Land Rover Discovery 1, decent or money pit?

[Crackin]

Hi,

Originally I was looking at spending upto 20k on a 4x4 ute but now I am also considering getting a cheaper older 4x4 and have seen several Discoverys from 4-10k.

I have read a bit about them and it seems they can get rusty especially around the boot area, my mechanic friend had one a few years ago and he really liked it but I'm no mechanic so a car that is always in need of repairs is no good for me

$4k not sure of year, auto, 380k kms
$8.5k, 2002, auto, 235k kms
$10k, 2001, auto, 200k kms

They all seem to have done a lot less kms than the utes of similar ages I have been looking at.

Is the cheap price a false economy though? Are parts for these old discoverys going to be more expensive than for a common ute?

Thanks

 

[itlldoo]

I'm no mechanic so a car that is always in need of repairs is no good for me

then its the wrong car.

 

[boobook]

then its the wrong car.

Actually if the OP is prepared to spend $20K and buys an old Disco for $4K then that is about the right budget. For the first year or so anyway.

This is not even a joke.

 

[CaptainBanana]

Let's go with a 20k budget you'll be able to buy one for 3 or 4 k spent 15 k on it in the first year and then probably 5 to 10 k every year there after, I mean that's about the same as repayments on a brand new car but you could do it.

 

[Crackin]

Hmmmmmmm I think I'm abandoning this idea....... Haha
Proper made me lol!!!

 

[synchro]

So what engine you looking for? There are 3 diesels and 3 petrol V8s? looking for a Disco 1 or Disco 2? The years quoted are Disco 2 - TD5 Diesel or 4.0 Petrol V8.

Parts are cheap as chips if you know where to buy, servicing is easy but like all vehicles will cost if you cannot do it yourself. Toyota drivers are always jealous of them so they will say they are unreliable - no worse than the Jappers.

You clearly need to do more research and this is not the forum to come for that on Land Rovers. Go to AULRO.Com

 

[shanegtr]

my opinion as a DIY mechanic - they are getting on in years now so like any other vehicle of a similar generation they are going to take some maintenance to keep on the road. And like other similar age cars they are also a fair bit simpler than what you get now so they are easier to maintain. Good thing is being older all the common issues are well known so the fixes shouldn't be stupidly expensive

 

[discomatt]

Not even going to comment re some of the replies, NFI, go to AULRO, my fist Disco cost $1500 to buy, had it 8 years, cost 15k in total over 8 years and 250,000km with some insane 4wding in a pretty much standard car, never let me down except when I cooked the crap out of it on a 40 degree day towing a trailer into Talbotville due to mud in the radiator that I missed after smashing it through massive bog holes.
Yep unreliable crap, I have now owned 4 in total and still own 2, how many have the nay sayer had or have

 

[CaptainBanana]

I used to wheel with a guy who had one very similar to yours, he now drives a GU Patrol because he got sick of fixing it more than driving it. His dad is actually the president of one of the Victorian Land Rover clubs so they're a Land Rover family but that wasn't enough to make him ignore the fact it was always broken or things like doors kept opening while he was driving or constantly pissing out oil or any number of other things.

and I've used the example before because I look at them for myself as recently as 18 months ago and I had seen cars with receipts literally for 12 or $15,000 in the year prior and then the cars being sold for 4K which tells you more of a story than one eyed owners who refused to accept the cars are just not as well built as a million other options.

 

[boobook]

Not even going to comment re some of the replies, NFI, go to AULRO, my fist Disco cost $1500 to buy, had it 8 years, cost 15k in total over 8 years and 250,000km with some insane 4wding in a pretty much standard car, never let me down except when I cooked the crap out of it on a 40 degree day towing a trailer into Talbotville due to mud in the radiator that I missed after smashing it through massive bog holes.
Yep unreliable crap, I have now owned 4 in total and still own 2, how many have the nay sayer had or have

Didn't you have a second one in your front yard for spares till you were told to get rid of it by management?

 

[discomatt]

Didn't you have a second one in your front yard for spares till you were told to get rid of it by management?

No never, I had my first one, Liza had her Disco 2 Toorak tractor, I killed the first one, built my 2nd Disco 1 ( don't ask how much) then bought the Disco 4 then sold the Disco 2 because 3 LR's is to many for anyone to maintain

 

[Crackin]

Just to clarify

$4k, 1996, auto, 380k kms Discovery 1 TDi 2.5l
$8.5k, 2002, auto, 235k kms Discovery 2 Td5 2.5l
$10k, 2001, auto, 200k kms Discovery 2 Td5 2.5l

I think they might all be a bit too old for a complete novice mechanic like me, I dont mind learning but maybe too much in at the deep end especially as i have limited garage space and very few tools

cheers

 

[synchro]

Well you are going to be in the same boat no matter what brand of vehicle you buy of that vintage.

 

[Crackin]

I understand that, that's why I'm going back to plan A of getting a newer car

 

[discomatt]

I wouldn't buy a 2001 or 2002 Disco for 4wding because they are the 2 years they came with no center diff lock internals in the transfer case, very early D2 had the internals just not the selector, later had it all there from factory because LR realised the TC wasn't good enough.
As mentioned ALL older 4wds will need maintenance and if your not will to learn and do it yourself they will cost a fortune.
I have been 4wding for well over 10 years with heaps of different makes and models and spoken to owners of them al, they all cost a fortune, even more so when they start to get used as a 4wd on a regular basis and the mods start.

 

[nitrobrent]

Not even going to comment re some of the replies, NFI, go to AULRO, my fist Disco cost $1500 to buy, had it 8 years, cost 15k in total over 8 years and 250,000km with some insane 4wding in a pretty much standard car, never let me down except when I cooked the crap out of it on a 40 degree day towing a trailer into Talbotville due to mud in the radiator that I missed after smashing it through massive bog holes.
Yep unreliable crap, I have now owned 4 in total and still own 2, how many have the nay sayer had or have

Matt triggered much

 

[rob_macca67]

U really haven't mentioned what u mainly are going to use it for... will it be your only vehicle or will it be your weekender? Are u planning to use it as a Tourer or just 4wdriving locally?

If it's your 2nd vehicle, then maybe the cheaper option might be the go but if it's your one and only vehicle that u need for work, etc, then it might pay to buy the newer one... Obviously, as it gets older it also will start to cost u money as well...

 

[synchro]

I understand that, that's why I'm going back to plan A of getting a newer car

And a newer car will cost you even more to service with scheduled servicing - I have always found it is cheaper to keep an old car on the road (within reason) than it is to correctly service a newer car - I used to own a 79 Subaru with 350,000km and bought a new car - just one service of the new car cost more than all the running costs of the old Subaru in a year.

 

[boobook]

This recent thread is also worth reading. The OP was in a similar position to yourself.

Disco 2 Vs Paj second gen

So I’ve been on the hunt for a good Paj second gen for a month now, seem to be getting harder to find. Not gonna be doing rock hopping so can’t justify blowing everything in a patrol or land cruiser. But recently I’ve seen a few Disco’s pop up in my price range. Now everything I’ve read screams...

4x4earth.com

 

[boobook]

And a newer car will cost you even more to service with scheduled servicing - I have always found it is cheaper to keep an old car on the road (within reason) than it is to correctly service a newer car - I used to own a 79 Subaru with 350,000km and bought a new car - just one service of the new car cost more than all the running costs of the old Subaru in a year.

That entirely depends on what you are comparing. Subarus are generally very reliable and would need little maintenance. If you compare that to a newish unreliable vehicle then sure the new one will cost more.

But compare an old unreliable, expensive to repair vehicle to a new reliable vehicle and the result will be flipped the other way around.

The Disco 2 that I borrowed from my friend cost about the same to keep on the road in 4 months as mine has for 5 years of servicing my car with zero faults And the Disco still had over $5K needing to be spent on it to make it roadworthy.

Unreliable cars cost a lot to own regardless of age. That's the point. And that's what the OP should triple check before getting any old vehicle, let alone one that is well documented to be unreliable and known to cost a fortune to constantly fix. Plus if you can't use it half the time what's the price of that?