Thread: Thinking of buying p38 - running costs compared to Disco 1 v8?

I van only speak from a relatively short period of time with one, a 2000 model 4.6HSE, and by jiggle my toes, it drove well.
Every time I pressed unlock and entered into the plush leather and turned the key and suspension just worked and air-con made no noises it was bliss.

I had it for 3 months, I spend $2k on repairs like silly electrical matters and some little motors in the aircon were playing up(Flapper motors) or something.

The reason I sold, was 2 fold. I feared for more expensive things to happen and leave me stranded and I was just not keen to take it off-road. It just seemed wrong, the car was just too good in my eyes. Although very capable I know.

I made some $$$ when I sold it as it was very low K's, great colour(white), HSE and had a brilliant log book history plus it was the updated model 99 onwards with Bosch electrics.

Still sad I sold it but it made way for different cars I feel I can now get in and drive to anywhere and not really have to worry.

At the end of the day, set away a slush fund for it, say $100 bucks a week and use that for running repairs and maintenance as these are/were top of the line cars in their day and will cost to maintain-- No doubt about but the reward has been So good I still think of getting another.
My advise, Yes if you you have the funds, the time to find the right one and the ride will be an addiction.
Don't drive one unless you are ready to be bitten. I am not joking, they are so different to a Disco you be Gob smacked.

Cheers

I think with any car it can be good luck bad luck, things can go wrong with any car, even Holden or Ford parts can be expensive.
The big thing is maintenance. If you maintain your vehicle regularly you will reduce your chances of a breakdown.
I am lucky in that I do have time to do my own maintainance, which saves me a fortune in mechanics bills, I learn more about my Rangie every time I do it, I know exactly what has been done, and it's done properly.
If you have to pay for servicing and all repairs it may sway the budget a bit too far, but anything you can do yourself will reduce the bills.
There is tons of great info on repair operations on rangerovers.net, well worth a look if you are considering buying a P38.

As far as actual running costs go, my 2001 HSE 4.6 is much more fuel efficient than my 1989 3.5 efi. I can go 2 weeks on a tank in the 2001, it averages about 15.1 litres per 100 km. I didn't get anything like that with my 1989 Rangie.
As Big Guy said, don't take one for a drive unless you are serious about buying one, you can't help it, it gets you straight away! There is a huge difference to a Disco 1, you will be amazed at how comfortable they are to drive and that air suspension, I couldn't believe it when I drove over the first speed hump, hardly felt a thing!
Like most P38 owners, it can be a love hate relationship, little annoying things can go wrong, but try wiping the smile off your face every time you climb in and start her up!
Make sure it has not overheated in the past if you can, the V8's do not like that at all.
A faultmate code reader is invaluable, it will tell you what is going on, or at least point you in the right direction.
You can also get free 'EAS unlock suite' software to help with any EAS issues.
I know there is a lot to consider, but if you are leaning towards one, you are probably already gone...what colour are you getting?
Hope this helps.

I'm no stranger to cars (and bikes) that require a bit of extra love.

I've had 3 Alfa Romeo's, Land rovers and Italian sportsbikes.

I've wanted a Rangie for ages (ever since I got the Discovery funnily enough).

I was warned off the Disco and the Alfa's, but character comes at a price and they were all great cars.

It's true, you can have bad luck with any car, at least if you bought the one you really wanted rather than the one that the market thought was best you don't begrudge the money you spend.

I think I'm talking myself into buying one

As everybody has said, do your research on both hear and Range Rovers and above all else DO NOT DRIVE ONE UNLESS YOU ARE READY T COMMIT!

I've had mine for two years and have spent over 10G on a new engine and gearbox, and easter this year the new motor let go. Luckily it was repaired under warranty. ever since easter its been in various workshops getting assesed. I have even gone so far as buying another car and had committed to selling it when i finally got it back. That all changed when I got it back last week and took her for a drive. Damn these cars have a personality. Now i'm fighting to justify selling it even after all the problems and money.

Would I do it again??? You betcha but I would probably wait until I had a little more money behind me and a house, so I didn't have to borrow for the repairs.

In a nutshell.

- If you are prepared to look after the car, go over it every couple of days and have a good cheapish mechanic, then go for it. And seeing as you've had alfa's before you should be fine.
- If you want a car you can just leave in the shed and not touch it, then no I can't reccomend. Go buy a toymotor.

Hope this helps

Stu

In addition to all of the above, keep in mind that it's not every Rangie that is born to give headaches! A well kept and well maintained one will be the most trouble-free car of all - i guess this principle applies to most cars really! Mine was a regularly serviced low km example when i got it about a year ago, and the biggest expense so far has been a water pump - the part that every car has and needs to be replaced periodically anyway!

Airbag suspension is something to have a very good look over when going looking as well. Get under and inspect the bags - if it's suss, then don't buy it, or knock the price down a few grand so you can use the spare cash to replace them (with Arnotts Gen III bags!!).

The cooling system on the Rangie is no different to any newish car either. The main reason people see problems is most likely because there are a million hoses running here and there. That means more hoses to replace once they are perished or buggered! I've recently done two heater hoses on mine also, next is the hose from the coolant tank down! It comes with the territory really!

Another big thing that's often overlooked is the transmission and transfer case. There are not that many P38's that are dying or causing greif because of issues with these, however it'd pay to change all the fluids in the car when you get it so you know exactly how many k's are on what oils/coolants.

If the water pump was my biggest problem so far on a 10yr old Rangie - then I rekon i've got a good one!

Cheers
Keith

Originally Posted by 81stubee

- If you are prepared to look after the car, go over it every couple of days and have a good cheapish mechanic, then go for it. And seeing as you've had alfa's before you should be fine.
- If you want a car you can just leave in the shed and not touch it, then no I can't reccomend. Go buy a toymotor.

Wow - are they really that maintenance heavy?

There's no way I've got time for that at the moment as I travel up to 4 hours to work every day.

Hmm, I might have to re-think here.

Realistically, my general methods of care are; look after the important bits, i.e fluids hoses etc, and service on schedule and don't worry to much about the little things until I've time to fix.

I wouldn't expect to spend more than half an hour per week on a car, unless some things broken.

Am I sounding more like a Patrol owner here?

Likely hood of blown engines is enough to scare me off right now - I want a new bike and a popped engine would see that dream turn to dust.

That said I would expect to spend time straight after purchase sorting stuff out.

That's just part of the joy of "new car time"

ask ADM333 he's got a P38 and has done almost everythng to them at one time or another (learn via experience) and could offer a valid opinion on this question,.