Which Disco?

I have a bit of a dilemma... we're looking to replace our 6 year old Touran for a 4x4 as we have recently moved to 'the country'. We've looked at: Forrester, Outlander, X-Trail, Sante Fe, Sorrento etc... but they all lack the boot and seating capacity we currently have in the Touran.

So, I've been thinking about a Disco - but I don't know which models / years I should be looking at, and what 'things' I should be looking at. My budget is 10k and I don't really want an old Disco with galactic mileage, and it has to be suitable for family life.

Also, I know this is hard, but what are the typical running costs of a Disco - tyres, servicing etc...

I already have a Series IIA so I'm not that concerned with having to do some work / maintenance.

iRocco said:

I have a bit of a dilemma... we're looking to replace our 6 year old Touran for a 4x4 as we have recently moved to 'the country'. We've looked at: Forrester, Outlander, X-Trail, Sante Fe, Sorrento etc... but they all lack the boot and seating capacity we currently have in the Touran.

So, I've been thinking about a Disco - but I don't know which models / years I should be looking at, and what 'things' I should be looking at. My budget is 10k and I don't really want an old Disco with galactic mileage, and it has to be suitable for family life.

Also, I know this is hard, but what are the typical running costs of a Disco - tyres, servicing etc...

I already have a Series IIA so I'm not that concerned with having to do some work / maintenance.

Click to expand...

First of all IR, let me give you some background relevant to your question:

Discovery II was launched in 1998 and ran on until 2004. It is available with a 2.5ltr 5 cylinder LR-designed diesel engine (136bhp) and a v8 4.0 petrol engine.

Five speed manual gearbox and 4 speed auto with Torque Converter lock-up in 3rd and 4th.

They come in 5 and seater configurations and a variety of trim levels from poverty-spec to truly luxurious.

If properly looked-after they are reliable and long-lived, but they are not often "properly" looked after using pro-active maintenance approaches. 200,000mls and still perfectly reliable is quite common - for an enthusiast owned DII.

You could purchase a good low-mileage DII auto ES (very high spec) for roughly £6-7000, leaving plenty in your budget for rectification and some modifications.

A std. TD5 auto may well feel a little gutless by comparison to the Touran, but with an engine remap and one or two other cheap mods can be made to run really rather nicely.

..........................................

Discovery III, started in 2004 with 2.7ltr v6 diesel engine (Ford/PSA developed unit) 197bhp; as well as a 4.0 ltr V8 petrol (some markets also had the option of a 4.6ltr unit).

The gearboxes were manual 6 speed or the most popular ZF 6 speed auto, as used in the Jaguar ranges.

The DIII is more complex and some will say more difficult for DIY but this maybe only due to the vehicles now being old-enough to fall into the hands of DIY-ers. Time will tell. Definitely more money to buy and to run, unless you service it yourself.


My advice? Dedicate some time to drive different versions and see which you prefer.

In your shoes I would go for a sub 100,000mls DII TD5 auto 7 seater ES, then immediately have it re-mapped by Mike at Dynachip; give it a full service from front to back - all fluids inc coolant and brake fluid - all filters.

I would also buy a Nano Evo diagnostic device so you can tell exactly what's going on with the vehicle and personalise how some functions work.

The ONLY really important thing to look for on a DII is corrosion on the rear end of the chassis rails.

MPG on a TD5 auto should be on average 27-28. Bear in mind these vehicles weigh 2.3tons and have the aerodynamics of a brick !!!


Have a really good look around, invest some time and buy a great car. DO NOT pay too much for one as they are falling out of fashion big time, so bargains can be had, with patience!

Good luck

Dave

Dave! Thanks for your length post - very informative

I need to be looking at a manual as the wife refuses to drive an automatic - and she'll be the main driver.

I've found a 2004 Td5 XS with 64k on the clock for £8k which to me is very reasonable!

I think the first step is to find a DII and DIII locally for the wife to drive to see which she prefers.

Again, thanks.

Ok, not going to get a DIII - £480 a year to tax

iRocco said:

Dave! Thanks for your length post - very informative

I need to be looking at a manual as the wife refuses to drive an automatic - and she'll be the main driver.

I've found a 2004 Td5 XS with 64k on the clock for £8k which to me is very reasonable!

I think the first step is to find a DII and DIII locally for the wife to drive to see which she prefers.

Again, thanks.

Click to expand...

I reckon that's top money myself, but of course it depends entirely on condition, service history etc. BTW XS spec is just above halfway up the scale, so not bad at all, but could do better.

On the subject of documented service history, if all you are shown is a stamped-up service book with no supporting invoices to show what's been done; then it's nigh on worthless! Anyone can get a garage stamp made up for a fiver et voilà you have full service history!!

Here's a few examples on Ebay right now:

Cars in Model Year:2004, Transmission:Manual, Vehicle Mileage:75,000 to 99,999 miles | eBay

Here's a few from Autotrader:
Used LAND ROVER DISCOVERY 2.5L Car for Sale - Auto Trader UK


Please bare in mind that the single biggest cost of car ownership is depreciation, if you pay too much when you buy, you guarantee big depreciation.

As I said before if your total budget is £8000, spread no more than £6000 on the car so you have money left over to fix/replace anything.

Good luck in your hunt,

Dave