Thread: which is officially best disco model than?

The Hair at Bondi Beach was the best Disco, whoo whoo
































































That's the way ah ha i like it ah ha ah ha

Baz.

The "official" word from you know who is:

"D3A: brilliant riposte to the overburdened 4x4 market by Land Rover. Seven seats and air suspension make the Discovery one of the best on the market. In fact, THE best on the market"

"It's great on road and fantastic off it, while the voluptuous interior means it's brilliant for moving families. From what was a substandard car, it's come close to eclipsing the Range Rover. Not so much the ultimate SUV as the ultimate car, full stop."

For second hand: More "oficial opinion"
"What to look for
The original Land Rover Discovery is expensive to service, and consequently far too many of them have been neglected. Early cars had a poor reputation for reliability but the second generation put much of that to rest. A full service history is a must, however, and check for the usual signs of heavy off-roading.

Used Prices
Although the Series 2's residuals are strong, they have started to soften due to the Disco 3. Known for their wobbly build quality, check everything carefully, and go for diesel. Plus the seven seat version is popular, which will help come resale time. The S3 is losing £7k over 12 months, depending on the spec.

Our Choice
A face-lifted Disco S2 still looks sharp, is a capable off-roader and, properly maintained, should provide years of service. To maximise your rewards and returns, go for a 2.5 Td5, seven seat auto as these have a huge appeal to MPV haters. So A high-spec GS version, retailing at £31,400 in late 2003, can be picked up for £13k now. A better deal, though, has to be one of the last of the line, runout models, such as the Landmark, that came with more equipment yet a 53-reg costs just £2,000 more."


And then there's the buts for TD5s:

"Off-roaders, as we know, are durable beasts, so I have to admit I was a bit surprised when I hit a pothole on the B1137 and the rear-view mirror fell off in my lap.

I was even more surprised - and a bit panic-stricken - when I stalled the Disco on the hill that runs up through my local town (I was towing a trailer at the time), twisted the key to re-start... and had the key break off in my hand.

Over the course of a mere two days I had discovered ('scuse the pun) why the Discovery has rated so low in JD Power's annual look at reliability. OK, so I clipped the mirror back in place and I pushed the two halves of the key together again - it had snapped at the point it's designed to break should your knee bash it in an accident. But it was hardly good news all the same.

And, somehow, all that seems to sum up the Discovery. There's nothing about it that you can't live with - or fix - but there are plenty of times when you wonder whether you should really have to. Leaving aside its slightly dodgy reliability, it just feels a bit crude and old-fashioned compared with newer off-road 4x4s.

Let's start with the engine. It's a turbodiesel, so power comes in with a bit of a rush, but, sadly, it also disappears back out again in just as much of a hurry - leaving you with a shift up through the clunky gearbox to try and find it again in the next gear. That gets pretty tiresome around town or on country lanes.

The lack of low-down pull, allied to a soggy feeling clutch, also makes stalling all too easy - even if you're not tugging a trailer. If you are towing, you need to pull out like a learner - lots of revs and ease the clutch out so, so gently.

On the move, the Disco will trundle along at a modestly respectable speed and keep up a decent lick even when lugging a heavy load. That's the good side of having a torquey, turbocharged powerplant.

It's not terribly inspiring once the road starts to wiggle, though. The phrase 'car-like' would never be applied to its handling as it would to a Shogun's or M-class Merc's. The steering's too woolly and the suspension too soggy. And I'd really rather not have to try the 'elk test' in one. Try that famous swerve and swerve back again manoeuvre even gently in the Land Rover and you can feel the body roll taking over. It's quite severe and does not auger well for everything not going pear-shaped should you find yourself really having to get out of the way of an elk (or a child or another car) in a hurry.

The Disco isn't all bad, by any means. The interior is its best feature; managing to blend hose-clean functionality with suburban style. It's practical, there's lots of stowage space and the seats are comfy. But, for £21,995 you still don't get air-conditioning or even a CD player. And the boot is huge, but you do have to clamber up on the bumper to rescue your bags of shopping from deep inside.

That was the fifth occurrence of the word 'but' in this short review - and that's really the Discovery's problem: too many 'buts'.

and yet another review of a late model D2 (I like the end comment):

The Discovery must be getting old. Switch it off and it breaks wind. It doesn't know it's done it, bless, but we catch a distinct parp as the engine switches off and politely pretend not to notice.

This bout of flatulence is proof that, despite being heavily fettled in 1998, it's soon to head to the retirement home, where no doubt it will wander around in its pyjamas with a pair of wellington boots on, telling everyone it used to be good at playing in the mud.

Unlike the latest middle-class sophisticate, the new Range Rover, the Discovery's air-suspension system lets slip all manner of embarrassing noises. So, in an effort to disguise the ageing process, it's been treated to a facelift and some minor tinkering which should keep the colostomy bag at bay.

In terms of a redesign, this one is a rather cynical attempt at cashing in on the Range Rover's sought-after style, with twin 'interlocking' headlamps slapped onto the front, complemented by a wider grille, tweaked bumper and integrated fog lamps, plus a new pair of tail lamps at the back. Still, the Discovery was never short on presence and this one's no exception.

Unfortunately, what it's always been short on is space, and this 2003 version is no different. So it's cramped up front and cramped in the back - should you be able to get in, that is. The rear-door aperture is really only large enough for the kids to squeeze through.

Land Rover's design team has at least tried to smarten up the interior, although what's so new about 'Land Rover Black' is beyond me. It's not a patch on its fancy new big brother, nor a BMW X5 or Mitsubishi Shogun for that matter, while closer inspection shows some frankly shoddy fit and finish which the company simply has to improve on.

Unfortunately, there are other areas crying out for improvement, such as the rattly five-cylinder Td5 engine, which makes up 90 per cent of Discovery sales. This 135bhp, 250lb ft unit is sluggish and noisy, but at least it won't slurp diesel like it's going out of fashion, with 30mpg achievable if you decide against wearing the lead shoes.

If there was anywhere the old dear was going to excel, it's in the rough stuff. While acceptable on road, show it some mud and the Disco plunges in with alarming abandon, emerging the other side with a beam on its face and a new hue of brown on its clothes. As part of the tweaks, an optional locking centre differential further improves its Amazon-exploring credentials, and for the money there really is nothing to beat it.

What a shame that we can't be saying that about the rest of this 4x4's talents. It really is showing its age. Maybe it wasn't breaking wind after all. Perhaps it was simply a sigh of relief that the test drive and inspection had come to an end and it could finally be sent off to the retirement home and indulge in complaints about today's youth.

VERDICT: Wait until you forget your own name before buying one

James Mills

Originally Posted by mcrover

Serial arguer, I'd prefer that then serial dick head.....

What you prefer doesn't matter

Originally Posted by matbor

What you prefer doesn't matter

please dont fire up what has already simmered down

Originally Posted by mcrover

When we bought ours it was Mrs Mc's car to drive to work in traffic and as she wont drive a manual (she can but chooses not to) I bought this one.

I have no complaints other than at about 280,000 the sprag on the low rev brake started slipping when it gets hot so it is now in need of a rebuild as accasionally it pretty much tries to take of in what is effectively 3rd gear.

you disingenuous *****

love the sig, shame about the attitude...

pray tell, how does apologising in advance make it any better?

i have said it before and i gotta say it again, what is it with victorians?

so many knowledgeable people but some much angst!

Firstly, Mcrover, thanks for all the useful TD5 links in one post. I am sure I'll need to refer to them........

At the moment my favourite is the Series II, TD5 with Auto, ACE and chipped with larger intercooler from BRUCE!

Still marvellous to drive, economical and I look forward to driving it.... which I don't get to much as traffic gives me the *****s and I know ride my push bike to work.

carry on....

Originally Posted by incisor

you disingenuous *****

love the sig, shame about the attitude...

pray tell, how does apologising in advance make it any better?

i have said it before and i gotta say it again, what is it with victorians?

so many knowledgeable people but some much angst!

Apart from being a very biggoted attitude, I don't think you should tar all Victorians with the same brush.

I thought you would / should be above that kind of thing

.............and that's coming from a Pohm - but I guess you have something against them as well

Originally Posted by ladas

Apart from being a very biggoted attitude, I don't think you should tar all Victorians with the same brush.

I thought you would / should be above that kind of thing

.............and that's coming from a Pohm - but I guess you have something against them as well

....................is there really any need.