New Project Vehicle
 

Guys,
I have dearly missed working and tinkering on my 88 Carrera. I thought the Cayman would be a good substitute but the most I have gotten to do is an oil change as it just keeps happily ticking away the miles without complaints. I have felt bad about driving it to work as I catch a lot of crap from others about my expensive toys and our parking garage is tight and door dings are common. So I have been casually looking for a 4x4 to drive in bad weather, park and forget at work, haul crap to the dump, etc. I originally was thinking a Jeep Cherokee Classic as they are plentiful and nice ones were $6-7k locally. In July our Land Rover dealer's service manager called and asked if I was still looking for a cheap 4x4? He had a 2000 Discovery that was in very good shape for the steal of a price of $1000, interior was 9/10 and paint is 7/10, records from the last 10 years and well serviced.

This was looking like too good of a deal to pass up when I opened the hood and noticed a rather large hole in the engine staring back at me. Previous owners ran the Disco low on oil, camshaft froze and all hell broke loose, engine tore itself apart from the valves down. After much searching we found a good used engine (harder than you think) and began the heart transplant. Got a bad case of "while you are in there's" and blew the budget. Some of you might know that the Land Rover 4.0 is not known for it's reliability even when it was new. I know most people think the Discovery II's are total POS, and have a reputation for nothing but trouble. The local Rover club president asked if I liked to work on cars? Said it is a never ending process with them, but at least I got in very cheap.

My reward for all the time and money dumped into it was my first breakdown at 4.2 miles driven (radiator wasn't secured and fell into the engine chewing up my new hoses and belt). Two days later after visiting a parts Disco I was in business. I ordered a power steering pump yesterday as mine is screaming the death squeal. Scored new rims and a full roof rack with lights off Craigslist to go on once the steering is fixed as it won't clear the garage door once on. Plan is a modest 2" lift, remove running boards, off road bumpers, winch, armor and call it good. So far no oil leaks or codes, I just cursed myself for saying that out loud. Has soul and personality, the vintage look the wife loves, rides great and will make a great trail vehicle that I won't worry about scratching. Here is the starting point, plan to work on it over the next year or so.
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1444445169.jpg

Like timing belts on 944's, replace the front u-joints right away.

I've seen a couple of those lifted and stripped of the standard bumbers.

Super cool.

Looking forward to updates!

Thanks Scott,
Front driveshaft has been replaced with a non-greasable factory one. Why one would spend the $$$ for the same problems is beyond me. A greasable one is on the list too of things to buy.

Very cool trucks, I had a Disco I. I have to frequently remind myself how much time I spent working on it to avoid buying another.;)

You should have started with a LSX reliability swap. Have you read up on the "3 amigos" yet?

Beat me to it, I was going to ask about an LS swap since the original engine was already bad.

I still have PTSD from the 1995 Range Rover I owned. 1995 was the one-year-only where the classic RR got a bunch of Disco parts including the Disco interior.

The 4.2 was buttery smooth when it wasn't leaking **insert fluid of the day here** all over the place. The rear legroom was awesome (LWB model). The air suspension worked when it was in the mood. The airbag light would come on every 2-3 weeks for a reason the dealer never could locate. Dealer was on my way to work (was living in Chicago at the time) and after awhile they just let me pull thru the service lane for drive-thru airbag resets at no charge. "Oh hey Nick I'll go get the plug, can I get you a coffee?"

But climbing a steep muddy slope effortlessly on a 40 degree morning w/ TCS on all 4 wheels, the air susp lifted high, and seat heater on full blast? Flat out awesome. A great machine poorly executed.

That said if you don't mind working on it....like all the time....they are great.

They are definitely a never ending project. Though, as long as you're willing to commit a few hours every two weeks or so, they can be fairly solid trucks.

Front prop shafts suck. Mine grenaded and took out a tranny cooler line.

I once fixed one of these in a gas station. Disco Stu behind me wouldnt start. Told the guy I was handy with cars. The distributor cap had cracked in half. I duct-taped it back together.

They look so cool once dressed as you describe, but must be considered posers given their reliability. That said, good luck with it and please continue to post pictures as you make the mods and regale us with your many stories of brief bursts of happiness separated by longer periods of anguish. Here is a contribution to your spare parts bin:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1444483754.jpg

mreid, I have been looking allover for that smoke, everyone is NLA or out of stock. I already know the feeling about the joy vs hate/disappointment. When I pulled into our driveway to show my wife our new toy and 2 mins later she yelled it was making a bad noise my heart sank. Granted it wasn't the Disco's fault the radiator was not installed correctly. Spent a few hours cleaning up the wiring and installing factory fasteners that a new friend sourced for me today. Then I decided to go ahead and remove the running boards as I think they really detract from the overall look I want. Surprisingly, all the rusted bolts came right out and I only had to use the grinder once. Power steering pump is next weeks project then I can put the roof rack on. Need to get a headliner estimate too this week as mine is shot. Here we go without running boards.
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1444501428.jpg

I fully understand about the reliability issues, I would have loved to have done a LS conversion but it really isn't that simple and most Rover guys say it is over $10k for a Discovery II as it is much more complicated than the Discovery I. Another option is a top hatted block but those are $6-9k depending on what you do. 3 amigo's are off somewhere else at the moment, PO spent some money on new abs unit and sensors. I think the key to happy ownership is going to be lots of tools, a dependable back up car, and most importantly the desire to repair it myself as local dealer is $140 hour labor. I would not recommend one for a checkbook mechanic.

Had one for a winter a couple years back. Nightmare electrical. Moonroof drains notorious for spontaneous failure. Water then drains into the fuse panel.

Sold for a profit after turning my own wrench for a lot of time. Also did brakes all around, thermostat, all o2 sensors, fuse panel replacement, brake pedal sensor switch, power window switches and more. The fuse panel was a nightmare. The shifter interlock is powered through the switch same as the brake lights. Brake switch goes out and you'll be stuck in park waiting for a new switch. Wet fuse panel will smoke and burn... cause random electrical madness such as crank and no start, alarm sounding at random hours of the night for no reason and more.

I don't miss it one bit. I sold it after sorting the fuse panel job following 2 weeks of it being beached in the driveway. Buyer was blissfully thrilled that I included the specific hawkeye scan tool in sale. I got an old Chevy instead. Cheaper, simpler and more plentiful parts and runs like a clock.

Daniel, it looks better already!

Can't wait to see the roof rack installed. What are you thinking for wheels/tires?

Looking at 33" tires for now, I really like how smooth it rides and don't want to ruin it's on road feel as that will be 90% of my miles. I do have a set of 18" Hurricane wheels that I stole off craigslist and I hope to have them refinished very soon. The current tires are dry rotted and are starting to crack so no more interstate driving for them. Plan is to build at least 3k more miles before dumping another $3k on lift, bumpers and winch, just to make sure everything is sorted out.

I did find I was missing a transmission cover while pulling the running boards, the stories this Discovery could tell if it could talk. The part I need is of course on back order from England so I got creative and made my own. Amazing what you can find at Lowes when in a bind.

you got a cool truck I would use the 18 rims for hose reels,
you already have the best size rims for off road tires .

Look into 245 75 16 Bridgestone Dueller Revo 2,
I had a set on my 04 disco they were great tires,
and took off road snow ,and on road like nothing.
NOTE with these tires some very minor trimming of the fender liners may be necessary for full articulation.

I would also scrap the lifting idea,
its already top heavy and the on road ride will suffer ,
as will entry / exit, and the drive shaft issues with the lifted trucks get worse,
the tires will give you about an inch lift.

NOTE the roof rack will also be superfluous,
and lifting the truck makes it even more out of reach.
Good Luck with your project