Buying a P38 4.0

look to buy in the summer, and make sure it doesn't overheat when under load.
Auto every time on a RR.
enjoy your search.

Thebest4x4byfar said:

+ 1 and way to heavy on the clutch a real agricultural machine

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Must have been something wrong with the one you drove or you have scrawny legs.

mutsnutz said:

wouldnt thankyou for a manual had one hated it £400 for a clutch to get done and if the dmf goes wheyyy heyyy better have deep pockets

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Did mine not so long ago, so only cost me parts. No DMF fitted to mine so no problem there.

Unless you get one cheap there's no point buying a 4.0. The fuel consumption between that and a 4.6 is next to identical but the 4.6 feels much brisker and has a stronger transmission.

See my post

SAS1810 is selling his.

Datatek said:

SAS1810 is selling his.

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Buy that, after all the problems he's had?

What do we think of this?
RANGE ROVER P38 4.6 ENGINE V8 GEMS TYPE 1994 - 1998,With Top Hat Liners. | eBay

Engine sounds good, been on ebay s while though that. Worth looking at I suppose. Would swap the coils back to air.

Knock him £1200 to put it back on air.

Sorry for bumping an old thread but I'm in a similar boat and don't wanna get flamed for starting a new thread lol.

Been looking at Disco 2's but a couple of p38's have cropped up as well.

One is a S reg diesel auto for £1995 listed with full mot and fully working air and a sensor causing abs light.
Looks pretty tidy in photos. Black with cream or tan leather and 18" L322 alloys.

But I also spotted a green X reg 4.6 for sale outside a house for £3k. For sale sign had fallen off in the car but managed to see It had a stainless exhaust system, lpg system recently serviced and is Vogue spec.

Couple of questions. Will be a daily for me and the missus, 8-10k annual mileage so trying to convince her that a V8 will be affordable. Am I right or stick with diesel?
How do I know if the V8 is the Thor engine? And what should I be looking at with the lpg system to know it works? What serving does it need?

Sorry for the thread hijack

Chris

Co-Pang-Yang said:

Sorry for bumping an old thread but I'm in a similar boat and don't wanna get flamed for starting a new thread lol.

Been looking at Disco 2's but a couple of p38's have cropped up as well.

One is a S reg diesel auto for £1995 listed with full mot and fully working air and a sensor causing abs light.
Looks pretty tidy in photos. Black with cream or tan leather and 18" L322 alloys.

But I also spotted a green X reg 4.6 for sale outside a house for £3k. For sale sign had fallen off in the car but managed to see It had a stainless exhaust system, lpg system recently serviced and is Vogue spec.

Couple of questions. Will be a daily for me and the missus, 8-10k annual mileage so trying to convince her that a V8 will be affordable. Am I right or stick with diesel?
How do I know if the V8 is the Thor engine? And what should I be looking at with the lpg system to know it works? What serving does it need?

Sorry for the thread hijack

Chris

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For the first one.....Golden Rule applies....Never, Ever buy a Range Rover with a fault unless you are prepared for and understand the potential cost, time and frustration involved in repairing it....

ABS could just be a sensor, could be a few other things...if you are prepared for the potential tail chasing, then OK.

The V8 on LPG and the Diesel will cost similar to run (due to the low price of LPG) but factor in the servicing of the LPG system (which isn't much to be honest) and also if the LPG throws a wobbler....and you have to run on petrol that is considerably more to run!

THOR engines were 1999 onwards and if you open the bonnet and see an intake manifold that looks like a bunch of bananas then this is THOR...if it has a rectangular box on top (the plenum) them this is GEMS.

THOR offers more torque and better power delivery, a slightly more reliable engine, but has a few more sensors than the GEMS which is quite a simple system!

The Diesel is better suited to the automatic box than manual due to the very strange accelerator response...the diesel will at first seem sluggish, but that is just because the pedal travel is quite long and they need a good poke to get going....not much happens below 1500rpm until the Turbo spools up, then she'll lift her skirt and run....the Autobox disguises this lack of oompf quite well with torque converter slippage etc...in a manual box, you have to do a bit of clutch work to get going if towing on hills!

I am a Petrol man by preference, but have had a Diesel P38 and it was fine.....I'd still have it with pleasure if I hadn't seen my L322 for sale and part-ex'd it in!

LPG change over should be seamless, and go for a multipoint system, more reliable and more efficient. How do you know if it works....?? Well there should be a change over switch in the cabin somewhere with indicator lights on.

Most will only change over to LPG once the engine has warmed and the engine has gone over a certain rev range.....my L322 will change over once the coolant is 60degC or more....my P38 system changes over once the revs have gone passed 1600 and back down (changes over on the deceleration) my old Classic would change over when it felt like it, more often when the revs were over 1500, but that varied on the moon cycle from what I could gather!

My BMW system would change over when the coolant was above 55degC and the revs went past 1400....

So it all depends on how it was set up....but there will be a changeover switch in the cab with lights to indicate to you whether it is one petrol or LPG.

LPG is less efficient than petrol by 15-20% so if it returns 16-18mpg on petrol, it will be more like 13-16mpg on gas.....I get 13mpg on my P38, but this uses a single point system.

Take them both for a drive and decide....you'll be seduced by the V8 for the noise and seemingly vast power delivery....but the Diesel will be marginally more reliable and once you get used to the pedal travel, quite lively!!

Firstly thanks very much for the detailed reply, really helpful information.
Am thinking it might be sensible to lean towards a diesel as I can see myself just booting a V8 everywhere for the noise and breaking it or my bank account.

Am I right in thinking overheating is a problem for all P38's and coolant system needs to be checked and double checked?

My mechanic mate has a good snap on reader that I'm hoping would help with regards the abs issue and if so I would consider it worth the risk.
Quote from the add:
No advisories except for a small leak in the exhaust. Also the abs sensor on the front either needs cleaning or replacing which isn't much the mechanic has said as the abs light has come on.

As it turns out the V8 has sold and is being collected today. That least the diesel and tbh nothing else on ebay really takes my fancy so think I'll go look at it tomorrow.
Problem is I like the look of it and it's a Vogue so have all the toys I want but I've never driven one before. Guess I'll give it a go and go with my gut.

Co-Pang-Yang said:

Firstly thanks very much for the detailed reply, really helpful information.
Am thinking it might be sensible to lean towards a diesel as I can see myself just booting a V8 everywhere for the noise and breaking it or my bank account.

Am I right in thinking overheating is a problem for all P38's and coolant system needs to be checked and double checked?

My mechanic mate has a good snap on reader that I'm hoping would help with regards the abs issue and if so I would consider it worth the risk.
Quote from the add:
No advisories except for a small leak in the exhaust. Also the abs sensor on the front either needs cleaning or replacing which isn't much the mechanic has said as the abs light has come on.

As it turns out the V8 has sold and is being collected today. That least the diesel and tbh nothing else on ebay really takes my fancy so think I'll go look at it tomorrow.
Problem is I like the look of it and it's a Vogue so have all the toys I want but I've never driven one before. Guess I'll give it a go and go with my gut.

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The Diesel P38's need dedicated diagnostics...not sure if the Snap On will do it! worth a go though!

All Cars have overheating issues is neglected...yes the Range Rovers cooling system is not 100% up to the job, but the diesel will chug happily on a well maintained system without the engine fan and using a mod to just use the A/C condenser fans for cooling....

The Diesel is far less likely to overheat than the petrol...but it can happen to either if the vehicle has not been maintained correctly!

I'm assuming this is where Hawkeye or Nanocom come in. Something I should purchase as soon as possible.
Yes sorry I get what you mean, all cars will give up if it's not been looked after.
Will just and check every pipe on the system, rad and under engine for leaks
I'll have to do a search on the ac mod.

The diesel ,is likely to prove better than the V8 simply because the engine is stronger, no slipped liners and few other really expensive problems if looked after.
Heads do fail, but really only if the car overheats.

So did you buy one OP?