300TDI buying advise needed

[SWEETY]

Hi guy's I was wondering if you could tell me what to look out for & where on a 300TDI auto please :DI've never owned a landy before so don't really know what to look out for :'(I need to try & get the cleanest one I can as it's got to last me quiet a few years as the family motor & our green laner :roll:

[davidjmiller]

Rust, rust and more rust!!

Inside the doors esp the back ones at the lower rear. Around the back bumper. Get that carpet up in the boot there might be loads there. Inner wings are also problematic too!!!

Be careful and hunt around. There are some good bargins out there now.

Good luck,

david

[Skibum346]

They main thing is the bodywork...
Look for holes in the sills (bottom face, inner face and if you can get behind the plastic outer face face as well)
Holes in the rear wheel arches and rear door where wheel arch meets it (this check is important as seat belts mount to wheel arch).
Boot floor... get the carpet up and check where the spot welds hold the floor to the support bars and on all four edges.
Inner wings... some end up being completely disconnected from the rest of the bodywork! Don't be fooled by recent paint/underseal. Make sure it's solid under there.
Footwells can rot at the front.

Other than that... look for smoke from the exhaust, expect some in high mileage that have been sitting for a while as long as it's black. Blue/white means trouble.

Second gear can get a bit crunchy as the gearbox gets old... listen for transmission slap on take up of gears... and slowing down using gearbox... could mean excessive wear in transmission somewhere (anywhere from gearbox all way back to diffs).

Hope this helps.

Skibum

[SWEETY]

Thanks for the help guy's :PHave seen a few where there is what looks like grease coming out of the axles behind the front brakes is this the swivels gone :?is there any oil leaks that will cause probs in the long run :roll:

[Skibum346]

Firstly... a Land Rover doesn't leak.... it just marks it's territory...    :lol:

However... if it's leaking oil/grease from the wiper seal on the chrome ball on the end of the axle case at the front it could just need new wipers seals. However, if it's been left that way for any length of time it COULD mean a complete rebuild of the swivel hub.

If it's behind the breaks it's the hub oil seal. relaively easy but the complexity of the hub can be daunting for a newbie. Part is a couple of quid.

Small leaks from nose of diffs is common but again... if oil levels are not regularly checked could lead to probs. The fix is relatively sxtraightforward. There is a seal behind the drive flanges that can be changed.

All oil leaks can be managed by regular top up's... the issue I guess is 1) are you going to be disciplined enough? 2) how much earache will missus give you for spoiling the drive!

I'd suggest that it's not so much oil leaks that are the problem as they all help to diagnose a problem that can be fixed... it's the abscence of oil leaks... abscence of a leak could just mean there is no oil left....    :shock:

Good luck

Skibum

[kai]

Having recently been through this process myself, I've brough two discoveries. one fro myself and another for my mate. As obviouse as it may be I would recommend checking the brake pads. In both cases I've had to replace full sets of pads all round, but then again I've had to replace both re diffs too.

Use it as a bartering point. You could get some money off the asking price.

However as above check for the bad bits of rust. My landrover needs new sills and I managed to get £200 of the asking price.

How competatant are you with the spanners?

I been repairing something different each weekend, but I know that eventually I would have sorted all the problems. But dont let me put you off.


Good luck

[clover]

I been repairing something different each weekend, but I know that eventually I would have sorted all the problems. But dont let me put you off.

Good luck

Good luck indeed! I've been repairing something different each weekend for the last seven years! As soon as I fix one thing something else goes on it. For me changing a head gasket or a clutch is just a service item!

[tokkolosh]

good luck on your search, if your'e not sure on what to luck for take someone with you who knows disco's 1, if you get a bad one they can be a money pit - get a good and you'll wonder why you didn't buy one years ago.

[Scotsman]

Get a good Disco 1? surely sir you jest :-) the only good disco 1's are the ones that mudclub members have abused with the spanners, welder and sweat :-)

On a serious note though, the early discos all seem to have rot unless its been repaired properly, then it will last, otherwise expect it to be attended to for next MOT. 1996 on seem to be better than earlier models but by no means all!

I recently started buying/selling them to try and make some semblance of an income and in the last few months have seen "pristine" (no boot floor, inner wings or rear arches) to "spares or repair" (for repair read scrap) Getting a good disco 1 will have had the previous owner spending copious amounts of cash, time and sweat, not to mention waiting time for the parts to arrive :-) . Im picking an "N" reg up tomorrow afternoon from a really [!Expletive Deleted!] off guy who got conned 6 months ago out of £1500 but had no idea how much of a rot box it was until he took it for the RIP test last week......RIP aint the word, sills, boot floor, inner wings, all virtually non existant and bodged up for the sale when he bought it. Mechanically its fine, Aesthetically its fine, Rot wise its terminal so it will be broken for spares. Biggest thing is when you look at these and think "surely that isnt 1 year of rust" and "how the hell did this pass an MOT test last year?" then you really wonder what is going on.

So onto the business

Firstly, if you can, take someone in the know, with you for inspection!
Bodywork!!
Look at the inner arches under the bonnet, also get down and look under the headlamps, making sure the headlamp boxes are sound, its a costly repair if they aren't.
The inner wings are a big job too but some MOT inspectors will pass holy ones (make sure its a Sunday opening garage) where others will fail them miserably.
Move onto the sills now and main points are at the bottom of the door pillars and front and rear of the sill. The bottom seam splits where the outer and inner meet, also where the door pillar is attached to the sill.
The rear arch (5 door only) visible when you open the rear door is also a rust spot, give it a good checking over making sure its sound at the top and bottom. This is within 12" of a seatbelt mount and will cause a fail if rotten. The inner rear arches tend to rot at the top, leaving a square hole around 2" sq, also at the front and back where the splash guards are and again where the seatbelt point is. All instant fails but not too expensive to repair.
Onto the rear end, the crossmember behind the bumper is a trap for all sorts of crap and commonly rusts away. The 2 rear body mounts also rot badly and are usually just gone or near as!
Moving forward again brings the boot floor into view. Really big problems here due to the cheap way that its fitted. most of the rot is at the spot welds and round the 4 edges, leaving the floor virtually "floating" there. £60 for a new floor and a good days work to replace. Commonly the edges have to be trimmed back and new angle welded in that supports the floor. The 2 floor crossmembers and 2 straps also tend to disappear and are often needing replaced together with the floor. Expect another £120 or so to replace the 4 parts.
inside the disco you will find rot around the middle door pillar next to the seatbelt mount, along the seam where the sill meets the floor and at the front in the footwell. There will also be odd spots along the floor seams which have gone, leaving elongated rusty holes (ideal flintstone mobile).
YOu may ask "why do they rust so much?" main reason is the sunroof and alpine windows. the seals fail and the window rubbers rot out, leaving cracks and splits that allow water to get in. I've had one where its drier to actually be IN the rain, than sat in the disco!
Front window pillar often rot, allowing water to get into the disco and rotting out the footwell.

Thats the main rot spots mentioned but its really a matter of common sense. In my early days, my vision of the clapped out rustbucket i was viewing was "an easy fix" and would be "back on the road in a couple of weeks" how blind i was.....one problem led to another, to another and so on. The best advice is always to take someone with you, or if that isnt possible, get as much info from the owner as possible whilst poking, prodding and picking at the rusty bits. Don't get me wrong, the vast majority of Discos out there are good, solid workhorse....its just a pity some are owned by scumbags who will take great delight in relieving you of your hard-earned.

Mechanics!!
Test drive is a must to assess if there is any drivetrain problems, knocking on letting out the clutch, whining from diffs, gearbox or transfer box, gearchanges smooth? 2nd gear crucnh is common on manuals. Slip on auto boxes isnt an easy or cheap fix either
pop the bonnet and listen to the rattling lump. Well it is a landrover engine isnt it? the diesels are usually noisy but not rattly. Check the turbo for oil leaks/stains and listen to it when revving the engine, there should be no whine from the turbo.
Pop the oil filler cap off when the engine is running, check for back pressure, smoke or "mayo" as i call it, emulsified oil round the cap and inside of the rocker cover could mean gasket failure

LEt the engine get up to running temp, ensure it stays there and doesnt fluctuate. Check the oil and filter to see if they are recent, also the airbox filter (commonly left out of service)

Power steering box, pipes, pump and reservoir should be leak free and running quietly and smoothly, turn the steering full lock, side to side, and check for wear and tear in the ball joints.

Getting underneath!
Check out the swivels for rusty pitting. This means oil leaks and possible drive shaft failure.
Shockers should be rot free and dry
Diffs should be dry and the gaskets not weeping. Rust holes are common on these axles casings!
Brakes should all be fine, plenty life in the pads, no scores on the discs and pipes should be corrosion free. Not pulling to one side when braking. Check handbrake travel, too much could mean new shoes needed or at worst a complete overhaul
Exhaust, sound condition and free from leaks, rot or damage (easy to get when off road)
chassis rot other than the rear crossmember is rarely a problem on Discos i find but then again, you never can tell so give it a good going over.
Fuel lines! check for leaks!, the rear fuel filter next to the tank on the offside chassis rail is OFTEN ignored in a service, so much so that replacing it is near impossible as it hasnt been changed for years and needs the filter and housing replaced or bypassed altogether!
Body mounts - check them all for signs of rot or collapsing
Another common problem is with the mudflap brackets. It isnt the mudflaps that are a problem, just the brackets and the rear ones actually hold the outer wing in position so check for corrosion around the outer bolt. While you are at that point, check the seam between the boot floor and rear whell arch, another common rot spot and not a cheap repair. Often covered with underseal too to hide it!

I've probably missed a lot and rambled on a bit but dont let me put you off buying a Disco. A good one will give you endless happiness, off road fun too if you want, whereas a rot box is nothing but a money sink. You will never sell it and make profit! so beware when buying one.

Lastly brings me on to Ebay!. DONT BID UNLESS YOU CAN SEE IT FIRST!!! I have had many wrecks brought to me for breaking that were bought off Ebay, usually with a long MOT, "used daily" "excellent runner" "recent service, cambelt, clutch" etc etc. You bid and win, go there to pick it up and wonder where it is when you see the smoke blowing pile of dog poo sat on the sellers drive!

Bottom line is, if you cant see it, hear it run and cant testdrive it...DONT BUY IT!

Anyone who needs some impartial advice from an old cynic like me, feel free to drop me a line and i'll help if i can, i'm in St.Helens, Lancs and im always happy to help or even do some repairs for biccies and coffee (oh and a 6-pack never goes wrong) I also have an abundance of spares from all the wrecks i have broken so if you want a part, drop me a line. I wont bite and i'll put some cash towards Mud Clubs server costs too if you buy something :-) Im also happy to nip over to you to help, all i ask is you cover my travel costs.

You want a good laugh? check out my old posting about the V8 Disco i bought off Ebay.....Its sitting outside the unit, stripped of most of the useable parts, gathering dust and rust and will never be on the road again, yet this was sold as "an easy fix for MOT but no time to do it" and the pics were taken 3 years earlier when the owner bought it. cheeky beggar used them to sell it....talk about chalk and cheese :-))

OK, so enuff rambling, im leaving you to it, night all!

Cheers
Scott