P38 V8 advice

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Stuart hall

Stuart hall

Active Member
Posts
385
Location
Lanzarote
Hi all, greetings from the other side
( freelander owner ) I'm thinking of upgrading to a p38 and wondered what to look for in a 98 V8 and what kind of money do they achieve ?
I've seen a nice clean example with just over 100 k advertised for £2600
From a dealer so guess it's slightly inflated.
Any tips on rough value and faults to look for would be much appreciated.
Thanks guy's.
 
P38 ownership can be quite varied. As the vehciles are quite sophisticated. I would highly recommend in investing in something like a Nanocom at the time of purchase.

On the flip side you arguably are looking at what may be the best Range Rover built by LR. Being completely traditional in chassis design and off road ability. But with all the faults of the classic addressed and retaining the distinctive looks.

Prices are equally all over the place too. You still see sub £1k examples. But look on Autotrader and other places and there are examples up for £12-16k!!!! No idea if the pricey ones are selling though.

If you want it for off road use the. The 4 wheel tcs models will be more capable. I believe the 4 wheel traction control was introduced for the 1999 model year. Spec and model can also influence what traction system they have. So worth doing some reading up.

There where 2 V8’s offered. The 4.0 and 4.6. Both have similar mpg and similar risks. The 4.6 is more powerful however. Most 4.6 models are also well specced which might be something to consider. Although a 4.0 could have had options to up the spec.

The biggest benefit with the 4.0 is it was offered with the R380 5 speed manual as well as the auto. The 4.6 only ever came as an auto. The manual will be faster, more fun and more frugal.

The 4.6 also uses a stronger auto box while the 4.0 uses the same auto box as the diesel.

Mpg. They do like a drink. I reset the trip on my 4.6 for a 40 ish mile trip home last weekend towing a smallish trailer (empty). I got 20.6mpg. But do any town work, let it idle much or use a heavy right foot and it’ll drop. 15-17mpg overall average is far more realistic for varied use. And probably down to 12mpg for heavy town or hooligan use.

On the flip side. Touring they should manage 370-400 miles to a tank.

Personally I’d want one with air suspension. Sometimes it gets a bad rap and many have been converted to coils. But the air suspension is such an integral part of the cars character and design. It just seems wrong to have it removed.
 
300bhp/ton said:
P38 ownership can be quite varied. As the vehciles are quite sophisticated. I would highly recommend in investing in something like a Nanocom at the time of purchase.

On the flip side you arguably are looking at what may be the best Range Rover built by LR. Being completely traditional in chassis design and off road ability. But with all the faults of the classic addressed and retaining the distinctive looks.

Prices are equally all over the place too. You still see sub £1k examples. But look on Autotrader and other places and there are examples up for £12-16k!!!! No idea if the pricey ones are selling though.

If you want it for off road use the. The 4 wheel tcs models will be more capable. I believe the 4 wheel traction control was introduced for the 1999 model year. Spec and model can also influence what traction system they have. So worth doing some reading up.

There where 2 V8’s offered. The 4.0 and 4.6. Both have similar mpg and similar risks. The 4.6 is more powerful however. Most 4.6 models are also well specced which might be something to consider. Although a 4.0 could have had options to up the spec.

The biggest benefit with the 4.0 is it was offered with the R380 5 speed manual as well as the auto. The 4.6 only ever came as an auto. The manual will be faster, more fun and more frugal.

The 4.6 also uses a stronger auto box while the 4.0 uses the same auto box as the diesel.

Mpg. They do like a drink. I reset the trip on my 4.6 for a 40 ish mile trip home last weekend towing a smallish trailer (empty). I got 20.6mpg. But do any town work, let it idle much or use a heavy right foot and it’ll drop. 15-17mpg overall average is far more realistic for varied use. And probably down to 12mpg for heavy town or hooligan use.

On the flip side. Touring they should manage 370-400 miles to a tank.

Personally I’d want one with air suspension. Sometimes it gets a bad rap and many have been converted to coils. But the air suspension is such an integral part of the cars character and design. It just seems wrong to have it removed.
Click to expand...
Many thanks for your reply, I know it was a kind of numpty question. The model I've seen is a 98 ( late ) 4.6 auto. 100k with alleged Fsh.
I'm not interested in off roading at the mo. And mpg isn't an issue as only cover around 1000 miles a year ( all motorway )
As it's a dealer I can px my car so will only have to pay an extra £800 odd.
At least now I can way up the pros n cons so many thanks again.
 
That's a gems. That's quite expensive unless it's mint. I consider less is more at this age. No sat nav.tick. no lpg. Tick. No daft accessories( ps1 videos etc) .tick. air conditioning working.tick.
I wouldn't want a 4l as 4.6 are usually better spec.
100000 m is not really low mileage.ie 100000 with no big jobs done is a potential money pit.
Tyres can be £500 if there dodgy.
Then there's the engine... I would suggest gems is not as desirable as Thor atm. Cracked liners notwithstanding.
For me to buy this I would need evidence of a top hat rebuild. Sorry.
 
Rereading the top hat bits probably a bit Ott.!
The main thing to take away is caveat emptor. 2600 is ok if it's got no big issues on the horizon and it's a Thor.
 
johnnyb70 said:
That's a gems. That's quite expensive unless it's mint. I consider less is more at this age. No sat nav.tick. no lpg. Tick. No daft accessories( ps1 videos etc) .tick. air conditioning working.tick.
I wouldn't want a 4l as 4.6 are usually better spec.
100000 m is not really low mileage.ie 100000 with no big jobs done is a potential money pit.
Tyres can be £500 if there dodgy.
Then there's the engine... I would suggest gems is not as desirable as Thor atm. Cracked liners notwithstanding.
For me to buy this I would need evidence of a top hat rebuild. Sorry.
Click to expand...

Lol no apologies necessary, I appreciate all the tips and advice, it's advertised on flea bay if you fancy a look.
I see in the ad it said years mot but that was in jan so he obviously can't shift it !
It was up for nearly 3k now asking £2650.
Also states it's a rare colour, Atlantis blue ? I used to be in the trade and we called it doom n gloom blue lol.
I need to px my Audi tt and don't have the time or patience to sell mine first.
Guess it all hangs on what he offers for mine and how desperate he is to sell.
 
He will put mot on when he sells. Rare colour means zilch. To me many colours are very dated looking but if a.you like it and a.you like it that's all that matters. Reds blues champagne bad. Black green silver better .
 
300bhp/ton said:
Prices are equally all over the place too. You still see sub £1k examples. But look on Autotrader and other places and there are examples up for £12-16k!!!! No idea if the pricey ones are selling though.
Click to expand...
And there are indeed total "MUGS" like me that buy them at those stupid high-prices.
It isn't totally true that "You only get what you pay for though". My 4.6 Vogue looks like it has never been used (which may or may not be true), but it exhibits all of the "usual" issues for a car that's 18 years old.
 
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Its way over priced you can get a fully specced thor 4.6 and who said the 4.0 gives better mpg total crap the thor 4.6 give the best mpg iv had as much as 23mpg and as low as 9.
Walk away
 
Stuart hall said:
Lol no apologies necessary, I appreciate all the tips and advice, it's advertised on flea bay if you fancy a look.
I see in the ad it said years mot but that was in jan so he obviously can't shift it !
It was up for nearly 3k now asking £2650.
Also states it's a rare colour, Atlantis blue ? I used to be in the trade and we called it doom n gloom blue lol.
I need to px my Audi tt and don't have the time or patience to sell mine first.
Guess it all hangs on what he offers for mine and how desperate he is to sell.
Click to expand...
I don’t agree with the walk away attitude some are saying. If it is tidy and has plenty of bits working and you like it. Then that’s all that matters really.

It is worth checking to see how much alternatives are in the area. But if you are relying on a trade in, then your choices might be limited. It is also worth reading up on p38 ownership loads of info available via Google. Just don’t scare youself. All vehciles can and do have issues.
 
Well, if you used to be in the trade you'll know what to look out for - you'll soon see if the vehicle has been looked after by its previous keepers.
A history file is a must - service records and receipts.
At the end of the day it comes down to your gut feeling about the car and whether you are happy with the financials - try and get a warranty out of them if poss but if a bona fide dealer they already have responsibilities in place to a certain extent.
Use an MOT checker app and see what the cars has failed on in the past also advisories.
All joking aside (see my last post) if your happy that's the main thing but as said by others things can (and do) go wrong.
Don't know about Atlantis Blue but surely it isn't like that ghastly doom blue that Ford used to paint its cars with in years past.
And make sure it has two keys.
 
Thank you all for your input, very interesting and varying opinions, I was in the trade but many moons ago, new vehicles like that cost more than my house !
I obviously don't expect every bell and whistle to work on a twenty year old vehicle.
I've looked it up on the mot site and for the last five or so years has only covered 2k ish per year. He recons it has fsh and when it did fail test was only on simple issues.
I consider anything for that price to be banger money.
But I really do appreciate All your comments. Thanks again.
 
Stuart hall said:
Thank you all for your input, very interesting and varying opinions, I was in the trade but many moons ago, new vehicles like that cost more than my house !
I obviously don't expect every bell and whistle to work on a twenty year old vehicle.
I've looked it up on the mot site and for the last five or so years has only covered 2k ish per year. He recons it has fsh and when it did fail test was only on simple issues.
I consider anything for that price to be banger money.
But I really do appreciate All your comments. Thanks again.
Click to expand...
Thought you still had a few years to serve of your sentence Stewart .It should be a collector's item by the time you get out. :eek::)
 
One thing would it be a target for thieves ?
I read with dismay what happens to some members cars, I'm hoping it's too old and relatively worthless to get half inched !
 
Hold back a grand for repairs.

Air suspension likely to need repairs but all fairly cheap and doable with help on here.
100k miles is about £20k short of head gasket failure but again it can be done relatively cheaply.
Make sure all gearbox, transfer box and diff oils have been replaced.
Should have generation 3 RF receiver. If it doesn't knock £300 off the price.

All the usual buying caveats apply but more so: even a sniff of something not 100%, walk away. Manual has ****y spiral clutch pins that tend to break so another reason to go 4.6, that and it has a 4 pin diff.
 
Stuart hall said:
One thing would it be a target for thieves ?
I read with dismay what happens to some members cars, I'm hoping it's too old and relatively worthless to get half inched !
Click to expand...

No. Half the owners on here cannot start their own cars. Keys are £160 each from the Stealer and without it you are stuffed. Any thief who manages to start one gets away in one has well and truly earned it. Besides, there are so many parts on the bay he'd make no money so theft not an issue.
 
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