J

JacobJames

New Member
Originally I had planned to get a defender for conversion into an overland vehicle but after a change of heart I've decided that a discovery would be much better option on a smaller budget. It seems I can get a fairly heavily modded disco + roof tent and other bits for less than a battered defender.

Considering I have a budget of 2-3k for a Disco 1 or 2 I'm wondering what is the best model/engine for reliability, fuel consumption, overlanding?

The majority of the overland builds I have seen on the net have been Disco 2 300tdi but is there any reason to not look at the disco 1s or a 200tdi?

Also what kind of mileage would you expect to get out of one? I keep seeing them cropping up for sub £2k with 130k+ miles but I'm thinking I'd be better off stumping up another £1k and getting one with around 70k miles, does that sound reasonable if I want reliability?

Finally is there any reason not to buy an automatic? I'm thinking manual may be easier to get fixed in Africa etc...

Thanks in advance

Jake
 
Disco 1's are either 200TDi or 300TDi. A disco 2 is a TD5. A lot more refined, also a lot more to fix. An automatic involves more electrics (usually) so a lot more can go wrong.

I'd be partial to buying a standard Disco and fixing it up yourself rather than buying one that someone has built and bashed. At least with a standard you know it hasn't been abused off-road.

The 200TDi does a bit more for fuel efficiency, but parts for the 300TDi are more widely available and are cheaper than parts for the TD5.

You can probably pick up a decent 300 for about £4-500 in April-May time, the prices shoot up in the winter.

For all the things you would need doing for overlanding I'm not entirely sure £3k could accomplish it, but heavy duty suspension & springs would probably be the biggest output. Steering guard (£60-70) Diff guards are £25 each and you need 2 and a tank guard (£75?)
 
JordanTD5 said:
I doubt that ;)
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Well out of the detailed blogs/videos I have counted 5 x 200/300tdi, 2 x Disco2 Td5s and a couple of Disco 3s. Maybe that isn't very scientific but it appears they have been used a few times to do this and I believe the 300tdi was also used for the camel trophy in '97
 
Rangey185 said:
Disco 1's are either 200TDi or 300TDi. A disco 2 is a TD5. A lot more refined, also a lot more to fix. An automatic involves more electrics (usually) so a lot more can go wrong.

I'd be partial to buying a standard Disco and fixing it up yourself rather than buying one that someone has built and bashed. At least with a standard you know it hasn't been abused off-road.

The 200TDi does a bit more for fuel efficiency, but parts for the 300TDi are more widely available and are cheaper than parts for the TD5.

You can probably pick up a decent 300 for about £4-500 in April-May time, the prices shoot up in the winter.

For all the things you would need doing for overlanding I'm not entirely sure £3k could accomplish it, but heavy duty suspension & springs would probably be the biggest output. Steering guard (£60-70) Diff guards are £25 each and you need 2 and a tank guard (£75?)
Click to expand...

Hi mate, the £3k is just for the base vehicle, total budget is around £5-6k. £4-500 sounds like a seriously low price, especially if I'm to get a solid reliable one for 12-24 months travel. I presume come April-May time £2k would buy me a really decent one then?
 
That's because they are seriously cheap cars! A solid Disco is hard to find but unless you are being ripped off you don't need to part with much cash for one.

I'd be more inclined to go for the 300TDi but then again I've never been overlanding so I can't say which is better, I can only assume.
 
JordanTD5 said:
I doubt that ;)

JacobJames said:
Well out of the detailed blogs/videos I have counted 5 x 200/300tdi, 2 x Disco2 Td5s and a couple of Disco 3s. Maybe that isn't very scientific but it appears they have been used a few times to do this and I believe the 300tdi was also used for the camel trophy in '97
Click to expand...
Click to expand...

I was refering to the fact that there are no Discovery 2s with the 300tdi engine. They are all TD5s.

Back on topic. I would personally go for a Discovery 1 300tdi as they are simpler than the D2 and faults will be easier to fix with limited resources out in the wild.
 
alot more people use d1's for off road but obv d2 qill do the same i suppose so id say its your choice also like others said d1 are cheaper to fix etc
 
JordanTD5 said:
I was refering to the fact that there are no Discovery 2s with the 300tdi engine. They are all TD5s.

Back on topic. I would personally go for a Discovery 1 300tdi as they are simpler than the D2 and faults will be easier to fix with limited resources out in the wild.
Click to expand...

oops sorry missed that I meant Disco 1 :p
 
shenton24 said:
alot more people use d1's for off road but obv d2 qill do the same i suppose so id say its your choice also like others said d1 are cheaper to fix etc
Click to expand...

I think I'm leaning towards a 300tdi but I'm going to have to hold out for a great condition one (structurally at least because the inside will be ripped out) as I don't have the funds to start replacing panels. Maybe it would be a good idea to avoid any that have been used off-road for a start...
 
Apart from the obvious rusting problem, any other common faults to look out for?

What sort of mileage do the 300tdi engines reach if looked after?
 
Ive had 3 D1 300tdi.All died of rust before engine wore out.Current one is low mileage at 114000 and was bought for lack of rust.Must of looked at 20 vehicles before this one,all described as good but all rotten.Last one was a '96 and had 19200 on engine before it was sold .Chassis and body totally fubar but engine still going strong(gearbox fecked though)
 
nathanglasgow said:
Ive had 3 D1 300tdi.All died of rust before engine wore out.Current one is low mileage at 114000 and was bought for lack of rust.Must of looked at 20 vehicles before this one,all described as good but all rotten.Last one was a '96 and had 19200 on engine before it was sold .Chassis and body totally fubar but engine still going strong(gearbox fecked though)
Click to expand...

Any tips on finding a pretty rust free one? or is it just a case of seeing as many as possible?
 
JacobJames said:
Any tips on finding a pretty rust free one? or is it just a case of seeing as many as possible?
Click to expand...




Try praying.

Seriously though just look at loads and hope. If the rust has been sorted properly it's not necessarily a problem. It's botched repairs that are the real issue.
 
jaygti said:
Try praying.

Seriously though just look at loads and hope. If the rust has been sorted properly it's not necessarily a problem. It's botched repairs that are the real issue.
Click to expand...

Yeah I feel like this is going to be the only way, don't fancy a complete rebuild but I don't mind doing a few small repairs and then cleaning it all down and protecting it. I just don't think my time/budget will cover replacing panels :(
 
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