Looking for advice

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ClassicDiscoLady

Member
Posts
10
Location
UK
Hi, I’m looking for advice regarding my late husband’s 1993 Classic Land Rover Discovery. This vehicle has been off the road for the last 10 years, having been garaged for 7 of those, and is currently residing on the driveway. It is in reasonably good condition (I can provide photographs) and is a runner. However, the brakes need attention and the tyres will need replacing. I am looking to sell it, but I am unsure as to how to market it (eg spares or repair?) or what sort of price I could reasonably ask for/expect. I have looked at models of the same age that are for sale online but they all appear to be 2.5l engines and this is definitely a 3.5l automatic (and possibly a V8 but I don’t know how to check this) Any sound advice would be gratefully received as it has emotional attachments for both myself and my daughter, but we both agree that it is time for it to move on. Thanking you in anticipation.
 
Hello @ClassicDiscoLady . Sorry for your family's loss.
Where are you located? If possible, can you please post pictures of the inside, outside, sides underside and in the engine bay? That would give us a better picture (no pun intended) of what you have to work with.
 
Last edited:
It must be hard to make the decision.
If it says 3500cc or 3.5L on your V5/registration doc it will be a V8.

Post some pics for the disco guys to look at, but I will say that discos do suffer from being very rusty ( not always visible) sorry:(.

To be honest if it’s a runner I would be tempted to get a friendly garage to pick it up and run it through an MOT.
The results of that would give more idea of its status either spares, repairs or ready to go If it actually passes then that’s a bonus.
You may well be holding a very solid car worth a lot in the disco world ( please don’t get your hopes up) but it’s possible, and if you know nothing of cars/values I would hate for you to let it go for nothing if it’s a good 1. There are some unscrupulous buyers that will home in on the fact you know very little about it and haggle you down on price.
As above if you give an area of where you are, some knowledgable member might be close enough to pop round and have a look, for tea and cake of course:)
Good luck,

J
 
They are getting more collectable now at that age as most have dissolved by this point. Condition is everything and rust can affect any Disco 1 so have a look and a poke underneath and under the bonnet. But if its low mileage someone would be interested as a resto project im sure. V8s are more delicate than 200tdi but have a definite following. Best of luck
 
ClassicDiscoLady said:
Hi, I’m looking for advice regarding my late husband’s 1993 Classic Land Rover Discovery. This vehicle has been off the road for the last 10 years, having been garaged for 7 of those, and is currently residing on the driveway. It is in reasonably good condition (I can provide photographs) and is a runner. However, the brakes need attention and the tyres will need replacing. I am looking to sell it, but I am unsure as to how to market it (eg spares or repair?) or what sort of price I could reasonably ask for/expect. I have looked at models of the same age that are for sale online but they all appear to be 2.5l engines and this is definitely a 3.5l automatic (and possibly a V8 but I don’t know how to check this) Any sound advice would be gratefully received as it has emotional attachments for both myself and my daughter, but we both agree that it is time for it to move on. Thanking you in anticipation.
Click to expand...
Quite simply, if you put petrol in it, it is a V8, if you put diesel in it, it is a 2.5l.
To be a bit more precise about where to look for the rust, the places they go are, under the bottom edges of the sides of the body work, i.e. the sills. Including the corner where the real wheel arch meets the up right to the top rear of the lower part of the rear door opening, just under where the rear door latches. Also the rear floor, but you have to take the carpet up to see that. The rear cross member tends to go too, that is the last big steel beam thing that goes across from one side to the other of the chassis under the rear of the car.
A lot will depend on how your husband and yourself used the car, whether it was used off the road much, whether you kept it garaged, how often it was serviced and who by. If it has a good service history, that will help, as will if it has not had too many owners. I back up completely the idea of getting it MOTed. A failed MOT will tell you an awful lot about whether the car is a salvageable going concern or only good to go to someone who will want the engine, gearbox, interior, suspension etc. Keep on staying in contact, we will help you.
 
JUKE179r said:
Hello @ClassicDiscoLady . Sorry for your family's loss.
Where are you located? If possible, can you please post pictures of the inside, outside, sides underside and in the engine bay? That would give us a better picture (no pun intended) of what you have to work with.
Click to expand...
Hi, thanks for your reply. I am in the North East of England. I have some photos of the exterior but I will try to get some more of the underside and interior this weekend.
 
marjon said:
It must be hard to make the decision.
If it says 3500cc or 3.5L on your V5/registration doc it will be a V8.

Post some pics for the disco guys to look at, but I will say that discos do suffer from being very rusty ( not always visible) sorry:(.

To be honest if it’s a runner I would be tempted to get a friendly garage to pick it up and run it through an MOT.
The results of that would give more idea of its status either spares, repairs or ready to go If it actually passes then that’s a bonus.
You may well be holding a very solid car worth a lot in the disco world ( please don’t get your hopes up) but it’s possible, and if you know nothing of cars/values I would hate for you to let it go for nothing if it’s a good 1. There are some unscrupulous buyers that will home in on the fact you know very little about it and haggle you down on price.
As above if you give an area of where you are, some knowledgable member might be close enough to pop round and have a look, for tea and cake of course:)
Good luck,


Hi, thanks for your reply. I am in the North East of England. I have some photos of the exterior but I will try to get some more of the underside and interior this weekend.
Click to expand...
 
JUKE179r said:
Hello @ClassicDiscoLady . Sorry for your family's loss.
Where are you located? If possible, can you please post pictures of the inside, outside, sides underside and in the engine bay? That would give us a better picture (no pun intended) of what you have to work with.
Click to expand...
JUKE179r said:
Hello @ClassicDiscoLady . Sorry for your family's loss.
Where are you located? If possible, can you please post pictures of the inside, outside, sides underside and in the engine bay? That would give us a better picture (no pun intended) of what you have to work with.
Click to expand...
Hi, thanks for your reply. I am in the North East of England. I have some photos of the exterior but I will try to get some more of the underside and interior this weekend.
 
marjon said:
It must be hard to make the decision.
If it says 3500cc or 3.5L on your V5/registration doc it will be a V8.

Post some pics for the disco guys to look at, but I will say that discos do suffer from being very rusty ( not always visible) sorry:(.

To be honest if it’s a runner I would be tempted to get a friendly garage to pick it up and run it through an MOT.
The results of that would give more idea of its status either spares, repairs or ready to go If it actually passes then that’s a bonus.
You may well be holding a very solid car worth a lot in the disco world ( please don’t get your hopes up) but it’s possible, and if you know nothing of cars/values I would hate for you to let it go for nothing if it’s a good 1. There are some unscrupulous buyers that will home in on the fact you know very little about it and haggle you down on price.
As above if you give an area of where you are, some knowledgable member might be close enough to pop round and have a look, for tea and cake of course:)
Good luck,

J
Click to expand...
Hi, thanks for your reply. It does say 3.5 on the V5 and it is a petrol engine. I will try to post some pictures this weekend. I live in the North East of England.
Will it cost me a lot to get a garage to do an MOT check if I’m unlikely to be able to pay for work needed on the brakes for example?
You have picked up on the very thing I am concerned about - I have so little knowledge I am aware that somebody unscrupulous could take advantage of that. Thank you for understanding that. I will be in touch again if that’s okay.
 
Stanleysteamer said:
Quite simply, if you put petrol in it, it is a V8, if you put diesel in it, it is a 2.5l.
To be a bit more precise about where to look for the rust, the places they go are, under the bottom edges of the sides of the body work, i.e. the sills. Including the corner where the real wheel arch meets the up right to the top rear of the lower part of the rear door opening, just under where the rear door latches. Also the rear floor, but you have to take the carpet up to see that. The rear cross member tends to go too, that is the last big steel beam thing that goes across from one side to the other of the chassis under the rear of the car.
A lot will depend on how your husband and yourself used the car, whether it was used off the road much, whether you kept it garaged, how often it was serviced and who by. If it has a good service history, that will help, as will if it has not had too many owners. I back up completely the idea of getting it MOTed. A failed MOT will tell you an awful lot about whether the car is a salvageable going concern or only good to go to someone who will want the engine, gearbox, interior, suspension etc. Keep on staying in contact, we will help you.
Click to expand...

Thank you so much for your reply. It IS a petrol engine, it has been garaged for a long time and serviced regularly whilst my husband had it on the road but it’s been sorned for at least 10 years now. It wasn’t used for off-roading (that was always the dream but never realised) and I can see if I can find any service history.
I will look closely at the areas you have suggested and try to take photos (might be difficult of the underside but I’ll do my best!)
I have never driven it personally - I don’t do large automatics . I’ll try to follow up the MOT suggestion.
Thanks again and I’ll stay in touch.
 
ronsealdeath said:
They are getting more collectable now at that age as most have dissolved by this point. Condition is everything and rust can affect any Disco 1 so have a look and a poke underneath and under the bonnet. But if its low mileage someone would be interested as a resto project im sure. V8s are more delicate than 200tdi but have a definite following. Best of luck
Click to expand...
Thank you very much for your reply. I will check the mileage and have a good poke about in the areas you have suggested. Thanks again.
 
ClassicDiscoLady said:
Thank you so much for your reply. It IS a petrol engine, it has been garaged for a long time and serviced regularly whilst my husband had it on the road but it’s been sorned for at least 10 years now. It wasn’t used for off-roading (that was always the dream but never realised) and I can see if I can find any service history.
I will look closely at the areas you have suggested and try to take photos (might be difficult of the underside but I’ll do my best!)
I have never driven it personally - I don’t do large automatics . I’ll try to follow up the MOT suggestion.
Thanks again and I’ll stay in touch.
Click to expand...
Here is a little idea, there are probably mobile mechanics near where you live. Why not get one out to look at the vehicle? He/She could give it a look and say what he/she thinks, He/She ought to be able to get it started and then say whether he/she thinks it will be OK to get it MOTed, and you could do all this before even insuring it. I doubt they would charge much and when you ring them up to tell them what you want doing they ought to be able to give you a ball park figure as to cost.
As regards the MOT, you should only have to insure it in order to be legal taking it for an MOT, as long as you book the MOT in advance, it is perfectly legal to drive it to the MOT testing station and back without taxing it. Old Discos are not dear to insure, especially if you are not young and have a clean licence. It may be possible to insure it Third Party Fire and Theft, although even comprehensive should not cost you much more than £200. Last Land Rover Discovery that I insured cost me £188, when they asked me "What have you been quoted so far?" I just said, "nothing yet, you are the first". They then quoted me a sum and as soon as I said "thank you very much, now I have a figure to work with I'll ring round all the others." To which they replied "What will it take to make you go with our policy?" At which point we bargained until the figure dropped to a point at which I knew it would be silly to argue. All companies work like this, they will give you a huge discount just to get you to sign up with them. Once it is insured, whether it passes or fails the MOT you will be able drive it legally.
As far as starting it is concerned, have you got it going?
Bear in mind that the battery will have no charge and probably be beyond saving, unless you had some kind of maintenance charger on it. Also the petrol is likely to have deteriorated which might make it difficult to start as well. But the mechanic could sort all that out for you. A new decent battery will work out at about £100.
 
Stanleysteamer said:
Here is a little idea, there are probably mobile mechanics near where you live. Why not get one out to look at the vehicle? He/She could give it a look and say what he/she thinks, He/She ought to be able to get it started and then say whether he/she thinks it will be OK to get it MOTed, and you could do all this before even insuring it. I doubt they would charge much and when you ring them up to tell them what you want doing they ought to be able to give you a ball park figure as to cost.
As regards the MOT, you should only have to insure it in order to be legal taking it for an MOT, as long as you book the MOT in advance, it is perfectly legal to drive it to the MOT testing station and back without taxing it. Old Discos are not dear to insure, especially if you are not young and have a clean licence. It may be possible to insure it Third Party Fire and Theft, although even comprehensive should not cost you much more than £200. Last Land Rover Discovery that I insured cost me £188, when they asked me "What have you been quoted so far?" I just said, "nothing yet, you are the first". They then quoted me a sum and as soon as I said "thank you very much, now I have a figure to work with I'll ring round all the others." To which they replied "What will it take to make you go with our policy?" At which point we bargained until the figure dropped to a point at which I knew it would be silly to argue. All companies work like this, they will give you a huge discount just to get you to sign up with them. Once it is insured, whether it passes or fails the MOT you will be able drive it legally.
As far as starting it is concerned, have you got it going?
Bear in mind that the battery will have no charge and probably be beyond saving, unless you had some kind of maintenance charger on it. Also the petrol is likely to have deteriorated which might make it difficult to start as well. But the mechanic could sort all that out for you. A new decent battery will work out at about £100.
Click to expand...
Thank you again for this very sound advice - a mobile mechanic is a really good idea. Ironically, my late husband was a mobile mechanic himself once.
I definitely wouldn’t be able to drive it to an MOT as I know the brakes need attention but everything else makes sense.
 
ClassicDiscoLady said:
Thank you again for this very sound advice - a mobile mechanic is a really good idea. Ironically, my late husband was a mobile mechanic himself once.
I definitely wouldn’t be able to drive it to an MOT as I know the brakes need attention but everything else makes sense.
Click to expand...
It is good to know that your husband was once a mechanic as the chances are he will have kept it in good condition. Hopefully the mobile mechanic will do the basic stuff to enable you to drive it to an MOT centre then you can take it from there.
 
ClassicDiscoLady said:
How kind of you to say so. I’m just so appreciative of people taking the time to help me.
Click to expand...
Most of the people on this forum are only too willing to help and there is enormous knowledge on here. Many members are very well versed in all things to do with Discoverys and other Land Rovers. There is a bit of banter, as you would expect, but it doesn't prevent really sound advice being offered. I speak as one who has benefited more than once. the modern world can be bizarre at times but the internet definitely fills in gaps in our knowledge and, with a bit of persistence, can sort out the wheat from the chaff when it comes to advice.
 
Alas if you take it to an MOT garage and they deem it unroad worthy they won't allow it to leave their premises until the work has been done. My wife fell fowl of this courtesy of a national garage chain who'd seen easy money as a female had turned up:mad: They subsequently didn't do the wheel nuts up properly after they'd completed their work and the front wheels nearly came off on her way home.
 
Marmaduke said:
Alas if you take it to an MOT garage and they deem it unroad worthy they won't allow it to leave their premises until the work has been done. My wife fell fowl of this courtesy of a national garage chain who'd seen easy money as a female had turned up:mad: They subsequently didn't do the wheel nuts up properly after they'd completed their work and the front wheels nearly came off on her way home.
Click to expand...
They cannot stop you from removing the vehicle no matter what they say, albeit sometimes on a trailer
 
johnlad said:
They cannot stop you from removing the vehicle no matter what they say, albeit sometimes on a trailer
Click to expand...
Alas I'd just started a six day shift and she needed the car. I'd got no way of getting it home or the time to fix it:( Happy to say we now use a family run garage and never have any issues. Unfortunately I think some garages see a woman and think pound signs:mad: Citroen tried doing similar when her old car went back for a recall and they tried to boat £600 quid off her:rolleyes:
 
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