Help! First time buyer, overwhelmed by buying guides!

Hello!

After dreaming of owning a Land Rover my entire life, I think the time has finally come. It's a Defender I'm after, mainly for towing a 700kg - 1000kg caravan and a much lighter motorbike trailer and for general daily use including the 20 mile commute to work each day. My budget depends on the bank loan I'll have to take out, but will almost certainly be no more than £5,000.

However, having spent all day browsing eBay and other dealerships/car dealer web sites and reading buying guide after buying guide I'm both overwhelmed and scared to death!

I've read lots of topics on this forum and others, and many buying guides, but my list of things to check when buying a second hand Landy is so long that I'll need to spend 6 hours closely examining every single one and I'll only ever find one that satisfies my checklist that's brand new!

I guess the most important things (other than common sense stuff like obvious rust, doors falling off, hole in the roof etc...) are rust in the chassis and rust in between the engine bay and cabin (the vertical wall underneath the windscreen). Presumably all other checks are common to all vehicles (Land Rover or otherwise) and are like to be problems of any other vehicle ever made, right?

Also, a few questions I've not managed to find answers for yet...

I get 34mpg on my petrol Ford Mondeo at the moment. What would a typical 200TDi or a 300TDi give?

How much Road Tax do these things attract? I pay £180 per year at the moment for the Mondeo I think.

Petrol vs diesel - I can't find any preference either way really although I personally have a leaning towards diesel because I associate it with reliability, longevity, pulling power, efficiency etc... wrongly or rightly!

Finally, what sort of vehicle should I look for given my price range? In summary, I want as cheap as possible, but I don't want a false economy. I need to reach a balance. £5,000 really would be the absolute top of my price range. £2,500 would be better, but it may not be cost effective to buy one for £2,500 because maybe it means i'll have to spent £5,000 fixing it over the next 2 years.

Any recommended range of years I should look in given the price range? Any particular features?

Remember... i'm already overwhelmed with information and things to look for, and out of all of my friends, I don't know anyone who is knowledgeable enough about Land Rovers who could come with me to examine one! Lots of friends, but none who have the knowledge!

Any advice gratefully received, and in the mean time I will continue to browse this forum and others!

Oh, and ideally it'll be mine in 11 days time, but I'd rather get a decent one than buy a crap one simply because i'm in a rush! If it's do-able in 11 days, I'll go for it!

i cant believe im saying this but tbh it sounds like a disco will be best suited to what you want to use it for..plus you will get a lot newer disco for your money..

a defender is great and is the best offroader by far..
but they aint great on fuel,there uncomfortable,noisy,a botomless money pit the list goes on..

not to say a disco aint any of the above,but really you need to test drive both and make yr own mind up..

wow! i'm quite surprised actually. Don't get me wrong, I do love Defenders, but would probably be just as happy with a Disco.

The reason I've been looking at Defenders is (a) because they are a true classic in my eyes and (b) I figured the Disco was full of features compared with the relaively basic Defender and my money would therefore go towards a more reliable vehicle with a Defender whereas i'd end up with a less reliable Disco, but with many more features. But actually its kinda the other way around?!?

Maybe I should test drive one of each... That damn thing called work keeps getting in the way though, doesn't it! lol, I'll either have to take a day's leave or go next weekend! Can't get around that issue though, can i? lol

Definately sounds like you're in Disco territory. you'll get a pretty decent 300tdi for 2.5-3k which will have years of life in it if treated properly, whereabouts in Cambs are you? there might be someone near you that could go with you to have a look if you find one you like.

I'll second the disco, going from a mondeo family car to a defender will have you pulling your hair out within days! they're cold in winter (VERY) quite noisey (you can't really hear the radio) and not to brilliant on fuel ( being as aerodynamic as a house side), but sa soon as you show a defender a muddy field or hill, then all of the negatives just fall away. If you want a landrover thats reasonably comfortable and queit with a decent heater then go with a Discovery 300tdi.

I've had 90, 110's & disco's & I concur with WLM you'll be far happier with a disco.

One thing to look out for, as many will tell you, when going for a Disco is the rot on the boot floor (lift the boot carpet to check) and inner/outer sills and rear wheel arches inside of the door shuts, plenty of info on here. Good luck.

Oh, decisions, decisions... i've just started looking at Disco's and I can't stop seeing the words "Chelsea tractor" written beneath it, especially for what i'd be using it for (daily commute with occasional towing)!

In reality, the Defender is worse (from what you said above), but doesn't strike me as quite as bad a vehicle in that respect! Perhaps I'm too self-conscious!

So... the big question... why do I get a newer, more comfortable, more feature-rich Discovery for my money? My instinct tells me it's because they're less reliable, not as good at pulling my caravan off the rally field after a rainy weekend, and full of buttons on the dashboard that no longer work, but is that really the case? Seemingly not!

I'm just so surprised that something older and more basic can cost more than something newer and feature-rich without there being something wrong with the newer one!

Oh, and I'm in Huntingdon, Cambs. Anyone willing to accompany me to a local dealer to offer some technical assistance to counteract my "i must have *that* one!" tendencies?

No idea which day it'd be yet as it all depends when the dealer is open and which day I can get off work!

Well looks like you have us all stumped there mate! why the hell are defenders so bloody expensive???? I guess it's down to partly supply and demand, the discovery sold by the millions and when it came out took sales away from the defender? wish I knew really, why do people pay more for vinyl records when cd's are cheaper/better???
there is notthing wrong with a tidy discovery and they are very competent off road (check out Kirton offroad vids on youtube) but for some reason they just don't hold thier value like a Defender.

Here's a couple to show you what disco you can get,

This looks like a good nick 300 with some extras
LANDROVER DISCOVERY 300 TDI ES offroad/on road on eBay (end time 04-Sep-10 12:43:55 BST)

This is a nice looking v8 with lpg
1997 LAND ROVER DISCOVERY RED on eBay (end time 02-Sep-10 20:35:19 BST)

If the adverts correct and ther is no rot that's a lot of motor for the money.

wow... that first one looks very tempting indeed. not far from me either.

second one's nice too, but I think i'd go for the first one given the choice!

One thing I think I've learned from this discussion is what I should expect to pay. For example, £500 for a 12 year old Ford Mondeo is probably average. If it's cheaper, there's probably something wrong with it and if it's more expensive it must be amazing. As for BMW 5 series, maybe £8000 is the average figure (who knows!).

For Disco's however, I had no idea. If i were going to attempt to purchase the first one, however, other than obvious signs of rust and checking for play in the steering, making sure it starts first time and all the gears work etc... (and checking for rust underneath the boot carpet), anything else obvious to look for?

And, if I were going to look at it (in Kings Lynn, Norfolk), would anyone potentially be able to accompany me either for cash or beer to give it a bit of a technical look-over (with no comeback if you genuinely screw up, of course)?

you said it yourself mate. the defender is the 'proper' land rover which everyone wants so costs more. disco's are good cars and share engines and stuff with the defender, but they don't have the same 'cool' appeal. just my opinion.

hmm... a Disco it is, then!

So... anyone live anywhere near Kings Lynn, Norfolk and happy to come and have a look at it with me to look for the obvious faults and problems?

Needless to say, I can pay you in either cash, food or beer and within reason go any day you can make (even weekday if I can get the leave in time!)

Same probs for me here- when I get sorted selling what ive got then will probably be looking same kinda money. Head says Disco, heart says Defender.

Ive heard about the downfalls of the defender ie the cold in winter but after riding motorbikes through the winter in the last few years anything that keeps the wind off will be pleasant for me-LOL

I'm no mechanic but I do most of the work on my disco myself, if you drop us a pm to let me know when I'll see if I'm free to come have a look with you unless you can find someone more qualified in the mean time.

Matt.

barmatt said:

I'm no mechanic but I do most of the work on my disco myself, if you drop us a pm to let me know when I'll see if I'm free to come have a look with you unless you can find someone more qualified in the mean time.

Matt.

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Thanks a bunch, Matt! (And I'm not being sarcastic! )

I guess I will do exactly what you say - if nobody else responds, I'll come to you! lol, i need to check many things tomorrow regarding my current car (which is in the garage!), what the insurance will cost on that Disco with all those mods, etc... but I'll send you a PM as soon as I can!

I need to hear back from the seller first too to find out if he/she is even willing to sell it directly as it's on a a normal auction at the moment.

What would road tax be on a 300 TDI Disco?

I've sent a PM your way, barmatt!

i dint read much of your op ,but 5k might get you a warrior one of these Used MITSUBISHI SHOGUN SPORT Car for Sale - Auto Trader UK ,i wood.

if youre wanting a comfortable landrover then go for a disco or a rangerover classic. me and my mrs drive a 93 defender and what a vehicle it is, totally reliable so far! i wouldnt change it for the world even if its cold noisey etc etc. in my eyes there the ultimate 4x4. the mrs drives it to and from work everyday 30mile a day and she loves it and hasnt complained yet. there just so full of caracter and makes me smile everytime i drive her. Only problem with discos/rangeys is rust in the boot floor, cills, floor panels from water ingressed sponge carpets. inner wings, seat belt ancor points, all very complex repair areas if you ask me. yet a defenders main points are chassis and bulkhead and thats it really which are both easy enough to repair