By mantaray (Mantaray) on Thursday, November 15, 2001 - 09:49 am: Edit

hey all, i'm a Jeep owner ('93 Wrangler) and am interested in buying a used Disco (probably a '98) as a second vehicle. in doing research i'd like to know what you guys like/dislike about your Rover and any tips or things i should look for when i'm shopping. ideally i would like one with a manual transmission, the dual moonroofs, and no leather in either black or green. what is gas mileage like?

By Bud Lane (Hrrovr) on Thursday, November 15, 2001 - 11:28 am: Edit

In reverse order - Fuel economy sucks. Cloth interior is less common than leather. Moonroofs you may or may not find. Manual transmission - fewer in the States, I believe, than elsewhere. As far as what we like/dislike, and what to look for, there is a ship load of info in the archives here. Opinions will vary, so be prepared.

Bud

By Steve (Steve2) on Thursday, November 15, 2001 - 12:19 pm: Edit

mantaray-

i don't think they imported any manual trans discos in 98. only the early years have this - and there is something about a gear box up date that needs to be done. sorry i don't know exactly what it was.

re fuel economy - stock rigs get the best mpg with minor tweaking. new factory air and fuel filters are the biggest helps though some swear by the kenlowe fan. BUT a british company that goes to morocco alot does not recommend then for hi heat areas- so it would depend on where you live.

mpg also varies how you drive- 55 mph yeilds amazing mpg - if you are willing to sacrifice speed.

98's you are most likely only to get fully loaded cars - ebay is a good gauge - though going to your local area lrna off-lease auction is probably the best place (if you can get in!)

probably finding one that most closely matches your specs and then looking at service history is a good idea - as it is with any used vehicle. and have it checked out by someone who knows land rovers.

best of luck
steve

By RVR OVR (Tom) on Thursday, November 15, 2001 - 12:42 pm: Edit

Drop the dual moonroofs. They rattle and break and are generally POS's.

Tom

By Ron (Rw229) on Thursday, November 15, 2001 - 02:13 pm: Edit

If you decide what you want and want a good deal, I can get you into a LRNA off-lease sale.

By mantaray on Thursday, November 15, 2001 - 02:29 pm: Edit

Ron - i appreciate the help. i'm still in research phase. i really like the Disco and Landy's offroad prowess and reputation. i also have a friend who has a D90 he might sell, and that is in the running to. how good are the off-lease sales? i've been finding '98 Discos with low miles for about $22500 in the northern virginia area on dealer lots. that's about my limit unless i sell the Jeep, which isn't an option unless a snag the 90.

By Eric N (Grnrvr) on Thursday, November 15, 2001 - 02:39 pm: Edit

Not sure what they are now.. But, I got my 98 when it came off a lease in Dec 98 a little under a year old. I saved 6 grand off what I would have paid for a new one and it only had 8,000 miles on it.. If you are in Northern Va. I would recomend going to LR Alexandria on Duke street (236). They are really nice and have fair prices from what I have seen and heard form others that bought theirs there. That is also where I got mine. They are good for getting service done as well.

By Gregg Warnken (Gregg) on Thursday, November 15, 2001 - 04:10 pm: Edit

The last year for 5 speed manuals in NA was 97. With that year you will find most manuals are SD's...meaning no sunroofs (most of them) cloth interior (about half of them I have seen). I am a die hard manual guy, and I posted the same question about two months or so...of course NOBODY had an opinion LOL. The manual trannys from 95 on are the R380, which is supposed to be more durable than the LT77 which it replaced. Also, the manuals are made my LR, and the autos are a ZF make (made in Germany) and have a reputation for being far more durable than the manuals from LR. Get a 98 or 99 DI with under 50K and you will get the remaining factory warranty. You will not get any appreciable better mileage with the manual vs. auto either. Do a keyword search in the archives and read away....

my .02

Gregg

By Ron on Thursday, November 15, 2001 - 04:22 pm: Edit

LT 77 is a santana design. Has anyone ever seen a LT 77 disco in the US?

R380 is a POS. But I like my broken POSes.

Ron

R380 in kitchen, ZF in disco, ZF in RR

By Dean Brown (Deanbrown3d) on Thursday, November 15, 2001 - 04:27 pm: Edit

> 55 mph yeilds amazing mpg
Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!

By Steve (Steve2) on Thursday, November 15, 2001 - 04:34 pm: Edit

dean

ask any of the guys who caravaned to truck haven with me- i got 19.2 on my stocker - javier got around 16 his lifted and 265'd d1, and john lee got way higher then normal on his full boat d90.

i would not of believed it myself if i didn't experience it fist hand.

steve

By charlie on Thursday, November 15, 2001 - 05:02 pm: Edit

I think 55mph yields the best mpg for most cars. That's why the old speed limit for highway was 55mph.
the best I got was 14mpg, 2001 DII, 5 months old with 9K miles on the clock.


---Charlie

By Dean Brown (Deanbrown3d) on Thursday, November 15, 2001 - 05:34 pm: Edit

Steve,

Wow, 19.2 is damn good. I'd agree with cutting down the speed too; maybe not 55 (life's too short), but 65 seems pretty good compromise. Pushing it to 75-80.... just drinks like an englishman.
Dean

By Ron (Rw229) on Thursday, November 15, 2001 - 05:35 pm: Edit

Mantaray,

The prices usual go for Black Book "average to clean" money.

As an example, I paid 18.5k for a super nice '98 Disco I LE with 38k, loaded, factory warranty, and certified. HBL wanted 25k for the same truck.

If you like the D1, now is a good time because a lot of D2's are starting to come off lease and lowering the price of the D1's.

By BradNC on Thursday, November 15, 2001 - 05:37 pm: Edit

I just got a disco a few weeks ago and was interested in the actual gas milage, thinking it would be under 14. well i drive conservatively to save gas - i try to keep it between 1500 and 1750 RPM when excellerating from a stop (I'm 17 years old too, we're not all bad drivers...) - and i just did the calculations and i'm getting 17.8 mpg around town, with most everything between 35 and 45 miles an hour. I think the driving style. That's just what i think...

Brad

By Eric N (Grnrvr) on Thursday, November 15, 2001 - 05:39 pm: Edit

Stay away from HBL.. Expensive for both the truck and service. You can and will get a better deal some where else.

By mantaray (Mantaray) on Thursday, November 15, 2001 - 07:34 pm: Edit

Ron - where did you buy your Rover and where do i find "Black Book" values? what is HBL? i would you guys rate the towing capability of this rig? 18.5K would be great, perfect in fact. lowest i've seen around northern virginia is 21.5K for a high mileage truck.

By Ron (Rw229) on Thursday, November 15, 2001 - 08:44 pm: Edit

I got through it from a friend of mine, you can reach him on his website at http://www.egearworld.com Tell him I sent you.

The Black Book is the car dealer's (wholesale) version of the Blue Book you see at the book store.

HBL is a Land Rover dealer in Tyson's Corner, VA (I think you said you were in No. VA) Most people on this board don't care for them for various reasons and some would say they're "pricks"

Not sure on the towing capacity, maybe some else knows?

By mantaray (Mantaray) on Thursday, November 15, 2001 - 09:23 pm: Edit

Ron - sent you an e-mail.

By Kyle on Thursday, November 15, 2001 - 09:28 pm: Edit

Yes , thats right HBL=PRICKS!!


Kyle

By Gil Stevens (Gil) on Friday, November 16, 2001 - 09:27 am: Edit

you purchased a 5000 lbs permamnent 4 wheel drive V8 Land Rover.. its not an economy car. In my opinion if you drive these rigs lightly, i.e. "well i drive conservatively to save gas - i try to keep it between 1500 and 1750 RPM when excellerating from a stop".. it will end up costing you more in the long run, except it will be money spent on valves. I say drive them like you stole 'em.. thats the beauty of the manual.. you can wind the piss out of thing. We broke my heads open at 63K..nary a speck of carbon.. oh yeah, now Im going to try a Bluegill and break down some numbers here..

lets say you have a 20 gallon tank and you get 17 mpg.. thats 340 miles.. figuring gas at $1.69 a gallon..this equals $33.80 per 340 miles..

now same deal at 13 mpg.. 260 miles at $33.80..

figure you drive an average of 1000 miles a month.. thats $99.00 per month @ 17 mpg... or $129 per month at 13 mpg.. damn.. whats my point here?..

oh yeah.. so your looking at roughly $360 per YEAR savings by babying your rig to try to attain the elusive 17 mpg.. I say beat on it and spend the extra $360 bones.. my .02..

By Bud Lane (Hrrovr) on Friday, November 16, 2001 - 09:39 am: Edit

Or, you could leave it parked in the drive way. You would save well over a thousand bucks a year which you could use to buy all kinds of sweet mods so it looks even better sitting there. ;~)

Yes, driving more slowly will save you some money. But if you are going to drive 55, please don't do it on a road with a 70 or 75 mph limit. Some sleepy jerk will rear-end you and then we will have to start a thread on how well our expensive-to-drive trucks survive a crash.

"I can't drive............fifty-five"!!!!!

By cartner on Saturday, November 17, 2001 - 10:39 pm: Edit

Dude, LRX.com...I got my Very CLean 94 Disco for 12, and it was with a notebook a good two inches thick with records. Even the widow sticker.
Deals are out there.

By Erik Olson (Jon) on Monday, November 19, 2001 - 07:03 pm: Edit

What about the 95 Disco that just sold in VA on ebay for $7500 - oh... it did have over 120K on it though!