Really basic Discovery Question

[davidjmiller]

A while ago sold my 110 V8 LPG trying to get this Landy thing out of my brain. Well guess what, it does not seem to have worked.

So, I might come back, but if I do I would avoid petrol / LPG cos it aint that economical and its a pain to keep running well on dual. Also, the family deserve a bit of comfort so if I moderate my off-raoding to avoid winter and sites then a Discovery could be just the thing.

Couple of basic Question. 200 / 300 Tdi, what kind of mpg do you get??

Experienced Discovery owners put yourself in my postion - I could buy cheaply (~£2000) and save a similar amount for future repairs or I could spend more (£4-5000) and hope the garage bills are ok. What would you do? Also, if I spend more do I go for a newer high mileage car or a low mileage older model.

Blank canvas - what would you do??

Thanks,

David

[lee celtic]

I have a 200tdi and get 25-28 ish depending on how I drive I bought it for 2500 4 years ago mecanically I've spent about 400 quid keeping it going but I do all the spannering my self . total I've spent 1200 but most of the things I've done didn't need doing but just had to be done :twisted: (tyres lift snorkel lights etc etc etc) Though I would say it was a good one to start with full history and all that

[J B]

i get 30mpg out of my 300tdi, i'd say the biggest problem with disco's is rust, so check the boot floor and wheel arches front and back

they can make nice road cars, or make awsome off road cars  :twisted:

[cardiff_gareth]

mine is doing mid / bottom 30's on the MPG front although i did send SWMBO out to B&Q today for some parafene so i'll let you know what its doing after the intercooler clean !

look on ebay as there are loads out there, i saw a really really tidy 200tdi v8 for £1500 that was off road spec'd last week, so for £2k there is plenty of scope  

its the normal thing with them rot, rot and more rot, oh and get a service history

you wanna spend £4-5000 then you could buy mine :lol:  :lol:

[Disco-Ron]

look on ebay as there are loads out there, i saw a really really tidy 200tdi v8 for £1500 that was off road spec'd last week, so for £2k there is plenty of scope  

A 200tdi v8... thats rare!!!

[Range Rover Blues]

One thing to think about with Deisels, but let's not crow about it, is that if road tax is put up for older cars with no emissions data on their logbook then it will be impossible to target the good old TDi lump without getting every white van owner in the country. That would loose an election if anything will so from a tax point of view a TDi is a bit more future proof than the V8, which let's face it is a sitting duck if the chancellor dicides he wants another Jag/millenium dome/pointless war and needs more tax money to pay for it.

[JumboBeef]

I've had a V8 on lpg for about six months now, and I've had no problems what so ever.

Buy a V8, you know you want to! :D

[Elmo]

I have a 200Tdi which cost me £600 and then immediately £1200 for an MOT - it was a rust bucket. Since then however its been a really good motor and for £1800 I'm not complaining. OK OK I've spent more than that but light bar etc. are not essential so I'm not counting those. Fuel economy is 22-28 depending what you are doing.

If I were you I'd look for a tidy 300Tdi with MOT and FSH - they are available  in  your price band and as long as you check them over at purchase (or buy within the club) you shouldn't get a nail.

[lurch_917]

ive had my disco for 1 year now running fine till the cam belt went running on 35% VEGI OIL chek forum also check previouse posting about the rust now if its outside 30 cm from a structural mount or point it dont come under mot regs.

[freeagent]

I'd spend £2,000 - £2,500 on the nicest 300Tdi you can find, you'll get a good 'M' or 'N' for that kind of cash, even a 'P'.. look for full service history, family ownership and no rotten bodywork..

I bought a lovely 'N' reg 300Tdi last april (18 months ago) with 100,000K on the clock and full service history for £2200, i've probably invested another £1000 in having the clutch/timing belt/alternator/wheel bearings replaced (do most of the spanner work myself) but I know have a strong and fairly reliable motor which takes me to work every day and took us the the Sahara last summer.

A good strong base vehicle is a better place to start than a wrotten wreck.

[muddyjames]

I think I'm going to cry watching this thread! I bought my 300tdi auto 2 years ago nearly to the day with 160k on the clock and 5 days later it was recovered home and £800 spent on it to repair the loose alternator pulley on the crank shaft. the very well known garage near alton didn't do the nut up tight enough. At the time I thought it was a bargain but obviously not!! :lol:

I must say though the guy before me spent 2k on replacing fuel lift pumps etc and other expensive bits hence why I bought it.

I have spent loads on repairs so far too like suspension all round and a wheel bearing and other little odds and sods. Also spent a fair bit on snorkel etc too.

I am now getting about mid 20's mpg. was getting low 20's before the air filter change.  :oops:

I have found servicing them is a high priority to keep them running at best mpg. I have found out the hard way!!

[Evilgoat]

£700 on a 200TDi J reg. Not perfect (Sorry Niel) but with that said and ignoring my other post its not all that bad. It needs a lot of welding but I expected that.

30Mpg ish, sometimes lower but a lot to do with me getting used to the car.

I dont think I'd part with it for anything right now :)

[crazymac]

I'm about to finish my 4th year with my 200Tdi. I bought it at Brightwells for £1500 with 10 months MOT. it has never failed an MOT since, but I have had to maintain it to ensure that has happened.

I service every six months, which for me is about 3500 miles, so well within limits.

I've had to repair the crank after a woodruff key snapped, and various bits of welding to the front inner wings and rear floor, so overall probably around £400. That to me is cheap motoring.

I run 50/50 veg oil diesel mix and return 20MPG with a 3 tonne trailer and 28 to 35 MPG normal.

I use it for everything I do, it was green laning over strata florida on Friday, playing on a mates farm Saturday and it is doing a motorway run on Tuesday (if I manage to fix the track rod I bent on saturday :oops: )

I can say with lots of confidence that it is the best machine that I have ever owned

[cardiff_gareth]

you don't wanna know the costs  of the receipts that my service history adds up too  :shock:  :lol:

[SteveGoodz]

I'm on my fourth Discovery. Started with a 200Tdi which rapidly gave way to a 300Tdi because I prefer the interior of the 300. Next was a 300-series 3.9V8 ES model which I had converted to LPG 'cos I couldn't find a petrol tanker (or bank manager) that could keep up with it. My current ride is a 300Tdi ES Auto which I bought 3 months ago for £2500 and I love it. It's my daily drive and also gets laned at least once a month. Highest maintenance cost so far? T-cut  :P

Can't imagine owning anything else ... except a Range Rover Sport  :D

[davidjmiller]

yep, I'm now seriously on the hunt for a 300TDi disco. I've only ever driven an automatic a couple of times and whilst it was quite nice I think I'll go manual unless something exceptional turns up.

Cheers,

David