Price on a D2 is no indication of quality. I started out looking for 2004 manuals either ES or Landmark and after looking at about 20 and deciding that what I wanted was just not available at the time, I widened the search criteria and finally bought a really good 1999 auto. I saw dealer cars at £6K that were utterly rotten underneath, and much cheaper cars that were far better. Buy from an enthusiast not a dealer, wear overalls and take a nanocom or hawkeye. Start off under the back of the car and check for solid metal really carefully. You will walk away from about 70% at this point. If the back is good move forward and check suspension, props and disks as well as the rest of the chassis. This will take out another 10%. IF that lot is in good nick then think about opening a door and the bonnet. A diagnostic on the engine and a good listen and look for leaks will eliminate another 10%. The final 10% will depend on what still works inside, the state of the upholstery, the headlining and what mods have been done and how well. Take your time, there are some great cars out there but most are headed for the scapper without serious investment. I paid £3800 BTW for a rock solid chassis, a professionally rebuilt engine - inc steel dowels and an thread locked oil bolt together with an Alive remap. There were bills in the last 2 years for £8K and everything worked (and still does); but having remapped the engine the car was awful to drive with the standard torque converter and the owner bought himself an L322 in ffrustration. I invested £1200 in having an Ashcroft V8 torque converter fitted and it is now great to drive. The drivers seat cushion was beyond repair, so I bought an entire matching interior and swapped the dead drivers cushion with a virtually unmarked passenger seat one.
