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Boy it's hard for me to remember that differentials can actually get HOT, considering it's -20 outside right now. Driving Anuqa when she's been sitting for a few hours is like stirring peanut butter. COLD peanut butter.
My radio (with nav) suddenly died yesterday. Its not the fuse, the clock and park distance control work. I know there are electrical gremlins in the disco, but Im surprised it happened so fast.
Gas Mileage. I know how bad it is, and I was fully aware of the realities of this vehicle before I bought it. But I am getting only 9-10 miles per gallon (exxon premium). I know its cold, gas is formulated differently in the winter, and my driving is stop n go, but I had hoped for a thrifty 12 mpg Is this the way it is, or is something wrong.
Otherwise, I think its great!
I used to build experimental kit aircraft but over the years I have lost the ability to do anything more complex than brake pads, so do you think that when the LR Dealer tells me the rotors are just below mins, that I could replace pads and still be okay?? ( I think I would be fine ) but would like your opinion as you have been great member of the news group here. I did get quotes from a local indy shop but they were more money on the 60K service and close to the same on the head gasket....? in any case looking forward to getting "old blue" back and doing some spring deer hunts.
Thanks,
PML
If you're not hot-rodding the truck then there are a lot smaller forces acting on the rotors, and they'd be less likely to break than if you were an Andretti. Wait, make that Jackie Stewart... this is, after all, a British truck. I use nice soft pads and I'm on my original rotors with 96k miles. Pads are cheap and easy to replace.
If it was up to me, I'd put on soft pads and be done with it. I've had good luck with Wagner and Lockheed. I'd drive her gently and watch for wear. A rule of thumb: cheaper pads will be softer... buy the CHEAP ones. You may be surprised at your stopping power too.
You gotta weigh the options and make your own decision... I hate to use weasel words like that, and I apologize for it, but that's what the world's coming to.
The head gasket leak... is it leaking coolant into the cylinder?
Regards, -Bob
thanks,
mike
Miles Driven = 25,344
Average Miles per Gallon = 15.76
Lowest Average MPG = 14.96
Highest Avg. MPG = 15.85
Best Single Tankful MPG = 19.79
Worst Single Tankful MPG = 12.53
Repair Record:
01. Oil changed per schedule free by purchasing dealer.
02. Tires rotated at my cost.
03. Computer reprogrammed once at my cost to have the driving lights on, per spouse request.
04. Computer reprogrammed once gratis by dealer to turn off the driving lights, per my request. (I prefer to use the light switch when I feel that I need driving lights).
05. Headlight bulb burned out and replaced by owner.
06. Still driving on the original Goodyear tires, and the original brake pads.
Other problems:
One time in the summer of 2003 the Disco would not start again after we stopped for lunch. We had driven up through a mountain pass from about 5,000 feet to over 9,000 feet on a very hot Colorado summer day with the A/C blasting. Symptom was just a click and nothing when I turned the key. After about one hour it started right up. The problem never arose again, and the dealer could find nothing wrong. Assumed that Nanuk's Lord Lucas had flown south from Alaska for a taste of Colorado, and I ran into him by chance.
Driving conditions consisted of about 50% at altitudes above 5,000 feet, and occasionally over 11,000 feet going up rocky mountain trails. At least five long trips of several thousand to as much as 5,000 miles to the East Coast, to Florida, to Montana and to Washington and Oregon.
Home state is Colorado, so much of the driving is in the metro Denver area. They say it is hard to stop a trane. Well, in my view, it is darn neigh impossible to stop a Disco.
Light Cahill
My guess is that your alternator had problems keeping up on that hot day at altitude and it couldn't keep your battery charged. Although blaming Nanuq works too, lol.
Steve, Host
Hello, hubby and I are considering a 1998 Discovery, 89,000 miles, loaded, excellent shape except for a slight tear in the drivers' leather seat bottom, drives great, looks great. We really like it, BUT we've heard so many negative things about LRs that we are now hesitant. We aren't just buying for the LR name, but need a tough, safe 4WD vehicle that will tow a drift boat, take us to the woods, as well as my 60 mile daily commute to my job in the city. We'd love input from owners of high-mileage Discos-- i.e., would you buy it again, dependability, durability, etc. Thanks very much.
The radio is still dead..I have had to wait two weeks for an appointment. It did work for one day last week and died again. I thus suspect the problem is the electircal system, not the radio..lets hope
I recently have had a problem with my drive belt squealing in the mornings until my truck warms up. I tried belt dressing, and it's a temporary fix (lasts a couple days) I checked the belt and it doesn't look bad. Should I change it, or is there some way to adjust the tensioner?
It sounded like the type of loud squeal that usually comes from a clapped-out car with a bad power steering pump. Is this a typical LR noise or should I be concerned.
Outside temp was 42 degrees. The squeal quieted down a bit after about 30 seconds until it disappeared in about 20 minutes.
You may be out of luck, as you took the car "as-is." I had thought about buying a loaner, and if I had I would have had a friend of mine, a used car sales manager, look it over. Loaners tend to be abused, and you have to check them carefully. I suspect that a lot of people who would never take their Disco off road do it with loaners to see what its like; unless they trash the transmission or some other underbody part (or a door!), who will know?
The last one I drove (that they wanted to sell me/not paramus), had a water leak, was full of sand and drove poorly. So Im afraid its caveat emptor with a used car.
Meanwhile I took my Disco out into a huge unplowed parking lot with almost a foot of snow and ice, and drove through it like it wasnt there. Pretty nice. The only other SUV was a jeep; the cars stayed far away
Unless you are the first person to drive your Land Rover, how do you know how well or poorly it was treated?
Rarely, when I start her after sitting overnight I'll get some noise from the power steering pump. It's not a squeal, more of a mechanical whirring sound. It's not the Enormous Sucking Sound made by the fan and viscous coupler... it's a mechanical pumping/whirring. If I turn the wheel a bit right/left and rev it a couple times it quits. Those are the only sounds you should hear from the belt (and the whirring really shouldn't happen at all).
With the engine off have a close look at your belt and the driven components. Get in close and LOOK at it. All pulleys should lie in the same "plane" and their axles parallel to each other. If they are, they'll run quiet.
It may be that the bearing on the belt tensioner is wearing out. Mine just failed on the wifemobile and that was one spooky drive home with the seized pulley and smoking belt. It was a cinch to replace (hers is a Ford Windstar) and the tensioner was $48, a belt was $20 and the tool was $15. Piece of cake. Listen to the source of the squeal... does it come from one place? You can likely pinpoint the component making noise. It may be the alternator (doubt it) or power steering pump (doubt it) or tensioner. Just give a long close listen (do not get your hair caught in the belt!!!) and it will become clear.
If the belt is bad it will have cracks in the ribs along its inside face. Better replace it. It's a cinch to do, you'll need one of those long serpentine belt tools. I once bet my mechanic he couldn't replace the belt in 5 minutes, and I lost.
A word of warning, my Series I Disco uses automatic transmission fluid in the power steering system. Make sure you're topping yours off with the right stuff! And don't sweat the leak... keep the hose clamps under the reservoir tight and remember "if it's not leaking, it's empty".
Best regards, -Bob
I was given a new LR3 with 300 miles on it. woo-hoo I thought. After driving it on the highway, city streets, and over some hard packed snow (sorta moonscape), I came away feeling good that I had the Disco and NOT an LR3.
The good: lots of power (too much really) I got rid of my sports car for that reason. THe Disco has plenty for around town.
Great driving position & comfy seats. This is the Disco's biggest shortcoming, so nuff said.
The Bad: Its butt ugly, and that was the comment I got from people.
Interior has way too many buttons, and the plastics and "touch" is far inferior as compared to the Disco.
Doors are tinny when closed.
Body feels much less solid then the Disco. Mine always feels like a rock. The LR3 had a lot of flex and shaking.
When the service advisor called me to tell me to keep it over night, he asked how I liked it. I told him the follwoing:
Power: Great
Interior: cheap. Advisors response: we get complaints constantly from people about it.
Body: shake and not solid feeling. Advisors response: we get the same complaints, much less solid due to the construciton and change in axels.
He also told me that the demand for Discos is INCREASING now that they are all gone. He felt that they will be in high demand for years. THe serious off-roaders are spurning the LR3, at least for now.
That made me feel good:)
Given a better interior finish, the LR3 could seriously hurt Range Rover sales though.
Greg
My question is whether anyone has any experience with such a thing or does anyone have an idea what it could be.
thanks.
Of course if the Series II doesn't use universal joints in the front axle hubs then I'm barking up the wrong tree. Mine uses swivel ball housings with grease and CV joints inside.
Another thing to check: if it's only to the right, on the indside of a turn, then the pinions in the front differential are letting the axles turn at different rates. Assuming you do not have a limited slip diff installed you may have something screwy with the diff. A bad pinion shaft?
Also if you have traction control the ECU may be having a brain cramp thinking the dissimilar rotation rates between the front tires means it's spinning its tires, so it has to apply the brakes to the right wheel. I believe your SII is like my SI with a 4 channel independent ABS / TC system... it is possible to actuate one wheel by itself.
Another vague consideration, how does the tire tread look? If it's cupped and nasty then rotate the tires front to back and see if it helps. Watch your pressures.
Good luck! I hope this helps.
For what it's worth I went with Nokian Hakka LT10s on my Disco and I love them for all but the deepest nastiest gnarliest conditions. Their max pressure is 85psi and I run them at 55psi front and back. No cupping after three years.
We're getting DUMPED on with snow today! YAHOO!!
Mine are fine but the vehicle is still too new.
Peeete, when one of my tires got an unrepairable puncture right at the corners where the sidewall and the tread meet I used my spare to replace it. After that I went shopping to replace my spare. I did go to Tire Rack and saw the comments for the GoodYears. I just went ahead and bought another to replace my spare since I heard it's not a good idea to have different tires. I'm just waiting for the time to replace all four. When I do I'll do some homework to find better tires. I'm just disappointed that LR chose the GoodYears as stock tires. It doesn't appear to be the cost since the price is very comparable to others. Perhaps they just got a better deal from GoodYear.
By the way, should I worry about the tires cupping? I know that it causes a little bumpiness on the ride and at certain speeds it causes some vibration on the steering wheel but then goes away. Does tire cupping have other bad side effects other than what I already am experiencing? Is it something that can do some damage to my Disco?
I have printed a copy of what you wrote and am scheduled an appointment for service.
I will post what the outcome is.
It seems like the Goodyears are REALLY prone to cupping. I bought Nokian Hakka LT10s and they too have a "blocked" shape to the tread but I've got no cupping.
I recently had to get 4 new tires for my 96. I ended up getting 4 Toyo Open Country A/T's They are ranked up there by Consumer Reports, and I have had a much better road feel than before. They are supposed to be pretty good on the snow too. Don't know if they can compare to Nanuq's Nokian's, but, then again, I don't live in the Tundra like he does. The Toyo's are much better than the ones I had before in the rain too. It does do that a lot in Seattle.
http://www.rangerovers.net/outfitting/tires/classictires.html
I am planning to buy 2001 Land Rover Discovery II SE7 with 71000 miles for about $15k with extended warranty. I have read various great and bad comments about this SUV and am confused.
I really like this car offer because of the price, power, and features but am not sure because I dont go off-road and I need a family car.
Also, I dont know how to check if I am getting a good deal. I cheked for prices but I cant find anything on web that will help me evaluate/inspect the car.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Thx,
Raga
PS: This is my first post here.
If you want to really get a close look at it, schedule a service at a Rover dealership. Have them go over it with a fine tooth comb and also provide you a vehicle history (available by VIN). Be prepared to spend a couple hundred bucks. You might be able to negotiate that amount off the sales price should you decide to buy?
It will be a great family car but it will SUCK gas driving it on errands. My wife loves my Disco and prefers it over anything else she's ever driven: Mercedes, Passats, Volvos, you name it.
I've used mine to haul some horrendous loads and it has performed flawlessly. How about 36 cartons of 18" slate flooring in one trip? No sweat. That was well over a ton of stone. 45 cartons of wood flooring in one trip, again no sweat. I've used mine extensively for offroading and hauling my Scout troop around since 1997 and it has never failed (once I got it past some initial "issues").
You'll love and hate this truck... it's the nature of the beast. Good luck!
-Bob
Thanks
-Bill
Thanks a lot for the information. Although I am not buying this beast for off-road, but I am sure it will be fun for long drives.
I really appreciate your suggestions and will try to follow each of them.
Thanks,
RaGa
Regardless, here's my take on it: you can lease another Explorer and when the lease is up you still won't own a vehicle. For about the same money you can buy a Land Rover. I'm guessing it's about the same money or it wouldn't be a hard choice, correct?
A Rover is designed to be durable. It will still be in service long after the Explorer has outlived its design parameters (some would call it planned obsolescence). For $14,000 you can own a vehicle that will last longer than you want it to. What does this mean? You won't be leasing any more Explorers. When the $14,000 is paid off you have no more payments. The savings then is the money you DON'T have to spend to keep a vehicle in your garage.
If the Disco is over 60k miles then it likely doesn't have any chronic issues. The dealership can give you its history, retrievable by VIN. That will reveal any problems that just won't go away.
If you do buy the truck get the longest warranty you can. 3yr/45000 for $550 is a BARGAIN. That will take you over 100,000 miles which is when things begin to wear out, like alternators and power steering pumps. Each of those will cost what that entire warranty does. An ABS pump will be twice that.
Rovers are a love/hate thing. You are embarking on an adventure. Over the course of 5 years you will be money ahead with the Disco. Those 3 reasons can argue for the Rover... if they fit with what you expect from a vehicle.
From personal experience my Disco has been BY FAR the most reliable, trouble-free vehicle I've ever owned. And I use it hard, regularly. It lives a hard life here in Alaska and it thrives. I personally can't imagine NOT owning a Rover the rest of my life. I expect this one to last me another 10 years easily. Can I say as much of any other vehicle I've owned? Not hardly.
Good luck in your decision, -Bob
but I plan of buying one or the other. I did want a change from the Explorer. However, the person who is selling the Disco put me in touch with a service person who went I talked to him doesn't recommend them. He says people spend an avg of $1000-3000 on repairs a year. He mentioned problems with radiator leaks, electrical failures/malfunctions, and engine problems. This was not encouraging. I did have my heart set on getting one but I don't want a money pit. After reading your response I will ask the dealer what the warranty covers and what it doesn't. I've been actively looking for a SUV for a month now and thought I was done.
If you have any other insights let me know.
Rose.
Other than the noise and added vibration things seem to be operating normaly. I got a 30day 1000 mile warranty and don't want to wait if this is somthing serious.
Any and all. I appreciate you're input!!!!
Bill
It's perfectly normal. Look beneath the bonnet (I love saying that) and you'll see the ABS module bolted to the firewall right in front of where you're sitting. It's a VERY sophisticated 4-channel system and when you slide (or spin) a wheel it will react by bleeding off brake pressure to the wheel in question. On my Disco it sounds like a ball in a tube sitting on top of a spring and the ball bounces up and down very quickly letting brake pressure bleed past.
The traction control system uses the ABS system to detect differential wheel rotation rates (slip vs. spin) and then to apply braking power to the one spinning wheel, thus sending power across the axle/differential to the nonspinning wheel. Likewise when it detects a sliding wheel it reduces braking pressure to THAT ONE WHEEL until the wheel begins to roll once more.
It's a great system... what you're hearing is normal. Try it on bare pavement and it won't happen I betcha.
Enjoy your 6-hour old truck!! -Bob
You've purchased a used vehicle, correct? My advice is to change EVERY fluid on the truck pronto. I mean everything. You'll want to do:
* Differentials
* Swivel housings (I doubt you have these)
* Transfer case
* Auto trans
* Engine oil
* Power steering fluid (note on my Disco this is ATF)
* Brake fluid
They say "oil is cheaper than metal" and they're right. It can be a pain but if you do this religiously your truck can last nearly forever.
Hint: to change the power steering fluid use a turkey baster and run the steering back and forth stop-to-stop while you suck it out of the reservoir. It takes awhile. Count on using up a liter or so of ATF.
Best regards, -Bob
Josh
Good luck!