Land Rover Disco's: are they really that shite?

[Guest Hooli]

24 spline diffs came in around 1993 so the late 200s got them as well

 

I didn't realise there was an overlap.

 

I know you can tell by looking at the rear hubs, but I forget how. Mine had the really early mushroom shafts.

[NorfolkNWeigh]

My TD5 is over 13 years old and has covered 134k.  We are currently looking to replace it with a new Shogun.  Theres nothing wrong with the TD5, its had a few faults, but its been great.  However, we're getting jittery about towing a caravan to the south of France in it.   We know for a PHACT! that the Shogun will cost a shed load more to maintain and fuel, but its the closest thing to a Disco thats affordable.

I thought only The Police, Highways Agency and Pikeys were allowed to buy new Shoguns.

[Guest Hooli]

Pikeys buy things?

[Dick Cheeseburger]

They're bloody brilliant. Cheap, simple enough, easy to drive, massively refined compared to a ninety, amazing vision and HUGE load space. My brothers old K plate tdi was the local whore for a few years, being passed between a group of us for a combination of off-roading, towing, and van (due to our house renovation) duties. It was very tired, but still ultra reliable and fun to drive. As some others have mentioned, there's nothing to compare to it now for sheer practicality, simplicity of design and decent off-road ability.

[Guest Lord Sward]

I thought only The Police, Highways Agency and Pikeys were allowed to buy new Shoguns.

 

 

The rear windows pivot open.  How old fashioned is that?  But when you've got a dog in the back, that'll be ideal.  

 

But yes, Government Agencies and poor Pikeys are the only people that seem to run them.  My Disco has Twin electric sunroofs which is ideal for keeping the car ventilated for the dog.

 

The most enjoyable Disco I had was the 3.5.  The best Disco is my current TD5, which I've owned 9 years.  But probably the best was a 98 TDi 300 auto.  I always preferred Discos to Defenders, and I've had a Turbo Diesel one of them (awful) to a TD5 (acceptable).

[meggersdog]

I always seem to be the last owner of my Discoveries.

200TDi I kept for seven years.It was more mig wire than original metal in the end.

The 300TDi that replaced it only lasted three years until some knobjockey rammed it whilst parked outside the house.

The Quality street green one I bought last year has been fine.

In seven years of 200TDi ownership I replaced the clutch on my own (on the floor) with two trolley jacks holding the gearbox while I pushed the car off the 'box with my feet pushing a front wheel.Then feet on the back wheel to push the car back onto the gearbox.

Did it in my mate's shed on Boxing day.He came round the next day to give me a hand but I was just putting the interior back together when he turned up.It also blew the head gasket on number four.Very common chuffing sound that you think might be an exhaust gasket but it isn't.Apart from servicing and a weldathon every MOT no other problems.

The gold 300TDi started pressurizing at 230k miles so had a head skim,gaskets and new radiator only weeks before being rammed.

So apart from rot mine have all been fairly reliable.

[richardthestag]

I didn't realise there was an overlap.

 

I know you can tell by looking at the rear hubs, but I forget how. Mine had the really early mushroom shafts.

 

normally be removing the driveshaft and counting the splines that go into the diff

[richardthestag]

Pikeys buy things?

 

yep, with the money that they put aside for HMRC

[Guest Hooli]

In seven years of 200TDi ownership I replaced the clutch on my own (on the floor) with two trolley jacks holding the gearbox while I pushed the car off the 'box with my feet pushing a front wheel.Then feet on the back wheel to push the car back onto the gearbox.

Did it in my mate's shed on Boxing day.He came round the next day to give me a hand but I was just putting the interior back together when he turned up.It also

 

 

It's fun with two trolley jacks balancing all that weight isn't it?

 

If you have a 2" lift & 235/85 tyres it's high enough to slide the box out with the car on it's wheels. Suspension lifts are practical lol.

[Rusty_Rocket]

My 300 really wants another gearbox.  It makes a scratching/ shhhhhssshing noise when in gear.  I'm really not looking forward to dropping the 'boxes- they are so heavy 

[Guest Hooli]

If it's any help a LT77 looks like this inside...

 

 

Mine killed the mainshaft due to a undrilled gear on the back that transfers the drive to the transfer box.

[Guest Hooli]

Oh that pic was on the side of the road where I fixed it. Got odd looks from people driving past

[anonymous user]

My 300 really wants another gearbox. It makes a scratching/ shhhhhssshing noise when in gear. I'm really not looking forward to dropping the 'boxes- they are so heavy

My back has never really recovered from helping mate change the box on his. It was a bit of a faff. Bolt on crossmember removed, radiator removed, engine mounts loosed to tip engine back, front wheels up on ramps, etc. I remember the use of trolley jacks, also an engine hoist, but I also remember the hoist slipping and me ending up with nearly the full weight of the box(es).

[twosmoke300]

I take the transfer box off first these days . It's only 5 or six extra bolts and makes it much easier on your own

[richardthestag]

If it's any help a LT77 looks like this inside...

 

 

Mine killed the mainshaft due to a undrilled gear on the back that transfers the drive to the transfer box.

 

so it wasnt the extra strain on the drivetrain that caused the failure in the first place

[Guest Hooli]

Nope. It was a known fault & the fix was a cross drilled gear.

[Rusty_Rocket]

That's brave, doing the job at the side of the road.  I'm dreading doing mine.  I think I'll grab the best R380 and LT230 I can get hold of and swap the lot.  I will separate them I think, as twosmoke says- will change the end seals at the same time.

As Hooli says, the mainshaft wear is very common on the LT77 and R380 until the factory fitted the cross-drilled input gear.  It took them until 1996 to do it though.. 

Meggersdog, is your quality street green one the same as my 300?-

 

 

I've never seen another one in the (Caprice Green) colour! 

[Guest Hooli]

I had no option as I lived in a flat & there was no way I was paying a garage to do it.

 

That's a damn nice colour that.

[richardthestag]

I had no option as I lived in a flat & there was no way I was paying a garage to do it.

 

That's a damn nice colour that.

 

this kind of accessibility is what drew me to Land Rovers in the first place decades ago. 

 

fix it with hammers in the Kalahari or beside the A23 ! Not so confident that anything post 95 really fits into that same category though

 

I need to get onto the transferbox on my RRC, the chain is chattering occasionally on overrun, at 170k miles it hasnt done too bad, had another with 40k on it in the man cave.

 

CJAuto hydraulic ramps and transmission cradle will help me do it this time.

[Guest Hooli]

I struggle to remember but I think mine was at about 120k when I got it

[catsinthewelder]

Putting gearboxes back in is almost easy with six people.

[Guest Hooli]

Oh btw, whoever it was who said about engine cranes etc to get the gearbox out - not needed!

Two long extension bars and a flexi link means you can get to the top bolts for the bell housing without moving the engine at all.

[Guest Lord Sward]

I just paid somebody to fix mine.  It got to 130k and I decided to change the clutch, all the hydraulics and the DMF.  As a precaution.

[gadgetgricey]

After reading this thread, thought I'd put my new found knowledge to the test as always dismissed the 200tdi.

 

This one does not look that bad.

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Land-Rover-Discovery-200tdi-/132122750803?

 

High mileage, but all the important bits seem to have been done.

[AMC Rebel]

After reading this thread, thought I'd put my new found knowledge to the test as always dismissed the 200tdi.

 

This one does not look that bad.

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Land-Rover-Discovery-200tdi-/132122750803?

 

High mileage, but all the important bits seem to have been done.

 

Look like it has a suspension lift to me.  

[John F]

Looks OK, tbh. It's quite tidy for its age & mileage, and doesn't seem to have been abused off-road given the lack of scratches and dents. And those tyres.

[gdhaydock]

Definitely had a lift - look at the gaps around the top of the wheels. Can't tell if the anti roll bars have been removed though.

 

Looks a reasonable one, but always be wary of someone saying "It's had all of the welding done" - the only way to cure the rot on these is to cut every rotten bit out and re-fabricate. Mine had about 100 hours work on it from a professional (although at "mates rates").

 

I bit the bullet after playing "chase the rust holes" for several consecutive MOTs.

 

Having said that, it's currently £695 with 10 months test and will still be worth at least £300 if you break it up after 10 months. It's also not been mucked about with too much by the look of it.

 

Verdict ...... Buy it

[richardthestag]

That one limps from one MOT to the next failing on a catalogue of rust issues each time.

 

Not all Discos of that age rust quite so catastrophically*, especially not in the chassis rail area. You can probably assume that the chassis has been patched to pass the MOT but will continue to rot from the inside out. borrowed time for that one I reckon.

 

* It is a 90s Land Rover product, they are all rust free i.e. the rust you can have for free but this one just sounds rustier than usual

[sierraman]

I'd just as soon pay anybody to do a clutch these days. I can't face crouching down taking the weight of the gearbox. If I had a lift it'd be a different matter...

 

A mate did a Mondeo clutch on the driveway. Awful work.