Thinking of a TD5... Any Tips?

Hi guys, thinking of switching from a dead TD4 Freelander to a nice 2003-2004 ES TD5 Disco...

Are they a good, reliable car?

I've heard that the TD5 discos are one of the best landrovers around (with comfort) for reliability...

What are the common faults I should be looking for on a test drive?

hi shotgun
look at the ace system make sure the pipes are not leaking very expensive to replace change the oil & both filters on a regular basis check the air bags do not sag o/night if they do quite an easy replacement fuel pressure regulator can leak you will get a whiff of deisel o/s front to the rear of the engine,again an easy fix.
Apart from that its a good vehicle 105.000 & still going well

Cheers Pat...

Are there any dummies guides or stickies on here about ACE pipes etc?

Also, is the drive train all good on Discos? Anything to look out for there?

drive train good i change both diff oils yearly & transfer & g/box grease the prop every 3 months or if i have been off roading cant fault it really.

Got mine in feburary and its great, can`t fault the motor. Done a cam seal and thats all.
The best advise is to check everything works as it should, and that it has been serviced regular, and get one there great.
Mark

ShotgunDrew said:

Hi guys, thinking of switching from a dead TD4 Freelander to a nice 2003-2004 ES TD5 Disco...

Are they a good, reliable car?

I've heard that the TD5 discos are one of the best landrovers around (with comfort) for reliability...

What are the common faults I should be looking for on a test drive?

Click to expand...

Do not buy a Disco TD5 unless:

1. You are good with tools and have bought a Nanocom or HawkEye diagnostic tool and like working on cars
;
2. You need to tow heavy trailers/caravans;

3. You need seven seats;

4. You want to go off-roading;

5. You can tolerate 25-ish mpg;

Discos are expensive to run and to service correctly, so only buy one if you need one. Otherwise go Audi/Volvo/BMW/Merc.

Sounds a bit harsh I know, but it's the truth and it's probably better you know before buying, rather than after.

Interesting points there BigLad... care to fill me in a little more?

What goes wrong?

ShotgunDrew said:

Interesting points there BigLad... care to fill me in a little more?
What goes wrong?

Click to expand...

Hi Drew, first of all, do you need a heavy, guzzling offroader, because if you don't as I said before, don't get one.

Please don't misunderstand me, I think they are quite fabulous vehicles for my kind of life.

I have the time, have developed the skills and have purchased the tools to look after my three Discos - so they can't be that bad can they?

However, if you are the sort of owner who gets frustrated with sunroof leaks and is not prepared/doesn't want to repair it yourself - then walk away.

Very common issues in no particular order:

1. Engine oilpump bolt - poor manufacturing can lead to an unscrewing of the retaining bolt with catastrophic results for the engine. Rectification takes one hour tops and a £1.50 locktited bolt;

2. Oil in the ECU - engine oil descends from the injector loom and contaminates the ECU red plug contacts causing running problems. Easy to rectify, either a new lom £30 or two new blue 'o'-rings about £1.50; plus about 1 hrs time.

3. Blown MAF (mass airflow meter) - diagnosed with a HawkEye or similar; new part costs £27 to £80 plus 10 mins of time;

3. Leaking ACE pipes - a little more tricky to fix plus each pipe is about £70.

4. Faulty rear air suspension - 95% of the time caused by owners who do not understand the concept of 'preventative maintenance'. I reckon airbags (£63+vat each) and ride height sensors (£20-28+vat each) should be changed every 5 years to avoid trouble. If you do this you won't have issues with this excellent system. The choice is yours.

5. Leaking sunroofs/windscreens - it happens all the time. Loads of advice available and almost always a very cheap fix - 1 tube of Sikaflex 221 plus up to 3 hrs.

6. Worn/faulty in-tank fuel pumps - easy to replace and cost £120 to £200.

Getting a bit bored now - need lunch.

My advice? Only buy a Disco if you need one and can service/repair it yourself.

Good luck

Dave

Loving my 2001 '51 plate TD5. Bought it knowing it needed two tyres and front brakes, which I am dealing with right now. Had it a week so far and 300 miles later no regrets whatsoever ...Going to carry out an engine service and replace the brakes this weekend coming.

the cost of parts are to high on a TD5

you'd be better with a 1999, put a privet reg on !!

i like his
LAND ROVER DISCOVERY V8 4.0i ES SILVER 1999 LPG on eBay (end time 30-Jul-10 21:25:57 BST)

if i had £3000 more, not just £1500, i would be showing you what i just bought

300tdistu said:

the cost of parts are to high on a TD5

you'd be better with a 1999, put a privet reg on !!

i like his
LAND ROVER DISCOVERY V8 4.0i ES SILVER 1999 LPG on eBay (end time 30-Jul-10 21:25:57 BST)

if i had £3000 more, not just £1500, i would be showing you what i just bought

Click to expand...

Tbh mate I can't see how that gets anywhere near what the OP said they were looking for:

1. Petrol + LPG can work ok but often doesn't.

2. Would you want to put any of your kids in the seat next to a loaded gas tank - not me bro'.


Plus, what a ridiculous asking price for an 11 yr old Disco.

Phew... I thought you meant there are serious problems with a TD5!

I guess I don't really "need" a Disco... I'd just like one.

I shoot (a lot) and also run the shoot I'm in, so am forever lugging ton loads of pheasant food, wire mesh, posts etc etc etc around off-road.

I would like a Defender of some sort, but the 20 mile commute to work puts me off, so I'd like something more comfy and refined.

As for fixing it myself, I'm more than happy to do almost anything (except for engine removal and other heavy jobs), so that's not a problem. I've had a TD4 Freelander for the last 4 years and have done all sorts of fiddly jobs on it. The only reason it's in the garage at the moment is because it needs the diagnostics doing and an engine management recode...

Thanks for the advice guys... if anyone can point me in the direction of a step-by-step dummies guide to checking a td5 over, I'd be very grateful.

Ye could always change the seats in a Defender to make it a bit more comfier. And if yer shovin' all that stuff in the back then ye probably wouldn't need to worry about knackerin' yer carpets and seats

I also have 2 shoots, 1 is just fields and easily accessible by any normal car but the other is 500acres of woodland where a 4x4 is needed. I had a p38 range rover previously running lpg and it did everything i asked of it and more, but it was always having problems and was very expensive to fix, even when doing it myself. This Discovery TD5 i have now is equally at home around the shoot and is far easier to live with. After coming from a range rover to me the parts seem very cheap, but compared to a 200 or 300 are probably very expensive. I do think that anyone who has this sort of car should be able to use a set of spanners, and should budget for a nanocom or Hawk eye diagnostic system. You dont have to have a 7 seater, mine is a 5 seater with some very handy storage in the back where the extra seats go. I get 21mpg just around town and 30 on a run, still having the egr and cat. As has been mentioned before screen and sunroof leaks can be a problem but the fix for these has been well documented on this site. As with the oil pump problem and head problem i would have thought that most would have gone wrong and been sorted by now, so that just leaves general things that to go wrong which can happen with any car.
Mark

Hi Shotgundrew I work in agriculture and so need a 4x4 but it is also our main family car and so needs a degree of comfort. I have a 2004 TD5 which I have owned since it was 4 months old.
At times the car makes me smile from wing mirror to wing mirror but at other times owning a Land Rover is extremely frustrating.
You either need to have time to keep on top of the jobs that need doing on the car or deep pockets and you are fooling yourself if you think otherwise. My car had a list price of over £30K and I paid over £20K for it so it was not cheap.
I have just had the carpets and headlining out trying to sort out the multitude of leaks. It went back twice whilst under warranty for sunroof problems.
Other things that need sorting:
Rear passenger door doesn’t unlock on remote control
Rear washer doesn’t work
Headlight washer doesn’t work
The aircon illumination doesn’t work
The car needs waxoyling as it is rusty underneath
Window frames on rear doors are rusty
The list goes on.
The problem is I don’t have the time so the list just gets longer.
As far as garage bills are concerned I have had new clutch & DMF, new shocks all round, new master and slave clutch cylinders, a fuel leak at the back of the engine fixed and a seal at the back of the engine replaced are the jobs that come to mind.
I would say you really need to be aware of what you are taking on before buying a Land Rover

ShotgunDrew said:

Phew... I thought you meant there are serious problems with a TD5!

I guess I don't really "need" a Disco... I'd just like one.

I shoot (a lot) and also run the shoot I'm in, so am forever lugging ton loads of pheasant food, wire mesh, posts etc etc etc around off-road.

I would like a Defender of some sort, but the 20 mile commute to work puts me off, so I'd like something more comfy and refined.

As for fixing it myself, I'm more than happy to do almost anything (except for engine removal and other heavy jobs), so that's not a problem. I've had a TD4 Freelander for the last 4 years and have done all sorts of fiddly jobs on it. The only reason it's in the garage at the moment is because it needs the diagnostics doing and an engine management recode...

Thanks for the advice guys... if anyone can point me in the direction of a step-by-step dummies guide to checking a td5 over, I'd be very grateful.

Click to expand...

Check the following. I have had to do most of it on mine in last two years.

1/ Steering box. They leak and best fix is replacement with reconed box. Easy but £170 for box.
2/ As said, sunroofs leak. How you goin to check this on a test drive on a dry day tho?
3/ Fuel pressure regulator. £100 to buy + £2/3 for gasket. Not a hard fix. Mounted on offside of engine block above the starter motor. you would get a better look at it from under car. They leak fuel as well and this can get onto your clutch plate causing a whole new problem.
4/ Air springs leak, but as the biglad says, keep on top of them and they work a treat. To check them, raise them to full height and spray with leak spray or soapy water. you will soon know if they leak. Again no big deal if they are. App £60/70 each and very easy to change.
5/ As mentioned, ACE, check for leaks. ACE valve block is mounted on chassis below drivers side. Have a good look at the block and trace pipes as best you can to front and back and check condition. Very expensive to replace. If you get good ones, try and keep them that way.
6/ Back door leaks. If fitted, pull out load cover and look for water marks. I fixed mine easy by adjusting strikers. Also check condition of rear doors hinges. Spare wheel can put a lot of stress on these and often are not lubricated.
7/ Check along front of roof just above windscreen for bad stone chips. these corrode and are easy missed on a tall vehicle. Check front of vehicle for excessive stone chips, lights, indicators, spot lamps etc. Flat front of the disco gets a proper blast from these.

Cant think of anything else major mate, apart from the obvious you would check on any test run. What i will say is i love mine, warts an all.

Save your cash and look for a good 300tdi Discovery.
You will pay top dollar for the best (around £2000-£3000) but you wont get much hassle.
They are reliable, strong and if rust proofed and looked after will last forever.
The TD5 just does not make any sense.
TBH my perfect disco would be a mint late TD5 with engine problems then swap the engine for a 300tdi.
My 2 pence but you'll find after all the neg replies it is pretty much the truth.

20 miles to work in a defender is bugger all. Even my missus would rather do a long distance drive in the defender rather than in the chav mobile. I'd suggest driving a defender before ruling one out. As for 300tdi or TD5. Again I'd suggest test driving both types of engine before making your mind up.

scotia said:

Save your cash and look for a good 300tdi Discovery.
You will pay top dollar for the best (around £2000-£3000) but you wont get much hassle.
They are reliable, strong and if rust proofed and looked after will last forever.
The TD5 just does not make any sense.
TBH my perfect disco would be a mint late TD5 with engine problems then swap the engine for a 300tdi.
My 2 pence but you'll find after all the neg replies it is pretty much the truth.

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You can forget your perfect Disco then. You won,t get a mint TD5 with "engine problems". You'll get a mint TD5 with all the other problems mentioned tho.

meego said:

You can forget your perfect Disco then. You won,t get a mint TD5 with "engine problems". You'll get a mint TD5 with all the other problems mentioned tho.

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How the **** do you know what I will and wont get.
I have come across loads of shagged out TD5's over the years.
Yes they were pretty clean but the engines had severe problems