Disco V8/LPG or 300TDi

Hi all, we got our 1st Disco 300Tdi this year, after a year or so of umming and aarring and people telling us "you dont want one of those, they're c**p". Needless to say best the decision we made was getting her.

Unfortunately our neighbour managed to reverse into our Disco at such speed that we've had to write her off!, leaving us absolutely gutted.

The insurance cheque has arrived and it's time to find another Disco and I'd be most grateful for some advice from you seasoned Disco owners:

What is your opinion on a V8 3.9 with LPG conversion compared to a 300TDi.
Are the service costs higher for the 3.9?

We will be buying in the 95 - 98 year range, so any advice to us Disco newbies will be greatly appreciated.

stick with diesel easier to fix and services is relatively cheap if u do it LPG is C**P it isgas and gas will run out and what can u run it on?? diesel becomes biodiesel easy peasey!

Thanks for the reply Taffy, to be honest the main reason I was considering a V8 over a diesel was the rock bottom prices they are currently selling for and not for the extra power. But the things I've heard about less than perfect LPG installations is quite worrying!

Dont be scared of V8s!!!!
I have had a Disco 3.9 auto with LPG for nearly 2 years now and its great!!
Make the time to look around for a good one; there is plenty of choice, make sure the LPG system if fitted is certificated, I would be more worried about rust in the body though.
Multipoint sequential systems are best, but the 3.9 performs ok on the less sophisticated single point system, expect 14 to 17mpg but remember LPG is under half the price of diesel so its really 28 to 34mpg in money terms.
You can DIY fit a kit (not easy) but you will have to take it to an LPG specialist to get it safety inspected.
If you go off road, dont make the mistake I made and have underslung LPG tanks so as to not compromise loadspace, mine regularly get ****ted.
As I now have the infamous Disco rotten boot floor problem I shall be moving my tanks to the boot when the new floor etc is fitted.
Dont get me wrong, the 300tdi is a bloody good engine if a little noisy at times.
Choice is yours at the end of the day feller.

Do the LPG tanks significantly affect ground clearance? The most off-roading we do at moment is camping fields and the odd dirt track, and the dreaded speed humps we have all over our locality. As a Landy novice I'm struggling to convince the wife of the benefits of LPG, especially the safety aspect of the tank being under the chassis (only option open to us as we use the dickie seats for the kids and cant lose the space).

Any input would be great...

On my second gassed Disco now.......... first one a series 1, now a S2. Won't go back to diesel unless I need to go seriously wet offroading. Economy is reasonable, performance is great, and its QUIET!!! I can hear my passengers telling me to slow down now! Tanks are all underslung, and I offroad a fair amount each week (farming type) with no probs. Fitted conversion myself in the S2 - Multipoint, and much better than my old singlepoint system. S1 will take 2 cill tanks and replace the petrol tank with a gas tank to give around 400 miles between fills, and just 25 litres of backup petrol inside the offside wing tank. S2 won't take the cill tanks cos of all the gadgetry on the chassis rails, so only good for 200 or less miles on a fillup with an underfloor tank (65ltr) I reckon world gas supplies will see me out, cos I'm an old git, so no worries about future proofing!

pandj said:

On my second gassed Disco now.......... first one a series 1, now a S2. Won't go back to diesel unless I need to go seriously wet offroading. Economy is reasonable, performance is great, and its QUIET!!! I can hear my passengers telling me to slow down now! Tanks are all underslung, and I offroad a fair amount each week (farming type) with no probs. Fitted conversion myself in the S2 - Multipoint, and much better than my old singlepoint system. S1 will take 2 cill tanks and replace the petrol tank with a gas tank to give around 400 miles between fills, and just 25 litres of backup petrol inside the offside wing tank. S2 won't take the cill tanks cos of all the gadgetry on the chassis rails, so only good for 200 or less miles on a fillup with an underfloor tank (65ltr) I reckon world gas supplies will see me out, cos I'm an old git, so no worries about future proofing!

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Thanks for the info pandj, people have mentioned to me to check for an LPG fitting certificate (as I'd probably buy a Disco with the gas system pre-installed). Do cars that are fitted with LPG by the owners themselves have to have this bit of paper or just the ones done by proffessional installers?

You dont have to have a certificate but your insurer may well ask to see it. If it is a self fit job it is wise to go to a specialist so they can check it's safe and then issue a ticket.
I do regret having the underslung tanks to a certain extent as they reduce your rampover clearance and can ride the dirt a little, thus reducing the weight on the tyres and you start to lose traction.
At the end of the day you have to be concious they are there or an expensive mistake could be made.
Try to have the tank mounts that are welded to the chassis as they are much stronger than the ones that bolt through the floor.
Also check that if tanks are bolted through the floor, is the floor still watertight, I had a hell of a problem with water seeping in.
In a nutshell underslung tanks are fine for everyday use and occasional off roading, just plan your way round obstacles rather than just ploughing through!!!

Far as I know its not a legal requirement for certification, neither is it law that systems have to be checked by approved installers every few years, but if you want to get the V5 changed to dual fuel and save £15 on yer tax disc, you need the proof its been done. If its a DIY job, most good system suppliers will check the completed installation and give you a 'certificate' in the form of a letter on headed paper which is all Swansea need. Apart from that its pretty worthless. A good visual check of the tanks, their mountings and the underbonnet bits prior to buying is as good as anything - does it look well fitted, or is it held together with gaffer tape..... is the wiring tidy and well connected, and obviously, does it work as it should - singlepoint systems are prone to heavy duty backfires if they are not spot on - and finaly, is there any smell of unburned gas around the vehicle. Gassed V8's are fussy about their ignition systems being in tip top shape, so plugs and leads are regular service items, but they run very clean, so oil changes may not need to be so frequent. Some say the engines run too hot on gas, but I tow 3 tonnes regularly and for high mileages in the summer, and I never found a problem. Sorry if I waffled on, but imho theres a lot of crap talked about gas by people who never really tried it. If you want any more of my crap, drop me a pm and I'll try and help.

Just read Boomers post........ bang on, good info, but I never been asked for a certificate by my insurers - when I told them it was a conversion, they said 'and?.........'

I suppose LPG conversions are more common now and the insurers are less cynical about them as installation and standards of the kits have improved greatly.

Thanks for the great info guys, I was under the impression that the underslung tanks were attached to the chassis, never realised the floor was used in some fittings.

Hopefully I can get to view a few this week before this courtesy car is returned (a Zafira, the most uncomfortable, cramped car ever to be in), and if I can convince the wife that LPG aint a bomb waiting to go off under the car!!

300TDI's noisey ! I'm that far behind you when you accelerate how do you hear me boomer !

For what it's worth here's my opinion on the matter, albeit slightly biased as haven't driven a TDi!
We have had a 1994 3.9 V8 for about 18 months now, the last 6 on LPG with a DIY conversion. I love the noise and it feels like it has plenty of power, not sure whether the diesel would feel underpowered by comparison??? V8s are a lot cheaper to buy, our conversion (single point mixer ring with twin underfloor tanks) was about £900 so total cost about £2k. Still cheaper than an equivalent condition 300 TDi, plus I would imagine that when new the V8s are less likely to have been used as 'working' vehicles therefore generally in better condition.
On road it returns 13 to 18 mpg (on gas) normally but have managed 20 on a run doing a steady 70ish.
For light offroading you would have no probs with underslung tanks but for anything more severe you just have to be more careful as previously stated.

I'm not sure whether this question will sound dumb, but if you dont ask you dont get to know....do the V8's only come with auto gearboxes or was there any made with manual gearboxes? .

There were manuals but I think the autos are more common. I reckon the auto does suit the engine (and this is from someone who hated the idea of an auto before I drove it, possibly due to previous experience with underpowered Japanese hatchbacks!)

Right then lads, I've found a V8, checked the usual corrosion spots and it's spotlessly clean, couple of dints to bodywork, cloth (x7) seats, no sunroofs, got alloys, bullbar and dog guard, inside really tidy, engine done 96,500 miles, but with no LPG fitted. Advertised for £2300, currently got it down to £1900 for cash.

My question is, what model is this one and also what do you think this Disco is worth as with me being a Landy newbie I'd hate to be ripped off.

Any help greatly appreciated as the wife is on about getting a bloody Ford Fiesta tomorrow!!

Hi There, You didn't say how old it was, does it have any MOT or tax? Have you checked things like the condition of the boot floor and front inner wheel aarches for rust, exhaust condition, smoke on start up, condition of the underneath to check it hasn't been damaged from being used off road. From experience I would probably go for one that has already had the LPG conversion. We converted our V8 to LPG and it was off the road quite a while, can you use another car during this time? Without the lpg it will be uneconomical. Let us know more!!!

Hiya gluggy, forgot to mention age!! It's a 1995(M), underneath is really clean only 1 slight blemish (about the size of a 20p coin). Boot floor has a couple of plates been welded on Car had been stood without starting for two weeks when I saw her, slight puff of smoke when turned over. From what I can tell she has not been off-road. The owner made the mistake of buying a 200TDi without checking her over and got stung by a rotting corpse of a car!! so he was extra careful with this one. It has M.O.T. until Aug 08 but no tax (he has it on disability tax).

This would be our main car so any long spell being LPG'd would cause a bit of aggro I'd imagine (we got 6 kids) although I'd not get her done until end of winter. How long did it take to have yours converted and how much did it cost?

I don't think you can take LPG fitted cars through Eurotunnel - just a mention in case you go abroad a lot and don't like boats.