discomania
Well-Known Member
Frankly I wouldn’t waste my time on a 300tdi it was just a failed attempt at refining the superb but agricultural 200tdi so LR could keep using it in their up market vehicle range. It didn’t do the job leaving the wonderful 200 arguably the best engine ever made by Land Rover.
Here we go. Always one.
The real driving factor behind not going for a 200tdi is finding a decent one - they are old engines now, at least the 300tdi was still being made up until fairly recently - go for a 200tdi and you are kicking about 25-30 odd years old, you can pick up a 20 year old 300tdi - even newer if you are lucky and someone has brought a foreign market one back into the country.
I don't see how it failed at anything, it is a better engine, does everything the 200 will do but with a tad more refinement and slightly reduced emissions. To all intents and purposes they are really a very similar engine, the 200tdi to me is just too close to the 2.5!
200tdi had is issues, cambelts are more involved to change - coolant drain and pump off, piston removal needs the engine taking out of the vehicle, crank pulleys fall off, oil pump design is poor compared to the 300tdi and the 200tdi's have the cam bearing issue.
Don't get me wrong, I do quite like the 200tdi - but I just prefer the 300tdi and it has it's merits.