Please talk me out of my irrational desire for a Disco

[Longtallsally]

The problem I have is not really the monetary side of thing but time lost "sorting" things out.

Those electrical issues wont just go away and never come back.

Unless you swap the engine new niggles will show up. There WILL be days when you have to talk yourself into wrenching on it when you don't want to.


I love my rover(LR3) but eventually it may wear you down with "maintenance" AKA repairs your not willing to call repairs because you love it.

And here is the voice of reason I was looking for. Back when I was into cars, I was a BMW E30 nut. There was ALWAYS something to fix or that could be better, so I know that life well. It does wear on you. But when things are right, it's heaven.

And this brings me to my ridiculous justification: I have a reasonably new Jeep as a "back up" that is as reliable as a new car.

See why I'm struggling so much?

And here is the next quandary: do I pay more for one that is in good as can be expected running order, or truly get the straight body basket case and do a motor or whatever swap?

 

[Ray_G]

And here is the next quandary: do I pay more for one that is in good as can be expected running order, or truly get the straight body basket case and do a motor or whatever swap?

That is a personal pain threshold question; do you like frustration but saving a buck? If so the basket case may be a great way to get in a truck.

Personally I overspent on a relatively low mile, meticulously maintained, rare (relative, but 5 speeds are not the bulk of the herd) D1 and couldn't be happier that I spend most of my time doing small things or spending money on mods after having gotten 50k good miles out of a 20 year old truck.

Given the figures being thrown about, i.e. that 'normal' play money budget of up to $5k(ish) I'd suggest looking for a runner. Discoweb and Defender Source are good places to start-eventually NAS-ROW too as it builds membership, if you are looking for an enthusiast maintained truck. There is always fleabay and craigs for more adventure, likely lower initial price point, with the same great opportunities to get to know the truck by busting your knuckles on her for fun.
r-
R

 

[Longtallsally]

Very good points, Ray. And the more I think about it, getting a runner makes more sense and will be less pain to sort out.

The prices from what I've seen are ALL over the map, from bozo dealers dreaming about getting $13k for one, all the way down to sub $1k ones that someone is just sick of the headaches or can't afford to do a swap to a new motor. The balance point (and this is primarily from CL, as flea Bay sellers are on doobage for what they think the things are worth) is from $4-7k. I'm ok with that.

It also seems that no matter how good the machine is at the time of purchase, said knuckle busting will eventually happen no matter what, so as you mentioned, it's the threshold of frustration that one has in toleration of the joy when it is functioning correctly.

 

[Maddmatt]

hmmm - couple thoughts for you:

At 6'7", I don't know about the DII - headroom is not going to be a problem, but I'm 6' even, and with the seat all the way back I just have enough room for my legs. At your height you are probably used to having your knee rest against things when you drive, but I would recommend driving one for half an hour before you buy.

And it's definitely the other end of the spectrum, maintenance-wise, from the runner. I once bought a 3rd gen 4-runner with 167k and very little maintenance history (only the previous 10k miles) for $7k. 100k miles later, after only oil changes, one transmission flush (just because I thought I should) and 2 sets of tires I got $2k as a trade in. Talk about low maintenance..... I've opened the hood on the rover more times in 4 months than I did on the runner in nearly 10 years.... but my kids are a bit older and I'm finding my time coming back to me, and getting great satisfaction from making the rover just a little bit better every month...

 

[Longtallsally]

Again, good points. I'll find one locally to make sure I'll fit all right before committing on anything.

Maintenance, diagnosing, and fixing stuff doesn't really bother me as I've got a back up machine. And that brings me to another good reason to get one (or something) is to have a "spare" vehicle. Not that a Discovery is ideal for a reliable back up or the like, but it's more of that lame justification I've been going through.

Getting back to the initial post I made, I'm not really in the immediate market unless a real good deal presents itself. The therapy session of this thread has greatly helped.

 

[454]

I would never pay more than a few hundred dollars for a non-runner, no matter what condition the body and interior are in. They're simply not that rare.

 

[Longtallsally]

Well I more or less got the green light from the boss today. We ended up taking the Jeep with both kids for a couple errands today. My wife said that it was just too darn small. We CAN do it, but it really isn't very comfy for the family. In the RRS, plenty of room for everyone to be comfy- including the mutts (2 100lb Rhodesian Ridgebacks). A Disco would be perfect for doing that, and we wouldn't have to worry about making a mess in the back of her nice car.

So if anyone knows of any good '04 Disco IIs around...

 

[3ics]

Now that I hit page three, I see you will go for a Disco II. I bought my Disco I back in August and love it. Like you, I wanted one for a long time and with feedback from members here I made the jump! Looking forward to hearing about your updates!

 

[TexasTJ]

$13,500 will get you into my 97 300 TDi disco... Just saying

 

[Longtallsally]

$13,500 will get you into my 97 300 TDi disco... Just saying

I bet it will. Sorry, but if I'm gonna spend that much, it will either be a newer machine (LR3/4), or one I build and trust myself. Not doubting what you've done, but the more unmolested, the better to me. And these things aren't that nice to command that kinda money in my opinion. And I've already got a better diesel in the G.

So I went and test drove one today (an '03). It was a total bust- literally in that it overheated during the 10 minute test drive- but it gave me the data I was looking for in that I confirmed I fit, and that I truly liked how it drove. I've continued to look in various places and am pretty much expecting to have to do a fly and drive to get a rust free one that isn't a total basket case. So the hunt continues...

 

[Longtallsally]

Well I found one! It's an '01 and I've got to fly to CO for it, but it's well sorted and enthusiast owned, so it should be worth not holding out for an '04 as I'd initially wanted.

I head out in Saturday, but will post pics when I get it. WOOHOO!!!!

 

[Longtallsally]

I've got some little things to sort out, but it did really well in the 500 mile drive home in a white out. I even had to sleep in the truck as interstate 80 was closed in places and chain laws in effect.

 

[pdXDisco]

Nice! Welcome to the crazy world of Rover ownership....

 

[Longtallsally]

And what an interesting world it is. Disco web is invaluable as are other specific Rover forums. It's a lot like the E30 world as there are a million little things to fix all the time, but it is well documented and easy to get the parts. I think it will end up being a really nice machine when I'm done.

 

[Ray_G]

Congrats again, told you Dweb would be useful-and you seemed to have survived first contact over there rather well.

r-
Ray