looking to buy.

going to look at a diesal p38 tomorrow.this will be my first look at a range rover with a view to buying one and would be very grateful of any of your insider knowledge on what to look out for and what to walk away from.

Not a diesel owner myself but the rules are more or less the same, just try and test everything. EAS should change between height setting quickly, air spring condition can be visually checked for cracking. Not too expensive if they do need replacing. Engine Should have no signs of over heating, probably the biggest concern. Test all auto box positions including low range. Check air from heater changes direction when switched. Check for wet footwell passenger carpets, wet can be several things, rainwater, air con drains or heater matrix o-rings. All fixable. Best listing what you find and coming back here to ask about it if concerned.

Oh and if its had coil springs fitted in places of air springs I'd personally run for the hills.

exellent stufer thats spot on thanks will report back tomorrow

I have just bought a diesel, my advise would be test drive a few. If you haven't driven one before be prepared for how slow its going to feel compared to most other cars!

Buy one with as comprehensive service history / file of receipts, that way it's likely to have had repairs to the problematic areas.

I have bought 2 in the last 6 weeks, one had limited history and turned out to be a dog, overheating issues, knackered torque converter, the other has full history and came from a dealer who took it as a part ex. and is a great car considering its 14 years old.

I would ask the owner if they have had any problems with theEAS, any overheating issues, and see what state the HEVAC is in, as most of the cars I looked at had faulty air-cons which can be expensive to repair.

This site has been invaluable for advise and I also found a member locally who has plugged his Nanocom in to my car to diagnose and clear existing faults.

Good luck, they are great cars if you find a decent one.

Cheers

Alistair

My DSE was quite spritily, they do have odd pedal travel with all the ummphh happening in the last 1/3rd of the travel, this is done to allow better control off road.

Get used to the pedal travel and they are perfectly acceptable to drive.

Ensure all the buttons work, and check for leaks (yes all Range Rovers leak - but not excessivley) when started from cold, they do have a typical Diesel knock, but it shouldn't be too agricultural.

Post 99 models are a better option, as build quality was a bit better, the Engine ECU was tweaked and a few additional tweaks.

And for Gods sake remember the Golden Rule: Never buy a Range Rover with faults unless you are prepared for and appreciate the potential costs involved in repairing it!

mines forsale.. they are slow my 90 feels faster

I've driven a few P38 diesels and they are slow. But the petrols aren't exactly quick either!

This guide is invaluable P38 Guide

I very much doubt you'll find one that doesn't have a fault but at least if you know what is easily fixable vs what could cost a small fortune it gives you a head start. Good luck!

If you want a diesel... Get an L322

well looked at the p38 today and not bad at all. its from a dealer and it had been in his showroom and not started for a week but tuned over and started lovely and settled down very quickly.engine sounds sweet as a nut. the suspension was low when i arrived he said it drops after a couple of days but as soon as i shut the door it came straight up,went to high setting too.it has 87.000 miles on it.did notice the "book" emblem on the heating display but everything seemed to work ok so what would that be.took it for a drive and was pleasantly surprised as after reading about how everyone says how slow they are it wasnt that bad although im used to my wifes td4 freelander and my transit van. checked the whole gearbox works in all modes.no wet carpets,no rust,all in all it seems quite nice although im gonna check what the insurance is before i get too excited.

search for hevac faults for book symbol, it can be a few things. if it drops then there is a slight leak somewhere. Ammunition for some money off lol.

Glad it was ok, though I'd be worried about the book icon. If you drive it again make sure it blows hot and cold and check every vent and associated switch on the climate control. Also set one side hot and one side cold and see if it copes.

If it does, great! It it doesn't, likely one or more of the blend motors has given up the ghost. New ones aren't crazy money (few P38 parts are in my experience), but you need to take the dash to bits to fit them.

my blend motors need doing but cant be arsed. just open a window lool

thankyou gentlemen im trying to get as much info as possable so i can go back for another real good test and then hit him with a money off discount plea. he seems straight enough but he is a dealer after all. thanks for advice.

As ody says, be wary of book symbol, especially if on all the time. However mine shows up just every other Tuesday for some wired reason, so it gets a stiff ignoring. If you go for it and find blend motors do need doing, plenty of advice on here if you search.

My advice would be that if you are going to buy from a dealer you will pay more than a private deal even with discount ,so get some sort of warranty from him, if the motors good he will be happy to offer it if not walk away. there's plenty more about.

If the book sign is blend motors you might be able to 'force' them to work by hooking it up to a nanocom.

This is what happened to mine, but after 2 connections to nanocom and being forced up and down the problem has gone away (well at least for now)

ok i need to find sombody with a nanocom now!

barnes2010 said:

thankyou gentlemen im trying to get as much info as possable so i can go back for another real good test and then hit him with a money off discount plea. he seems straight enough but he is a dealer after all. thanks for advice.

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What's the car spec? Mileage and asking price? Some of the guys on here might have an idea of what you should realistically pay for it

Book symbol one of 3 things flaps not reaching full travel causing blend motor to stall. Blend motor damaged or hevac control ecu. Get dealer to fix free if charge and see the book gone that would be a better deal. Save you a good few hours