Which one should I buy with my £6000 ?

airportmark said:

Right I have taken everything on Board and looked at a few cars over the bank holiday and decided to wait. I am very grateful for all your help and comments,it has made me see sense that for one I cannot afford to repair a serious problem eg engine, gearbox, diff or vanos units and I would not really be able to self service so that would be more money. I also have a wife and 2 children who do not want to be homeless because of me and my car ! Once again THANKYOU (you know who you are)

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Very sensible. You have to be able to DIY to run any LR product or very well off.

airportmark said:

Right I have taken everything on Board and looked at a few cars over the bank holiday and decided to wait. I am very grateful for all your help and comments,it has made me see sense that for one I cannot afford to repair a serious problem eg engine, gearbox, diff or vanos units and I would not really be able to self service so that would be more money. I also have a wife and 2 children who do not want to be homeless because of me and my car ! Once again THANKYOU (you know who you are)

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The only thing to remember here is. As you wait, all the models get older.

What I mean by this is, the entry price to something like an L322 will continue to drop. And ones currently considered newer, will in time also become older.

Saving up more money will obviously allow you a larger choice when buying. And if you have a pot of cash put aside for repairs, then great. But the reality is, this won't change or affect how durable or reliable a vehicle will be. And you could easily pay, £10, 15 or 20k on a Range Rover and end up with more problems than a £6k one. But that's true of almost any marque.


And don't early L322's uses the same power systems and electrical systems as BMW's (forget if it's E38 7 Series or E39 5 Series). Either way, BMW sold a shed load of both. But the newest of those BMW's are 2001 and 2003. The point I'm making here is. People manage to buy and own these BMW's without drama. And without having to spend huge on them or a massive initial outlay. Looking at Autotrader, the 7 Series go from under £1000 to the most expensive ones at about £5k.

A BMW isn't a Range Rover. But that doesn't mean a Range Rover costs massively more to maintain.

300bhp/ton said:

The only thing to remember here is. As you wait, all the models get older.

What I mean by this is, the entry price to something like an L322 will continue to drop. And ones currently considered newer, will in time also become older.

Saving up more money will obviously allow you a larger choice when buying. And if you have a pot of cash put aside for repairs, then great. But the reality is, this won't change or affect how durable or reliable a vehicle will be. And you could easily pay, £10, 15 or 20k on a Range Rover and end up with more problems than a £6k one. But that's true of almost any marque.


And don't early L322's uses the same power systems and electrical systems as BMW's (forget if it's E38 7 Series or E39 5 Series). Either way, BMW sold a shed load of both. But the newest of those BMW's are 2001 and 2003. The point I'm making here is. People manage to buy and own these BMW's without drama. And without having to spend huge on them or a massive initial outlay. Looking at Autotrader, the 7 Series go from under £1000 to the most expensive ones at about £5k.

A BMW isn't a Range Rover. But that doesn't mean a Range Rover costs massively more to maintain.

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The 2002-2005 L322 is a mash up of the E38, E39 and E53.....just in a posh frock!

I have owned several E38 7'ers and love them to bits...I have also owned numerous Range Rovers and I love them even more!

The L322 for me is the perfect vehicle...it combines the E38 and the Range Rover marque into one vehicle...heavenly!

They are more expensive to maintain purely from a 'name' point of view.....many times I have bought components from BMW at a price a lot less than the exact same thing from Land Rover....trouble comes when you need to get hold of the Land Rover only parts that aren't common to both makes! then it gets expensive.

But as more and more aftermarket quality parts become available, they become cheaper to maintain!

Your comment of 'not massively more to maintain' makes me think your not 'really' a Range Rover owner else you'll know they will drain your bank balance very quickly if you can't DIY your own repairs....it is not the cost of repairs (at times) that is the issue...it is the frequency!

BMW product, built by Land Rover....doesn't quite have the build quality of the German made Bimmers....

Also, to add to the mix, the L322 was launched AFTER BMW sold the group, so whilst they developed the L322, they never 'built' them, serviced them or had any aftercare with them....it was left to the incoming owner to sort out what to do with these complex 'German' electronics!!

I certainly don't deny you can spend a lot maintaining an RR. And yes, it certainly helps if you are prepared to do a little DIY too.

Failing that, you just have to be sensible on where you take them for work. Some dealers will charge £170/hr labour. And many 'upmarket' independents aren't hugely better. However the truth is, for many or even most things you might need done to them. Any good mechanic is likely more than capable and may charge as little as £25/hr for exactly the same level of work.

Being choosy on where you get parts is key too, and as you highlight, buying direct from LR isn't usually the cheapest option. Not that this is new at all. When the Disco 1 was launched, you could buy a replacement door mirror from LR for half the price of a door mirror for a Range Rover (classic). Despite them being the same item in the same box.


LR specific parts, yep you are probably snookered into paying more. But unless you are really unlucky, you shouldn't really need to be doing this all the time.

But certainly not trying to preach to the converted

Just giving an alternative view point for the op. That sometimes you just have to take a few chances.

Could anyone tell me about jag engined 4.4 l322's? Spec wise they seem faster and better on fuel. Do they still have a crap gearbox or is it better/different? 5 or 6 speed? I've been toying with he idea of changing both of mine for a nice l322. Looking at these late 55/06 onwards cars. I can see big changes were afoot at this time with regards to electronics etc. Would this model offer a significant advantage over the earlier m62 engines cars?

the post 2006 models are a vast improvement....the Jag is less adept at LPG conversions due to valve seat issues, and the MOST fibre based data system is a great improvement for the Infotainment systems...touch screen SatNav, and a much better 6 speed box which doesn't appear to suffer the same as the 5HP boxes...

Still can be prone to suspension wear, but the L322 is a heavy lumbering beast so that isn't a surprise....water still leaks into the rear quarter and the EAS is just as prone as the early L322's....

Build quality was better, although they are approaching 10 years old now so expect a few minor 'blemishes'

Right that's interesting so certainly a 6 speed box? That would explain the dramatic improvement in performance and modest gain in economy. I found a nice looking one with 67k on tj clock (apparently) for 12k at a dealer. Food for thought!

No interest in LPG if I'm honest, I don't believe the benefits out way the costs unless you are doing serious milage which I'm not in my own cars.

As for eas... I wouldn't expect anything less!

Question.

When the AJ-V8 was introduced, did the Terrain Response system also get introduced? Or is there a period with the newer engines, but older electronics and setup? I don't think there was, but reading through wiki, it sort of hints that there was, as the dates don't fully align.

quavey said:

Right that's interesting so certainly a 6 speed box? That would explain the dramatic improvement in performance and modest gain in economy. I found a nice looking one with 67k on tj clock (apparently) for 12k at a dealer. Food for thought!

No interest in LPG if I'm honest, I don't believe the benefits out way the costs unless you are doing serious milage which I'm not in my own cars.

As for eas... I wouldn't expect anything less!

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Yep 6 speed....

Patience my friend, you'll get a good one in the end

Saint.V8 said:

BMW product, built by Land Rover....doesn't quite have the build quality of the German made Bimmers....

!!

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I've had a BMW from new it was a bigger heap of unreliable crap then my P38, ditto the new Porsche I had.