P38 or Td5

Please can any one give me any advice be it good or bad whether to buy a P38 petrol/diesel or a Td5 disco,any opinion/view will be greatly appriciated as my head is in a shed on not knowing what to do.I have just sold my car so really need some help thanks.

Well I dont know much about the P38s but I have a Td5, and its the dogs. I used to have a 200 Tdi which was great, some people claim the electronics on the Td5 can be a problem and certain problems cant be cured by the home mechanic, but its worth it for me to have a luxury go anywhere, virtually vehicle. That said I am sure that P38 owners will be enthusiastic about their cars. So its up to you, really depends on what you are using it for. Either way how can you lose its a Land Rover.

discoman1 said:

Well I dont know much about the P38s but I have a Td5, and its the dogs. I used to have a 200 Tdi which was great, some people claim the electronics on the Td5 can be a problem and certain problems cant be cured by the home mechanic, but its worth it for me to have a luxury go anywhere, virtually vehicle. That said I am sure that P38 owners will be enthusiastic about their cars. So its up to you, really depends on what you are using it for. Either way how can you lose its a Land Rover.

Click to expand...

thanks for your input want to use it for everyday use may do some greenlaning what year and mileage is your disco i have seen a GS7 02 but 03 vehicle the face lift one 65000 miles

I am in the same place. Ive had a P38 4.6 hse which was fantastic, but very heavy on the fuel. The diesels are better on fuel, but are underpowered. Both vehicles are heavy on the electronics, so budget for a Faultmate (£550 + - ) if you plan to do your own servicing. I currently run a 300Tdi Discovery which is a great wagon but suffers from poor build quality and numerous leaks.. The later Mk2 Discos are a lot better but again I found the 04 TD5 one I drove for a couple of weeks underpowered, but did enjoy the climate control I had missed from the P38. These later vehicles, like the P38 are heavy on the electrics, but I do believe there is a TD5 engine fault reader/setter available for the Defender so expect this will be available for the Disco soon if not already, or again a Faultmate for the approx same price as the P38. Myself, I am erring on the side of a Discovery TD5, the resale is going to be better than the Range Rover and the TD5 engine has plenty of tuning parts available to make it drive like it should. Hope this helps.

I had a 2.5DT auto a couple of years ago. It was an excellent motor - the interior was like a jaguar but could go anywhere. Only drawback was the cost of parts - exhaust, compressors for suspension etc. I had it chipped which made it pretty quick but obviously the downside to that is the lower fuel consumption. If you looking for one make sure the owner has two sets of keys/remotes. I'd buy the next model RR if I could afford it but I can't so I'm looking for a TD5.

I was looking to buy a RR but with ancle snapper no 4 arriving realized there wernt enough seats so i went for a disco td5 7 seater. Overall pretty pleased with it! i was supprised how much diesel it uses compaired to my old 200tdi but that was a manual and the new uns an auto so may be thats the difference. its a 2001 with 71k on it. im just starting to get a few minor problems with it after about 2 yrs of running! i kinda wish id spent another couple of grand and got the face lift model though! well what can i say the missus wanted a new oss box as well!

Hi Phil. mine is a 2002 es model and the es spec is well worth having, all leather all electric,brilliant tourer and great for towing.. Would suit you down to the ground. Also reading the previous thread about autos mine is a manual which is a bit better on juice but at £5 gallon it helps. Mine has 53000miles on it full service history and one owner. Which I bought from main stealer so paid a bit more, not much, but well worth it for 1yr Land Rover warranty, and yes I have used it 4times, but nothing major, might as well make the most of it while it lasts.

gotta say go for the TD5 - like discoman says - go for the ES spec it's just as luxurious as a range rover

have a look at this similar thread

http://www.landyzone.co.uk/lz/f10/undecided-46706.html

had my 2001 TD5 ES over 4 months now - no problems (yet) I get about 33mpg average (manual with EGR blanked) cruises great & tows our caravan like it's not even there.

Having being lucky enough to run both a P38 (4.6 Vogue) and a Discovery 2 (not TD5 but V8) at the same time, and still owning both, I would steer clear of the Range Rover unless you have very deep pockets. Despite being LR maintained, the Range still regularly disgraces itself and every repair seems to cost a small fortune. My Discovery has generally been a much more reliable vehicle.

I would say that is probably down to luck ( or lack of ). I bought my HSE two weeks after my good friend bought his DSE, both 96 vehicles with similar milages. He spent about £5000 on his in the three years he had his, mine £2.50 on bulbs (plus service items of course)..........

No experience of the P38 but my 2001es auto Td5 does what all these chaps have said, luxury that will go anywhere, I have three kids (four with nephew) dog, her in doors and caravan, pity i cant say when there in it its as if there not there like it is with the 1600kg caravan, toured norfolk last week, coventry to coast and back plus some touring about on £105 unsure of its mpg but wouldn`t change it for the world. EGR fitted and she leaps off from the lights and pulls like a train. Td5 mate if i was you going by the posts above. Good luck

Thanks to every one for all the advice/information,I should be collecting a Td5
on thursday if they have it ready once again thanks to everyone
Phil

Well done, Enjoy your new disco on Thursday.