I currently have an '04 Disco and am thinking of eventually getting an LR3 for the wifie. I know the whoes of the Disco Driver but has LR taken the mechanical and quality issue problems that the Disco's have to heart and addressed them in the LR3. I would hope that the previous issues in the Disco's have been fixed for the LR3 and it's a more reliable vehicle.
To LR3 or not to LR3.....
- Thread starter Eekie
- Start date
discos and lr3 are completely different beasts, nothing shared among them.. the only thing you can really compare is the difference in model years of the LR3s.. 05 was the first year, so any improvements would probably have been made after that.
I've said it before and said it more than a couple times since. We traded the wife's D2 for an LR3 about a year ago.. got a heck of a deal, and for the purpose this rig serves (kid hauler, daily driver to work, long trips on vacation, no offroad duty) I love this truck. My only issue with this truck is that it EATS tires alive! Buy your wife an LR3 and you'll have more free time which is not spent on the garage floor
Eekie said:
Ha! Read up on all the issues 05,06,...
http://www.disco3.co.uk/forum/
Rover may have addresed some things but introduced a whole new set of things to screw up. Consider one thing, do you ever think your D2 ste3el springs will just fail one day ? I suppose steel can fail sometime somehow but all sorts of high tech stuff will fail without notice and only due to a computer issue. The lr3 basically IS a computer that is still in the testing stages.
Just don't give up your D2, you would likely regret it.
For example, over the past several weeks in the lr3 the throttle response was "wierd" and after thinking I was just picky as hell, the dealer says, "oh yeah, there's a bulletin to fix that" -well thanks for letting me know via email, snailmail, etc. before I spent 20% more $ on gas driving the last 3000 miles. They "zapped" it so now it actually uses 6th gear when on flat highways and I'm up to 16mpg - what an improvement over the Discos right!
My favorite is the crazy garble that shows up on the dash info screen every so often.
If you have gotten used to dual opening sunroofs, actual lumbar support, windows that are one touch down for both front, and a few other things, make sure you get the latest version of lr3 - they "improved" on the D2 so well that they initially forgot all of those items!
I will say however that the 3rd row of the lr3 is amazingly large and not confining if you plan on using it to be the designated driver. The he3ated windscreen is nice but it's costing $1000 to replace the one that just cracked (probably similar to a D2 heated screen)
Oh, you'll love changing the spare if you need to on a long trip and have the cargo area full of stuff - to remove, in order to release the spare under the car, which will not be full size/usable unless you have the HD pkg or buy a matching rim/tire.
Dealing with hauling stuff inside is much easier though and while the nav is a little behind the best, it's still nice to have sometimes as is the bluetooth phone use - even though it apparently sucks to be on the other end of the calls due to lack of sound quality.
The tailgate is nice to sit on or have as a clean place to slide gear out onto but you also have to bend/reach way over it to get to your gear that is not right at the gate.
The upper tail gate glass trough effectively drains rain right into the sides of the cargo area, just INSIDE, the tailgate and into the vehicle. I am experimenting with a little rubber "gutter" that will redirect it towards the outside but also fold into the closed door seam to not be visable.
The air suspension is nice to allow better parking garage access.
You may or may not like the seats on long trips - we hate them and are looking into replacement/rebuild options.
yes. although my DII is just as "reliable". 90% on road vehicle i'm assuming from your post? if so, LR3, hands down.
LR3 for around town makes sense (pretty great vehicle off road too I must say)...Good way to keep miles off my Disco. Its been problem free. I worked for Rover for a couple years and if I could I'd steer away from 05, still more issues than there should have been that year. Like he said above, tires are an issue, the goodyears are terrible, and most have alignment problems from the get go, so I would almost require an alignment even on a brand new one before taking delivery.
In response to jwest... why did you buy that car? Haha JK.
Anyways, I must say I love the 3rd row on the LR3. Its more spacious feeling than even a suburban. Compared to the discovery an average person could figure out how deploy the seats.
In terms of the spare tire thing- many cars have spare tires located under the trunk floor inside of the vehicle. And with discos if you want to change your rear wiper you have to take off the entire spare tire.
The LR3 is a much newer and comfortable car. I would say try it out and if you like it, get it. But I still believe there are probably much better vehicles out there for the same price- are they as off-road oriented... probably not, are they better designed and more reliable.... probably.
Anyways, I must say I love the 3rd row on the LR3. Its more spacious feeling than even a suburban. Compared to the discovery an average person could figure out how deploy the seats.
In terms of the spare tire thing- many cars have spare tires located under the trunk floor inside of the vehicle. And with discos if you want to change your rear wiper you have to take off the entire spare tire.
The LR3 is a much newer and comfortable car. I would say try it out and if you like it, get it. But I still believe there are probably much better vehicles out there for the same price- are they as off-road oriented... probably not, are they better designed and more reliable.... probably.
Just have to say: all because MOST cars have a mini spare mounted in trunk/under trunk DOES NOT make it a good choice. It will get hit when off road, and be a general pain in the arse to remove when you actually need it.
In addition, I dont know what Disco you have been messing with, but I know for sure that my D1 did not have to remove the tire to replace the rear window wiper.
LR3 are great off road. But there ARE issues of clearance, both in terms of the body over the ground, and of fitting larger tires.
It seems like this will be a grocery getter (not in the usual insulting way) so it truely would serve you well. I would buy one for around town, and SOME trails. If you can afford to keep your DII then you probably should--well, that is if you off road a lot. If you dont, then go ahead and sell it. If you do off-road a lot, you can keep the DII or sell it and buy a cheap D1 to romp on the trails.
Reliability is impossible to comment on. All cars will have their good ones and their bad ones...always have been, always will be that way. You can find a shitty Toyota if you look hard enough.
In addition, I dont know what Disco you have been messing with, but I know for sure that my D1 did not have to remove the tire to replace the rear window wiper.
LR3 are great off road. But there ARE issues of clearance, both in terms of the body over the ground, and of fitting larger tires.
It seems like this will be a grocery getter (not in the usual insulting way) so it truely would serve you well. I would buy one for around town, and SOME trails. If you can afford to keep your DII then you probably should--well, that is if you off road a lot. If you dont, then go ahead and sell it. If you do off-road a lot, you can keep the DII or sell it and buy a cheap D1 to romp on the trails.
Reliability is impossible to comment on. All cars will have their good ones and their bad ones...always have been, always will be that way. You can find a shitty Toyota if you look hard enough.
Agreed on the spare. Bad location and bad idea. I just went for my over-sand permit and got nixed JUST because it didn't have a full sized spare. Plan on replacing the tires every 30K, and the tan leather on my '05 tears like tissue paper. Aside from those minor gripes, it has been a great family adventure rig and PG-rated off roader (deep snow, easy off-camber stuff, sand). It rides smooth as glass on the road, and fit's my 6'4" frame much better than the discos.
B
bterpstra
Guest
Pretty accurate feedback so far. I would add however that I do use the LR3 offroad on moderate trails - not just the PG stuff. You go slow, have a spotter, and it does fine. I actually like the LR3 a bit better offroad than the DII it replaced.
LR3 is much more 'point and shoot' than a DII. The TC does wonders. You can just drive it over things and through things as if they were not even there! But, expect to mess up your front bumper and sills eventually--because of the lack of clearance (it does get over things, but the suspension is such that it wont stay in super high mode all the time, have to get stuck first....there are modifications you can do to trick it into extended high mode).
I do miss the tapping sound (what I like to call the FUN sensor) that the ETC makes in the D2 though....
I've found the approach angle to better on the LR3 stock to stock, my untrimmed '03 D2 front bumper has gotten pretty mashed up on steep descents that the LR3 hasn't had a problem with.
Definitely agree on the clearance issues and the difficulty of modding the suspension.
I've found the approach angle to better on the LR3 stock to stock, my untrimmed '03 D2 front bumper has gotten pretty mashed up on steep descents that the LR3 hasn't had a problem with.
Definitely agree on the clearance issues and the difficulty of modding the suspension.
Lusty said:
The leather is something I've been wondering about. The seats look just like those found in a Ford Explorer and I have been wondering if the leather was upgraded. Is it the same materials that Ford uses?
My 94 Classic has it's problems but I will say one thing. The leather is really nice and is still in great condition.
I haven't seen the fords, but from the loaners that I've driven, it seems that the black leather is a lot better, and since the '05 they have switched from the pebble grain that I have. The spots that I've had problems with are on the doors and at the edges of the seats. I have three or four nicks that were caused by stuuf like the guys at ikea shoving a cardboard box into the passenger side door arm rest and my wooden tool box rubbing against the seat edge on an hour long trip. The pleather that my D2S came with was really tough, so I guess I started with higher expectations.
We love the car, though. My advice to Eekie would be to go for it, especially if you're in the part of PA where you get that nice mix of wet nasty snow and slick muddy country roads.
We love the car, though. My advice to Eekie would be to go for it, especially if you're in the part of PA where you get that nice mix of wet nasty snow and slick muddy country roads.