Living with it

Now I have a theory and it goes something like this: The Discovery 1 has a similar place in Land Rover's history as does the 1949 Series 1 but moved on 40ish years. Similar to the Series 1 it is a vehicle that, for it's time, was ground braking, simple to fix, versatile and therefore incredibly useful. As a result it sold in large numbers helping Land Rover too survive in the late 1980s. Its very competent vehicle which to a greater or lesser extent does what a Range Rover or Defender can do..
Anyway I have just sold my Disco 300tdi Auto and bought this:

A 1993 200tdi manual 3 door Disco with no bloody sunroofsound: Its going to be my daily drive/canoe mule/works vehicle/holiday bus. Of course its not without its issues and will need bits of working doing to it over the months which I hope to share/pull my hair out with you.
It may even bump down the odd green lane but there will be no suspension lifts, light bars or winches added to this utility vehicle ...and that ridicules snorkel will be the first thing to go!

First dibs on the snorkel :hysterically_laughi

Yeah I think a snorkel AND a canoe might be overkill...

blackstrat said:

Yeah I think a snorkel AND a canoe might be overkill...

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Wish I'd had a canoe ...

flat cap andy said:

and that ridicules snorkel will be the first thing to go!

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I bet the snorkel looks better than all of those holes in the wing! Easier and cheaper to keep it!

Paul D said:

Wish I'd had a canoe ...

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Hope your enjoying your defender now Paul! I'm sure a canoe would be more suited to the depth of wading you do!

Yoyodyne said:

First dibs on the snorkel :hysterically_laughi

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I'll give you a shout when I take it off.

auf_wiedersehen_pet said:

I bet the snorkel looks better than all of those holes in the wing! Easier and cheaper to keep it!

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Now, apart from all the holes, doesn't your Discovery look good. If you stuck a lump of right angled plastic on the wing it would only spoil its looks

However a good reason to keep the snokels is that here in sunny Sauf London the chances of losing your wing mirror to idiots trying change the laws of physics by squeezing two vehicles through a space smaller than their combined width is pretty high. At least the wing bit of the the snorkel offers a bit more mirror protection!

nickp3003 said:

Hope your enjoying your defender now Paul! I'm sure a canoe would be more suited to the depth of wading you do!

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Oh yeah .. love the 90 .. more laughs per mile than anything I've owned yet, other than perhaps my old S3 ..

I think Discovery 1 is the best vehicle Land Rover have ever, or will ever, make.

Sheffield said:

I think Discovery 1 is the best vehicle Land Rover have ever, or will ever, make.

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:clap2::clap2::clap2:

Ever since I bought this Disco its been a touch smoky with a small amount smoke coming from the rocker cover cap, of course I had been putting off investigating, as you do.
Events, however, over took me last Saturday, whilst returning from a canoeing trip, the car started to chuff like a steam train and with the bonnet up you could see a fine spray of oil coming from the head gasket gap around No1 piston.
So off with its head to reveal this:

I am guessing that an oil seal had failed on one of the valves thus allowing oil into the piston hence the smoke and eventually knackering up the head gasket.
Well its the first time I have changed a head gasket and apart from the odd seized bolt it came off with relative ease....now cleaning up the head and changing the oil seals..watch this space.

Gasket changed, now just waiting for one poxy fuel spill pipe banjo bolt to get to be delivered its up and running (I hope).
In a male moment of OCD once I had everything bolted back together I was convinced that I had left an oily rag in one of my cylinder bores....but on reflection I am sure I haven't , the engine turns as normal....so I am putting it down to like when you go back to your house to check you've locked it

Paul D said:

Wish I'd had a canoe ...

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You need a bloody submarine mate

Did it that my first ever head gasket change and without wanting to tempt fate it seems to be running ok.:crazy_driver:

Nice one. I did my first a few months ago. Nice to do a bit more than change brake pads and uj's.

Of for fxck sake, just got the head gasket done and now the clutch is playing up Hopefully only the master or slave cylinder.....but we'll see.

A quick up date on this fab little car.
Since buying it in early summer and then replacing the head gasket and clutch it's been very reliable ( touch wood, fingers crossed etc). Me, the family and usual a canoe or two on the roof have driven many untroubled miles, 7 seats deployed its has carried grandpa and grandma too. Seats down it has been my daily work vehicle, carrying the many tools of my trade.Things to do are new rear springs..probably heavy duty, cam belt change and I still havent got rid of that snorkel..the many holes in the wing are the factor here so that's a summer job. I try to keep on top of the maintenance and there is always something to fiddle with...broken reverse switch at the moment.
One of the things I really like about this two door is the larger amount of space the rear passengers get, at the cost of a smaller boot. Is this the difference between 2 and 4 doors or the difference between 200 and 300tdis?
Today it's taking six 9year olds to a party in Guildford and on Sunday me and a canoe to Marlow.
So there you have it nothing very dramatic, just a Land Rover Discovery still doing exactly what it was designed to do 21 years after it was built.

I do Miss my 200tdi disco 3 door , But this is what it looked like after a "Friend" put some weld on my rear arch.

Thomo1927 said:

I do Miss my 200tdi disco 3 door , But this is what it looked like after a "Friend" put some weld on my rear arch.

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Didn't T-Cut out then?