4.0 V8 Cylinder head bolt washer question

Did Rover quit using the head bolt washers, PN 602098, at some point?
My wife's '97 4.0 didn't have any. Or did the last person who had the heads off just not reinstall them?

Is there anything special about them? Any reason I can't just use a high strength thick washer for 30 cents as opposed to the 602098, which is anywhere from 80 cents to $1.70 here in the states plus shipping?

If they are supposed to be used, what's the risk of not using them? It didn't register that they were maybe missing until I had one of the heads installed.

There's 28 of them required for the UK spec 3.9 D1 according to my parts book but for you as you have the Range Rover 4.0 GEMS engine fitted and the washers were only fitted to RR engines up to 1994 you don't require them.

This link gives the dates Land Rover V8 head bolt washer x10 602098 | Engine | John Richards Surplus | John Richards Surplus - A Name You Can Trust!

Thanks for the reply.
My problem was that different sites seem to indicate differently, some imply all D1's, some say D1 through 1995.
Microcat doesn't distinguish for the D1 based on VIN, though they do list the same head and bolts for the later D1 and also DII's, but don't list the washer for DII's. That leads me to believe they did away with them around '96 or so, but Microcat has been known to be wrong.

If you have access to Microcat then look at the P38s engine that's the engine you have fitted in your D1 introduced into the RR in 1994 and into a NAS disco in the 1996MY.

It does appear that the D2s Thor engine is not using washers with their head bolts, so just the earler V8s had washers.