SLROC Forum

Hi All,

I have a 2002 Discovery 2 that I bought from someone on here about 3 years ago , it’s been a brilliant vehicle but getting a bit rough round the edges and required a bit of welding for its mot , I have been thinking of changing it for sometime now and I have a friend that has offered me his Discovery 3 TDV6 3.0 Auto SE at a very good price but it has 200k miles on it and requires new timing belts , it’s got great service history but he says it has a few small niggles .
Do I keep my old reliable but rusty Disco or take on a new higher mileage one ??
All comments welcome ,
Cheers
Donald

I would!
Disco 3 is a cracking car - big step forward from D2 - high mileage doesn't appear to be an issue on them as long as it has been well maintained throughout. Rust doesn't appear to be a problem on them, with bodywork and chassis holding up well over the years. There's a wealth of information on Disco3.com or the Discovery 3 & 4 owners group on Facebook - there are pinned posts on there which will give a list of things to look out for. Also members on there who have done 300k / 400k and still going strong.

As Alan says there's a world of difference between the 2 and 3, but the rust on the D2 can only get worse and that's the killer.  Depending on the age of the D3 watch out for the road tax.

I got mine from a fellow club members who was meticulous with the maintenance, and in the 20,000 miles since I got it in Feb 17 it's worked hard towing both a loaded car trailer and big caravan, and never missed a beat.  Beginning to get issues with the egr system, but other than that its all good.  Better on the motorway than the D2.

That said I've still got an X Reg D2 that I bought as a project and its going strong , is simple and inexpensive to maintain (now that I've had all the welding done)

On balance though - you've got to move on sometime.

That’s great guys , many thanks , it’s a 2005 model so I’ll check the tax , big plus is that its a good friend that’s selling it and it has S/H to 170k with him servicing after that . He says there is occasionally a light on the dash “mode “ something, it’s in relation to the air suspension, he has replaced the compressor and says the light goes out if you switch it off and on .
My only concern is buying ( it’s very cheap as he owes me a favour ) it and then something expensive needing fixed , I agree it will be much better than my old one but mine only has 120k has uprated suspension ( air removed ) alloys , winch etc etc and is mega reliable and easy to work on but I suppose there is always a bit of a risk when buying any vehicle with such high miles and lots of electronics.
I do have a few vehicles so it’s not one that I would be stuck if it had an issue and will not be doing a big mileage, there again it makes me wonder if I need to upgrade , I just need to make a decision as he is in a rush to sell.
While I’ve got you guys here any idea of what mine is worth ( won’t be offended ) 2002 TD5 120k decent history , suspension raised and air removed , alloys with good off road tyres , winch bumper with very good winch , had MOT in March where it required diesel tank removed and chassis welded , then whole chassis cleaned and waxoyled. It is 100% reliable and I took it down to Warrington recently without any problems ,
It looks good from a distance but every panel has scratches or small dents but little rust .
Thinking around £2k is that realistic ,
Thanks again
Donald

Hi ,
Wee update for anyone interested , I decided to stay with my D2 , overwhelming advice was to stay clear of the D3 , due to the expense of keeping on the road , I am aware of its reliability issues as I have a few friends with them and they all complain about the cost of repairs and how difficult they are to work on .
Just about every advert I read for D3’s for sale mentioned either gearbox issues,suspension problems or electrical faults , so I’ve kept my D2 which I have found mega reliable , in 3 years I’ve only had to replace the diesel pump and a couple of drop links .
Anyway thanks for the comments

Donald, I’ve had my 2005 D3 for over 10 years, I love it and wouldn’t do without

Hi ,

Sorry didn’t mean to offend anyone , I think they look great , probably my problem is that my old D2 has been and still is so reliable ... I should stop looking at newer models

Cheers
Donald

No offence taken lol, each to their own. I suppose it comes down to a bit of luck too. You do hear of issues but as said many a time, no one posts the positive stuff. I’ve only ever maintained mine over 10 years with no major costs, little and often, no different from any other car of that age

Fancy taking a D2 as P/x  .......😀😀

Lol, I’ll be keeping mine, love it

This is 13 years old

That’s lovely , and the defender too ,  how do you put your photos on , it says mine are too big but don’t know how to reduce them , other forums let me drag the photo across but not here , cheers

13 years old...….and looking excellent Stephen.

Thanks Alan, does need a good clean though lol

Donald, easiest way is to link from another site, that’s what I do

https://ibb.co/cQrpxK

Just trying to add photo , have used photobucket previously but they have closed all access to my photos , don’t think I could create a link as all old photos have been blocked , anyway here goes

Oh well half way there , created the link but I was hoping the photo would be seen instantly ,