help on buying a td5 disco
- Thread starter jd6620
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wiltshire landyman
I’m back
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there all crap
robbh
Crazier than a box of frogs on acid
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- Edge of the New Forest. Wiltshire
Don't bother buy a 300tdi!
BarnsleyRob
New Member
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friend of mine had 200tdi, then got a TD5, worst thing he ever did. and he admits it
thebiglad
Well-Known Member
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DII TD5's are great vehicles but you do need to do research to learn all about them and their weaknesses.
Produced between 1998 and 2004 with a facelift in 2002. Facelift cars have a lot of the wrinkles ironed out of them but are a lot more expensive.
Don't pay stupid money for any Disco whatever it's age or it'll be the fastest way of loosing money you'll ever find.
You need to drive lots and lots of Discos so you can feel/tell for yourself the good 'uns from the bad 'uns.
One big obvious problem with DII's is rust, proper rust on the rear half of the chassis. The bodies are usually good.
Produced between 1998 and 2004 with a facelift in 2002. Facelift cars have a lot of the wrinkles ironed out of them but are a lot more expensive.
Don't pay stupid money for any Disco whatever it's age or it'll be the fastest way of loosing money you'll ever find.
You need to drive lots and lots of Discos so you can feel/tell for yourself the good 'uns from the bad 'uns.
One big obvious problem with DII's is rust, proper rust on the rear half of the chassis. The bodies are usually good.
listen to the big lad. Don,t rush at the first one. Get a good one and you,le love it
I,ve got a 99 td5 with 150 on the clock, spot on never misses a beat, going to underseal the chassis before winter its never been done yet so not bad for a 13 year old car. So the wiltshire lad is wrong there not all crap. I previously had a 300tdi boss engine but the body let it down, rust buckets.
I,ve got a 99 td5 with 150 on the clock, spot on never misses a beat, going to underseal the chassis before winter its never been done yet so not bad for a 13 year old car. So the wiltshire lad is wrong there not all crap. I previously had a 300tdi boss engine but the body let it down, rust buckets.
i bought a td5 04 one of the last its been a pig but more cos im an idiot rather than mechanicle gremlins my local landrover specalists say a good 300 tdi is best but if you really want a td5 then go for the newest and best you can afford mine was cheap needing lots of work and so far i have spent more fixing it than i saved and could of got a mint one for less saying that i have uprated where i can so good luck
thebiglad
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I've had 4 TD5's ranging from 1998 to 2002 and all were great but all benefitted from pro-active maintenance.
4x4's in general are more complicated vehicles to maintain and most don't get looked after properly. Some will tell you that a full dealer service history is imperative but not me. The 4 I had varied in terms of their service history - some with a little, some with a lot. One had actual receipts for £17500 of work over a period of 6 yrs
Whenever I get a new-to-me car I go through it with a fine tooth comb and fully service it - whatever the service history says. I do this to establish a baseline for future maintenance, to do all the stuff that wasn't done and to get to know the car.
This is the principle I would suggest any potential Discovery owner applies, garage maintained Discos turn out to be VERY expensive to run - in part due to the lack of expertise and diagnosis skills on behalf of most garages. I know the other professionals on this forum will disagree (which is entirely their right) but you only have to read these pages to see time and time again fault-finding by the "replace a part and see" method.
As I said before, TD5's manual or auto are great cars that deliver excellent performance and mpg in their class, but are not for owners who don't like to get their hands dirty.
4x4's in general are more complicated vehicles to maintain and most don't get looked after properly. Some will tell you that a full dealer service history is imperative but not me. The 4 I had varied in terms of their service history - some with a little, some with a lot. One had actual receipts for £17500 of work over a period of 6 yrs
Whenever I get a new-to-me car I go through it with a fine tooth comb and fully service it - whatever the service history says. I do this to establish a baseline for future maintenance, to do all the stuff that wasn't done and to get to know the car.
This is the principle I would suggest any potential Discovery owner applies, garage maintained Discos turn out to be VERY expensive to run - in part due to the lack of expertise and diagnosis skills on behalf of most garages. I know the other professionals on this forum will disagree (which is entirely their right) but you only have to read these pages to see time and time again fault-finding by the "replace a part and see" method.
As I said before, TD5's manual or auto are great cars that deliver excellent performance and mpg in their class, but are not for owners who don't like to get their hands dirty.
I bought a 1997 300 tdi 2 year a go, straight away it needed 2 wheel bearings, swivel bearings, exhaust...its had 2 lift pumps, 2 water pumps glow plugs, shocker bushes, new tension pulley, exhaust, chassis welded, sills welded boot floor welded rear cross member welded. Since buying the car ive purchased, spanner sets , socket sets, 2 sets of ramps 2 sets of axle stands,trolley jack, mig welder, hub socket, oil transporter, oil pressure gauge, battery charger. Not bad to say 15 year ago i gave all my snap on tools away, and said "thats me done crawling under cars". To own any Landrover you have to be an enthusiast and get your hands dirty or spend a lot of money. im currently looking for a D2, then it all starts again
. im currently looking for a D2, then it all starts againcraigie222
New Member
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I have had a few of these, varying between 99 and 03.
Prefer the drive quality to the 300tdi- of which. Hav had a few too.
Check the head if poss, for potential cracks- I have only had this on one as yet.
Check that all the bulbs are working on the instrument panel- eg- has someone removed he three amigo bulbs?
Check it as had regular oil change
And, as one of the others say, do a good fuill service on it when u get it.
Overall, still very happy with them on the whole......
Leaky sunroofs and crap door seals as well......
Prefer the drive quality to the 300tdi- of which. Hav had a few too.
Check the head if poss, for potential cracks- I have only had this on one as yet.
Check that all the bulbs are working on the instrument panel- eg- has someone removed he three amigo bulbs?
Check it as had regular oil change
And, as one of the others say, do a good fuill service on it when u get it.
Overall, still very happy with them on the whole......
Leaky sunroofs and crap door seals as well......
Nigel1943
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There are 90,000 people registered on this forum of which 30% may own a D2 (At a guess). If you add in the number of people not registered that's one hell of a lot of owners.
I don't think you can say therefore, that any one model is better than another. Sure, you'll get problems but for instance my 1999 D2 has been fine but you need to be a half decent mechanic (with mechanical diagnostic skills) and service your vehicle on a regular basis.
Remember, some D2's (like mine) are 13 to 14 years old !
I don't think you can say therefore, that any one model is better than another. Sure, you'll get problems but for instance my 1999 D2 has been fine but you need to be a half decent mechanic (with mechanical diagnostic skills) and service your vehicle on a regular basis.
Remember, some D2's (like mine) are 13 to 14 years old !
HenryD
Active Member
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I agree,mine is the same age as Nigel's and has been quite reliable but they do require preventive maintenance to keep them that way,I see many that have a number of minor issues which make them seem very tired because owners haven't kept on top of them.
My current truck is a 2000 td5 previously had a 300 tdi frankly there is no comparison far better body, chassis can be a problem but with good manitenace isnt a problem, mine is mapped by dynachip and in three years has had a clutch including dm flywheel as a precaution, rear propshaft coupling, new front springs ,new turbo, intercooler hoses and discs and pads all round plus one rear wheel bearing ,my fault didnt spot the siezed caliper quick enough cooked the seal so for a 12 year old truck that works for it living gives me 28/29 mpg tows over 3 tonnes how bad can it be.
John
John
