Newby 300TDI or TD5?

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A

ADBY

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Hi All,
I know this is a question that will have been covered before! (Have tried to find a post)
I am a newby who is currently on the search for a discovery, I am after a late 300tdi or early TD5 so am keen to know a few things:
1) is the price difference worth going for a TD5?
2) I would like an auto what are the boxes like for reliability?
3) what are the comon fail points/models to avoid for both the TD5 and 300TDI?

Thanks in advance for any advice etc!
Adam
 
welcome adam, auto is great i have no probs with it at all, landy and reliability is well you know, and main thing is rust. hope this is of some help..
 
Try a site called usedcarexpert.co.uk. You need to register but it's free, put in the model you want and it will give you the common faults etc.
I sold my td5 and bought a 300 tdi. Need i say more!
 
welcome adam, i sold my 300tdi and bought a td5 auto 2 years ago its been great, from what i have read and what i know of my old 300 i dont doubt the 300/200 are better off road. but as im on tarmac 95% of the time my td5 is a far more refined machine and a real pleasure to drive plus all the toys, i would recomend to anyone.

terry
 
Mainly for work, I buy,sell and repair trailers, so lots of towing but mainly unloaded trailers (no great weight)
Might use it for some green laning (used to have a cherokee modded for off road use, not sure if thats a dirty word here!)
I am a trained mechanic so will be doing all the servicing repairs etc myself, was told the 300tdi was simpler than the TD5?
Thanks for the swift replies, I am keen to know what to avoid/check when buying one also am I correct that the ES is the top of the range (apart from the GS which has sunroofs which leak?)
 
300 simpler yes, TD5's have lots of probs you have to deal with & if you aint got diag's itll cost you a fair bit over the years.
Personally for that kinda work Id get a late 300 if you want a simple engine or an 03- TD5 if you want a later disco (they "tend" to be less problematic)& itll tow better in my opinion
 
foss said:
300 simpler yes, TD5's have lots of probs you have to deal with & if you aint got diag's itll cost you a fair bit over the years.
Personally for that kinda work Id get a late 300 if you want a simple engine or an 03- TD5 if you want a later disco (they "tend" to be less problematic)& itll tow better in my opinion
Click to expand...

Cheers, what model? ES top of the range on the late 300tdi isnt it? ive been told to avoid sunroof models! :)
 
When i was looking to buy my disco i wanted a 300tdi, i must have looked at 20 for sale in different places and every one was rotten, for this reason i upped the budget and bought a TD5.

Just try and find the best you can for the money you have regardless of what engine it has as either could give you problems.
 
[Cheers, what model? ES top of the range on the late 300tdi isnt it? ive been told to avoid sunroof models!]
Click to expand...
Don't worry about sunroofs, if it hasn't been going on too long, it only takes a couple of Hrs to fix it.
Electric screwdriver & probably even less.
Did mine 6 months ago & so far so good.
 
Last edited:
300s are great machines if you can find a fairly low mileage late one, injector pump on the auto 300 is ecu controlled but very rudementry usually no problem, td5 obviously computer controlled everywhere but with a nanocom around £200 diagnostics not to bad, and they are still a relatively simple machine i have had both my old 300 preg just rusted away, like you i tow a fair bit and the td5 is far superior in all areas even got plastic inner wings so mud etc. dosent get everywhere, my advise get as good a td5 as your budget will allow preferably low spec less electrical problems.


john:):)
 
hi there like you i'n new to discoverys. We have a 1994 300 tdi, i'm not going to say its been without its problems, has it hasn't but they have been silly little things. Its been a great little work horse. Main thing to look out for is rust,boot floor,rear arches,front inner arches,and sills. But all i can say is,its nearly 17 years old in good shape and still running strong, how many modern cars can you say the ame about. We did look at td5's but with all the computer controlled stuff,sensors and so on, it was far to much to go wrong for me. But thats only my outlook on them. In short get the best you can for your money,followed by the unlimted help and advice from this site and your on to a winner
 
Broadly speaking TDi 300's are simpler to work on, parts are cheaper but they rust quite badly.

TD5 is a much better road car, better tow-car imo, little or no rust on the body, can be rust on the chassis, but more straightforward to resolve.

I had a series of TDi's and my wife runs one now, but I have moved onto TD5. I do a lot of towing of various weights and one thing that impresses me hugely about TD5 is the traction you have whilst towing.

During the current spell of snow 2 days ago we went out with the horse trailer (1000kgs). The roads were packed ice and we had to descend down into a farmers yard to pick up a 1.5mtrs round bail of hay (about 500kgs).

With the trailer loaded I selected low ratio and 2nd on the auto-box and she pulled up a solid sheet of ice as if it wasn't there, it was quite incredible - no traction control kicking in - she just climbed out like it was nothing. Left her in low ratio and D for the 10kms trip home and all was a picture of calm and control.

In my book TD5 delivers !!!! My advice: buy yourself a good autobox TD5 and a Nanocom (electronic diagnosis terminal about £220) and enjoy.

Good luck

Dave
 
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