Shockers replacement vehicle quandry

As I have whined about at length elsewher, I have recently lost the use of my favourite disco.It was a jap reimport with an uprated spec that didnt fit the UK designations with A/C and ABS etc,with added bits like in/out thermometer and reverse sensors and uprated HD tow electrics and de cat and de EGR and blah blah blah.

So,now I have to replace it.For boring lengthy reasons I wont be getting an insurance payout worth much more than a pint and some nuts but can borrow from in laws to the tune of 3 grand maximum. I dont know what vehicle to buy and wouldnt mind some advice and input.Well,not the stick your head up your own arse kind of advice,actually,or input come to think of it,but some slightly more positive help. I am going to betray my own ignorance a lot here so hold the smirks,please.

I have ongoing disability issues and need a relatively high up vehicle to get in and out of....I got stuck in my old volvo 960 and couldnt get up ! I need a relatively high level of comfort to make driving long distances bearable and for pain not to become distracting. I also need a 4 wheel drive to guarantee access and travel on the moor in winter. I need a decent loadspace as I cling to the shreds of my old life and still have farm and fishing and engineering stuff that needs shifting. I also tow....trailers and caravans and need the full weight allowance and grunt,plus stability. I have come to prefer an auto over a manual recently,too,for a lot of reasons.

I like D1s and I know the 300tdi (and the 200) well enough.I dont have the money to get work done so whatever I get will be worked on by myself.Given the timescale of how long ago D1 was,I can see ES models inside my money boundaries but wonder if I could do better.
I have had V8 petrols before,RRC and 109s and fun as they are could not afford to run one.LPG doesnt seem to be that easily available in my immediate area and I dont know that much about it.I see single point and 8 point injection and imagine that pretty much on a par with doing that with petrol. I dont know if I would be able to warrant the expense and learning,or re learning another engine.Unsure.

D2,well I was working at a garage when Td5 was new and remember what a nightmare it was.Even now I think it would probably be too much for me to do on my own without investing heavily in new equipment/tools but would be interested to hear why people may think I should ! Is the D2 td5 suitable for a farm mechanic ?
And again,given the worries I see people have with D2s generally, would a V8 LPG be any good to me ?

Series....been there,done that,lovely for a hobby,not me for a daily and expedition motor.

Defender.....I have trouble getting in and out of them and my height,even with adapted seats makes it hard to get good vision all round and I find the controls very cramped.Again,not an everyday drive,for me at least.Which is a pity....I have tried in the past but it didnt work...I wanted it to,but it didnt.

RRC.....had a V8 petrol for a while stripped down for round the farm.Been in a few complete ones.On the surface of it,if I could find a 300tdi one,it would be lovely.But I dont know enough to be sure,dont know the weak points and common faults.Yes,I have done searches and reading but would like opinions/knowledge.Everyone says avoid VM.....thats about all I know.And then theres the same V8 petrol/LPG issue............

P38....everyone screams NO ! DONT DO IT ! But I see a lot of cheap ones,diesel,with coil springs and hot start fix kits put in.......why ? Just what is it that makes these so expensive to run/own ? On the face of it, they would seem ideal but from what I read they are absolutely full of expensive trouble.....

Japanese.JAPANESE !!! Thats how low I have sunk ! I am actually considering buying a japanese truck. I know...its shameful....you think I dont know it ? I have feelings too,you know.........
I hear a lot of people talking up Landcruisers and pajerros and navarras etc. I have driven a Mazda 2500 a fair bit and the Ford Ranger (same thing) too.....the diesel ones.The Mazda version was better but it all seems so tinny and plastic-y.Everything so small and fiddly.And thats just driving it ! Those two seemed to run at very high revs,too. I have done some bits on a mates Terrano 2 and underneath everything is so small and non HD....not impressed.Drives well enough but I have always had the impression that jap stuff is built to the absolute minimum that they could get away with.That and the parts change every model year and are expensive and hard to source quick and easy - with landrover parts are,on the vehicles I have owned,easy to come by and not too pricey.Its been quite tricky to find the right stuff for friends jap trucks.Oh yeah,the manuals have small clutches that burn out easily,too....from what I have seen.

So ? What to do ?

ive a td5 and look after many ,havent had that much trouble at all ,mine 99 model with auto is great to drive ,only thing to look out for apart from obvious is chassis rot ,never thought id have to give up my v8 disco 1 but new ones been great replacement ,good ones around ive seen for 2-3 thousand

personally i wouldnt borrow to buy a posher vehicle..... id stick with a disco 200 or 300tdi... mechanically theyre cheap and easy to fix.... used bits are readily available which isnt always the case with jap trucks simply because there were less sold here in the first place. the down side of a d1 is body rust but its fixable and you can budget for it

thanks lads.....anymore?

What about V8/LPG?

....and RRC

....and P38

....and (sob!) japanese ?

shocker said:

What about V8/LPG? Don't even think about it - too unreliable / complex.

....and RRC You'll be lucky to find one that's not rotten.

....and P38 You're mad even to think of it.

....and (sob!) japanese ? How very dare you!

Click to expand...

Don't rush, take yer time and find a decent / solid 300 Tdi Disco - there's still a few out there.

Trewey, I know, all the bangs on the head are making me act strange....japanese ? I make MYSELF sick !

However, among other things, to borrow the money needed I have to make a very good case to my new yorker in laws who are the source of the loan.They have looked at ebay etc and see all these P38s for cheap and jap things and want to know why I dont want one. Its hard to get them to understand so I am looking for a bit of help and info that I can wave at them while I look for another 300 disco,pref a ES or similar cos I like fiddling with the electric seats and similar. Really I want another re import to get the solid underbody.Just what is it about P38s that makes them a total nightmare....apart from "everything". And RRC.....bar the rear door issue, are they more rotten than a D1 of similar vintage ?My one was very stripped down and off road use only....basically a two seater tractor.

Remember that, short of looking at friends trucks occasionally, I havent had much to do with anything apart from disco mk1s for quite a long time now - and my memory aint what it was, since the climbing accident and the upside-down-ES-in-a-tree crash........

Come on people,give something to go to work on the inlaws with !

(Whispers) Been driving a disco1 for a month and before the waterpump went today i felt it was a great motor, i'm used to 90's!

Engine easy to work on..various, but not too many electrickery extras..good on fuel, cheap insurance and tax...

japanese are expensive to repair and in that price range will be getting to need it,p38 similar and changing to coils not cheap like disco ,youve experience with discos makes repairs easier and cheaper, import costs what now £2000 -£2500 wax underneath last for years ,simple fixes parts readily available ,get your gear box rebuilt for £200 with all new genuine brgs baulk rings etc what other vehicle is that possible same with engine ,axles

p38 diesel had one for 2 yrs now , only prob has been a blend motor , which I did myself , still on air susp whidh is self leveling (good for towing) . like any vehicle you get good ones and bad ones. Easy access as you can lower to get in or out !! Comfy to drive as well does about 27mpg avg They feel bulkier than the disco , probably because they are

theres plenty of s/h parts availability as well so not that dear !

I lusted after a P38 for years but until the other half recovered enough to drive again I couldn't have one. During that time I read all of the disasters and horrors that come with them. Then I found LandyZone. Yes I still hear of all the disasters and horrors but now I hear of the fixes and, more importantly, the people on here willing to help. I've now had a diesel P38 for a couple of years. It's never let me down, not on the motorway, not in the forest, not in a blizzard. O.K I've spent a few bob on it but what I've done is get to the weak points before they became problems. How did I know where to look - LandyZone.

Apart from the electronics (and for them there's Black Box) there's nothing that can't be sorted by a half decent mechanic with a decent tool kit.

Then there's driving it - king of the road!

Where to buy an import though JM ? All the ones I see are still £5k and up for even 94/5 300 discos.

Anyone tell me where to buy a re import disco 300 other than private sale ? All the dealer ones I see are still £5000 and up........

Without trolling through your previous post as Im on a very slow work connection I beleive Im right in saying this is your 4th write off/claim in 3 years and that you have received 6 or7 points for a car park bump? (seems really OTT, you normally only get 6 for doing a runner and not leaving details? they must've really had a bad day when they sentenced you that harshly) and that insurance on a disco was already £1000 up from a couple of hundred given your history before this latest accident which I understand you think may well go 50/50.
Have you got a few insurance quotes on these different vehicles before you even try to decide as this may well be an influencing factor as you have already said you dont have the money for a replacement and will be borrowing it? £1000 insurance before the latest accident, Id hate to guess what it will be now when you tell them 4 claims in 3 years.
Assuming you can get a quote that doesnt involve a second mortgage or selling a kidney I'd opt for a 200/300TDI disco, I certainly wouldnt borrow and blow a full £3000 on another motor if there is a chance they may only give you third party cover, given your luck with claims you could easily end up vehicle less and oweing friends / family money.

Cheers Steve

Second write off,fourth claim. There is some dirty business going on in the bodmin area police and judiciary and I upset some people by asking loudly in public why certain heroin dealers were constantly being let off to go back to their lovely trade.

I had no criminal record, a clean licence and had never had any points. I reversed into a mondeo in a carpark and did not realise and left.When I was told the next day by friends that I had, I tried to contact the owners of the car but could not get a number. I gave all my details to the person who told me to pass on.They did not do so and did not tell me. I posted up notices around the area and was finally emailed but by then the police were involved.Turns out the people were also involved with the drug dealers that I had made a fuss about. I was arrested at home and taken in and charged with 3 offences.

My lawyer,not my choice but all I could get with legal aid (and had to fight to get that) bargained it down to driving without due care and leaving the scene, 2 offences. He was shocked that I got 7 points and £375 and costs, had not seen such severity before. I was initially told to pay on the day or go to jail.All this on a clean record,remember. I was lucky to get it down to £50/week and jail if I missed a payment.

The moral of this is , you cannot trust the police or the courts to do what appears to be the right thing. They work to other agenda than morality and keeping a drug dealer sweet is more important to them than a law abiding citizens life.

Oh and I had a full no claims discount before all this, "this" starting with the ES wrecked in my sig pic.....I spun on ice from a leaking manhole on a corner and ended up,up a tree. Then I had a brake master cylinder fail and I bumped a holiday makers car and they had to have it polished out.That was claim No2. Then the car park,No3. Now this,No4.And I had just got a years no claims back.

None of this could be put down to reckless or careless driving. I am getting shafted and I am not happy.

I always went on about NFU insurance and the personal service,well the local Claims Support man wont take my calls and has informed me through another that he will not speak to me. I have no idea why , I am pleasant and polite to deal with. I emailed them and NFU national with copies to each regarding this and have now been told someone from the local office will be in touch. Again, I am getting shafted and am not happy. I can get treated like a cnut by call centre ****ers for much less.The last one I spoke to was yawning constantly and put all my details into the system wrong.Now they are saying I am trying to change my story after the fact. How do I feel ? see above.......

shocker said:

Second write off,fourth claim. There is some dirty business going on in the bodmin area police and judiciary and I upset some people by asking loudly in public why certain heroin dealers were constantly being let off to go back to their lovely trade.

I had no criminal record, a clean licence and had never had any points. I reversed into a mondeo in a carpark and did not realise and left.When I was told the next day by friends that I had, I tried to contact the owners of the car but could not get a number. I gave all my details to the person who told me to pass on.They did not do so and did not tell me. I posted up notices around the area and was finally emailed but by then the police were involved.Turns out the people were also involved with the drug dealers that I had made a fuss about. I was arrested at home and taken in and charged with 3 offences.

My lawyer,not my choice but all I could get with legal aid (and had to fight to get that) bargained it down to driving without due care and leaving the scene, 2 offences. He was shocked that I got 7 points and £375 and costs, had not seen such severity before. I was initially told to pay on the day or go to jail.All this on a clean record,remember. I was lucky to get it down to £50/week and jail if I missed a payment.

The moral of this is , you cannot trust the police or the courts to do what appears to be the right thing. They work to other agenda than morality and keeping a drug dealer sweet is more important to them than a law abiding citizens life.

Click to expand...

Courts make big money off drug dealers.

They dont make anything off this lot....they never GET to court. Caught with 1 kilogram of heroin.No charges,let out.Evidence disappears.Caught with half a kilo.Evidence lost.Assault one elderly disabled man with a claw hammer whilst robbing his flat. DNA evidence lost. Whilst on bail for that,whilst already on license from prison (UK version of parole), assaults another man in street.CC TV footage inconclusive, witnesses lose memory.And this is just the icing on the cake.I went to the local papers who were EXTREMELY interested.....but then suddenly got cold feet.Shortly before my car park incident.

I am not a conspiricy theorist fantasist. I am a farmer. I found all of this VERY hard to believe,in a backwater like cornwall.But it happened,its still happening.

The courts may fine the little fish that the big boys feed them but where does the fine get paid from ? Direct from their state benefits. Qui bono, John ,qui bono ? Please excuse the poor latin.

....and now everyone here thinks I am a paranoid loony.

Whereas previously they had thought I was either one, or the other

:blah::drama::suspicious: