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The Disco ran great. I left the tranny in sport mode and it really romped. I was pulling an aluminum trailer with a 2-year-old mule on board, so the load wasn't too bad. The story might be different when the mule, Dan, fills out.
About the pinging. I never noticed any knocking or pinging around town when I was burning 89 octane. The engine is very torquey and strong with either mid-grade or premium. But, I wouldn't try to tow a trailer with mid-grade.
Here's the quick question: Do any of you tow with your Discoveries, and if so, how well does it handle the towing?
Here's the long version:
I've been browsing these boards for some info on towing, but can't seem to find what I need. I currently own a 2003 Dodge Durango that I bought used to tow my 19' ski boat (MasterCraft X-7). The Durango is not exactly what I'd call "built well," and i'm looking to upgrade the truck. I live in downtown Chicago, so I need a vehicle that can play nicely downtown, as well as by the lake. I like the Land Rover a lot, and can find some decent 2003-2004 HSE's in the area.
My concern is the towing. The Disco has a shorter wheel-base than my Durango. Can the V-8 handle the boat (boat + trailer = 3800lbs). Will it be able to haul that sucker out of the water, and up and down the rolling hills of Wisconsin? I know the Rover reputation for off-road prowess, but need to know if it will handle my hauling needs. I'd hate to buy a nice truck that will look and perform well in the city, only to find that my boat has to sit on dry land because the truck won't pull it correctly.
Thanks a lot. I'm going to look seriously at Discos this week, so I'd like to know if I should even be wasting my time.
-Matt
p.s. We're not even going to discuss the lack of fuel efficiency with a boat and an all-time 4WD truck.
The SI is better IMHO offroad due to its better departure angle. But some parts of the SII drivetrain were simpler/stronger. The SI uses swivel balls that give you indefinite CV life, but the swivel seals are quirky and easy to bash on snow berms, plus the trunion bearings at the swivel must be adjusted *just* right. My SI has a locking center differential... does the '99?
Look under the hood... do you see Bosch or Lucas electrics? Bosch is good stuff, and Lucas "can" be good. Mine have been just fine.
The trailing arms that locate the rear axle on an SII are tough... on an SI they're easier to bend on rocks. Some SIs had a Rotoflex driveshaft coupler at the rear diff that was problematic at times.
You're right, the '99 was the end of the run and it was arguably the best SI Disco. The early SIIs had some troubles. Do the SIIs you're looking at have ACE? That was often a problem till they got it sorted out later in the model run.
Check the base of the rear door openings on the SIs... is there rust showing?
Basically you're looking at the same truck, with some upgraded electrics and a few drivetrain components... and a longer tail end on the SII. But the biggest question will be teething pains on the SII.
How much of a price difference is there? Will you offroad it? Do you need a locking center diff?
If it was up to me and I could have a solid '99 SI vs. a solid '00 SII then I would pick the SI just for its offroadability. If you're running around town and they're comparably solid (check their history by VIN) then go for the SII and enjoy the bigger cargo hold.
Enjoy, and good luck!
One question about the VIN history - when I pull carfaxes for various Disco's, some have numerous services, oil changes, suspension services etc listed, some have absolutely none, just vehicle registration info. Would all dealer services be listed on a carfax? Oil changes and lubes are listed on some. My dilemma is deciding whether a truck that has no carfax service records ran so well that the owner never needed to take it in for repair, or was the owner totally negligent? On the flip side, the truck that was in the shop continually, was that an ultra caring owner, or a problem vehicle? I am looking at one 2000 DiscoII, one owner, 80,000 miles, and only one service record at 56,000 for a "Service Contract Claim". The owner says it was dealer serviced per Land Rover recommendations, and there is obviously no way it was only serviced once in 80,000 miles. He must have liked the truck to keep it for 5 years... Would Land Rover dealerships have the service information, and would they give it to me if I called and asked? I am finding myself gravitating more and more to buying a vehicle from a land rover dealer (more expensive) to get some sort of warranty to take some of the unknowns out of this process.
I dunno about Carfax... no experience there I'm afraid! Sorry......
For real answers go the the Rover dealer and ask him to pull up the history of the vehicle by VIN. If it was worked on at a Rover dealer, that work will be in there. You're right, an ultra-cautious owner could have pages of work done as opposed to a negligent owner with nothing showing. BUT... if the truck had chronic "issues" then even a negligent owner would take advantage of the warranty and have it in for repairs. Look at what was done when it was in the shop.
One thing to look for: a negligent owner will tend to let oil changes slide by... and it will result in "tappety" lifters. Let it warm up and then listen to it idle at both sides. Noisy lifters mean it's been a long time between oil changes.
By all means avoid ACE and SLS. If I could have manual windows, I'd have them!
If you're going offroad I'd recommend the SI Disco. It simply rocks offroad. The SII is a great truck too and it has traction control so you can get further before you bury it by using its ABS and moving the torque around to the wheels with traction. That system works for mild offroading and getting mildly stuck. But when you're into some big-time burying of your truck, the ABS oriented traction control is just a nickle short and a moment too late... it won't respond fast enough to get you through. In those cases you'll need real lockers... which the SI doesn't come with in any case. Plan on about $800/axle to have lockers put in. THEN you'll be unstoppable. Detroit in the rear and Tru-Trac in the front.
Cheers!
You don't mean low RANGE, right? That takes a lever to select at the transfer case....
I bet when you get to a dealer he can plug you in and reset the ECUs and all will be well.
I think you should invest in a new battery. Reason being, I had a similar issue with all the lights you mentioned going on and immediately drove to the Service Center at Land Rover but couldn't get out of lower gears the whole way! Sound familiar? Well, it turned out to be a bad cell in the battery. The other cells were fine, so it would hold a charge for a little while (at the Service Center), then the charge would be gone and the problem returned (again at the Service Center). So they put in a new battery (my vehicle is still under warranty) and voila! --- problem solved! So, if you haven't already, try a fresh battery. That would be a reasonably inexpensive way to make sure you're vehicle is getting clean, strong power. I just thought of something --- before dropping 80-100 dollars/pounds/yen on a battery, make sure the cables to the existing battery are tight. THEN, if that doesn't change anything, maybe get the new battery.
Car went dead at the grocery store ....it was completely dead. I got a jump and it was all good. Drove it around for a bit....stopped and tried to start again but it was dead again (completely dead). Went to K-mart (only store open) and bought a new battery. Put in new battery and it was still dead. I got a jump with the new battery...started right up...drove around for 20 minutes...shut it off and tried to start but it was dead.
Questions:
Is the alternator the obvious guess?
Is there a chance the cheap [non-permissible content removed] champion battery from Kmart is just too weak to turn the motor over?
Thanks.
Can any garage reset my ECU's? The dealer is pretty far from me...
RJR: I think this is your transfer case. It's gear driven and has a nice whine to it. It's beneath the passenger seat. Totally normal... have you changed the fluid this year? It's a good idea about every 12 months.
WOSDII: I'm not sure of the "limp" mode but it sure sounds like that's what it is. A dealer will have to reset the ECUs... it takes the "Testbook" computer to plug in to your truck and check its status then reset any/all parameters. You have "learning" ECUs and it can reset any of those parameters too. You might look at your fuse block too (as suggested above) to see if corrosion has your electrical connections weakened. I'm not sure a Bosch equipped Rover even HAS a fuse block as described tho......
Lightbulbs are covered under factory warranty. Your dealership will replace it for you.
TriCo 45-205 wiper blade replacements.
These rubber inserts slide easily into the Land Rover wiper blade frame without tools or struggle, etc.... I got them at a local auto parts shop for about 4 dollars, but have since seen them on the web also.
Hope this helps anyone having problems.
I also build and set up production on Italian cars and also my Great Grand Father's factory builds the best! The real G Wagon, PUCH G500 also every other Mercedes Benz Engines are put in it so it would be a long list. This is not the same as The Mercedes Benz G500 or G55 sold in the states. Next I have tested the K&N Filter and run it on all my autos, which by the way looks like a used car lot. They all run K&N Filters but one and it’s a similar copy by Borla. They are great and even have it on my wife’s 2002 QX4 and have never have had any problems or questions of warranty by dealer servicing these autos and truck and or SUVs.
Fibers would be so unlikely to be discharged from the filter due to the fact you have to keep them oiled to work properly. Plus the fiber in these types of filters are much better then fibers in paper filters used by most manufacturers. Next if a dealer ever fails to comply with your warranty due a K&N air filter used I would be happy to show you how to prove him or her to be one big fool!
Now the question comes to you? Are you properly oiling it and servicing it as required by the manufacturer? That means cleaning them with right cleaning solution as well. :
Steven the Manufacturer.
Steven The Manufacturer.
PS we were offered $7000 on trade by a Honda dealership when it was wroking right!!!
battery and connections
coil connections cleaned
located and cleaned 6 ground connections
swapped around starter solenoids, even took one apart - was clean
replaced the starter (didn't help, and I put the old one back in:)
I'm quite confident it is heat-related and even can predict fairly reliably the reading of the temperature gauge at which it will start. My current thoughts are either the "amplifier module" - not sure what it does exactly, but it was blamed for engine cutoff when it was running hot, and there even exists an "amplifier module relocation kit" to place it in a cooler location, OR something thermostat/fuel line temperature related. (the fuel line seems doubtful, as it is quite clearly electrical-heat related - it doesn't crank AT ALL or it starts right up)
Not sure if that helps, but an engineer somewhere needs to figure out how heat affects critical starting circuitry.
I 110% agree with you in regards to the brakes on the 99-02 DII's. I have mentioned that to LR many times. I called the LR dealer after seeing the post and they are clueless. Is the brake info posted somewhere? Thanks Steven!
Josh
You might want to turn off your CAPS LOCK because people tend to ignore postings that are written in ALL CAPS.
tidester, host
Re towing. We just purchased a 19 foot Trail-Lite Cruiser (c19), which weighs about 3,900 lbs. empty. We pulled it home on Tuesday, a distance of about 40 miles. We have a 2003 Disco SE, 5 seater. The trailer installed a nice hitch and anti-sway bar setup.
The Disco pulled the trailer about as you might expect. Not fast, but not straining. On Rt. 70 around Denver we got it up to 55-60, which is fast as I will tow. On the back roads closer to our house we could not go that fast, but there were more hills. Count on it shifting down to 3rd on any kind of a hill, at least with this trailer. Once in 3rd, though, it has the ability to maintain speed, and then even to pick up a bit.
I was very worried about the short 100 inch wheelbase, so we kept the trailer short, at 19 feet. I noticed no undue swaying or tail wagging the disco effect, even when we got into moderate cross winds closer to home.
The true test for us will come when we load the trailer up with 30 gallons of water, food, clothes, fishing gear, etc., and head up in the Rockies. We live at about 6,100 feet, and the reduced power of any car is noticable vs. running the same car down near sea level. Towing capacity is likewise reduced.
I will post more about our towing experience when we have taken it on its shakedown voyage up in the mountains. You probably won't want to hold off your buying decision that long, though. We are itching to get going, but we have to wait until tonight's snow storm goes away. My experience so far says that the Disco can do it.
Pete (Light Cahill).
Good luck with your Disco. Whatever you do, stay away from Land Rover dealers. They really don't know what the problem is so they can't fix it. They only solve it temporarily to get you out of their service floor after collecting some of your money. I even noticed that one of the replies to your message says that they had to put some Audi part to fix the problem!
The 2004 Disco, on the other hand, has had one minor radio problem in the six months Ive owned it. The dealer is ten times nicer than the Infiniti dealer, the waiting room is better, even the loaners are better.
I have no illusions that in time the Disco will have its share of problems, and I will [non-permissible content removed] loudly! But at this point the Disco has been way more reliable than the Infiniti (knock on wood).
At my first service this week they did do a recall on upgrading the computer software. I do not know what it was for, but I swear the damn things drives better.
The M+S flashing lights is just one of the many probelsm we had with the LR. So I guess that the dealers are the ones that really make a difference. If our LR dealer would have provided loaners like our Infiniti and your LR dealer do, solved each problem when first reported (or proactively), and did not charge us an arm and a leg for each oil change and "checkup", we probably would have kept the car. Before I got rid of the LR we had been on vacation for an extended period of time and the car was parked at the airport. Since then, and for the next 4 months, the vehicle would be at the dealer every Monday and I will get it back every Wed. or Thu.
Maybe LRNA (which I have written numerous letters to and got no answer to this day) learned about some defects with the older models and finally paid attention to the reviews their were getting (the 03 Consumer Satisfaction Index for Land Rover was below Kia, Hyndai, and other very inexpensive vehicles), got their act together and made the 04 Disco a better vehicle... and the new owners happier owners. Whatever they did, it must be working because you sound very satisfied with the car. Actually, that would make sense; they have to take care of you if they want to stay in business and sell you a new LR3 a few years from now.
Again, I really wish I had the experience you do, not only because I bought that car solely based on what I wanted at the time; it was also against my wife's advise... so I am still hearing about it (she calls is the "Junk Rover - The Vehicle Most Troubled")
Good luck with your 04.
This has been by far the most reliable and strongest vehicle I've ever owned. That includes owning 13 Hondas.
Maybe you should consider an older / simpler model? (psst: mine's not for sale)
Cheers!
Cheers!
I have a 96 Disco that recently went through the same problem, but a little more aggravated. The problem was in the Multi-Function Unit (MFU) that controls pretty much everything that is not controlled by the ECU. Not too expensive a part, but it was for me since I had to replace my Alternator at the same time. Yours being a 99 might be different if it's a Disco II. Mine is a Disco I with 108 K miles.
Thanks for the info. Mine is a Disco I also. From what I understand it is the last year of that models production. I am wary of letting anyone else work on her, especially the LR Dealer, so I plan to do the work myself. I know where the MFU is located, but are there any special steps I need to take when I replace it? It looks like I can just disconnect the old and reconnect the new one, according to the alldata DIY website. I found the part online for $87.95 I'm going to replace the MFU and the fuel filter and I'll let you know how it goes after the work is done.
To see if the lock works, first a yellow light should illuminate on the dash, top right corner. Then try driving it unlocked to get a feel for it when turning corners on pavement. Then lock the diff (throw the lever to the left) and then gently try going around a corner. You should notice it really does not want to roll, almost like the brakes are on a little. Don't muscle it too hard, that's awful hard on the drive train. Then later unlock the central diff and go around a corner (like in a parking lot) and you'll feel it rolling much easier, like the brakes are off again.
Or you can go find some muck and bury it, then lock the central diff and power your way out with (at least) opposite corner wheels spinning. That's how I prefer to check mine!
People, if you have a central lock... use it! Lock it up and unlock it again at least once a month just to keep the linkage limber. You can never tell when you'll need it. Usually in the worst of conditions.....
The '94 sounds like a keeper! You might have a compression check done on it to make sure the cylinders and head gasket are tight. Other than that, buy it and change all the lubes regularly, and enjoy her!
Let us know how it pans out!
- Are maintenance costs as high a people say? – someone told me that ever time he goes to the dealership is about $600.00 and that does not include MAJOR repairs
- Does anybody recommend a 2002 or 2004 (I know that 2003 had some issues)
Thanks to everyone who reply.
Thanks
So, here we go. I realise I will be seeing a lot of you folks in the future :-)