Thread: New Engine or Reconditioned Engine

Originally Posted by discomatt69

before you bought this car I considered a 79 with h about 60k worth of mods but it hen I drove a couple, no thanks

I did almost the same several years ago. I questioned what to update the Disco2 with. Went and had a look at the 76 as that was about the only thing comparable. I didn't pursuit it beyond sitting in it and learning about "quasi" climate control via a thermostat. It was a ridiculously basic vehicle and even more so for the price - it was not in the slightest comparable. I've driven quite a few 79's with work, and to me at least they feel and drive like a vehicle designed and built in 1980. I still really love driving the Disco2 on long trips and locally, so it keeps on keeping on!

Originally Posted by Lotz-A-Landies

Has anyone heard any reports of Aliexpress engines???? Understanding they're Chinese but lots of differences in quality with Chinese items.

I don't currently have an issue with my SDV6 3.0, but planning options for future.

In another thread I note suggestions for using 2.7 block with 3.0 ancillaries, so am considering acquiring an appropriate spare an having it ready for the inevitable.

Thoughts?

Evidently my D4 is said to be excellent. Service always have said so, which bewilders me as I don't think it's a usual thing to say. And my motor is quiet on start up too. But I do warm it up for a bit and also gently increase the revs after two minute to ensure engine oil pressure.

But my - since new - occasional low power mode while towing eventually did not easily go away ( I would stop and turn the motor off and then restart and then everything was fine) I got an experience of what could happen stuck somewhere remote in Western Australia. So now I have had the turbo actuator replace, due to finding out what was going on. Evidently it's not unusual.

Its the third issue I have had, which are:

1 - drivers door rubber holed at 18 months old. Dealer refused to replace. It's still there with its holes, as a reminder of that dealer's service.

2 - Thought the levelling had failed. I had dropped the D4 to attach my caravan, and using LLAMS had dropped it to its very bottom mode along with the low on the LR's standard 3 height option. I then lowered the van's maybe 280 kg tow ball (van weighs up to 2450 kg) and then went and started the car, after some maybe 15 minutes with the car switched off. Due to talking! The car would not rise. I was at the caravan manufacture's site, and they reported it looked like the height actuators. So I parked the car and rang for a tow. I left the caravan at the manufacturers. I rang RovaRange who service my Disco, and Jason told me where to go. I rang them and they said drop it around in the morning (it was around 4 pm in Caloundra and they were maybe 40 minutes away). But then I started the car and up she went. I took it to the recommended Indy LR specialist, and they said she's fine, and don't change the height actuators as it's a waste of money. They spent some time checking it and wouldn't charge me any money. I didn't even have a bottle of scotch to leave on their front desk. Advise - don't be a smart ass with lowering all the way and expecting the vehicle to lift with 280 kg on the tow ball!

3 - The intermittent low power mode. Even my Indy could not find that issue. I've always been to mean to buy an IID tool, and I now realise if I had of had it, I may have been able to get the issue fixed on warranty. Although I suspect not as due to the door rubber, I was not at all impressed by dealer service attitudes. But also I think my local Toyota and Lexus dealer is far worse - they are crooked IMO.

So ... since I had an on road issue, I got a scare, in NSW along the coast, where the population is dense and land rovers are around. So I am wondering too because I want to do a circuit of Australia towing my off road 2.5 tonne caravan:

- Sell my car and buy a replacement
- Buy a car, do the tour, and keep the Disco. Then sell the replacement.
- Seek out a spare motor and get it reconditioned in case mine fails

The more I look at it, I really have two options:
- Sell my vehicle and replace it
- Trust in God that everything will go just fine.

Looking back at my life's financial failures, mostly not at all my faults, I cannot be certain that God will protect my D4 motor.

My D4 has done maybe 45000 km towing, and on very good roads too. OK lots of dirt roads but I reckon they've almost all been better than most Victorian country bitumen roads. And I don't use it for shopping trips although some trips have been short. Its got 118,000 km at the moment.

I've driven two test vehicles within two hours of each other with my wife:
Tojo LC 300 ZX and then LR Defender 300
My wife much preferred the LC, which surprised me a lot. I thought she'd love the Defender - it's faster, narrower, more manoeuvrable. But ... the 300 I drove seemed to handle better, it road better, it was quieter, there was no wheel on the rear door, it had more interior space, a more luxo feel, (my wife is used to her Lexus though) its devaluation would be less and its more repairable in the outback. Plus it has an extra 50 litres of fuel which can also be easily increased. But I doubt I would buy that LC 300 model but its adjustable shockers and driving modes were really good fun. Not self levelling though and every one would require air bags inside the springs for towing.

I haven't even driven the Everest because although they cost under $90k, I get upset by their motor somewhat. And also Ford's quality and bugs and their service backup make me nervous. While an LR Indy is often wonderful, finding a Ford one with the same commitment would be impossible IMO.

If I buy new there is the issue of needing a deposit soon or the vehicle will be delivered too late - or I return with the Disco when its available, and then I'll have the hassle of selling the Disco with probably a different brand of new vehicle in the garage which is hardly a recommendation.

And does one warn someone about the motor's potential? The reason I bought the Disco was because I could sell it after telling the new owned that the max I ever towed was 2,400kg. I didn't want to sell my Prado Kakadu that way.

It's a toss up at the moment between selling mine and getting something new, and trusting in God.


The thing that really bemuses me, is that if LR stood by its breakdowns, they would have reasonable stocks of short crate motors at reasonable prices. And if they did that, the value of our vehicles would be much higher. Because if I sell now, I'll get some money back. But if I gamble and loose, I'll loose the lot. Which is why the vehicles are so cheap. And being cheap means severe depreciation. Which results in a major loss of customer loyalty. It's crazy of LR not to support their customers. But the V6 situation shows that not only are they stupid, that they do not support their customers, and worse, they do not care. Which is a major reason why I may not get an LR to replace mine.