| Author |
Message |
    
Matt Helm (Matt_Helm)
| | Posted on Tuesday, November 26, 2002 - 11:03 pm: | 
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I'm sooooooo close to owning my first Land Rover!!!
I'm in the middle of talking with 3 leasing/financing companies to see who i can get the best deal out of. =) gotta do the footwork.
Anyways .. Is the ACE worth the extra $$$ ?? |
Alan Yim (Alan)
| | Posted on Wednesday, November 27, 2002 - 12:42 am: |
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What do you think you'll be mostly doing with your truck? |
Matt Helm (Matt_Helm)
| | Posted on Wednesday, November 27, 2002 - 07:50 am: |
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Well .. EVERYTHING! I'm 34 years old and i've wanted a LR since I was sixteen and saw one hanging by it's winch from a tree in a magazine.
I live in Cleveland Ohio and it's going to be my one and only vehicle for everything. I'm not sure how heavy of offroading i'll be getting into. I just dont know yet =) |
Rans (Rans)
| | Posted on Wednesday, November 27, 2002 - 08:41 am: |
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ACE is not worth the money and will complicate any suspension mods you may want to make down the road same for SLS. |
an
| | Posted on Wednesday, November 27, 2002 - 09:24 am: |
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don't get the ace - less to fix |
ema
| | Posted on Wednesday, November 27, 2002 - 09:25 am: |
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IMHO, ACE is just another complicated item that can lead to an expensive repair down the road. A lot of reviews I have read say that ACE was much more important for pre-2003 Discos. I'm inclined to agree. Also, if you plan on getting into off-road heavily, ACE will complicate any suspension mods.
Also, last time I checked, Land Rover Capital Group was running 4.9% financing for up to 60 months on '03 Discos. This might be region-dependent, however.
Good luck,
-ema |
Matt Helm (Matt_Helm)
| | Posted on Wednesday, November 27, 2002 - 10:15 am: |
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Thanks guys!!
I appreciate the feedback. I think i'm going to forget about the ACE and save the money.
Still debating between the S and SE ... hrmmmm... ;)
helm |
Alan Yim (Alan)
| | Posted on Wednesday, November 27, 2002 - 11:06 am: |
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Matt,
The reason why I asked is that although everyone above has said the same thing, it really depends on how much you use this truck for off-roading. If this truck is going to be driven on the road primarily, whether highway, city or whatever, you may appreciate the fact that you have ACE. Also, have you driven a Disco that doesn't have ACE versus one that does have ACE to be able to feel the difference? The difference may be significant enough to sway you in one direction or the other. I've driven Disco's with and without ACE and I personally did notice quite a difference. In city driving you'll appreciate having ACE as it does make the ride much smoother and actually a bit more fun because you can push the truck a little harder. I have a 98 D1 and can say that without ACE, the truck rolls a bit in corners, not because I'm a hard driver either.
But yes, I do agree with everyone that if this truck will be used a fair bit for off-roading, then not having ACE may be a good choice. The simpler the setup, the better, mostly in terms of fixing things and the ability to do modifications later....if you get to that point where you think you will be going to terrain rough enough that requires modifications. But realistically, you have to evaluate whether you're willing to take your first brand new 2003 Disco to places extreme enough that damage could result.
IMO, ACE does have a purpose and you will benefit from having it DEPENDING on what you think you'll be doing with your truck most of the time. |
Ross Thoma (Rossthoma)
| | Posted on Wednesday, November 27, 2002 - 11:46 am: |
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Don't forget to pay attention to the tires... the SE vesion comes with 18" rims and Low Profile tires, excelent on-road not so good off road.
If you will be doing off roading tell them to switch out the wheels, If they give you a hard time tell them "its a deal breaker", they will comply and dbl check the spare to make sure that all 5 tires match. You should also get a credit for switching to the 16" rims.
Have fun in your new truck, I do.
Ross Thoma |
Matt Helm (Matt_Helm)
| | Posted on Wednesday, November 27, 2002 - 11:49 am: |
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Hrmmm.... The first time I heard about the ACE package I was quoted $2,500 which dropped to 2,000 within a 10 minute conversation. 2 weeks later I was told $1,700 and as of yesterday I heard $1,000 ..... ummmm ..... =)
Guess i'm going to have to drive one with .. cause i've already driven one without.
thanks again!
helm |
Rob Liflander
| | Posted on Friday, November 29, 2002 - 06:27 pm: |
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Ross,
Having been in sales at LR Westchester, I can tell you that a dealer will probably not just "switch out the wheels." What are they going to do with the old 18" wheels?
Regarding ACE, a good friend of mine has a 2000 SE with ACE, and it makes a HUGE difference in how well the vehicle takes corners. I should note that the ACE unit also makes a lot of noise! It's sort of a whining/groaning noise. I guess it's the hydraulics working. Whatever, the noise emanating from ACE can be a little annoying.
Finally, Alan Yim is correct. If you're going to be doing a lot of off-roading, i.e., once a month, then go for the non-ACE truck. But if you're going to be doing light-moderate off-roading 3 or 4 times a year, ACE and the 18" wheels will not slow you down so much.
- Rob
99 Disco I |
Ross Thoma (Rossthoma)
| | Posted on Friday, November 29, 2002 - 10:03 pm: |
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Rob.
I am speeking from experience. The dealer in Lake Bluff Il. swaped out the wheels from my SE and put them on the donating SD since in Chicago it would be easy to sell the SD with the upgraded wheels. |
Brian Friend (Brianfriend)
| | Posted on Friday, November 29, 2002 - 11:43 pm: |
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Rob,
Discos do not make noise they make "sound". A land rover can never make such an unpleasant thing as noise. |
Al Oliveira (Offroaddisco)
| | Posted on Saturday, November 30, 2002 - 08:55 am: |
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I have to mostly agree here about ACE. I have it and I don't know if I would do it again but it is VERY nice while on the road. But a NAS 2003 D2 lacks the CDL so it will never be a great off road vehicle anyway. If you live outside the US you might have CDL but I would check. A lift is only slightly complicated with ACE but you CAN lift the vehicle more than the 2" that most people say is the limit with ACE. Bottom line is do you like it or not? And are you worried about an extra item that might break. FWIW, my 1999 w/ACE has yet to have any ACE problems but I carry an extra non-ACE belt just in case it fails on the trail. |
Ron
| | Posted on Saturday, November 30, 2002 - 12:41 pm: |
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Dealers will switch the wheels. Especially 18 to 16. Sometimes you may even be able to score a spare set of used 16s. The only dealer no no is to put 16s on an ACE truck and then sell it. Also keep in mind 16in michelins will last 60k where as goodyears (18 or 16) go 30-40k.
What are they going to do with the 18s? Put them on the truck they took the 16s off of course!
Ron
PS carefull of leasing/financing companies where you do not buy direct through a dealer. Some dealers do not provide loaners unless you bought directly from them. |
Matt Helm (Matt_Helm)
| | Posted on Sunday, December 08, 2002 - 09:32 am: |
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I DID IT! I pulled the trigger on a 2003 SE DEMO Model. I saved 4k on the vehicle and it only had FIVE miles on it. I'm not sure why it was labled a demo ..but who cares. Epsom green with the beige interior. NO ACE! In the end I think it just wasn't for me. THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR HELP!
I cant believe i'm driving a rover. =) |
Alan Yim (Alan)
| | Posted on Sunday, December 08, 2002 - 12:32 pm: |
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Congrats Matt and welcome to the family! |
Carter Simcoe (Carter)
| | Posted on Sunday, December 08, 2002 - 01:07 pm: |
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welcome. What wheels did you settle on??? |
Matt Helm (Matt_Helm)
| | Posted on Monday, December 09, 2002 - 12:42 pm: |
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I ended up with the 18's. I got them to give me a $1,200 brush bar for free. I figured I better not press the issue with the wheels. =) |
Jim Sciullo
| | Posted on Thursday, December 12, 2002 - 10:12 am: |
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Matt-
Im in Columbus and IM also looking for a Disco. So your telling me that they took $4k off the list price (a demo) and tossed in a free bush guard??? Where did you get this from? Also, any idea where you can actually use this thing in Ohio?? Who did you end up financing with?
Jim |
Nate Jedinak (Ducati)
| | Posted on Thursday, December 12, 2002 - 12:17 pm: |
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Jim: My wife and I have purchased two rovers in the past year (an '02 freelander and '03 disco) from Land Rover Dublin right here in Columbus. IMO they are excellent! Go talk to Adam and Howard and tell 'em Nate sent you 
As for places to go offroad, the dealer sponsors 3 or 4 offroad events a year, which are great fun. A group of columbus locals (myself included) are currently in the process of forming a local rover club, which will obviously open up lots more options. If you're interested, Land Rover Dublin has pizza and pictures nights tonight and tomorrow, and we are "unveiling" (so to speak) the new rover club...
Land Rover Capital has 4.9% financing on Discos right now.
We just bought our '03 Disco S a month ago, and we're pleased as can be (after I switched the tires to some ATs)!! We LOVE our Disco!! |
Matt Helm (Matt_Helm)
| | Posted on Thursday, December 12, 2002 - 01:31 pm: |
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Hey Jim,
Well, I did a lot of shopping around and pestering to get the best deal. There�s a Land Rover out in Solon, Ohio and one on the west side of Cleveland. I was originally going to buy a demo model from the folks out on the west side dealership. The car had been used as a loner and had 4k on it. When I carefully examined the car I found that it had been in a small accident. I called the Land Rover out in Solon and asked if they had any demo/loaner 2003 Disco�s for sale. The told me no. 20 minutes later I received a call from them telling me about a Epsom green with tan interior that was a demo with only FIVE miles on it. I explained to them that I was going to purchase a demo from the other dealership for 36k and asked if they would match that price. They said they would and that�s how I got mine for only 36k. The west side dealership was going to throw in the brush bar for free. I also explained that to the people out in Solon.
I spent some major time looking around� and did A LOT of test driving. You have to work to get a good deal.
Wellsville, Ohio has some public offroading. There�s probably some places around you that your not aware of. Ask your Land Rover dealership, I�m sure they can point you in the right direction.
I got my loan from First Merit, which happens to be my bank.
Good luck! Let me know what happens. |
Joe M. (Little_Joe)
| | Posted on Thursday, December 12, 2002 - 05:45 pm: |
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Congrats on the Disco, Matt. I just bought my 96 from Westside, they were awesome. I had some bad experiences with Solon, glad they came through for you!
There are a few wheeling places in Ohio, Westside has access to some private land that looks pretty fun.
BTW where in Cleveland are ya? I'm in Cleve Hts.
joe |
Matt Helm (Matt_Helm)
| | Posted on Friday, December 13, 2002 - 09:26 am: |
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Hey Joe,
or should i say neighbor? I live in Shaker. =)
Where abouts on the westside? |
Joe M. (Little_Joe)
| | Posted on Friday, December 13, 2002 - 04:28 pm: |
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Cool! It'd be great to hook up some time.
The land Westside Land Rover has access to is actually in Garrettsville, they have rides every few months and they're trying to get a club started. I offered to help since I've been wheeling around here a lot. I'll let you know when they have any meetings or rides planned.
Even though mine's an older one, these vehicles are awesome and I'm having fun learning about mine, can't wait for half-decent weather so I can do some mods.
joe |
Mud Man (Clarance)
| | Posted on Sunday, December 15, 2002 - 10:56 am: |
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If you do get the SE keep the 18". you can get rims and tires for the cost of the rims alone. IMO |
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