Disco 3 (LR3) Today I'm looking at a Disco 3 2005 with 137,000 miles; is this too high?

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Andrew1709

New Member
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7
Location
Haslemere, Surrey
Its a 55 plate diesel SE with apparently full service history. I'm aware many of these keep going to well over 200,000 miles but would appreciate anyone's guidance as this is a new and an important purchase. On sale for just under £8K, on the surface does this seem an OK deal?
land-rover-discovery-4x4-diesel.jpg
 
Most sellers are good at polishing the outside.

Don't suppose there is any chance of a few underbonnet/underside shots?
Haven't any under the bonnet shots Turbo but this is a relatively local garage that specialises in 4 x 4s - mainly Defenders so I'm expecting the usual standard of valeting at such establishments. Its the documented history I want to explore!
 
Haven't any under the bonnet shots Turbo but this is a relatively local garage that specialises in 4 x 4s - mainly Defenders so I'm expecting the usual standard of valeting at such establishments. Its the documented history I want to explore!

Think there is an online MOT database, should be able to check mileages and continuity for any vehicle.

All things being equal, a private sale will often be better than a dealer, they have to add money somewhere.
 
i wouldnt touch it. nearly every mot its had tyres on the limit and one fail because the cords were showing. it hasn't been looked after.
 
i wouldnt touch it. nearly every mot its had tyres on the limit and one fail because the cords were showing. it hasn't been looked after.
Hi Bobdog, thanks for the advice. If a driver doesn't check his tyres, whilst that is both irresponsible and stupid, does that necessary eliminate a car from consideration.? The documentation and service history is very detailed and whatever came up on MOTs was sorted. It certainly drives very well with good tyres, new discs and pads all round; both cam belts done, suspension arms sorted - all the usuals for a car of this age.
 
Hi Bobdog, thanks for the advice. If a driver doesn't check his tyres, whilst that is both irresponsible and stupid, does that necessary eliminate a car from consideration.? The documentation and service history is very detailed and whatever came up on MOTs was sorted. It certainly drives very well with good tyres, new discs and pads all round; both cam belts done, suspension arms sorted - all the usuals for a car of this age.
it doesn't necessarily eliminate it but it should make you look more carefully at it. it depends how many owners its had. for example- it could have had say, 4 owners, 3 of them looked after it but one didnt bother checking the tyres. though its had advisories for tyres, some owners might have waited to see what else the MOT threw up before changing them. obviously i haven't seen the service history so if you are confident any major issues have been sorted then its at least worth thinking about. its always a gamble buying used cars. when you think about it, you could see one thats flown through all MOT's, no advisories, no major work done and decent mileage. however it could be a timebomb of problems waiting to go off!
 
With that milage a lot of stuff will need replacing. So carefully check the brakes, rotors,calipers. u-joints, front steering for worn parts. leaky axle seals along with seals in transmission and engine seals. oil in the harness isue ( very common on TD5's. take the tryes off , this makes sure lug nuts are rusted solid. If you have a trusted garage have them do a bumper to bumper inspection. Also check the chassis that it is solid, and not covered with undercoating to hide holes and rust through
 
With that milage a lot of stuff will need replacing. So carefully check the brakes, rotors,calipers. u-joints, front steering for worn parts. leaky axle seals along with seals in transmission and engine seals. oil in the harness isue ( very common on TD5's. take the tryes off , this makes sure lug nuts are rusted solid. If you have a trusted garage have them do a bumper to bumper inspection. Also check the chassis that it is solid, and not covered with undercoating to hide holes and rust through
fair points but its not a TD5... its a D3...
 
With that milage a lot of stuff will need replacing. So carefully check the brakes, rotors,calipers. u-joints, front steering for worn parts. leaky axle seals along with seals in transmission and engine seals. oil in the harness isue ( very common on TD5's. take the tryes off , this makes sure lug nuts are rusted solid. If you have a trusted garage have them do a bumper to bumper inspection. Also check the chassis that it is solid, and not covered with undercoating to hide holes and rust through
Typical - jump in with both feet.
Tis a disco 3 not a 2
 
I would ask the garage to have a full suspension alignment check done, (and printed) as it's possible the uneven tyre wear may not necessarily be resolved. They could have it done at little cost.

I read that the Disco 3 hasn't a great reputation but I know of two long term owners running high milers with little trouble

Some people have a fixation about high mileage, my last car was sold on it's original clutch at 247k miles, longer journeys are often easier on a vehicle than short.
 
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