining most of the way, I sat at speed limit and the Disco just cruised along. Gotta love cruise control and ACE
So far I got one new tyre before the trip so I have 4 BFG ATs and old spare. Next tyre rotation I'll get another BFG AT so the set will be perfect (the Disco came with 3 BFG ATs and 2 Michelins - it was a bargaining chip).

Before Christmas we drove around town with windows down - probably for the first time - and the Missus decided that the Disco sounds like a purring cat when the foot came off the loud pedal: prrrr prrrr prrrr before settling down to the usual diesel idling rattle... so they (the Missus and the daughter) named the Disco Felix as in the cat. Now I am on a quest to fine either a set of decals or a spare wheel cover featuring Felix the Cat...

As you can probably guess I love that car...

About two weeks ago I had a job in the Hunter Valley - doing what I like doing: archaeology. But that involved some off-road work (for an electricity company). As the missus is expecting our 2nd daughter I was 'instructed' to take our car so I can be independent. Needless to say I spent a whole day 4WDing in my Disco and doing archaeological excavations... outdoors in the the sun in MY DISCO and getting paid for all that. How good is that?
The Disco performed flawlessly. Low-range on steep hills covered in grass, creek (shallow) crossings, some mud... only thing I was concerned about is driving across a slope - I simply wasn't sure how the Disco handles side slopes: I know what the old Sii can do but the Disco is a different animal...
The diesel / auto combo is great for that sort of work. I had highway tyre pressures but that didn't matter... I do have tyre pressure gauge / deflator and compressor but I just couldn't be bothered. We also had 2 other cars and a truck on the job so getting stuck was not really a concern.

Now to find more tracks to explore in the "family" car. I am just wondering how old can a baby be before she goes off-road... hm...

BTW did I mention that I love that car

Around town I follow LR's manual and keep it in 3rd. Seems to work well in traffic. If I want a little bit more responsiveness (or to play around) I switch to S mode. The combination of 3 and S seems to work well and combined with ACE driving is fun again...

Attached picture: another day in the office

Originally Posted by Disco Muppet

Nice to hear you're enjoying it, I knew you'd like the D2
Didn't know LR advised 3rd for town, I'll have to remember that

This is from the handbook in auto box section:

... 3 (1st, 2nd and 3rd gears) Automatic gear changing is limited to first, second and third gears only. In high range, use this position in congested traffic conditions and for town driving.

Someone else on this forum also mentioned that the Disco has a better response and doesn't 'look' for gears as much as in D when around town. I found that around the burbs in 3 Felix just stays on 50km/h without much brakes whilst in D I need to watch the speed a bit more.