Land Rover Discovery 2, any personal experiences??

[crabman]

So I was messing around on Gumtree looking at cars and noticed that the last generation v8 discovery 2's are quite cheap at the 10k mark. Has anyone here owned one? Reading and chatting to mates who "knew someone who had one" I have been getting polar opposite reviews lol. I was looking at a new Colorado or Navara but wiser mates talked me out of it by making me realise it would sit in the driveway and not be used for 60-70% of the year given 2n2 roster and travelling overseas on break heavily.

This is perfect example of what I am after, minus the shitty wheels.

http://www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/south-lake/cars-vans-utes/land-rover-discovery-2-2003/1078596967

Don't care if it is going to churn through fuel like no tomorrow, if it's comfy and sounds ok doing it that's fine haha.

[-Luke-]

Service history,Service history,Service history.


They are "reliable" for a Landrover. If the history indicates it may have been over heated at some stage walk away as they engines like to drop liners at random intervals after being cooked. Symptoms look like a block head gasket but require a new block.

The rest of the driveline is robust and well proven, so if the car's been looked after and you continue to look after it they are a good thing. Expect around 16ltrs/100.

[-Luke-]

Also at the age/km's you're looking at avoid any SE's etc with SLS (rear air bags) unless they have been converted to coils springs.

[crabman]

Yeah, read about the liner issues sometimes popping up.

Any reason for an LS swap is fine with me if the rest of the drive-train is good :P

[huggy_b]

Gearbox (automatics) can be problematic and are expensive. 2 out of 3 people I know who owned one had issues.

None of the 3 own them now though.

[crabman]

Catastrophic failures or electrical gremlins/seal failures etc.

[Satan]

20/100

[ClevoCapri]

I had a 2003 TD5 for a few years and it was fine. As said above. Service history is critical on these as they do not cope with overheating or neglect! The v8's or the td5's.

The 2003 has "improved" electrical system.

It was good for towing and beach work.

[ForgedV6]

Yes! Finally something I can offer feedback on.

I was chasing a Patrol/Landcruiser for ages but couldn't find a good example within my budget. I ended up buying a 2001 TD5 Disco 2 for $6500 with 230,000kms through a friend. Thankfully it had a full service history and was in good condition. There are three of us now that have Discovery 2's, mine and two V8's (180,000kms & 240,000kms).

What has cropped up;
- 3 Amigo's. This will no doubt come up when your researching. All three of us has had it. As the TC, ABS and HD (Hill decent) are linked any one problem causes all three to fault. The two V8's have this occur every so often however turning the car on and off usually solves the problem. For me however the problem was constant and I had to replace the front left wheel speed sensor and the shuttle valve in the ABS module. ~$200 and problem solvered. All three cars drive fine but it will cause problems off road. It got me stuck in the dunes at Wedge as the HD activated randomly and dug me in as I was trying to wash off some speed.
- Both V8's have had cat issues and it sounds a lot like rod knock but its not, its just a collapsed cat.
- All three leak oil. Mines fine since I replaced the cam seal cover (TD5). The V8's im not sure but its not enough to cause concern.
- All three leak brake fluid from the reservoir, minor but annoying. There is a repair kit as it is a common issue. ~$100
- 1 V8 leaks ACE fluid however this was just a line underneath the reservoir.

Thankfully there are a tonne of good supportive information available online and plenty of how to guides for common issues. Replacement parts that you need are relatively cheap and easy to get such as Ebay ~$80 for a full service kit. This even included both oil filters for the TD5. Comfort wise its a really nice car to drive with a tonne of features that can be hard to find on similar age Patrols/Landcruisers such as cruise control and climate control. They are good on the road and so far has been awesome offroad. They are a tad limited as you cant lift them beyond 2" without significant suspension changes however if youre committed there are numerous kits available for big lift. They will only fit a 32" tyre (265/75R16) unless you install bigger lift or angle grinding. The positive thing tho is that the diff is smaller so a 32" tyre on a Disco 2 has slightly more clearance that a Patrol/Landcruiser with a 33".

I would definitely buy another one. Very easy to work on so far and the issues we've all had have been fairly simple. The pick of the bunch thought would be a TD5 without ACE and without rear airbags. Oh and the V8's chew the juice, 400-450kms max! TD5 700-800kms. Both have the same 93l tank.

Any other questions just ask.

[crabman]

The 2003 has "improved" electrical system.

It was good for towing and beach work.

2003 being the final generation with the nicer headlights?

Cheers ForgedV6, great insight there.

I am definitely hung up on a V8, final gen discovery 2. Because, A; those headlights just make the car look that much better (added bonus if they have a better electrical system). And B; V8 because I have never owned a V8 before lol.

Modification wise, not a thing will occur apart from a decent stereo so not worried about putting undue stress on anything or wondering what will break first when I beat it up. Purely after a comfortable car for driving around town that can let me launch the boat on ramps I wouldn't be able to use in a falcon etc.

[ForgedV6]

I had the option of a V8 version at $4000 but it wasn't looked after. As others have said look for a decent service history. The V8 wont blow you away performance wise and are somewhat limited for upgrades. Good set of leads, sparkplugs, filter and catback would help. They sound bloody good imo! And I agree the Disco2a (Facelift variant) looks awesome with those headlights and a ARB Sahara bar.

Whilst I don't like ACE (1 more thing to go wrong mentality) it does significantly improve the driving dynamics and for some reason people report the ACE models to flex more.

[DRKWRX]

my 01 v8 disco broke everything lol

[crabman]

One year on and I have gone a full 365 (TD5 not V8)

Ended up pretty keen on a Defender 90, but missed out on full time gig at work and ended up with contractor position. The lack of job security has me back looking back at the Discovery 2's

Came across this browsing carsales, awaiting a response in regards to service history and any major work/repairs that it has had done.

http://www.carsales.com.au/private/details/Land-Rover-Discovery-2004/SSE-AD-4130403

[Niva]

In terms of reliability, and engine rebuild in a land rover does for that engine as much good as a service in anything JAP/US.

start getting lazy on full engine rebuilds or doing them too far apart will start causing issues

[Niva]

actually on the top of good life decisions, can anyone confirm or deny that you really do have to use $140 spark plugs in the 4,6 GEMS? normally id laugh and and go round robbing random ones out of bikes and lawn mowers but a few people seem really adamant that its gonna be a $1000+ before oil and filters.. leads. hoses, belts..