Pre purchase D3 questions.

I think I've sold the Defender!! AARRGH! I hope i've done the right thing. Just need to not buy a lemon now and hope you guys will help me with that process, I'm watching a few at the moment some interstate even.
One is a 2005 HSE silver with diff lock and rear air and black leather 180000kms. Looks ok except its the oldest one. problem? seems well serviced at a a specialist
another is a 2007 SE silver rear air, black leather, 200,000km
One is a 2006 SE, diff lock, no rear air, 156,000km tan leather (interstate)
one is a 2007 SE interstate, rear air, no diff lock, 222,000km
one is a 2007 SE with a low km motor put in it, 70,00 on motor 260 on car. diff lock rear air,

ah the decisions

If your planning on using the 3rd row then rear air would be well and truley worth it. If just the second row then theres a couple of air vents at the back of the centre console that are feed from the front unit so they would fine for that use IMHO. My D3 has the rear air but I got 4 kids so it was something high on my wish list. It was an optional extra on the SE so some have it and most (from what I seen when buying) dont.

in reality, we'll probably never use the third row seats. I just want enough cold air to cool the cabin well on a hot day. Maybe I should prioritise diff lock if the standard a/c is up to the job. I guess even if the car i choose is older, the lower the km the better plus a good service hstory will get me there. I've got a relo with a HSE who I'm visiting tomorrow to have a drive so I can familiarise myself with the D3. I still want to do a bit of off roading and the diff lock should help a bit

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Originally Posted by hpal

in reality, we'll probably never use the third row seats. I just want enough cold air to cool the cabin well on a hot day. Maybe I should prioritise diff lock if the standard a/c is up to the job. I guess even if the car i choose is older, the lower the km the better plus a good service hstory will get me there. I've got a relo with a HSE who I'm visiting tomorrow to have a drive so I can familiarise myself with the D3. I still want to do a bit of off roading and the diff lock should help a bit

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Dont get hung up on the difflock, they are very capable without it.

I thought your rear a/c query was because you'd be using the third row regularly. If it will be a rare event then perhaps other features/age/km's/etc are more important.

They are all very capable without rear e-diff when fitted with good tyres but the traction control has improved a lot over the years so the benefit of the e-diff will be greater for older ones. As to whether that benefit is enough for your usage, difficult to say. In a lot of situations, it's more the tyres and good line selection but that is based on comparing D4's with and without e-diff.

Scott

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Originally Posted by hpal

Cheers,I just dont want to get caught out with it being too hot on hot days which are more and more frequent now. But standard air is probably fine and much better than the defender by far. Would love the diff lock too, do people find it a big help when the going gets tough?
I also have enquired about one for sale, he has given me th following info "Approx. 10 months ago there was a slight shudder on acceleration so the transmission fluid was replaced and an additive added which has fixed the issue." It has 223000km on it, would this be an issue? It's got all the gear, rear air and diff lock etc.
also looking at a 2005 HSE with air and diff lock and 180000km, better choice maybe?

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I bought a 2005 HSE end of last year at 228k. The previous owner had the auto re-built at 220k so that was a big selling point. I did notice a bit of a shudder around the 40-50kph mark a month or so in. I had the car in for a service and mentioned it and they did an auto service and added some Dr Shudder and it's been all good since. I do recall somewhere in the doco stuff that the the people who did the rebuild recommended a service.

In regards to the AC, as has been mentioned by another guy earlier my kids tend to always complain about it being too cold I often have to turn off the rear ac and close the vents. Having said that though one of the first things I did when I got the car was put limo tint from passenger windows all round and 20% on the 1st row. Had it sat on the beach for a few hours on a 30ish day, with my windshield visor thing up also, and got back into the car expecting it to be hot but surprisingly it was really comfortable. The aircon soon enough had it back to 21 degrees and all was sweet in the world....until Immmm toooo collllld. [bighmmm]

Maybe when I get a dog again Fido will appreciate the 3rd row AC [wink11]

Well I'll be putting my 2005 TDV6 HSE up for sale soon.

Silver with Cream interior.
Ediff - Yes
Rear Air - Yes
Tripple sunroof - Yes

Serviced every 10,000k by a specialist mechanical workshop.
Gearbox replaced in 2014 at 200,000k
A/C replaced in 2015
P/S replaced in 2017
Blanked EGR valves - no problem with them!

Now the negatives - 263,000k
Gearbox has developed a fluid leak, approx $2200 to fix.
Apart from that it's a fantastic D3, tight, quiet and goes great.

All the extra's have been removed that are in my signature though.
It's back to standard.

Cheers Rich ( Sydney Northern Beaches)

I agree with earlier comments, my son has a D3 and talked me into a D4.
My memories were still vivid of a Series 3 with drum brakes so I took some convincing.
50 mph downhill with the wind behind and you couldn't talk to anyone in the cabin.

My grandkids always ask me to turn off the aircon to 2nd row, it's too cold.
It does get hot in the 3rd row though when ambient temp is up there, a cheaper way to cool it is a Sirocco 12v fan!

You must be thinking of doing some hard work if you want to buy an e-diff. This is the best 4wd I've owned and I've owned 4.
You can bog them but usually operator error, not turning off DSC, tyres too hard, still in Hi Range or just stupid and stopping in the middle of a soft spot.

A pair of max trax, shovel and tyre pump is cheaper than an e-diff.

If you can stretch to at least a 2.7 D4. Very similar to a D3 but more modern. Unless you compare it to a D5. Newer the better.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...18/01/1097.jpg How is an e diff going to help?