In need of my Land Rover guys

jhewitt03

jhewitt03

Rank IV

Enthusiast III

1,135
29 palms CA
First Name
John
Last Name
Hewitt
So I’ve been posting about trying to find a new rig to buy since the wife won’t let me trick out the 4Runner but I’m a Land Rover guy had a 97 disco 1 my fav rig of all time anyways I found one for sale it’s a disco 2 and everything has been replaced head gaskets water pump fan belt thermostat everything and it still over heats but it’s at a steal of a price what could be the issue here? Is it worth me getting it towed to my house and trying to fix this gremlin myself?


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jhewitt03 said:
So I’ve been posting about trying to find a new rig to buy since the wife won’t let me trick out the 4Runner but I’m a Land Rover guy had a 97 disco 1 my fav rig of all time anyways I found one for sale it’s a disco 2 and everything has been replaced head gaskets water pump fan belt thermostat everything and it still over heats but it’s at a steal of a price what could be the issue here? Is it worth me getting it towed to my house and trying to fix this gremlin myself?


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I lover land rover myself but they are the biggest damn headaches ive ever encountered in a car.
 
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jhewitt03 said:
So I’ve been posting about trying to find a new rig to buy since the wife won’t let me trick out the 4Runner but I’m a Land Rover guy had a 97 disco 1 my fav rig of all time anyways I found one for sale it’s a disco 2 and everything has been replaced head gaskets water pump fan belt thermostat everything and it still over heats but it’s at a steal of a price what could be the issue here? Is it worth me getting it towed to my house and trying to fix this gremlin myself? Sent from my iPhone using OB Talk
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Not much left in the cooling system except for the radiator and the fan clutch. Yes, you can fix it yourself. However, unless you have deep pockets, you will be "fixing gremlins" for a while.

Go over to https://landroverforums.com/forum/discovery-ii-18/ You'll get plenty of info there.


I own a 2003 Disco 2
 
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my 03 D2 gremlins are here and there but fairly minor outside of when I first bought it with 84k ... 6 years ago i had so many codes i just fuled out first things and that was to check temps.. never trust the factory temp gauge... i picked up onboard live OBDII gauge to get codes and monitor temps.. changed all fluids top and bottom, thermostat with lower temp thermostat, all filters up and down and belts.. then the beast settled down lol next tackled pulleys and A/C compressor ... then O2 sensors knowing form gauge they were sluggish and showed faults... then it all smoothed out.. minor oil leaks here and there from notorious loosening valve covers but other than that its been spot on and reliable and I just keep up with whatever comes my way.. recently rear lights going in and out.. so I went all out cut the factory plugs off and bought waterproof 4 pin connectors and now lights are rock solid last few years... also dialectric grease on every electrical plug to guarantee no moisture or at least help that lol i sit in south Florida summer traffic at 194-197deg... not even boiling point ! happy and wheelin! and just like Jhewitt03 showed.. that forum has been great for maintenance and mods...
 
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My neighbor has a beautiful Discovery 2. Parks it on the street because it leaks like a sieve and I've seen it get picked up by a flat bed more times than I can count. Good looking truck though. :wink:
 
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Yeah Im assuming they have others work on it... does your neighbor use it for more than groceries? When I first bought mine ( and I have a good handle on mechanics ) i got scared to death when I read the repair forums and the basic grocery getter critique of horrible issues of overheating and of course cost of repairs at a dealership . the common leaks can generally be addressed.. or.. just check oil often and leak disco in the road! haha it prefers the road anyway! lol the valve cover gaskets are notorious to leak if not tightened with a 12 point 8mm socket every time you change oil as I guess there is oil that settles also above the seal line.. it can be a mess but if snugged up occasionally on the outside that usually takes care of issue... the oil pump housing gasket can leak.. oil filter not screwed on nice and tight possibly but usually thats caught early... other little things here and their but on the repair forums you can quickly deal witht hem and then just keep up the maintenance... minor things youd do on any vehicle... one thing about my experience is that generally if you do the work yourself its not that expensive... ive watched every other vehicle in the shops just as often and many of them actually stalled... the ONE thing I may have mentioned earlier is the temps.. the idiot temp gauge is VERY misleading on this aluminum engine because if it ever shows HOT, its already BEEN HOT! that is one major issue... so having a good accurate live temp gauge, oil pressure gauge, and i use live OBDII gauge to monitor the ECU actual temps... ive basically driven it around with no real maintenance besides required maintenance... the vehicle is very capable and reliable but those few things have to be upgraded and followed... every vehicle has its quarks and land rovers is... keep up maintenance! lol BTW my neighbors Toyota Tacoma has most the same issues because its not maintained as well as it should be and from his perspective my land rover is more reliable lol
 
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Archtop67 said:
Yeah Im assuming they have others work on it... does your neighbor use it for more than groceries? When I first bought mine ( and I have a good handle on mechanics ) i got scared to death when I read the repair forums and the basic grocery getter critique of horrible issues of overheating and of course cost of repairs at a dealership . the common leaks can generally be addressed.. or.. just check oil often and leak disco in the road! haha it prefers the road anyway! lol the valve cover gaskets are notorious to leak if not tightened with a 12 point 8mm socket every time you change oil as I guess there is oil that settles also above the seal line.. it can be a mess but if snugged up occasionally on the outside that usually takes care of issue... the oil pump housing gasket can leak.. oil filter not screwed on nice and tight possibly but usually thats caught early... other little things here and their but on the repair forums you can quickly deal witht hem and then just keep up the maintenance... minor things youd do on any vehicle... one thing about my experience is that generally if you do the work yourself its not that expensive... ive watched every other vehicle in the shops just as often and many of them actually stalled... the ONE thing I may have mentioned earlier is the temps.. the idiot temp gauge is VERY misleading on this aluminum engine because if it ever shows HOT, its already BEEN HOT! that is one major issue... so having a good accurate live temp gauge, oil pressure gauge, and i use live OBDII gauge to monitor the ECU actual temps... ive basically driven it around with no real maintenance besides required maintenance... the vehicle is very capable and reliable but those few things have to be upgraded and followed... every vehicle has its quarks and land rovers is... keep up maintenance! lol BTW my neighbors Toyota Tacoma has most the same issues because its not maintained as well as it should be and from his perspective my land rover is more reliable lol
Click to expand...

Also just to not sound Biased lol I really like Toyotas to! Especially a 4x4 FJ cruiser or a really old FJ and Id maintain mine as i do my landy! .. my neighbor is more of a grocery getter lol
 
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Haha, I don't know. They have a fancy sticker in the window and yellow driving lights, so they must use it for something, right?

full


Seriously though, I love the Disco I & II. Sexiest SUVs ever made.
 
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jhewitt03 said:
So I’ve been posting about trying to find a new rig to buy since the wife won’t let me trick out the 4Runner but I’m a Land Rover guy had a 97 disco 1 my fav rig of all time anyways I found one for sale it’s a disco 2 and everything has been replaced head gaskets water pump fan belt thermostat everything and it still over heats but it’s at a steal of a price what could be the issue here? Is it worth me getting it towed to my house and trying to fix this gremlin myself?


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I was looking on offerup.com in my area and there are a few discos for sale and even some great project cars!
 
Don't forget about the front driveshaft. Had a buddy pick up an '04 recently and the DS broke. Took out the transmission and a few other parts. From the factory they are "sealed for life". Of course they decided to place it 1" away from the cat as well, so the grease cooks inside the uj and you can't service them. Buy a replacement from Tom Wood and have peace of mind. In fact, you should take it with you when you drive the truck home!

And consider replacing the rotoflex joint in the back with a D1 4 bolt pinion flange, and drop in a Tom Wood DS in the rear too. Not only are the uj's serviceable, they are slightly larger, 1310, up from 1300 stock.
 
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And consider replacing the rotoflex joint in the bask with a D1 4 bolt pinion flange, and drop in a Tom Wood DS in the rear too. Not only are the uj's serviceable, they are slightly larger, 1310, up from 1300 stock.[/QUOTE]

thats one project I havent done since my rotoflex is still in good condition but Im curious on this modification of its affect on street driving... its a pretty easy switch over ...
 
You'll put more wear and tear on the rotoflex the higher you lift the vehicle. I have 3" RTE springs and 1" spacers.
 
i went with TF / OME just because it was easily available here and its a fast improvement over stock lol with my sagging factory setup to the new 3" i have a net gain of 4"! no spacers yet .. with safari rack I built https://landroverforums.com/forum/discovery-ii-18/disco-2-homemade-roof-rack-build-68647/ just to see if I could easily work it out and light exploring... now that I have worked out everything Im going to build another but more substantial... i also added the rear steel bumper... front will be next and that should bring down suspension slightly and Ill consider spacers...
 
Archtop67 said:
Yeah Im assuming they have others work on it... does your neighbor use it for more than groceries? When I first bought mine ( and I have a good handle on mechanics ) i got scared to death when I read the repair forums and the basic grocery getter critique of horrible issues of overheating and of course cost of repairs at a dealership . the common leaks can generally be addressed.. or.. just check oil often and leak disco in the road! haha it prefers the road anyway! lol the valve cover gaskets are notorious to leak if not tightened with a 12 point 8mm socket every time you change oil as I guess there is oil that settles also above the seal line.. it can be a mess but if snugged up occasionally on the outside that usually takes care of issue... the oil pump housing gasket can leak.. oil filter not screwed on nice and tight possibly but usually thats caught early... other little things here and their but on the repair forums you can quickly deal witht hem and then just keep up the maintenance... minor things youd do on any vehicle... one thing about my experience is that generally if you do the work yourself its not that expensive... ive watched every other vehicle in the shops just as often and many of them actually stalled... the ONE thing I may have mentioned earlier is the temps.. the idiot temp gauge is VERY misleading on this aluminum engine because if it ever shows HOT, its already BEEN HOT! that is one major issue... so having a good accurate live temp gauge, oil pressure gauge, and i use live OBDII gauge to monitor the ECU actual temps... ive basically driven it around with no real maintenance besides required maintenance... the vehicle is very capable and reliable but those few things have to be upgraded and followed... every vehicle has its quarks and land rovers is... keep up maintenance! lol BTW my neighbors Toyota Tacoma has most the same issues because its not maintained as well as it should be and from his perspective my land rover is more reliable lol
Click to expand...

Yes my first disco one I got for a whopping 2400 bucks so it wasn’t perfect at all but it took me every where I ever needed to go my new dad car is a newer 4Runner which she won’t let me modify so I really want another disco or maybe a land cruiser if I can afford one


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Archtop67 said:
Yeah Im assuming they have others work on it... does your neighbor use it for more than groceries? When I first bought mine ( and I have a good handle on mechanics ) i got scared to death when I read the repair forums and the basic grocery getter critique of horrible issues of overheating and of course cost of repairs at a dealership . the common leaks can generally be addressed.. or.. just check oil often and leak disco in the road! haha it prefers the road anyway! lol the valve cover gaskets are notorious to leak if not tightened with a 12 point 8mm socket every time you change oil as I guess there is oil that settles also above the seal line.. it can be a mess but if snugged up occasionally on the outside that usually takes care of issue... the oil pump housing gasket can leak.. oil filter not screwed on nice and tight possibly but usually thats caught early... other little things here and their but on the repair forums you can quickly deal witht hem and then just keep up the maintenance... minor things youd do on any vehicle... one thing about my experience is that generally if you do the work yourself its not that expensive... ive watched every other vehicle in the shops just as often and many of them actually stalled... the ONE thing I may have mentioned earlier is the temps.. the idiot temp gauge is VERY misleading on this aluminum engine because if it ever shows HOT, its already BEEN HOT! that is one major issue... so having a good accurate live temp gauge, oil pressure gauge, and i use live OBDII gauge to monitor the ECU actual temps... ive basically driven it around with no real maintenance besides required maintenance... the vehicle is very capable and reliable but those few things have to be upgraded and followed... every vehicle has its quarks and land rovers is... keep up maintenance! lol BTW my neighbors Toyota Tacoma has most the same issues because its not maintained as well as it should be and from his perspective my land rover is more reliable lol
Click to expand...

Also to add my Rover never mechanicly let me down mainly leaked power steering fluid and electrical issues but engine and trans never let me down with 188k on the engine


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Arailt said:
Haha, I don't know. They have a fancy sticker in the window and yellow driving lights, so they must use it for something, right?

full


Seriously though, I love the Disco I & II. Sexiest SUVs ever made.
Click to expand...

Stickers add atleast 10 horse power each hahaha but yes I agree when I was in my Rover I always felt I was in an adventure rig they look the best


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jhewitt03 said:
So I’ve been posting about trying to find a new rig to buy since the wife won’t let me trick out the 4Runner but I’m a Land Rover guy had a 97 disco 1 my fav rig of all time anyways I found one for sale it’s a disco 2 and everything has been replaced head gaskets water pump fan belt thermostat everything and it still over heats but it’s at a steal of a price what could be the issue here? Is it worth me getting it towed to my house and trying to fix this gremlin myself?


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What engine is it? V8 or TD5?
Blocked radiator, viscous fan clutch slipping, blocked waterway. Is it losing water = cracked head? Timing?
 
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