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  #1  
Old 09-23-2003, 02:49 PM
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Land Rover Discovery?

Does anybody have any info or personal experience with these trucks? I know they're sorta unreliable, but I really like the design. And their off road capability is unparalled among other SUVs.

TIA
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Old 09-23-2003, 03:07 PM
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They're pretty cool. I drove one when I was considering an SUV, and I really dug it.

Do not expect to be able to drive it like a car. 11 inches of suspension travel in the rear means you have to drive it on the road like you would drive any other vehicle off the road - ie, realize that it's not in its element.

They're hideously unreliable, and that was what turned my attention back to Japanese vehicles. When the dealer talks you out of one, you know when to walk away.

I'm not kidding, the guy told me that Land Rover says to expect at least $2500 in maintenance a year.

The Disco is cool as hell, I won't deny that. Unfortunately, like other recent Land Rovers, it's way too expensive to maintain to actually use it for what it's built for. It is its own oxymoron.
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Old 09-23-2003, 03:15 PM
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I drive a large cargo van when my Avenger is down, so I'm used to vehicles out of their element . the maintenance is what kills me, but they look so cool. Im hoping to find one that stays together.
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Old 09-23-2003, 03:39 PM
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Quote:
Originally posted by upnygimp
I drive a large cargo van when my Avenger is down, so I'm used to vehicles out of their element . the maintenance is what kills me, but they look so cool. Im hoping to find one that stays together.
You won't.

When I had the SUV bug (I was driving a Toyota pickup at the time and actually took it off-road, so I planned to do the same with an SUV), I settled on the Mitsubishi Montero as my choice. The current version is poofy, but previous generations were really, really cool. Go drive one. Not the Montero Sport, the Montero. The full-time 4WD is very cool, they have plenty of power...

Remember, also, that insuring the Disco is going to be insane. The roof is the only body panel made out of steel (go figure - it's the highest one...doesn't do a lot to help its CoG). The rest are aluminum and are therefore much more expensive to repair or replace.
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Old 09-23-2003, 04:31 PM
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Whats the difference between the montero and montero sport? How much can it tow? Do you know how much gorund clearance etc it has?
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Old 09-23-2003, 04:36 PM
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Quote:
Originally posted by upnygimp
Whats the difference between the montero and montero sport? How much can it tow? Do you know how much gorund clearance etc it has?
I don't remember details like those, but I'm sure you can find them online.

I never drove the Montero Sport, but I can tell you that it's not the same vehicle. For one, the Montero Sport doesn't (or didn't) come with full-time 4WD.
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Old 09-23-2003, 05:32 PM
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I'm sorta interested now. The whole "doesn't cost $2500 in maintenance/year" thing kinda turns me on to it. I also like the V6 with the (relatively) good gas mileage. Now all I gotta do is find a turbo setup for the 3.5l engine, and I'll be all set. I'm thinking it may be easy to transfer the VR4TT setup right over. Hmmmmmmmmm.
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Old 09-23-2003, 05:51 PM
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A buddy of mine has a 1987 Nissan Pathfinder with over 230,000 miles on the original engine, original transmission. Its insane. Actually, I think he's at like 245,000 now.

It offroads pretty well, too. We took it into the woods in 4wd low, and I was paintballing people (who were playing paintball) out the passenger side window. It was cool. ehhEhehe.

- Rob
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Old 09-23-2003, 06:50 PM
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My friend's wife has a Disco. It is very unreliable and very expensive to fix. Gas milage is terrible and my friend says it is no fun to drive in town or on the highway. He did give it good marks for off-road use. I don't know if you are looking for the newest model or an older model. The new-for-this-year model is apparently much better than previous years. If I remember correctly, Car&Driver did a comparison of mid-size SUVs a couple of years bacl. The Discovery ranked dead last by a long shot (out of about 13).

Matt
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Old 09-23-2003, 07:11 PM
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Hmmmm, I think I may be checking out a Montero then.
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Old 09-23-2003, 10:19 PM
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Dude, take a look at an older pathfinder too. ULTRA reliable, and they're pretty capable offroad.

- Rob
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Old 09-23-2003, 10:40 PM
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Yeah, but I don't think it would have enough towing capacity. The Montero is good for 5000 lbs, perfect to tow a car on a trailer or a camping trailer. I also kind of like the Montero because it's nice and big, but not too monsterous.
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Old 09-24-2003, 06:22 AM
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I highly doubt that they have this model over here in the states but when I was in Australia a few months ago I drove a 2002 Disco Td5... That stands for Turbo Diesel 5 cylinder... All I can say is that I absolutly love that car... The little turbo diesel engine is a BMW 2.5 ltr 5 cylinder that puts out more torque than the big 4.0 V8... It has been labled Australia's most advanced diesel engine... Just ask Trevor or Harvy, there's alot of diesel cars and trucks in that area of the world... This thing has drive by wire technoligy and an engine management that adjusts the engine's output for offroad or street use... Don't ask me how that works... I just know I loved it to death, but I am looking into the reliability issue that they have... If it turns out that I can't find enough goods to outweigh the bad then I'll just get a GC8 body WRX or something when I get back to Australia......
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Old 09-24-2003, 08:09 AM
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Quote:
Originally posted by GreenMarineSVX
I highly doubt that they have this model over here in the states but when I was in Australia a few months ago I drove a 2002 Disco Td5... That stands for Turbo Diesel 5 cylinder... All I can say is that I absolutly love that car... The little turbo diesel engine is a BMW 2.5 ltr 5 cylinder that puts out more torque than the big 4.0 V8... It has been labled Australia's most advanced diesel engine... Just ask Trevor or Harvy, there's alot of diesel cars and trucks in that area of the world... This thing has drive by wire technoligy and an engine management that adjusts the engine's output for offroad or street use... Don't ask me how that works... I just know I loved it to death, but I am looking into the reliability issue that they have... If it turns out that I can't find enough goods to outweigh the bad then I'll just get a GC8 body WRX or something when I get back to Australia......
You know, if the darned country wasn't so hard to get into, I'd be moving to Australia. You guys have much better taste in cars than most Americans. I think it probably has more to do with the environments you drive them in, but I really dig a lot of the models you get that we don't.

Years before we started getting Explorer 'Sport Tracks' and similar SUV-pickup models, I loved the types I saw on Australian websites. I thought, 'I wish I could import one of those.' Now we have tem and they're not so cool, somehow.
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Old 09-26-2003, 01:21 PM
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Re: Land Rover Discovery?

Quote:
Originally posted by upnygimp
Does anybody have any info or personal experience with these trucks? I know they're sorta unreliable, but I really like the design. And their off road capability is unparalled among other SUVs.

TIA
My dad had a '95 Disco years ago and, barring some mechanical problems, it is a fantastic truck! I like it because it's not cushy and soft; you have a very real feeling of how capable it is. In fact, I was about to get one but ended up getting an Audi instead (long story).

There are two things to watch out for, though: a) the steering will ... keep you awake on long trips! The Disco wanders incessently all over the place. In fact, if one were to fall asleep behind the wheel, you'd be in a ditch in less than a minute, guaranteed!! The other issue is b) gas mileage. A well-tuned, perfectly running Disco gets about the same gas mileage as an SVX with dead O2 sensors, which is to say horrible. Also, I found out recently that '99 and up Discos require Premium gas. At 13 mpg, it will eventually bring a tear to the eye.

Well, I hope this info is helpful. If I can think of anything else, I will chime back in. Also, if you have any other questions about it, do ask!
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