Discovery series 1 or 2?

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cambolt

cambolt

New Member
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190
Location
Kent
Oh Hai:p:behindsofa:
I started a thread earlier about my current situation in the general land rover chat section. Unfortunately (though understandably) this has turned into a "have a moan about the LEZ thread", so I am going to post here. :nospamhere::D Basically, I have to move to surrey, and am going to need a daily driver to take me 200+ motorway miles every week. For this reason, my broken 110 won't do. There will be also some mild off roading to do when I get to my destination (mostly very muddy building sites etc, so won't take my jaguar.) I also go off roading every weekend (nothing that would stop a defender, but lots of mud and bumper height water). Anyway, the budget is 10k, and currently I'm looking at a late series 1 or earlyish discovery 2. Do earlier D2s have the same td5 "teething problems" as the early td5 defenders did? My main concern is regarding water messing with the D2's extra electronics. Does this happen? I will of course fit a snorkel, and maybe a lift if needed. Another concern is reliability. Are D2s more reliable than a late D1?
P.S. I it true that if I buy a pre facelift D2, I will have to "connect" the centre diff lock unless this has been already done? And if I buy a post facelift one, I will have to buy a CDL unit, unless this was specified at purchase?
Anyway, thanks in advance.
 
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I wanted a D2 but didn't have a D2 budget.
Had my D1 since Oct last year and very happy with it. I'm not looking to sell it but if you have £10K I have a D1 for sale:D:D:D:D:D:D:D

Good luck with your search;)
 
cambolt said:
Oh Hai:p:behindsofa:
I started a thread earlier about my current situation in the general land rover chat section. Unfortunately (though understandably) this has turned into a "have a moan about the LEZ thread", so I am going to post here. :nospamhere::D Basically, I have to move to surrey, and am going to need a daily driver to take me 200+ motorway miles every week. For this reason, my broken 110 won't do. There will be also some mild off roading to do when I get to my destination (mostly very muddy building sites etc, so won't take my jaguar.) I also go off roading every weekend (nothing that would stop a defender, but lots of mud and bumper height water). Anyway, the budget is 10k, and currently I'm looking at a late series 1 or earlyish discovery 2. Do earlier D2s have the same td5 "teething problems" as the early td5 defenders did? My main concern is regarding water messing with the D2's extra electronics. Does this happen? I will of course fit a snorkel, and maybe a lift if needed. Another concern is reliability. Are D2s more reliable than a late D1?
P.S. I it true that if I buy a pre facelift D2, I will have to "connect" the centre diff lock unless this has been already done? And if I buy a post facelift one, I will have to buy a CDL unit, unless this was specified at purchase?
Anyway, thanks in advance.
Click to expand...

Hi CB, if you are going to do a lot of road miles there is no question in my mind - D2 all the way. D1's are great - I have 2!! but D2 TD5 is a far more refined everyday vehicle.

So D2 then. First question auto or manual - this is a matter of personal preference. Auto's for your motorway work will be fine, however if it was in-town driving all day, maybe a manual would be better. Autos are only slightly heavier on fuel and on your motorway runs you wouldn't notice. D2 TD5 will cruise all day with reasonable economy at 70mph - if you push them more mpg rises significantly due to the lack of aerodynamics.

Any early TD5 teething problems will be out of the way by now and taking into account your budget of £10k, I would be going straight for a facelift car like a 2003/4 ES auto.

These cars are great as std but can be improved noticeably with a few cheap modifications. De-EGR, DE-cat and a remap will turn a 2003 car into a sublime cruiser. Obviously they are all competent for off-road work, with the right tyres.

Re off-roading and the cars' competence - all cars have Traction Control which works remarkably well if the car is fitted with AT's or MT's. I personaly do not see the need for a CDL and have off-roaded significantly with a number of TD5's without CDL. Electronics when off-roading are not a problem in my experience.

If you go for a facelift car, CDL can be retrofitted in any case, if it's not already specified.

My advice is to drive some cars - buy carefully as prices are historically at the moment and if you pay full price now you will lose a bundle when you change down the line and 4x4's fall from grace.

Good hunting

Dave
 
For what its worth I agree with Dave. You can get a good D2 well within that budget (my 2000 model cost £4200 last year) that has been used as a family car and then spend the rest of the budget on off road `mods/goodies' :) - for some ideas on useful mods have a look at Urban Panzers very useful and informative web page:

www.discovery2.co.uk

And yes - you will have to connect the Difflock (£180) IF its in the transfer box (it is on most pre-facelift models) though you will probably have to install the mechanism into the transfer box on a `facelift model' (an additional £250 - get it from Ashcroft transmissions http://www.ashcroft-transmissions.co.uk/index.php?act=viewCat&catId=72). Only the high spec 2004 models had difflock fitted by LR. For info on the difflock have a look at
http://www.discoverytd5.com/#/diff-lock/4546796217
or
http://www.discovery2.co.uk/diff_lock.html

Hope this helps.
 
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Agree with thebiglad
I myself have a 2000 TD5 ES Auto, and I now think why I didn't go auto before,
Offroad Amazing well mine is since i brought it in april and it is on the Michelins Lattitude Road tyre, I have offroaded it several times Furthes so far was the site in Aldermaston and i 3 quarters of the site on road tyres
going to the site and going had my caravan on the back a small van,

tows so well that you nearly forget you have the van on the back,
that week end cost about Fuel £70 350 miles i think that included driving around the offroad site, probly could of got a bit more out of it if the car was cleaned and i had taken every thing out the boot
regards
Rob:D:D
 
Hi.

I think.....

D2 for niceness, D1 one for everyday fixability........Auto D2 is what i have, manuals ure unrefined and chore-like around town (imo) and to be fair with the way petrol and diesel is going they are both crap in terms of mileage for money so i would buy the easiest to drive........If you buy a D2 get the software....worth every penny, i bought Faultmate.

Cheers, Nick.
 
Thanks very much for your replies.

So, assuming I did get a D2, would I be better off with one without air suspension? Do they go wrong like the p38 range rover suspension? And should I get one with loads of toys, or a more simple one?
 
I'd see whats on the market and make a comparison. A straight family car may well be in better condition than one used for off-roading but with lots of goodies. Air suspension is not a problem IF you treat it as consisting of servicable items and you will get a better ride with it. If you go for the 7 seater then you may well be better off with the SLS because of type approval.
 
I'm having probs with my airbags but that is due to age i think they look like the originals on there getting done this week.. they suggest replacing the bags every 5 years.

If you want the coils go for the 5 seater ones as they are coil
you can convert from air to coil, probley gonna convert mine to springs see how these bags go..

one of the most informatie sites around is the discovery 2 Link the first link ,that m6sjd put on his post

anything i wanna do on mine i check that site out get info from there
:):)
 
But do air springs perform better off road, and will water wreak havoc with the systems? And also, is it correct that the face lift ES has the centre diff lock as standard? Or was it an option (particular vehicle I'm eyeing is a 2003)
 
A 2003 TD5 is unlikely to have diff lock in the Transfer case - you can check underneath to see (41 or 42D prefix has the diff lock mechanism) - 1998-2001 probably will have it in the box and high spec 2004 will have it present as standard anywhere inbetween will probably need it added to the box.

if its a good car though there is no reason not to buy as you can add all the bits yourself for about £500.

You can see from the links sent earlier that some people offroad very well with the SLS system and thats the option I've gone for personally.
 
cambolt said:
But do air springs perform better off road, and will water wreak havoc with the systems? And also, is it correct that the face lift ES has the centre diff lock as standard? Or was it an option (particular vehicle I'm eyeing is a 2003)
Click to expand...

I like the air bag spring whatever you wanna call it as I found out at on site i was at got to abit where all four wheels were spinning as the tracks i was in had got a slight raise in middle just enought to lose traction on all 4 wheels This chime from dash sounded a light was flashing on the dash and the sensors had sensed no forward movement and it automaticall put system into offroad mode untill i got traction moved off out off the way onece i got above twenty the system went back to normal road height. ace. There is a button on the dash to activate it didn't know that then

if you have the remote keyfob you can lower the car to load a heavy trailer. I've not got that

on mine I only have the High / Low selector
Diff lock sorry can't help you on that
The Air system seems ok I've put mine through some mucky water think the only let down (no pun intended) is the bags. or the Ride Height sensors.
Gonna try and keep the air system as i like it takes getting used to ride wise but not that much difference I think it's alot better towing ..
any gotta go boss just walked in
 
Hi
2 years ago I bought a 2004 D2 ES premium auto for £9400. Changing rear air springs is as easy as changing a wheel. Put Grabber AT2 tyres on and she will go anywhere. Auto box is good off road returns aprox 29 - 30mpg. I would certainly reccomend a D2. Any minor problems were cheap to fix. Very happy allround with this car.
 
Thanks again for your replies. I have heard about the ease of changing air springs in the D2, however, my main concern is that I have heard the computer to control the air suspension is located under one of the front seats. If the doors let in water at any rate comparable to that which both my defender have while wading, this computer is going to get rather wet.
 
I've had 2 D1's and just got a 2000 TD5GS. The D2 is so much more refined although its a bit thirstier. Cost me £5000 which included a reversing camera and a Patriot roofrack, both of which are going on Ebay to pay for the clutch its going to need soon. ACE is brilliant but a bit weird going round corners dead flat after rolling round them in D1's and Defenders.
With your budget, you could go for just about any D2 on the market.
Would like to try air suspension but compared to a D1 the D2 is complicated enough already. I would say that the ride comfort with coil springs is much the same as the D1
 
To be honest if your only doing 200 or so miles a WEEK thats what about 40 miles a day so 20 each way on the motorway then find a good 300TDi as they are fine on motorways i found and probably cheaper to look after.
really we need more info on your daily travel.
If you were doing that sort of miles a DAY then go for a later one.

A really good 300 TDi will be around £2-2.5k or wait a couple of months and they will be cheaper.
 
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