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discoNdixie
| | Posted on Thursday, April 11, 2002 - 08:38 am: | 
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I need some help. I have a 97 Disco and am considering a RR LWB as a third vehicle. What would you say are the five most important things to check before buying a 1991-1995 LWB. I know the Disco gotchas, and I know they are similar, but every vehicle has its' own quirks. Thanks for your input here. Lee |
James F. Thompson Jaime (Blueboy)
| | Posted on Thursday, April 11, 2002 - 10:02 am: |
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Lee,
LWB were first introduced in the 1993 model year so that will be the oldest one you can find. This is also the year of my LWBRR. I purchased mine from the Chicago area and it was not the best area to buy. Prices are good, however, I later found out that RR rust very easily as the factory did not really paint them that well in the non-outward areas. Take a look at East Coast Rover website and you can see what toll rust did to my RR. So, rust is a big issue. Look under the carpet in the rear cargo area and under the front carpets. Under the front carpet there is a sound absorption mat that holds water very well and the floor area will rust.
It will have the EAS air system on it. If it is working, great. If not, don't worry about it as switching to coils is very easy/inexpensive and many people, including me, have made the switch. Also check out the following site for some very good information on RRs: http://www.rangerovers.net/
Let me know if you have any specific questions. Good luck!
Jaime |
AlanB
| | Posted on Thursday, April 11, 2002 - 10:23 am: |
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Hey Jamie,
Found your Rover on ECR's website, sweet ride. Have a 4.0se now, but after seeing your LWB I sure miss my 91 classic.
AlanB
Tulsa, OK |
James F. Thompson Jaime (Blueboy)
| | Posted on Thursday, April 11, 2002 - 11:27 am: |
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Thanks AlanB. Appreciate the comment. We, including the wife and 2 Labs, enjoy it on and off the road. Hope to met up with you sometime in the Tulsa area.
Best regards,
Jaime |
discoNdixie
| | Posted on Thursday, April 11, 2002 - 04:02 pm: |
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Thanks for your comments Jamie,
I am torn about the LWB vs. Disco, and truth is I would probably get another Disco if it would not look so odd having two (the wife and I.) But on the Disco site they say the the running gear, minus the air ride, is very similar. I guess I am drawn to the extra room in the LWB. Do the rear seats fold and reveal the extra wheel base for cargo? The info about rust spots is well taken and I did check out the website for other clues, but they were rather mechanical in nature and would be hard to predict at a site survey. The rust comments and the like, on the other hand would be very useful. Naymore like that would be well taken. Thanks again, Lee |
James F. Thompson Jaime (Blueboy)
| | Posted on Thursday, April 11, 2002 - 05:39 pm: |
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Lee,
We had a D1 while living in Japan so have owned both LRs. The room in the rear seat is awesome compared to the Disco. One of Labs takes the floor while the other one sleeps on the seat. True dog heaven! And yes, the rear seats fold down and you get the extra room there also. The ride between the 2 is also different, the RR being less choppy due to the length. The Disco though had more headroom and the driving position was different. On occassion I bump into the switches mounted low on the steering column in the RR turning on lights, rear wipers, etc..
PokeRob (Rob Davison) has both a SWBRR and Disco. Last time he and I talked, he was leaning more to the RR. OK, what else to look for other than the normal LR "traits". Electrical stuff. Does the heated windshield heat on both sides - they are seperate. Important as the regular defrost system sucks. Do the heated mirrors heat?? Does the seat memory work for both the seats and mirror positions? Does the auto dimmer in the rearview mirror dim darker blue when light hits it?? Do the heated locks work?? Does the heated windshield pissers heat?? Not sure where you are located, however, in the snow areas all these features are very cool to have when your RR is under a foot of snow! Does the remote work?? Do all the locks lock/unlock with the remote or key?? Do the interior lights along with the puddle lamps under the door work and go out on the timer and/or when the RR starts?? Mine don't!! Does the AC blow cold air through all the vents and not just the passenger side which is the driver side in England? RR had a bad rep for their AC systems when they first arrived to the US. LR really improved the system in 1990 so there should be really cold air. That should help you see the condition of some of the electrical stuff.
Good luck,
Jaime |
Colin Hughes
| | Posted on Thursday, April 11, 2002 - 06:40 pm: |
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I have a 95 Disco, my wife has a 91 RR County SE. The RR definitely has a much nicer ride than the Disco but the Disco has been much more reliable. Owner history and service history are very useful if available. My Disco had one previous owner but the RR had at least six or seven different owners who all but the last leased it. I put the additional problems down to this.Having both, I'm happy I don't have choose.
Colin Hughes |
doug james (Dgj95lwb)
| | Posted on Thursday, April 11, 2002 - 08:13 pm: |
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I can add a comment to the long insightful list here. My $.02. My 95 lwb is wonderful and has been reliable beyond belief. I take religious care of it and that is the key to it's enjoyment.
Re:rust-west coast does not use salt in winter- except Utah ! so if you want a rust free example, the west is guaranteed-more or less-to meet that prerequisite. East coast can be totally fine, just look carefully.
ALL the 'extra' room is in the back seat kneeroom area. Period. The rear cargo area is identical to earlier models in terms of acreage. The ride benefits greatly from the length too. Less twitchy compared to a D1 and swb RR.
4.2L is noticeably better in power. EAS - mines' been great, but coils are fine- BUY CONDITION no matter what! Best of luck in your search. doug james 95 lwb @ 99k |
Ron
| | Posted on Friday, April 12, 2002 - 02:01 am: |
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There are several reasons to get a 94 over a early 93. 95 has the disco dash and airbags.
93 seems to like to have wiring catch on fire and early 93s have 10 spline instead of 24 spline axles
Ron
The air conditioning was one of the things that worked right on my 88 rangie. It took like half the power of the engine but it worked well  |
Jon Williams (Jonw)
| | Posted on Friday, April 12, 2002 - 03:52 pm: |
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Jaime,
You say you had a Disco in Japan. It didn't happen to be of the Honda Crossroad variety, did it?
Just curious |
James F. Thompson Jaime (Blueboy)
| | Posted on Friday, April 12, 2002 - 04:23 pm: |
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Jon,
No, it was a 96 ES7, yep, that was the lettering in Japan versus SE7. I did see the Honda Disco though - totally freaked me out as I thought someone had put Honda emblems on a Disco! Just very strange, yet, of course the whole country is pretty strange anyhow. It was pretty cool driving a RHD LR though. When we would come home to the US for vaca., I would sometimes turn into the "out" lanes and stuff like that. Occassionly my wife would say "we're in the US - wrong side of the road DEAR"!!!
Jaime |
Jon Williams (Jonw)
| | Posted on Monday, April 15, 2002 - 10:39 am: |
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LOL Yeah, Honda tried selling those rebadged Discos for a year or two in the early 90's, but the Japanese people saw through it and preferred the real thing. Not many people know about them, and Honda only sold a handful of 'em, so it was interesting that you actually saw one. Now you know a little Disco history |
James F. Thompson Jaime (Blueboy)
| | Posted on Monday, April 15, 2002 - 12:59 pm: |
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Jon,
LR has a pretty good following in Japan. In 1996 my dealer in Tokyo received a bunch of D90s that he told me met US specs.. All LHD and looked identical to the '95D90 we had at the time in storage. Probably should have traded the Disco, yet, for our needs the Disco was great. The work performed by the dealer was exceptional and they did much warranty work even though I think it was offcially out of it. All in all, one of the better experiences we had while in Japan. Took some pics while Rovering around Mt. Fuji and it was pretty cool coming up to a real old sign in Kanji in the middle of nowhere. That Disco served us very well - driving in Tokyo, highways, mild off-road, and beach work all without any complaints.
Regards,
Jaime |
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