Question on Series II Discovery

[Superu]

Considering replacing the wife's minivan with an SE7 Series II Discovery.

I'm a bit concerned that the prices seem awfully low.

Probably because reliability reviews seem to run the gamut from 1 - 10 but more towards the 1 - 5 range.

Any advice on key points of failure I should be examining prior to taking the plunge on one?

I need seating for at least 6 which is why I'm not looking at the Range Rover although I've always loved the look of them.

TIA. :ylsmoke:

 

[RussRover]

IMO,

Its a great truck. You need to be ready to fix things on it though. Also, the 03's have an oil pump failure for certain VIN numbers. I would go with the 04 SE7. Also, how old are the kids? The back jumpseats would work for kids, or drunk friends if you are the DD, ask me how I know. :ylsmoke:

 

[revor]

Electrickery and.....
:sombrero::sombrero::sombrero:

On some cars it seems the braking systems is very sensitive thusly the Traction control and ABS Systems can give you fits.

The codes passed along with this failure are called the Three Amigo's

Strangely some cars are never affected (afflicted?)


Check out www.Discoweb.org for lots and lot of Disco details.

 

[traveltoad]

Self edited because that is what should be done with any post of substance.

 

[traveltoad]

Edited by moderators for an unknown reason

Self edited because that is what should be done with any post of substance.

 

[FourByLand]

Seriously???

Someone went through alot of work to keep the Land Rover Section from being cluttered with all of these "What should I know about a Land Rover questions"

The ExPo Guide to Land Rovers
Does the idea of owning a Land Rover make you tingly in places your swimwear covers? Do you find yourself lured by the cheap cost of acquiring an Empire Car but are scared by the horror stories of wonky electronics and leaky everything? Well you've come to the right place friend, for this is the passion, drama, and information packed ExPo Guide to Land Rovers. Yes my slightly masochistic potential Rover owner, all of the previous "school me" threads are merged into one action packed post.


General - Topics not pertaining to a particular Land Rover model but specifics are detailed for different models in some of the post.

SaMingTRD would like answers for a "Question to all LR Owners"

"What Makes a Land Rover Expedition" Alaska Mike?

Ducks trolls for anwers in "Sell Me on a Land Rover"

Will0051 has some "Simple Questions"

MoGas would like a little "Objectivity Please"


Series (all)

haven questions the "Series Land Rover Durability"

"Series Rover guru's, need some help/advice!" by Clark White


Defender

"Defender 90?" - flyingwil

OneTime wants everyone to know about his secret crush in "Defender Questions"

Its a battle royale in mcvickoffroad's "Land Rover Discovery II -vs- Defender 90 ST"


Range Rover

"P38 Range Rover Discussion" by expeditionswest

"Should I Buy a Range Rover?" is something that JeepN95YJ felt compelled to ask the community.

John E wants to know if a "1991 Range Rover, worth buying?"

2aroundtheworld proclaims - Range Rover 2003+ for less than 20k!


Discovery I & II (1994 - 2004)

OverlandXJ needs to know "What to Look For on a Discovery I?"

Before it was a reality it was just a twinkle in his eye in expeditionswest's "Discovery I 5-speed"

Sami "Might Pick Up a Land Rover"

slomatt has a Rover problem and wonders "Do I need to call Rovers Anonymous?"

nickatnight admits "I need help from the LR gurus"

hattrik21 seeks answers to his "Question on the Discos"

Are "G4 or XD Discos" hard to find wonders Zeero

Does the smell of diesel in the morning smell like victory to you? Check out Nomad K's "Diesel Disco-reasonable first Land Rover?" thread.

Streakerfreak ponders the meaning of Rover in a "Possible Disco for Streakerfreak".

WhereTheHellIsJames asks "What's with those Discos anyways?"

Robert Bills is a "Possible Cherokee to Discovery Convert"

TexasTJ seeks higher education in "School a Jeep Guy on Discos"

datrupr wants everyone to please, please tell him now in "A Little More Info Please".

Bayou Boy, "2003 Disco:what to look for"

"How rare is a 5spd disco?" asks Troy


LR3

jfm_stl wants "Opinions on the LR3"

devinsixtyseven's "Can you guys tell me about the LR3?"


Freelander

"What's the deal with the Freelender" is something upcruiser's just gotta know.


101 FC

24HOURSOFNEVADA is "Thinking of a new project...101 FC Maybe?"


Importation

Can we talk about 25 year old Defenders? - Z O O R O P A

Import question - Allen Bosely

25 Year Old Land Rovers - Beowulf

Importing a Series - frans

Legal Question - Global Monkey

Any "real" import/customs experts on this board? - The Swiss


Wanna watch? Feed your inner voyeur’s desires with these build threads and intros to see how other people do it.

Series Rovers (All)

The Gubblemobile- Series III from hell - Alaska Mike

New Rover... - 01001010

Yet Another LR Owner Rears His Ugly Head - DblD

109 Custom Build Up - DCH109

New guy... - oilburner

New toy - revor

Introducing . . . Grendel - Jonathan Hanson

My Dormobile - seriessearcher

'68 Dormobile - James Howard

1982 Land Rover Lightweight - telwyn


Defender

Graham Jackson's TDI 110 Defender

Defender 110 - ShearPin

Would you believe? Another(!) LR newbie... - Michele


Range Rover

The Hulk Gets Angry - stevenmd

The B*tchin Defender gets a playmate - gjackson

Intro, Yet another LR guy - K2RVR

My New Project - Chucaro


Discovery Series I (1994 - mid 1999)

Expeditions West: Discovery I 5-speed - expeditionswest

Intro: JC and the Blue Marlin - JC

My 95' Disco - Jarek M

My project is finally moving...Literally - shartzer

my Disco build up - Green96D1

My Rover - DiscoveryXD's

The MuddyMudskipper Mobile - MuddyMudskipper

Its Pretty Much Done - revor

Introducing my 98 D1 - benedmonson

Hello from Down Under - Chucaro


Discovery Series II (Mid 1999 - 2004)

Four By Land's Discovery - FourByLand

My 2001 Discovery Mod Thread - PCRover

Discovery Evolution: The Turtle - michaels

2K DII SD Expedition Build - Go4Lo

Canadian Disco 2 Build - R Lefebvre

"King Leonidis" Build Thread! - pnovell

You like pictures more than articles?

Post pictures of your Land Rover

Post Pics of your Defender

A few pictures of my Defender 110 around Patagonia - jorge

Land Rovers in Death Valley RR8 - RoverMack

Land Rover National Rally Moab 08 Pictures - RoverMack


You have a Rover and you have some questions. From tech to farkle this link should have you covered.

:safari-rig:

 

[Z O O R O P A]

He asked a legit question in a respectful manner unlike some members we have seen in the past. If you don't have anything helpful to add aside from bad wit or poor attempts at humor that only YOU find funny then refrain from offering your "wisdom"

This place sounds more and more like Dweb thanks to the unwelcomed attitude that accompanies posts by members who feel it is beneath them to answer inquiries or members who merely lack the interest or sense to use some thoughtfulness or basic social skills. Have some insight? Have some experience? Have something you would like to share or enlighten the rest of us with? Good! Convey it in a manner that is appropriate not juvenile, that isn't asking a lot. Try to raise the bar @ expo and show some sophistication not self-righteousness please

Superu,

they are great trucks, poor in fuel economy, can be expensive if you need sensors or a gasket replaced, get your basics like oil changes and brakes etc done some place other than a dealer. You don't need to offroad it to own one, that is idiocy. They are cheap because like most British cars they depreciate quickly and always have. The 2004 D2 is a bargain at under 15K and an excellent foul weather vehicle, family vehicle, college vehicle, or grocery getter.

Finding one that has been well cared for can be a task but is well worth the time and one owners are not uncommon if you have a little patience

good luck, I just picked my 3rd one up, my second and 3rd D2s I bought sight unseen off the net from over 1200 miles away so that is an illustration to my confidence in them. Others have had an very different experience altogether. If you have specific questions there are plenty of people here that can answer them

 

[R_Lefebvre]

I don't think you should buy a Land Rover. If you do, it might capture your heart. You'll find yourself giving your Subaru to your wife to drive, you'll take the truck, and next thing you know you'll be modifying it for offroad.

The prices are low because of British brand's well earned reputation for being unreliable and/or difficult and expensive to repair. However, my 04 has been pretty good over the past year. It's proven to be much more reliable than several GM trucks owned by people I know.

 

[Superu]

Thanks for the helpful replies. I looked through the sticky thread before posting my question as I try not to waste people's time on questions that have already been played out.

Was hoping to get some specific details and/or recommendations. Looks like the 04 is the one to get.

Since the mpg on the minivan sucks anyway, I'm not too concerned about the issue with a DII. The Superu is very capable for what it is, but we miss our 95 Montero and are considering something that will give us more out of the box capability than even the modified Subie can provide for those more taxing excursions. Plus the addition of a dog to the family further extends our need for space.

If I could find a well maintained 2nd gen Montero I would jump at the chance, but they are very few and far between and I just haven't been able to warm to the style of the 3rd Gen. (no offense to those who have them) :ylsmoke:

Thanks again for the help.

 

[R_Lefebvre]

Yeah, I hear you on the MPG thing. Our GM minivan gets about 20mpg, the truck gets maybe 15. Sure, the van is about 33% better... but by comparison the truck is not the pariah it's made out to be.

If you want more specific answers, you need specific questions, because most of the general stuff is in those stickies. One of the biggest issues, "The Three Amigos" seems to have been largely solved with the recent release of the scan tool.

 

[Jonathan Hanson]

I believe he was referring to this:

Seriously???

Someone went through alot of work to keep the Land Rover Section from being cluttered with all of these "What should I know about a Land Rover questions"

. . . which I have to agree was a bit brusque. I think the original question was specific enough to warrant specific responses, which several people offered. It was quite different than the typical "Are Land Rovers reliable?" probe, to which on Expedition Portal I would still expect a civil, however brief, response.

 

[FourByLand]

Good point.

 

[Reata Rover]

All I can say is WELCOME to the family!!! Hope you join.....I picked my 04 Disco from the showroom floor. It has been a fantastic truck, I have had very few problems to speak of and it is my DD. I do off road it, but nothing real serious. I put a slight lift, some sliders and a bull bar and a few other modifications only because I use it not only as my daily driver but also for expedition travel.

I love it and would recommend them to anyone. If you can find one that has fewer than 50,000 miles, that would be a definite truck to purchase....although the extended warranty is pricey, it could be worth every penny if in fact you were to have a major malfunction of some sort. Bear Valley Rovers in Atlanta is a great place to start, but there are plenty of other places where good, solid, low mileage trucks can be found. Good Luck and keep us all posted.

 

[FortyMileDesert]

2004 Discovery S (basic model)

80,000 miles on it now.
Spends almost 50% of its time off-road (107 off-road treks so far)
2 1/2 inch lift
A couple skid plates
modified bumpers
homebuilt sliders
265/75-16 BFG ATs

Reliability:
Replaced front shaft and added greaseable zerks at 25,000 miles.
Had transfer case seals replaced at 50,000 miles.
Thass all except for routine maintenance.

Economy:
16 t0 18 mpg on steady highway trips.
13 to 16 mpg in town.
10 to 15 mpg on the trails - depends on trail type....
BE SURE TO ONLY USE PREMIUM FUEL! And add a bit of injector cleaner about twice a year...

In the future:
Whenever I wear this one out (I hope never), I might have to go to a Jeep Rubicon or something like it. The newer Land Rovers (LR3, RR Sport, Range Rover) are just getting a bit too glitzy and expensive for my taste.....

 

[traveltoad]

Self edited because that is what should be done with any post of substance.