Land rover guys

RatLabGuy

RatLabGuy

You look like a monkey and smell like one too
Joined
May 18, 2005
Location
Churchville, MD
Tell her to run! If the Disco my friend owns is any indication, she will constantly need to spend money on it to keep it on the road. I'm a little biased but if it were me I'd look for a lower mileage XJ. At least when they give you trouble anyone can work on them and they're pretty cheap to fix.

Edit: just reread the tittle of the thread, I am not a rover guy just giving you my two cents based on the little experience I have with disco's (picking up my buddies on my trailer every month or two :rolleyes:).
 
Ive always heard once a Rover hits 100k you might as well send it out to pasture. Built to fail was the quote I was told.
 
Land Rovers are much like German cars. See Audi thread. She will regret getting one. It will break her the first time it goes to the shop. We're talking $1-3 GRAND every time here.
 
FWIW, several years ago I was parking in the Stadium parking lot here at App in my old TJ and tried to get into a spot too narrow. Ended up hitting a Disco with my front tire, leaving a nice long black mark on the guys plastic rear bumper endcap (faded of course, as all plastic like that is at this point). I left him a note on his windshield explaining the situation, and told him I had some stuff that could redo his entire trim (forever black) and Id redo it for him if he wanted me to. He called me up later and said that the Discovery was such a piece of shit, and he really didn't care. He was just glad someone left him a letter :p
 
I'm a Land Rover Tech in Greensboro and agree with these guys, it might look good for the price but when these things need repairs it gets expensive real quick. Parts prices are over inflated and dealers charge to much to work on them. They are prone to have alot of oil and coolant leaks. That is why I drive a Jeep and I think your niece should do the same.
 
I purchased an older Range Rover once. A CV joint went out of it to the tune of $800! I replaced it myself. That was just the part cost. Sold it shortly thereafter and will never own another one. Fuel mileage is awful and parts are stupid expensive. I did find it interesting that the Rover I had used an aluminum Buick based engine that was produced in the 60's. How's that for technology...

Do as was said earlier and find an XJ or something similar.
 
my dad drives a discovery II been in the shop a handful times. his is a 2000 and my 92 xj has not been in the shop once since he got his. yeah my jeep needs maintenance but I can do it all myself. Land rover DIY? Good Luck
 
lol, didnt we have a discussion like this dave? remember those things i showed you on mine that were stupidly built?

I have put over 100k miles on my 2001 discovery and it is currently sitting at 185k. I have spent ALOT to keep it on the road. They are right about throwing money at it to keep it on the road. at the mileage mine is at, it takes anywhere betwen $200-600 a month to keep it on the road and thats me doing the work. Drive shafts, water pumps, U joints, brakes, wipers (it eats wiper blades?) oil, radiator fluid, nuts and bolts (stretch to limit bolts means: heads pops off of bolts and things fall off)

one thing no one ever thinks to mentions is when you do need a part...its a 2-5 day wait. they just dont stock rover parts on the shelves at the local parts store...and pulling rover part from junkyard is a crap shoot.

So when your "truck" goes down, you are down for a couple days, there are no quick fixes.

I like the way the rovers look. I wish i had the cash to drop a 302 or a 350 in it. hell, if i bought honda and parked the rover, i could probably afford a motor swap on what id save in repairs!
 
I have to say that a lot, it not all of the responses in this thread should be taken with a HUGE grain of salt...

First off, lets throw out one post, NOONE on this forum hates Land Rovers more than Reid, he hates his so bad that he still has it, 100K later. I think he keeps it just so he can bitch and moan every time someone here mentions the word "Rover". Reid, get rid of it already, jesus christ man.

oleblue said:
my dad drives a discovery II been in the shop a handful times. his is a 2000 and my 92 xj has not been in the shop once since he got his. yeah my jeep needs maintenance but I can do it all myself. Land rover DIY? Good Luck
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Not a lot of comparison between the 1994 mentioned by the original poster and your daddys 2000, but you are correct that DIY work on a 2000 is a little more difficult. Still not hard and far from impossible.

broncosbybart said:
I purchased an older Range Rover once. A CV joint went out of it to the tune of $800! I replaced it myself.
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I feel bad someone charged you $800 for a CV. Did you buy a new one? Cause used ones go for $100 at the MOST. Hell I can't give them away half the time. (a bunch of jeepers will read this and wonder what is a CV)

jgriggs said:
I'm a Land Rover Tech in Greensboro
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Chances are, this poor fella hasn't even smelled a '94 Discovery. Sorry to judge you buddy, but most LR dealer techs these days dont know the first fucking thing about a rover that doesn't have a module in every door and every seat.

rattlecanpaint said:
Land Rovers are much like German cars. See Audi thread. She will regret getting one. It will break her the first time it goes to the shop. We're talking $1-3 GRAND every time here.
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Most shops with techs that have no experience or real knowledge have a LOT of trouble because they are too busy fucking their cousins, or eating boogers, (or whatever the fuk) to call someone who KNOWS what to do. So they charge 3-4 times more for labor. Likewise, they don't know who to call for parts, so they call the dealership... and they are happy to sell you a part like say, a CV JOINT for $800.

XJfreakHO said:
Ive always heard once a Rover hits 100k you might as well send it out to pasture. Built to fail was the quote I was told.
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Whoops, quoted this one by accident. The way most people maintain them, make that 200K and maybe you are on to something. Since we are telling storys about buddies, a friend of mine has 3 in his fleet with over 300K and one with a half million miles that the bottom end has been knocking on for 2 years. All still on the road and driven every day as work vehicles.

foreman1063 said:
Tell her to run! If the Disco my friend owns is any indication, she will constantly need to spend money on it to keep it on the road..
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Oh your buddy has one, you must know a lot about them. You also mentioned an XJ, I am not going to argue with that, but most girls are happier in a Disco, because most cheap XJs look like shit inside and out. Seriously, look at a 94 XJ interior. When I picture that interior, the smell of cigerattes and wet dog hair comes to mind. And it looks like it was designed by some poor fuck who sketched it on a napkin, stuck in a traffic jam, in his Dodge Omni. "What about a skinny tee handle shifter? Yea thats great!"

Sorry, just wanted to give back some of what we have been getting. The truth is, no it isn't a great vehicle for the average teenager. But you could do much worse, they are solid and do great in crashes. I know, I have been salvaging them for years, and it is amazing what people walk away from when the worst happens in these trucks. As far as reliability, no they will not be as reliable as your average toyota but the discovery series 1 is the best bet, as it is simple enough to keep most repair costs low IF it does break. If you haven't owned one and daily driven it you just aren't going to understand, and that is OK. More for me :D
 
A friend in high school had a 96 Disco. What a heap of shit that thing was, it was always in the shop, and his parents bought the thing brand new. I had to go get him so many damn times in that thing, it was stupid. He hated that my rusty 86 S-10 Blazer had to come get him all the time and never stopped running. :lol:
 
Yeah I told her it was a bad idea, not necessarily b/c it could be a POS, but b/c repairs would be pricy, and hard to get (she lives outside Boone).
Mostly I just wondered if there would be any road handling problems w/ the lift etc. I noticed nobody actually answered that question.

But, somebody else bought it anyway. So you guys can keep on bitching now like old hens now.
 
crown14 said:
Oh your buddy has one, you must know a lot about them. You also mentioned an XJ, I am not going to argue with that, but most girls are happier in a Disco, because most cheap XJs look like shit inside and out. Seriously, look at a 94 XJ interior. When I picture that interior, the smell of cigerattes and wet dog hair comes to mind. And it looks like it was designed by some poor fuck who sketched it on a napkin, stuck in a traffic jam, in his Dodge Omni. "What about a skinny tee handle shifter? Yea thats great!"
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No I don't know that much about them that's why I qualified my statement by saying " If the Disco my friend owns is any indication" tell her to run. What I do know about the one Disco that I've ridden in, is that it appears to be designed by some poor fuck's retarded brother, sketched on a napkin....in traffic :flipoff2: . Seriously, I don't really care either way, just relaying the experience that a friend of mine has had with his Disco.
 
RatLabGuy said:
I just wondered if there would be any road handling problems w/ the lift etc.
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A friend at church also had a Disco with a lift on it. Not sure how it rode though, never got to ride in it since it was always in the shop. :p
 
Redneck92 said:
All this Rover and XJ talk:shaking: I know a solution, buy a Toyota:rockon:
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This guy nailed it.

RatLabGuy said:
Yeah I told her it was a bad idea, not necessarily b/c it could be a POS, but b/c repairs would be pricy, and hard to get (she lives outside Boone).
Mostly I just wondered if there would be any road handling problems w/ the lift etc. I noticed nobody actually answered that question.

But, somebody else bought it anyway. So you guys can keep on bitching now like old hens now.
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I offered what I could, but the trouble is without knowing exactly what p/n OME springs it had on it I cant tell you exactly how it will ride. The OME extra heavy duty ride really nice even without sway bars BUT there are several different OME part numbers... Also if the $14 chassis-trailing arm bushings have never been replaced then the lift will accelerate their destruction and then the rear end will wander when you transition off throttle to coasting and girls have a hard time learning not to jerk the wheel in the opposite direction- which results in what you would call a tankslapper on a motorcycle...

Not real familiar with Boone, but if she, or anyone else does end up with one out there the closest place to Boone that I know of is Old English Cars in Asheville.

Blaze said:
A friend at church also had a Disco with a lift on it. Not sure how it rode though, never got to ride in it since it was always in the shop. :p
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They say, "a prayer, will get you there..." although in a rover it might help to be a AAA member. And have some comfortable shoes with you.
 
I always assumed LRs were made/marketed to " discriminating drivers " who could afford to just buy/trade in, and get new a one each year or when they start to wear out or break stuff?......but i'm no expert..........I do like the few Defenders I've seen though..................crown14 your friend w the fleet of LRs would'nt be a famous local Land Surveyor would he?
 
mommucked said:
I always assumed LRs were made/marketed to " discriminateing drivers " who could afford to just buy/trade in, and get new one each year or when they start to wear out or break stuff?......but i'm no expert..........I do like the few Defenders I've seen though.
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There is some discrimination going on on here, thats for damn sure hahaha
 
I have worked w him in the past........he is a great guy, ( famous among local Surveyors ), and proud of his Rovers, he's also not afraid to spank them on occasion!!
 
Yeah he has pretty much found out just how long they can last and how far they can go, just goes to show when you aren't afraid of something you might just come to like it.

I too used to hate these things, and didn't want to go near them, but they are no different than any other vehicle, there are good ones and bad ones. If you don't take care of the things you should, it isn't going to take care of you. I will say that I am glad they break, hell, it keeps me in business. :D
 
Reid said:
I'll take $2400 for it. when can you come get it?
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Oh now I see why you still have it. If you seriously want to sell though, give me all the details and I will make you an offer.

Reid said:
let me list some other repairs ive done:

Americanized the cooling system with rubber lines rather than plastic.
Installed an aluminum housing for the thermostat rather than plastic.
De-installed the throttle body heater.
repaired the heater core inlet tube.
replaces heater core hoses with more durable hoses.
modified windshield wiper assemblies to take AMERICAN refill blades that done cost $70ea
too many new front tires cuz the damn thing wont hold an alignment.
fluid leaks from every seal from end to the other. why bother fixing that.
Water pump bearing disentegrated sending the belt flying and the fan crashing into the radiator.
And then everything on the inside is falling apart. the damn brits cant make plastic to save their lives!
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Oh, nevermind, after reading that in the other thread I am afraid I have no use for your truck. People like you, who can't properly repair/maintain their vehicle are the reason for all the misconception surrounding the brand. With goobered up shit like yours on the road, it makes all Land Rovers look like the 4x4 equivalent of a Yugo. It is no wonder a mechanic that spends his days changing timing belts on hondas or crank sensors on jeeps would be scared to work on a Land Rover if they saw some shit like yours roll in the door. By far the biggest problem with your truck is the "nut behind the wheel". It was your fault that you didn't check the water pump. It takes two fingers, two seconds, and two brain cells. Its your fault you didn't find a decent source for the proper parts. There are just two plastic lines in the cooling system on your Discovery, and brand new ones cost an earth shattering ELEVEN BUCKS. Of course you looked at your truck and decided it was shitty plastic. It has been exposed to 200+ degree coolant for ten years. Its a wear item, that means it needs to be replaced. If you aren't aware, any vehicle or motorized equipment requires a certain amount of preventative maintenance. A new, correct thermostat is about $30. New serviceable ujoints for your driveshaft are $15 to 30 bucks each, and any driveline shop worth doing business with can rebuild and balance the whole fucking thing just like any other shaft. There is nothing special about it. Obviously, any bronco or jeep that has been treated the way your Discovery has been treated could expect the same type of mechanical issues.

Infamous1 said:
u know though the one rover advocate that did speak up is not helping my general feelings and or attitude toward the rover wheeling populace
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If by rover wheeling populace you mean the guys with 50-60 thousand dollar trucks with roof top tents and polished stainless steel shovels? The guys standing outside their trucks stacking rocks, or scratching their head trying to pick a line around the challenging part of the trail? There is no helping those guys. If you don't understand my position, re read my posts. I'm not here to defend or advocate those guys, I am only trying to point out that these trucks are not what the "general wheeling populace" of NC4x4 makes them out to be.
 
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