Anyone Have Experience with Discoverys?

I have had many D1's and have a D1 3.9V8 J import on LPG it was for sale but then popped its head gasket so its just been sat there awhile now.

Personally I'd save a bit more and buy a D2 which I also have a 2000 Td5 which is a fantastic bit of kit and every bit worth the extra money.

Sorry I missed your reply there.

Thanks for your input. For fuel reasons I would only really be after the diesel, seemed a logical decision but doesn't always seem to be right.

Unfortunately it is not so much of a save and buy something better, I have capped myself at £1000 for a few reasons. It is a dirty work horse, it is replacing a £500 van and to be fair a A4 TDI estate would do the job, but I have decided to utilise the profit from the sale of my van to buy something a little better, hence limiting myself to £1000, a nice step up the laser from my anticipated £500 budget, otherwise I will end up on that slippery slop and have a late model defender sat on the drive before I know it.

Going back to your original post too, they tow really well. I get the feeling I could hitch a block of flats with castors on to it and it'd 'tow well', so that's good. Look out with one with the Dixon Bate sliding towbar, nosier than a fixed one but versatile. You want a towbar offroad, yes it will hit the floor all the time but the other option is the rear bodywork and fuel tank, as the rear overhang is what lets it down, the wheel base is 100" which is pretty capable. You can get AC but it's usually on the ES models. I have AC in the Hyundai, and at no point have I felt like I'd want it in the disco, it cools inside once your moving very quickly, and doesn't stay hot inside.
As I said it'll do motorway with no real issue. Mines an auto, which may make for better or worse motorway cruise but I use it on the motorway at least once a week, and I've not found it bad except tyre noise.

My only experience is welding in a boot floor into one for a mate.
NEVER again!

I second that!!

As everyone says, they rot! I've got one of the last 3 doors and I've had to do some extensive welding all over the back half, still got the boot floor to replace, and now it's in the workshop for new front inner wings between all my other projects.

Leave the suspension standard and in good condition and they are quite chuckable with decent road tyres fitted. Mine sits happily on the motorway at 65-70 doing about 2500rpm, give the throttle a poke and it'll pick up speed respectably in 5th. With the egr blanked off and the diaphragm turned it's livelier than it was and returns over 30mpg on mostly motorway and fast A/B roads. My dads TD5 is slower, noisier and uses more fuel, quite simply I'd rather keep my rough 300 than get a Disco2. The only time I'd consider a Discovery2 would be if I was to remove all the electronics and make one simple like the original Discovery's.

I've got a '95 300TDi XS auto but had a "newish" 200TDi in the past.
I paid £750 for my 300 knowing it was a minor MOT failure and needed work. My budget for a mint 300 auto was around £1700 and I can easily see my £750 vehicle swallowing up £1000 in parts to get to the standard I require. I'm happy with that.
Therefore whilst you say you have a budget of £1000 it'll be hit or miss on what you get. I've had numerous Land Rovers, Range Rovers, Defender, Disco as well as other 4x4's in the past so knew exactly what I was letting myself in for !
D1 chassis are normally sound so one that is rotten or seller says they have repaired / evidence of welding then I'd walk away myself as there are plenty of others out there to not consider one that the main structure has already started rotting.
Bodies rot everywhere. Accept it and judge standard of repairs or, like me, budget to do them yourself to a high standard. Body parts aren't horrendously expensive to do a proper job rather than being bodged / plated / filler so can give you an idea of how a previous owner has treated a vehicle - ie quick job to get an MOT or something long lasting.
Mechanicals aren't difficult to work on. New parts are reasonable and plenty of good secondhand for larger items.

The other day the was a thread titled "The constant battle" about the amount of work a retro / classic requires compared to modern cars. Well think of a Disco as a 1970's vehicle that you will spend every weekend doing jobs ready for going to work the next week rather than enjoying yourself playing with something else and that is what Disco ownership is like
So would I use a 20 year old Disco as my everyday vehicle ? Well I have recognised mental health issues so my view doesn't really count so better to say would I advise somebody else to do so and the answer is no unless they are an enthusiast and already know what the are letting themselves into.

What about a Rover 75 diesel (BMW engine) estate ? IMO an "up and coming" future classic that is underrated at present.

Paul H

We have a 300 tdi XS. Tough basic truck. Head was cracked when we bought it, so replaced that and a quality head gasket and it's been fine since. The engines are robust and basic, and run on veg too. The immobilisers can play up, but that's an easy fix. Rot as mentioned.

Other things it's needed are a front shock, aux belt tensioner and a prop donut. Usual stuff. Loads of parts available and cheap.

We get about 28mpg out of it, even with the boost pin fitted.

I'd love a TD5 but the amount of horror stories with rot and the 3 amigos is scary (although I guess you only ever hear bad news about them!)

The v8's can get problematic with age, with liners shifting, cam wear and oil burning.