DI discouraged

[W2TF]

hello, am new to this site and LR's in general. Must say I'm awed and very impressed with the vast and priceless knowledge the members have. Anyway, even the I love the ball type final drive on my '98. Just don't have the time to do the amount of work necessary to make it the way I'd want it. And looking around for a decent DII.
My question: DII, mech issues aside, good body. Whats the max miles one could expect from running gear. Or how much over 200K? Would like to find a decent DII with 3rd row do mild lift, etc. Use for once in awhile light off roading, real snowy days and mobile amateur radio. thanks, Tom

 

[CORover]

From what I see in the local salvage yards, it is the engine that is killing these, not just miles either, time is a factor. I see near perfect ones with bad engines in the yards. You could buy a cheap one and throw some money at engine work or take your chances. I think it is a matter of when not if.

 

[robertf]

I just took a 280k mile transmission and transfercase out of my 95, undrilled input gear too. Series 2 stuff is close enough for comparison

 

[W2TF]

thanks CORover&RobertF for the input, much appreciated.

Any opinion on 02 DII with 198K, 3 amigos (seller says just shuttle mod but the whole box looks new), paint scratched and faded. Frame, interior, under body seems clean under the pealing undercoat. After 10 minute test drive, water temp fluxuated between 50 and 85%. Got a few whiffs of coolant. Seller, knowledgeable mech and believable told me he did heads, etc.year ago or so. $2200/bo

 

[Bene]

thanks CORover&RobertF for the input, much appreciated.

Any opinion on 02 DII with 198K, 3 amigos (seller says just shuttle mod but the whole box looks new), paint scratched and faded. Frame, interior, under body seems clean under the pealing undercoat. After 10 minute test drive, water temp fluxuated between 50 and 85%. Got a few whiffs of coolant. Seller, knowledgeable mech and believable told me he did heads, etc.year ago or so. $2200/bo

an '02 probably wont have a locking center diff.

 

[jprover2]

My D2 is a 02' and it's great, I did have to change my t-case to a locking. That being said, I don't care if the heads were worked yesterday, if the coolant gauge is fluctuating and a coolant smell then it's possible there is a coolant leak and coolant level is low making the gauge move. If receipts were shown and new parts visible, I might do $1500. Without... I'd give $500 tops, more than likely cooling system would need some attention. If ever there is a vehicle to pick apart when buying, this would be one. With proper care a D2 can last a long time, now the cost of that care can be high if you pay shops to maintain it. You can keep that cost in check if you can do your own diagnosing of problems and work

 

[PhD_Polymath]

If the gauge goes past halfway on a D2, it is cooking. It only moves past 240 degrees Fahrenheit, a dummy gauge if you will. Cooling system will likely need attention. That said, I have never found a running D2 for prices people seem to find them ($500 et al.) and always overpay. Just set your expectations on possible engine replacement if the block is bad and go from there. If the price is too high for such a gamble, I would personally stay away.

 

[kennith]

thanks CORover&RobertF for the input, much appreciated.

Any opinion on 02 DII with 198K, 3 amigos (seller says just shuttle mod but the whole box looks new), paint scratched and faded. Frame, interior, under body seems clean under the pealing undercoat. After 10 minute test drive, water temp fluxuated between 50 and 85%. Got a few whiffs of coolant. Seller, knowledgeable mech and believable told me he did heads, etc.year ago or so. $2200/bo

Don't pay money for something in that condition.

You won't be any better off than you are now, and you'll have paid two grand for the privilege.

Cheers,

Kennith

 

[discostew]

I think you got some good advise here. It probably going to be the engine that puts a Disco 2 in the junkyard. The other side of that problem is the fact that a reliable source for a GOOD replacement doesn't exist. So you will end up with an engine that needs replacing and not much you can do about it.
So what's wrong with your D1 that you don't have time for? I really believe your better off in a D1. D2 is kind of a girly thing when you really start comparing them. BMW fucked up a perfectly good truck.

 

[kennith]

D2 is kind of a girly thing when you really start comparing them. BMW fucked up a perfectly good truck.

Ha! Maybe in Imagination Land, but not in this universe.

Cheers,

Kennith

 

[discostew]

If you think for one minute you know more about the differences between these 2 trucks your just silly. Don't forget what I've been doing 45 hours a week for the last 20 years. While you went out buying islands and slaying dragons.

 

[kennith]

If you think for one minute you know more about the differences between these 2 trucks your just silly. Don't forget what I've been doing 45 hours a week for the last 20 years. While you went out buying islands and slaying dragons.

That's like an office IT guy trying to school me in OG Doom. Give me a break. I don't give a shit what you do for 45 hours a week.

There's what you see in a shop, and then there's what the platform will do. Two different ballgames entirely.

Most DII owners don't even know how to drive the damned things.

Cheers,

Kennith

 

[discostew]

Oh we don't see any of either one of these trucks in the shop anymore. How can you depend on a truck if you can't keep coolant in the fucking thing?

 

[kennith]

Oh we don't see any of either one of these trucks in the shop anymore. How can you depend on a truck if you can't keep coolant in the fucking thing?

If we'd all put the proper coolant in there when they were new, there would be fewer problems. Regardless, I never had a lick of trouble until I let that dried out hose pop. Then I popped, and it sat for several years. Beforehand, it never let me down.

Forget the engine, though. That's not relevant to the genuine differences between the D1 and DII. When the DII showed up, nobody griped about the engine; they just said it sucked because it wasn't a D1. That was incorrect in nearly the most unimaginably thorough way possible.

Handling, stability off-pavement, cargo capacity, towing, loose, granular surfaces, ruts, overall balance... It blows the doors off a D1. The only advantages you've got with a D1 are related to cosmetic preference and technical rock-hopping as a result of that bony ass. You lose a lot of utility, which brings me to a point...

The DII is objectively a better Sport Utility vehicle in nearly every way.

The fact that the NAS units got an engine that doesn't seem to be aging as well is irrelevant. Other engines were available everywhere else, and nothing ever fitted in a D1 will ever hold a candle to the RV8 fitted to early Range Rovers. Does that mean the D1 sucks? Of course it doesn't.

Cheers,

Kennith

 

[discostew]

Your full of shit Kenny. They came out of the factory leaking leaking coolant, bad thermostats, blocks with pins out of alignment so oil pumps break.

Face it, D2 is a lesser truck than a D1.

 

[kennith]

Your full of shit Kenny. They came out of the factory leaking leaking coolant, bad thermostats, blocks with pins out of alignment so oil pumps break.

Face it, D2 is a lesser truck than a D1.

I forgot. Missing the point is a practiced art here.

Cheers,

Kennith

 

[discostew]

The only point I was trying to make is the op is trying to get rid of a good truck to buy a lessor vehicle.

 

[kennith]

The only point I was trying to make is the op is trying to get rid of a good truck to buy a lessor vehicle.

A potentially lesser engine. The platform itself is not lesser. It's morer. You've just said the exact same thing again with different words. It's not just him reading the thread. It's going to stay around a long time and others will.

That same engine would have been used in the D1 if it had remained around a little longer. It's a bad run of engines; not a bad run of vehicles.

Is a Ferrari 458 less of a vehicle than a Supra, simply because you'll have to open the hood more often? If we go that route, my 2000 G20t is a better vehicle than any BMW or Mercedes ever made.

If a DII is clean enough, it's not as if you can't get an improved engine for a reasonable cost and come out with a relatively cheap, reliable, and nice vehicle.

Cheers,

Kennith

 

[1776]

I've got ~276k on my DII that I bought at 105k.
It loses about half a quart of oil and coolant every 3k miles and the same amount of transmission fluid every 5-6k (front prop exploded and caused a small crack in the tranny through which fluid weeps.
Other than that, the darn thing runs great.

 

[W2TF]

wow, if this was legal advice at this level of expertise it'd be worth more per hour than I paid for the DII a few days ago. Thankyou gentlemen much. Anyhow, turns out it was a 03 and am pretty sure coolant smell/leak from smaller hose below reservoir. With oil change found plug to be super tight and of course pan threads stripped. Will sort it when I do abs module.
As far as the D1, its ok and discostew has me wondering if I should keep it for the day when.
Time wise, 1st: currently no real inside garage to tinker. 2nd: mother suffered 2 strokes a couple months ago and my wife and I are providing 24/7 care/overwatch. 3rd: much like land rovers, amateur radio contesting can become addicting, especially when you can consistently break into the top 10 for all of north America. And my station needs some attention to detail for contest season.
fwiw, paid 14 for the '03, might have got him down a little more but again the time thing. Interior very clean as is undercarriage(for WNY) and while no paperwork to support. I do believe this dude about all new valves and springs, gaskets from block up. No proof though just gut instinct. tnx much agn all

and perhaps Kennith and DiscoStew should consider a DI vs DII cage match at a Rover event?