Help buying a discovery?? any suggestions?

[--sinner--]

hey all, currently, i have a 84 yota 4runner, solid axle, 6inch lift, 33's and a couple other goodies.....now i love this truck, but its time to upgrade i think, and ive been looking at early disco's. now i love my diesel motors (got to love the economy) so id definitly be looking at one of those. got my eye on a 93 tdi. what are these motors like for economy? per 100k?
and the bloke says he had a motor rebuild at 220k, its now on 310.
are these motors prone to dying early?
not really after a beast off road, just something i can drive daily, but still capable enough to have some fun off road, the occasional fraser/moreton island trip etc etc.

what should i expect to pay for one of these in good condition? the one im lookin at is 5500.

thanks very much

[ISUZUROVER]

Should do about 8L/100km or so - driver dependent of course. I know some people with light feet who can get as low as 7.

Check which engine and gearbox it has. 93 was the changeover between the 200Tdi and LT77S gearbox to the 300Tdi and R380 Gearbox.

300Tdi has more power and wider timing belt, but early models siffer from belt misalignment problems which should have been fixed by the factory. 200Tdi is generally pretty reliable if the belt is kept free of oil and mud.

The R380 is stronger than the LT77S, but both the LT77S and the early R380s suffered from poor lubrication to rear of the mainshaft (which is actually inside the T-case). This is corrected by fitting a cross-drilled T-case input gear and/or an oil-feeder to the PTO cover plate (round plate on back of T-case - in-line with gear box). Lock Centre Diff and check for play in gear box/t-case to see if this is a problem.

Check blowby and check too see how oily the intercooler is inside.

Other than that, just the usual stuff - rust, suspension bushes, PAS box play and leaks...

[--sinner--]

ok.....like i said, i have an old 4wd, straight forward manual diff lock....i went to some caryards tonight, and the disco doesnt have that....can you lock it from in the cab? is it permanently locked?.....or is it not lockable??

[Spike_Sierra]

constant 4wd with centre diff lock, so its 4wd all the time, when you want to go offroad you lock centre diff...

[Loanrangie]

Come on sinner, none of these archaic getting out of the car to lock the hubs in crap

[--sinner--]

oooo, how fancy, i wont need to get my feet dirty hehehe thanks for the help guys,. i really appreciate it.

theres 2 that im looking at right now, one is a 300tdi, 2 inch spring lift, winch bar(no winch tho) 310k on it with the rebuilt motor at 210k and the guy wants 5grand for it.

theres another one, not sure if its 200 or 300tdi yet....but its full stocker, with 116k on it? hope thats original... but likei said, stock as a rock, and the guy wants 4500 for it.

what do you think is the better buy? i mean, with the rebuild they both have travelled the same amount of k's, but one with more wear and tear on other parts of the car...but it has lift and a bar and a couple other bits and peices. and i could probably talk the guy to 4000 as he's fly overseas in a couple weeks.

downside. both cars near sydney, and i live in gold coast lol so its a fly down and pick them up were i to get them.

whats the verdict guys?

[460cixy]

and i thought the one in the yard around the courner from work was cheap at 7k no wonder thay cant sell it its got all the bar work ect 200tdi

[--sinner--]

got an email from the guy with the supposed 113k ok the clock, apparently, the motor is 2ndhand, with 169k on it, the speedo reads 113k, and the actual body has travelled about 230k........all seems a bit dodgy for me, so i might have to go with the blue one.... ill let you know how i go.

how much does the mod to fix up the 300tdi cost? and for the mod to add lubrication to the t/case?

[--sinner--]

hmmm, found something interesting online, you can swap it from belt to gears?? anyone heard of this mod? http://www.yican.com.au/tbd.html theres the link if anyone curious. seems pretty promising

[ISUZUROVER]

hmmm, found something interesting online, you can swap it from belt to gears?? anyone heard of this mod? http://www.yican.com.au/tbd.html theres the link if anyone curious. seems pretty promising

DON'T FIT GEARS!!! They are VERY badly made and will probably not last as long as your belt and may kill the engine in the process. Have a search for the horror stories of some people.

Read here: http://www.rovingtheglobe.com/?sec=kit& ... gGears.asp

For the mod to sort the timing belt, it must have been done if the engine has that many k's and a rebuild. But AFAIK the "Stage3" kit from LR is about $1k. The kit is 3-stage - based on VIN - since yours is early it would need all 3 (if not already fitted).

The oiling mod to the t-case can be done for free if you or a mate knows how to cut and bend a bit of metal and use a MIG.

[--sinner--]

thanks for the heads up on that one, will double check if it has had it done with the rebuild...hope so, if thats the case, consider it mine,

[zen]

200 and 300tdi have the same power..they both go on forever..250k miles is not uncommon..mine has 167k miles and is like new..the belts HAVE to be changed every 50000 or less...if you can go for the 300tdi es model (ie it has aircon!!)
check for rot everywhere(if coming from wet area)espiccally under ALL the carpets..BOOT too!!

engine oil needs to be changed regually too..watch out for crunching into 2nd/3rd when cold..test drive it FROM COLD..

i get 30mpg here in london..thats town driving..but not hard..they can be made to go much better as well..

[V8 Rangie]

Get a Range Rover:-)

[ISUZUROVER]

200 and 300tdi have the same power..

if you can go for the 300tdi es model (ie it has aircon!!)

In a disco they have the same power, pretty sure the 300 has a bit more torque though.

200 Tdi (defender) - 103 bhp
200 Tdi (disco/rangy) - 111bhp

300 Tdi (all variants) - 111 bhp

In Australia, 99.99% of discos have air-con. Not just the ES models.

[Loanrangie]

And unlike pommie land dont tend to rust much unless its a beach rig.

[--sinner--]

quick question, take one stock disco, series one, add 2 inch spring lift, 2 inch spring spacer, and 31 inch tyres, total height would be??

need to know if she'll fit in the underground carpark at work..

[zen]

you'll be lucky!

[TRobbo]

quick question, take one stock disco, series one, add 2 inch spring lift, 2 inch spring spacer, and 31 inch tyres, total height would be??

need to know if she'll fit in the underground carpark at work..

mine is similiar in that it has 3 inch spring & 1 inch body, but then there are the 34's on each corner and it sits at 2.2m. Drop it back on to a 31 and I assume it would be around 2m.

[Reddo]

ours has 2.5 inch body lift, 33's and 2 inch spring lift. I'm nearly 6 foot tall and I look at the top of the door frame next to it, and there's at least another 9 inches over that - but we have those stupid roof bars too.

I'd say 2.2 metres with the set up you have.

[--sinner--]

ahh you guys are champions hey, seriously, thanks for putting up with my many questions, and me being a total noob to rovers.
first thing to go if i get this stocker would be the bar, preferably a tube setup, they tickle my fancyquite a bit. improve that approach angle a hell of a lot than the stock bar...
anyone have any pics of tube bars on disco's? any idea who makes em? and if so.....any near my area of SE qld?

thanks again

[igould]

Think carefully about this, sinner.
One taste of a LandRover and you'll never be satisfied with anything else.

Ian

[--sinner--]

well i do have an addictive personality..... so i may be in for trouble hehe.
by the way, my name is paul, saves you calling me by my stupid username

[Maggot4x4]

anyone have any pics of tube bars on disco's? any idea who makes em? and if so.....any near my area of SE qld?

thanks again

Brook at Custom 4x4 Fabrications in Hervey Bay. And he drives a Disco.

Custom 4x4 Fabrications
(07) 4194 1144
0400 443802
custom4x4fabrications@westnet.com.au

[--sinner--]

bit more info on that red one down in bathurst, its a 200tdi *woo no upgrade kit needed* everythings stock, and in good working order, few oil leaks....landie trademark??? never seen beach work, country car all its life, no diff noise, box noise, no play in steering box, good tyres, pwr steering all good, interior has a couple rips (OH NO :O ) but otherwise all good.
no rwc, but leaving the reg on it for me to drive back, transfer etc..
$4000, wadda ya reckon? better to buy this, and do it up from stock, or buy one with all the goodies.....works out cheaper.....but chance that more stuff will go wrong?

[Reddo]

the cheaper the better - leaves a lot more cash for mods I reckon. Who cares bout seat rips, minor oil leaks and scratches on the paint as long as the basic fundamental are OK.

Parts are relatively cheap anyway, and there are many rolled Discos/RRs avaiable at wreckers nowadays plus part from UK are very affordable.

[--sinner--]

yeah that was what i was thinking, at least i can do it up the exact way i want it. dont really care about rips lol, of scratches (adds character) just as long as its not leaking TOO much oil. it sounds so so good. i want it nowwwwww.
been looking at a couple lift kits, 2inch sping lift with shocks seem relatively cheap at around 650 for a few different brands?? ironman etc..
or could i just stick in some 50mm coil spacers and run them with the stocko shockies?

[RRturboD]

For suspension stuff have a look at what Les Richmond Automotive in Melb have developed. Not the cheapest but they have a long history of suspension stuff, and all the advice they have given me has been wothhwile. (used to be Rangie Spares). Give Andrew a call, he will talk openly. Most of their pricing is on the www. I have used his advice and fitted stuff to a number of clients vehicles, all happy!.

[ISUZUROVER]

Sounds like a good deal if all that is true (you haven't actually seen it yet???).
I prefer to start with a stocker myself, rather than a previously adulterated model. But I do all mods myself so save a lot of money...

[Reddo]

you may get away with spring spacers but me thinks you'll need new longer and stonger springs cause no doubt you'll want to go higher and will be adding weight.

Dobinsons are good for springs and shockers.....

[PK]

What year? some early series 2 didn't have the manual centre diff lock did they?

As far as height goes, when I had mine, I always told the wife "don't go into any carparks under 2.2mt" so what does she do? 1.9....
"I thought it would fit...." What part of "don't go under 2.2" don't you understand!!

Anyway, wasn't going fast, so had about 6 inches worth of scratches on the kick up of the roof.......