Thread: Rebuild,Repower or Update ?

I saw a Disco1 in a caryard yesterday with a brand new 6.5 Chev DieselV8,it was sold.I remember seeing it advertised for $35000,FOR A 94DISCO 8O 8O 8O 8O 8O 8O 8O
To convert my Disco2,at least $20000 according to the dealer 8O 8O 8O 8O 8O
I must admit it was a very tidy conversion,done by Brunswick Diesels,it looked factory and wasnt alot bigger than a rover V8.
Andrew

It would be good to have a crystal ball, since starting our project on the county I have a lot of mixed feelings about the exercise. I do enjoy the chalenge that Marn and I have had. The main reason I started it in the first place was to replace the 3.5 petrol with a deasal engine with similar power, in the mean time out comes the tdi 5 with heaps of go. Now there would have been a different opption. It would have meant much the same money as the project, only I could have enjoyed it a lot sooner. The ideal solution would be a project and an Exreme. If you have plenty of money a project and td5 would be the answer, if not and dont have a crystal ball,for my money I would go the later.

What is a 300TDI worth with a good engine? $12 -15K I guess

1. Rebuild the 300 TDI will cost about $2-3K if you do yourself - outsourcing the techo bits - when completed the car will be worth $12 - 15 K = $3k out of pocket

2. Pay someone to rebuild and install - I am guessing $5-6K so $6K out of pocket. - car still worth maybe $1k than it was before so $13-16K

3.Second hand engine - $4k so 4K out of pocket plus the worry - car still only worth $12-13K

4. 2.8 -About $12K with everything done but car value probably only increases to $14-$18K

5. Sell and buy the same - get $6K for your old car with dud engine - buy another 300tdi $12-$15K

6. Upgrade - who knows - costs a lot in change over but you then have a car close to its real value.

So if you are happy with the 300TDI and can rebuild yourself I would go this option. If not trade up to a TD5 - where you are maximising the value of what you invest. The worst option is the 2.8 - spent close to $12K and your car is only worth a couple of $K more

My thoughts anyway

Gazz

Agree with Garrycol, but I think it is important to understand what you plan to do with your vehicle longer term. Is it a keeper?

If you do plan on keeping it in the family, the economics and definition of 'worth'/'value' changes quite substantially.

For example, many of the mods we have made would be uneconomic if ever planning to sell it in the near future, but for us, 'Kimba' is a keeper and I can justify the expense of mods in knowing the family will have a great 4x4 and touring vehicle for the next 20+ years.

IMHO, if you were planning on keeping it for life ( :wink: ), I would be going for the 2.8 as I believe it is the best compromise between the power of the TD5 and long term reliability/serviceability.

Hope this helps.

Amate in Darwin has a 1995 Disco with a worn out 300tdi
His delema was , do i in put $10k into a new motor or trade it in
He figured he would spend say $30k up dating inc stamp duty and insurances , and still have a second hand Disco .

He decided to rework his .....
What he did was sourced a Isuzu 4bdit motor for 49k fully rebuilt , got an adaptor kit , fitted front and rear maxi' drive set ups , new recaro seats , new suspension , winch and bar work .....and walked away with cash still left over , fresh window tint and new stereo system .... and he knows exactly what he has and it is exactly what he wanted in the first place :wink:

I agree with Noddy. The whole question of doing up your existing car always comes up against the cold logic that no matter how much you spend on it, it will not be worth much more than when you started.

BUT!

1. Since you are planning to keep it anyway (else why are you doing it up?) the fact that you have spent $x,000 on it and its still worth the much same as before is totally irrelevant.

2. What you need to do is to compare the money you would spend on doing it up with the alternatives, rather than it's effect on the value of the vehicle. For example, it may be cheaper to sell it and get another similar one around the same age - but unless you are careful and lucky, it will need the new engine etc pretty soon - after all, it is the same age! And at least with the one you already have you know what is wrong/right with it. To some extent the same risk applies to any second hand car, presumably decreasing as it gets newer. So how about a new one? Should be no problems, and it will be more advanced than the one you have - but if the one you have is old enough to need a new motor, the amount of money for a changeover will be a lot more than the cost of a new motor, let alone doing up the motor you have.

But almost nobody makes car decisions purely on economic grounds anyway - so don't let your decision be dictated by economics; nobody else does!