By briantf on Wednesday, June 27, 2001 - 09:48 am: Edit

Greetings,
My wife and I currently drive Fords (a 98 Explorer and a 97 Ranger, both 4x4's) with great satisfaction. She's got more scratches on her truck than I do mine, as we take hers wheeling b/c of our two year old. My wife has been offroading since 12, having learned to drive in a 65 Toyota Land Cruiser (FJ-40), so her expectations of where her truck should be able to go are a little different than average.

Both trucks have 31x10.5r15 BFG AT's, good shocks, front/rear receiver hitches, a spare set of 31" muds to share, Explorer has 2" of lift, Ranger has manual hubs, etc. etc. Not heavily modified, but very well suited to the purpose we put them to (minimum 2 times a month off to the hills and off of the roads).

As we have another child coming in December, we're looking for another 4 door 4x4 to accomodate both children - I drop them off at daycare, she picks them up. My Ranger is a supercab, but a 3 yr old is too little to be in the back by himself (ironic considering...). The Ranger is staying in the family, but we need a new 4 door for my wife.

We both realize the new 2002 Explorer is completely unsuited to offroading, and are therefore looking at alternatives of similar size and capability. A used Explorer of worthy vintage isn't practical, as my wife averages >22K miles a year (the new truck would be hers).

A very good friend of mine lives in South Africa, and speaks VERY highly of the Discovery series (and Land Rovers in general). He visited last December, and commented on the relative lack of presence of Land Rovers. Some of our usual offroad haunts are very similar to the areas of East Africa he frequents, and he was confident that a Discovery would do quite well. On the other hand, he was quite surprised at what a soccer mom Explorer could do when properly driven and setup - heh!

Based on his recommendation, my wife asked me to do some research on Discos. It seems to me the Series II Disco has a number of significant improvements over the Series I (Range Rover axles??). I've enjoyed seeing all the great pictures on the web and reading all the great stories.

I'm also familiar with the nature of message boards, in that you don't generally post "all's well" on a tech forum, you post "#%@#$ tranny packed up". I frequent http://www.explorer4x4.com and have a fair sense of the ratios between I love it and I'm going to drive it off a cliff posts are.

Given that, I'm concerned about the reliability of the vehicle - with small children, dead reliable takes on a whole new meaning. Also, given the miles my wife drives, having her stranded is unacceptable.

Ford did an amazing job with Jaguar - I have great hopes that positive things will happen with Land Rovers as well. Is it reasonable to consider a Disco with the above requirements in mind?? I'm basically down to a Land Rover or a Jeep Grand Cherokee, and my wife and I both favor body-on-frame to unibody, and Jeeps aren't noted for their reliability either.

Thanks for any feedback, please feel free to email me directly.

Best Regards,
Brian in CA
briantf@hotmail.com

By lynden on Wednesday, June 27, 2001 - 11:44 am: Edit

I bought a Disco. I two weeks ago. Had it offroad already and impressed everyone who's ridden in it on and off road. Barring any huge repair bills in the future I'll buy more LR products. I don't think you'll be dissappointed if you decide to purchase one. I wouldn't even mention the J**p in the same sentence as the Disco. There really isn't any comparison in off road capabilities. Plus, its a chrysler product. That alone scares me! My advice is mosy on down to the closes LR dealership w/ an "off road course." Most if not all dealerships have a little course out in front they'll drive you over. In one section they put a front tire on a rock and the opposite rear on another rock. The guy we talked to said they did this w/ a Grand and they couldn't close the back doors because the frame was so weak. It also depends on the $ you're willing to spend. It sounds like you're able to afford it so buy a disco.

Just my ramblings.
Lynden

By gil on Wednesday, June 27, 2001 - 11:58 am: Edit

..its not that the Grand Cherokee has a weak frame, its that it has NO frame at all! Having had a few J**ps when I was younger, Im very familiar with them. Once you drive a Disco the J**p closely resembles a plastic play toy...

By Brian Fulmer (Briantf) on Thursday, June 28, 2001 - 08:20 am: Edit

Somehow I didn't get my thanks posted properly. I appreciate the feedback, and the emails from Chris Browne, Greg Braswell and Chu Yong Son.

The Jeep comparisons reinforce my preference for TRUCKS as opposed to cars; thanks again!

Best Regards,
Brian in CA