Disco 2 - first 6 months update

Maddmatt

Explorer
6 month update - radiator replaced
8 month update - new tires

Running Total: $$6,518 (includes consumables: Tires, Oil Changes, etc...)

Thought I'd take a minute to post my experiences with the new-to-me Discovery 2 (2000) that I picked up in July - just trying to share some of things that I had questions about before I jumped into the green oval.

Background - average to fair shade tree mechanic, but coming from the "drive it and forget" world of long term Toyota and Nissan ownership.

Vehicle - 2000 Discovery 2, 130k, purchased from original owner with solid maintenance history (Carfax verified) - original owner had switched from dealer maintenance to "I know this great Audi mechanic" maintenance over the last 3-4 years of ownership......

Nearly perfect interior, some bubbles in the headliner but no rips, sunroofs don't leak, all switchgear works, fair tires, very clean seats and carpet, original window sticker (5 seat, upgraded audio, air-suspension delete)

Paid $3800 - which was on the mid to high side for the years and miles in this area (Colorado) at the time, was willing to pay for the zero rust, zero rips, zero wet dog smell car.

Known issues when I bought it:

SES Light on
3 Amigos on
Poor install job on aftermarket stereo
Broken headlight squirter, driver's side

Mistakes made:
Not yet sure if this was a mistake, but I bought it without a pre-purchase inspection. This wasn't the first Rover I looked at, and it was definitely the cleanest - 2 other guys showed up while I was test driving it, so I threw the dice.

Best discovery: Atlantic British - I honestly don't know if their pricing is good, bad or otherwise - light research I've done says it's fair to good, but I'm willing to pay a bit more for the resource - these guys have a short, simple video for just about everything - has been a huge money saver. Not being compensated, I've never even spoken to those guys, but very happy with every order I've made.

So, on to the repair process:.
First step, after getting plates and insurance, was to the local Land Rover dealer for a "post" purchase inspection and oil change - decided I needed to know what I did. Results were basically positive, in addition to the known issues we uncovered some new issues:

New Issues:

Onboard computer won't communicate with the code reader
Worn Steering Linkage
Leaky radiator
Small transfer case drip

First step was to have the dealer replace the worn steering linkage and then do an alignment.
Cost: Inspection, Oil Change, Steering Linkage, Alignment: $560

Hopefully that's the worst of it......

Next: Woke up 2 days in a row to a dead battery - funny that wasn't noticed during inspection.... $114 at Wallyworld (only place open at 7:00 on a Sunday morning - wife was out of town with the Xterra, so I took the Ninja, dead battery strapped on the back)

Now, how to figure out that SES light.... On to JC British in Denver - really nice guys, spend several hours on the truck, and while they couldn't figure out why the computer won't communicate, they were able to jump some connections and figure out that the code was for the upstream O2 sensors... Cost $150 and service was great, will keep them in mind when it needs something bigger than I can handle...

Now to get my hands dirty - first up, O2 sensors. Easy to do, hard to reach - couple hours in the driveway, most of that time spent trying to unplug the wire harness clips - very hard for me to reach, but instant fix (SES went out and stayed out). While I was at it, replaced the driver's side headlight squirter. Cost $180 for both sensors, O2 Sensor socket, headlight squirter and shipping - Atlantic British

Now the big one - Three Amigos. I did a lot of reading on this issue prior to, during and after my purchase - Both the dealer and JC British wanted in the neighborhood of $2k to fix - but I knew this was one of the big gambles with this truck - the Shuttle Valve is only about $80, which is less then the cost of having the codes pulled at the dealer. If they can even pull the codes, because we still don't know what's going on with that computer interface. So, once again, I watched the video a couple times and ordered the part. Was actually an easy repair (without removing the ABS block) - took about an hour and instant fix - 3 Amigos are gone!! Cost: $80 - Atlantic British

Here's a weird one - I didn't notice during my test drive, (although it became obvious once I saw it) and the dealer didn't point out during their inspection, but JC British noticed right away - the "great Audi mechanic" the original owner had been using, had replaced a very custom to Rover Radiator vent hose with a length of stock 1/4"ID fuel line. No big deal, there's very little pressure in this line, it just connects the coolant reservoir with the radiator, but he did it in such a sloppy way that it was literally laying between the top of the engine and the hood - once it was pointed out to me, wear marks were clearly visible.... Weird thing is - this is a $34 part. While I was ordering it, I also got a new light bulb for the clock, and a new boot for the parking brake. Total Cost: $51, again, Atlantic British, 2 hours total for all three parts - hardest part was getting the clock out - of course there are plenty of videos on line - it really does take 2 credit cards and a lot of luck. Right before you are ready to accept that it's impossible, and that you just don't get to see the time at night, the clock pops right out in your hand.

Back to the "great Audi mechanic" - a couple other sloppy things have come up - when he did the head gaskets, apparently he never put the mounting bolt back in the dipstick holder, so it was just swaying around in there - new bolt, cost = free. He also didn't replace the coils or plug wires - easy and relatively cheap when you already have the heads off, turns out it's about 5 hours of labor when you don't - so we'll hope those hold up for awhile. Can't wait to see what other shortcuts he took.

On to the radio - if I had a Civic with a Coffee Can exhaust and blue lights on the windshield washer squirters, I would love this red and blue lighted Alpine unit the original owner put in - but I wouldn't love the half way install job (it falls out at railroad tracks) or the fact that he just plugged the high out-put leads right into the factory Harmon Kardon system - and it gets horrible radio reception. So it's staticky, over-boosted, doesn't look right and it falls out. Sweet. Wonder if his same Audi buddy did that install. Anyway, found an original headunit on Craigslist for $45 - plugged right in, didn't even need codes, sound is fantastic, steering wheel controls work again, etc... Cost $45 and shout out to Matt at Roadside Werx in Denver, seems like a standup guy. Alpine is in a shoebox in the garage, will be the perfect headunit for a different project. Some day.

But why is it so dusty? Took it on a dirt road, cabin instantly filled with dust. A little research and I discovered that the cabin pollen filter is probably original - most of it is missing and what is there falls apart when I touch it. $37 from, you guessed it, Atlantic British - part is in the mail.

Next up: Radiator. The leak is very slow, and comes from a uniquely poor design - the screws at the top of the radiator are poorly spec'd by Landrover - they look like something you might find in your yard after a hail storm comes through and the neighbors use one of those storm chaser crews to do a shoddy job of replacing their gutters. I've tried a few different types of RTV - but it's all one piece, the radiator has to go.

Then - Transfer case - will only engage low after the battery has been disconnected, which tells me the electronic lock-out has failed (known issue) - when I get around to fixing the leak, I'll also remove the lockout and swap the shift knob and linkage with one from an '04, which will activate the hidden locking transfer case.

Tires - Tires are fine, but I like great. This can wait a bit though, trying to keep the money burn at a low roar.

Eventually - front sunroof. Opens great and doesn't leak, but gets hung up in the closing process -

Plans: Currently my daily driver (my beloved Xterra is in the hands of my wife), going to continue playing with it over the winter, make sure it's safe and sound, and then hand it over to my oldest daughter when she turns 16 next summer.

So far, after 4 months and about 4k miles, I'm into it for about $5k including purchase, and daily drive it - to be honest, as a daily driver it's not as comfortable, or as fast, as my Xterra, and gets even worse gas mileage - but I love it. Everybody has their own opinions, but for me, other than the Defender, which is not in the realm of reality for me, this is the best Landrover body style - it has soul and potential and, even though it's had issues, has not let us down. I know the engine is a wild card, but as I get the maintenance back under control, it looks, sounds, drives and smells like an engine that has a lot of life left in it.

I don't know if this will be helpful to anybody, but it's the kind of thing I was looking for when I was searching....

6 month update -
Replaced Radiator, Thermostat and lower radiator hose, $385 from Atlantic British, plus consumables (coolant, shoprags, etc...)
That's a job - LandRover quoted me 3-3.5 hours, and halfway through I almost took them up on it. Took me about 6, beginning to end. Followed the service manual step by step - broke a couple scrivets (I hate those things, kind of little plastic breakable things, Rover loves them). Only change I made was that I elected to not remove the fan, and not unhook the oil cooler, kind of a strange "snap together" fitting, which seems a weird choice for something under pressure.... It is definitely possible to replace the radiator this way - it might have taken me some extra time, but was negligible in the long run. I made that oil-cooler fitting mad anyway jostling it around, so had a definite oil leak when I was done. Turn out that it's not leaking but oil is coming from somewhere. At this point I'm just going to drive around with a couple bottles of 5/30 and check it every week.

So that's it, truck runs great, still happy I bought it - and very happy to save yet another $1k vs the dealer quote.

8 month update:

New Tires: BFG ATs in stock size 255/55/18: $968. I know I said the tires were fine, but we had an ice storm, and the rover had to fully engage traction control to get up my 20 foot long, barely sloping driveway into the garage. The same driveway that the Xterra walked up in 2-wheel drive. So the tires had to go. With my wife and one daughter, soon to be two daughters, driving this vehicle, in a place that can go from 70 degrees to 12" of snow on the ground in 24 hours - I don't mess around with tires. The BFGs have been great to me on many trucks - although I do find the Goodyear Duratracs to be amazing in the snow. Unfortunately they don't make them in this size - my local Discount has been really good to me over the years (and me to them) and they brought in the Duratracs in the next size up and test fit - but they rubbed considerably. So I went with the BFGs - looks pretty good...

Then - I almost thought I had a major issue yesterday - stopped to get a coffee, and when I came out there was obvious coolant dripping from the engine - scary moment but it turns out that the lower radiator hose had come loose. Totally my fault, must have forgotten to check when I put the new radiator, and this hose, in a couple months ago. 10 minutes, $12 worth of coolant and feeling pretty lucky. Since I put that radiator in, I've driven through deep snow, up to ski areas, through city traffic..... basically 1,000+ miles of driving, that hose could have popped off anywhere. Very lucky it happened at the coffee shop 1 mile from my house.

Next issue: Very slow brake fluid leak. I'm feeling like its coming from the junction between the master cylinder and the brake fluid reservoir. Probably take it to a shop for this one, after doing some on-line investigation I'm thinking I'll never get the brakes bled properly when I'm done. Will update after that is complete.
 
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Stamos

New member
Sounds about par for the course given the year and mileage. Being able to do nearly all of your own work will certainly keep costs down as she ages.
 

jgdisco2

Adventurer
Good write up! I know you've found AB but also check out rovers north and lucky8.. Good companies to do business with. Most prices are around the same but they all run different specials.
 

brushogger

Explorer
Disco 2 - first 4 months update

Good write up! I know you've found AB but also check out rovers north and lucky8.. Good companies to do business with. Most prices are around the same but they all run different specials.

This x 2. Also check out discoweb.org. Great knowledge base there. Also on there Will Tillery, and Drillbit are good resources for used parts. PT Schram is a rover genius.
 

kcabpilot

Observer
You gotta admit that, considering the price of admission and despite all of the typical niggly little things, the Disco is a pretty good deal for a capable DIY'er. Maybe not so good for a checkbook mechanic but nowadays, as with pretty much any vehicle over ten years old, anything and everything that can go wrong along with how to fix it is fully documented on the internet. People have put together complete illustrated PDF documents and posted them in the user forums and there are even "how-to's" on YouTube from both owners and parts vendors on pretty much anything you're likely to encounter including enabling your center diff lock if it hasn't already been done.

As to your scanner problem - my guess is the OBD2 connector. There are like four or five wires and that's the only part that ever gets touched with people plugging scanners into it. Probably a pushed back or buggered pin. Drop that knee panel down and you can get to the back of it for a look-see.

I've had my 2001 D2 since 2007 and put over 100,000 miles on it dealing with the usual suspects along the way - 3 amigos, throttle body heater leaks, front driveshaft u-joints, head gaskets etc. It has never left me stranded anywhere though. Just recently I upgraded by dropping in a low mileage 4.6 liter that I got from Drillbit on discoweb.
 

Mr. Pickles

Observer
My '01 wouldn't shift into 4 lo and all it needed was the solenoid.

Look into getting the 180 degree t stat and replace those front drive shaft ujoints with greasable ones. All of these are very inexpensive and easy to fix with your experience.
 

brushogger

Explorer
If someone could come up with a 4.3l Chevy v6 conversion that could integrate all the electronics it would be the ultimate vehicle! The engine is really the only weak link.
 

kcabpilot

Observer
For less money and hassle you can build a new 4.6 Rover V8 with flanged liners which will eliminate all of the known sleeve/head gasket issues.
 

Maddmatt

Explorer
You gotta admit that, considering the price of admission and despite all of the typical niggly little things, the Disco is a pretty good deal for a capable DIY'er.

As to your scanner problem - my guess is the OBD2 connector. There are like four or five wires and that's the only part that ever gets touched with people plugging scanners into it. Probably a pushed back or buggered pin. Drop that knee panel down and you can get to the back of it for a look-see.

That was my thought too - cost of entry was reasonable, and all used cars need something - I'd rather put my time and money into something that makes me smile than a beige econo-box....

Also had the same thought on the connector - everything else is solid state and well protected, not much to go wrong. Thought it was strange that two shops in a row didn't think so, but that's going to be back burner for awhile.

Anyway, radiator, lower hoses (just because they'll be easier to reach with the radiator out) and thermostat are next.....
 

brushogger

Explorer
Disco 2 - first 4 months update

For less money and hassle you can build a new 4.6 Rover V8 with flanged liners which will eliminate all of the known sleeve/head gasket issues.

And have a motor with low mpg, relatively low power, have to run premium, and still deal with head gasket issues. The 4.3 in my work van gets 15 mpg consistently. It's a 3/4 ton that is always loaded with at least 1000 lbs. it has 300k miles on it and has had zero engine issues. Replaced trams under warranty and added a cooler. No issues since.
How many 4.6's go even 100,000 miles on original head gaskets? None that I know of. I speak as a former disco owner that had the head gaskets done at 33k when they started seeping. The liners let go at 73k, and LR wouldn't back it as it had been out of warranty for a year even though it was low mileage. The trucks are great, but the engine is an antique that was bored and stroked past the limit to have any durability.
 
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Maddmatt

Explorer
update

I'm using this forum as a work record for myself as much as a communication tool, so here's an update to the recent work done, also added to the original post and updated the running total $ spend....

6 month update -
Replaced Radiator, Thermostat and lower radiator hose, $385 from Atlantic British, plus consumables (coolant, shoprags, etc...)
That's a job - LandRover quoted me 3-3.5 hours, and halfway through I almost took them up on it. Took me about 6, beginning to end. Followed the service manual step by step - broke a couple scrivets (I hate those things, kind of little plastic breakable things, Rover loves them). Only change I made was that I elected to not remove the fan, and not unhook the oil cooler, kind of a strange "snap together" fitting, which seems a weird choice for something under pressure.... It is definitely possible to replace the radiator this way - it might have taken me some extra time, but was negligible in the long run. I made that oil-cooler fitting mad anyway jostling it around, so had a definite oil leak when I was done. Turn out that it's not leaking but oil is coming from somewhere. At this point I'm just going to drive around with a couple bottles of 5/30 and check it every week.

So that's it, truck runs great, still happy I bought it - and very happy to save yet another $1k vs the dealer quote.
 

Longtallsally

Adventurer
Glad to see this. I'm about to do the radiator, temp switch and 180F thermostat. I wasn't even going to consult the manual as an engine flush and radiator is pretty straightforward. Or so I thought... Any advice?
 

Maddmatt

Explorer
hmm... in no particular order:

I found the manual pretty useful - my best advice is to set aside a place to lay out all the parts you take off - to access some of the mounting bolts for the radiator, you need to remove the horns, which means you need to remove the grill, which means you need to remove the headlight finishers, which means you need to remove the turn signals..... That's a lot of expensive plastic British pieces. I used the cardboard that the radiator came in, and laid everything out in the order that I removed it. Ended up being a really good idea, as I was pretty tired and it was getting dark by the time it was done.

There are a couple guys on the internet who say you don't need to remove the grill, but they must be much more flexible than me. As it is, my hands are still pretty scratched up.

You don't need to remove the oil cooler, even though the manual calls for it - but it added some time figuring out how to wiggle the radiator out with that thing still connected, and I did make it angry. The oil leak I caused seems to be better now.

I didn't do a full flush - the previous owner had it done in the year before I bought it, so didn't seem necessary. As it is I drained out nearly 6 liters of coolant - it only holds 6.5.

You need a pretty long, or very short, phillips-head to access the mounting screw for the turn signals - I ended up running to the store and buying an extendable screwdriver, which I then used many other times. If it was magnetic, it would probably become one of my favorite tools.

Bleeding out the system didn't seem as difficult to me as some people on line have found it - I just followed the manual and held the reservoir up as high as it would go with the bleed screw out - seemed to work fine. Put it back together, two laps around the block, added some coolant, and it's been holding steady ever since.

At one point I ended up taking the top of the aircleaner off, and the tube that runs from there to the engine, just to get a bit better access.

Cheap absorbent cloths are a good idea - I tend to spill a lot and don't like coolant around the dogs, etc....

Good luck - if I think of anything else I'll post it up.
 

Longtallsally

Adventurer
Thanks. I started digging into it today. I got the system just drained a bit and started pulling parts and now have studied the manual. The bit in the manual of "use the small access hole" to remove the finishing piece is pretty dippy. Nigel is a bit loopy in some his designs.

I should have the grill off tomorrow, which should get the ball rolling pretty well. The real mess is going to be the flush, but whatever.

I gotta hurry up and get the darn thing done as I've got a bike trip in a few weeks in Death Valley and I've not even started on the trainload of maintenance/prep I need to do to it before I go. No, I'm not taking the Disco- still don't trust it that much- but I'd like to have it out of garage ASAP.
 

Maddmatt

Explorer
Yeah, that "small access hole" is what resulted in my extendable screwdriver... I must have done it right, -6f this morning and she runs like a champ. good luck!
 

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