The rap on Rovers....I don't get it

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Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of pageLink to this message   By Karen Jones on Tuesday, August 21, 2001 - 04:16 am: Edit

O.K., so I've owned mine for five minutes, but this isn't the first turnip truck I've fallen off of (or something). Before I settled on my Disco II, I read like a maniac. I talked with lots of people, looked at and test drove other SUV makes and models, I feel I did my homework. MANY things are subjective, but some things are OBjective, like gas mileage. In comparing Discos with the others in it's class (do a sort on Edmunds.com for instance) the mileages are nearly identical. Yes, you can also drive a bohemoth like a Sequoia and supposedly get the same mileage, but if I'd wanted a Winnebago I'd have bought one. As far as the accelleration, as I've said elsewhere on this forum, my sales guide took us through the Pepto-Bismol Test and I'd have been screaming had we gunned it for another 500 feet. Fast enough for my purposes.

Regarding purchase price, Discos are no more expensive than many in their class, and cheaper than several. A pal of mine bought a 4Runner five or six years ago and paid what I just paid for my SE. The folks I know who drive Explorers paid the same or more than me, ditto that for the Yukon I tested, and you can add $10K more for the Denali I passed on. The BMW starts at $49,500.00 and the Mercedes is in the Disco price range or a tad bit higher. For that you get to drive what looks to my eye like a minivan.

As for cost of ownership, time alone will tell, but owning a Volvo for the past 15 years has shown me the true cost of maintaining a vehicle that was built to last. Are there loads of Chevys and Fords out there with the kind of miles on them my Volvo, and many Rovers out there, have? I dunno. Perhaps it depends on how long you're going to own a vehicle, and you might have guessed so far I keep mine until they are wheels-up. My rule-of-thumb is this: If it doesn't out last the payment book by at least a margin of 3-1, I'm not going to own it. I feel all I can do when I'm getting into a new vehicle is research and make the best informed choice I can. If I'm wrong, then at least I can lick my wounds and know I did the best I could. BTW, someone said the inevitable to me yesterday, "Land Rover, doesn't Toyota make that?"

Karen, admitted newbie

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of pageLink to this message   By Mike J. (Mudd) on Tuesday, August 21, 2001 - 04:24 am: Edit

have you decided on your first modification? Mod's are about as addicting as this website!

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of pageLink to this message   By Karen Jones on Tuesday, August 21, 2001 - 04:47 am: Edit

HAHAHAHA, nothing like derailing my ranting with some fun stuff! I'm going to finish breaking in the motor, maybe take a LR driving class and then decide on mods.

A couple questions, maybe I should ask these in the tech area, but I'm assuming engine break-in is the usual 1000 miles? Someone please tell me if that's right or not. Should I do an oil change sooner than the first 3000 miles?

On a side note, my brother, who nearly bought a LR last summer (poor dear, he settled for an Xterra) told me a wild tale from a sales guide he met. Maybe this is true, but he was told this guide was also one of the guides who takes folks on the Africa tours. This guy claimed they ran their LRs at 100 mph on unpaved roads, several hours a day in Kenya. That doesn't sound like a "see-Africa" tour to me, and secondly, how can you do that speed on unpaved roads? Maybe you can, and maybe they do, but does anyone know? Same guy also said there had never been a fatality in North American in a Land Rover. Anyone ever hear this? I'd like to think so, but ever the skeptic I am.

Karen

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of pageLink to this message   By Moe on Tuesday, August 21, 2001 - 05:35 am: Edit

"they ran their LRs at 100 mph on unpaved roads" and stopped to wrestle lions and rinos along the way :)

The rap on LRs is odd. On Sunday we recieved "the comment" from a Jeep we were following up a trail. He asked how much? I said it's worth about $12-15k (we have a '96 Disco). His response was, I thought they cost $35k.

"As for cost of ownership, time alone will tell" Karen, you should be lucky with the DII purchase and have far fewer problems than some of the early DI owners. I pulled the service/warranty records for our '96 and can predict that the owner (bless her patient soul) grew very tired of taking it to the dealer. It was consistently at the dealer every couple of months, not for just the niggly stuff, but quite a few failing components--valves, fuel pump, alternator, rear driveshaft, most oil seals, sensors, etc Well it was in perfect condition when we picked it up at 43k miles two years ago, although the 35k we have put on it since have not been trouble free, but it has never left me stranded and always goes where I tell it to go. Karen, once you get some experience, you will enjoy showing up your brother in his Xterra.

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of pageLink to this message   By Blue Gill (Bluegill) on Tuesday, August 21, 2001 - 05:51 am: Edit

>"The rap on LRs is odd. On Sunday we recieved "the comment" from a Jeep we were following up a trail. He asked how much? I said it's worth about $12-15k (we have a '96 Disco). His response was, I thought they cost $35k."

People don't understand that depreciation affects Rovers, too. Yeah, it cost $30-35k when new, but now its worth $15k. His wrangler cost $18k new, but now its worth $1.75 :)

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of pageLink to this message   By Kyle Van Tassel (Kyle) on Tuesday, August 21, 2001 - 06:04 am: Edit

LOL , damn,,,,,, and how much without the furry seat covers Blue ??

Kyle

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of pageLink to this message   By Steve (Steve2) on Tuesday, August 21, 2001 - 05:54 pm: Edit

hey karen-

maybe your friend was mistaken - a 100kmh on unpaved is very do-able - a 100mph on a straight highway is pushing it! i read an article in an older 'open road' magazine - and supposedly you are to drive the living piss out of the car during break - in, and by all means change the oil at 1000 miles. anybody heard this before?

steve

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of pageLink to this message   By gp (Garrett) on Wednesday, August 22, 2001 - 02:47 am: Edit

karen~

everyone has forgotten one major first modification......discoweb stickers. these are about as important as plungers are to the NYCPD. really though you need to get a packet of them and start slapping them all over. i even have one on my debit card. i hear they make the 'break in' process much easier. you may want to check past posts on this miracle modification as well.

have fun with the new rig.

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of pageLink to this message   By Karen Jones on Wednesday, August 22, 2001 - 04:51 am: Edit

Moe, the lions they wrestled, but I heard the rhinos were already tame (G). I can't imagine those high speeds in Defenders on unpaved roads. I've ridden in D110's on unpaved roads (really lousy washboarded roads) in the Caribbean, and at about 1/3 that rate of speed I felt like I was having multiple organ transplants. Mind you, these were poorly maintained Government vehicles, but still....Hope you're right about the cost of ownership. I want to own this vehicle a very long time, and love the trip.

Steve, maybe he did meant 100kmh, but he definitely recounted 100Mph. World of difference! As for engine break in, maybe I should ask on technical because I really want to do things right. GP, I already thought of the DiscoWeb stickers for the first mod! Actually, that will be the second mod. When I get my first one installed, I'll post another pic. The first mod will be one no one else will have...(G). Now, to look into those stickers....

Karen

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of pageLink to this message   By Bud Lane (Hrrovr) on Wednesday, August 22, 2001 - 06:08 am: Edit

Karen - I have owned two Volvos and two Land Rovers. Each has it's own reputation. You bought yours for those reputations. Volvos, for the most part, tend to run forever with little more than routine maintenance. At least the ones you and I owned (not together, of course). They were so basic and simple, there was little that COULD go wrong. Thus, the title "Swedish Brick". I think a common misconception about Land Rovers is the confusion between lasting forever and going everywhere. The attraction to the old Series Land Rovers was, besides being almost the only thing available for the purpose, the nearly 100% field repairable construction. Anything will last forever if you can continue fixing it. I wouldn't expect, if I were you, to get the same kind of service out of the Disco that you got from the Volvo. Just expect it to do what is was designed to do as well as the Volvo did what it was designed to do.

Bud


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