1STDISCO

Hi there, We've also got a 2001 plate 7 seat S model, doesn;t have much in the way of options, but did until last month have rear air suspension. This failed in spectacular style and owing to an equally relaible fuse box resulted in a small electrical fire underneath the car on the M4. It now has rear coils, full convesion and repairs to the other affected areas cost under £400 and was the best decision we ever made - ride is smoother, she tows smoother, and as we don;t actually use the back two seats I'm not bothered. Did however go for slightly uprated coils to take account of a horse trailer being permenantly on the back of her. GD

Hi there, Thanks for the replies. Sliverbake - if you could send details of the roof tents that would be great, long term plan would be to do a camper conversion tot he rear of the vehicle and then add a roof tent also for extra flexibility. Mark - thanks for the thread link, was very interesting and has given me some great ideas. It's also nice to know that other people have done it! Am thinking it might be easier to start with a standard three door and take all the seats out leaving just the front two, presume this is ok to do legally? Thanks

Hi there, Having done a weekend camping at Silverstone this year in my Disco 2 I found it far more comfortable sleeping in the car! I am now embarking on a series of charity runs around the country starting next year and have been thinking about vehicles and accomodation. The runs will be taking in some beautiful areas around the lake district, peak district and Scotland - giving me the perfect opportunity for some greenlaning so I was thinking about taking my beloved Td5. However, I have also been thinking about getting a disco 1 and coverting the back of it into a basic camper. I know you can buy defenders as campers but I have to admit that I love disco's! Having had a look online my initial ideas was to use a 3 door disco 1 commercial as a base vehicle, or a standard 3 door disco 1 and remove all the rear seats. Inside have a bench bed on one side with storage underneath, and a unit on the other incorpoarting storage for gas hob, sink etc, all custom made to fit the body of the car. Has anyone done or seen a similar project, and could some advise as the legalities in terms of MOTs etc in converting the back of a commercial vehicle, or in turning a 5/7 seater into a 2 seater and customing fitting the rear. Also with the commercials I have noticed the disco 1's tend to have no rear windows, as opposed to more recent ones with privacy glass. Are these metal sections removable? If not it may be better to convert a car based one so it's not to dark, and have the rear windows tinted for privacy. Any ideas or advice much appreciated! Hopefully I'll be welcoming Discovery number 2 to the family soon!

Hi guys, A dashboard light has started appearing on my 2001 Td5 disco, the manual says it is the fuel filter light, and if it illuminates whilst driving it indicates excessive water in the fuel. But it only illuminates occasionally whilst driving, and stays on for a maximum of a few seconds. There doesn't seem to be a common factor such as weather or time of day etc that it occurs. Any ideas what is causing this? Is there anything I can do to sort it and is it serious I'm absolutely no mechanic btw!! The car is still cover by LR used car warrenty if that makes any difference! Any help much appreciated! Thanx

A valid point, however it is Landrovers brand name, reputation and customer base on the line and if the dealers aren't up to standard they should be warned and eventually ties cut. Its ultimately up to LR to ensure its customers get the correct level of service. As previously mentioned in another reply by landmannnn Toyota staff are superbly trained, instigated by Toyota itself. Having never been in a Toyota garage before I tested this out today at my local one and was amazed by the high standard of care I got despite being in horsey clothes and the high volume of customers in the showroom, which just goes to show what good service can lead to. If only I actually liked the Landcruiser...

Kinda glad to hear I'm not the only victim, but car garages esp LR and other premium brands should learn to value customers no matter what, cos you never know where it might lead. When I was 18 I went to drop my Mums merc off at the dealer for a service and decided to wait while it was being done with my girlfriend, a salesman made us coffee and enjoyed showing us round a number of the cars sitting in the showroom and thier features despite me saying at the start that the car I had just dropped off wasn't mine, there was no way I could afford any of the cars despite wanting them, and my car was at the time a knackered Rover 200! 5 years on, the girlfriend is now the wife and has just taken delivery of her 2nd new merc sports car, both bought from that sales guy despite the 250 mile roundtrip to make the purchase (and visit my mum at the same time). Dont get me wrong I love my discovery and believe they are one of the best 4x4s out there, but LR also need to learn that they are not the only premium 4x4 manufacturer around, Merc, BMW, Audi, VW, Jeep, Volvo, Lexus and Porsche to mention a few! No matter how good your product is, especially with items such as cars that need a level of care and servicing, good dealership relations could tempt you into what in product terms alone may be a slight second best. Come on LR dealers, think on and give us the service we deserve whether we're browsing, have 10k to spend, or 60k to spend, cos those that browse may be your best customers of the future!

Hi all, Have been to my local landrover garage today to get a few bits for my discovery and was very politley approached by a salesman who asked if he could help, and also if it would be possible for me to move my Y reg dico from the customer parking infront of the garage to the service spaces at the rear. When I asked why he admitted that it was because his boss didn't like having muddy cars on show, especially old style discoverys. Lookign at the forecourt there was nothing older that a 56 reg or under £18k for sale. Have landrover garages forgotten what they sell, 4x4s not shopping trollies, surely it is good to see the odd muddy one to show they are capable of what they claim. Needless to say I did move my discovery from the front of the garage, back to my driveway though! Also I will never return to the garage, as a horse trailer tower I need a good 4x4, so they have just lost years of a loyal customer! Has anyone else experienced any such snobbery from landrover garages?

Hi there, I also passed after 1997 and tow horse trailers having taken the E test. The test fee is £109, I took my lessons with a local driing school, some offer the towing lessons, it cost me £142 for the course using my own car and trailer, the cost would have been £220 using theirs. That is for someone who has some experience towing and reversing. The test consists of hitching and unhitching in the correct order, and a series of simple tasks, mainly reversing, followed by upto an hour of driving on public roads, and finally a controlled stop. It is worth bearing in mind that you are legal to tow if you display an 'L' plate on the trailer and vehicle and have someone in the vehicle who has the B+E from before 1997, or has passed their test at least 3 years ago, much the same as a standard learner driver, this will give you lots of experience whilst remaining legal. Beware that if you do decide to replace the disco there is now lots of legislation concerning tow vehicle compatibilty, this may be easier using caravans as they are lighter than a horse trailer with 2 horses in, but the disco really is the best tow car out their, and will give the highest level of safety if an incident occurs. Any questions concerning towing legislation and the test let me know, I did lots before I bought my disco, and my wife is transport researcher and is currently doing an investigation into the whole situation.

Thanks for all the advice, the coopers sound good, any idea of cost? Think the tyres are going be up for replacement within the next month or so.

Hi all, bought my first discovery back in May, its a 2001 td5, I'm 22 so fairly new to the whole car maintenance thing anyway so any advice would be greatly received! I have to admit that my disco rarely sees serious mud, but we bought it to tow our horse trailer around so its definately not a Chelsea tractor! So far I've had no major issues other than an dodgy handbrake which has just been fixed by LR. However it does at times venture off road either down dirt tracks to fields, or towing the trailer across fields at events. The first time I took it down a dirt track to one of the field our horses are in it had been raining a little, after only a few hundred yards it started spinning it wheels. It coped ok in the end and was great off road in all other aspects. Again it spun its wheels a few weeks later towing the trailer over a damp grass field at an event that all other 4x4s (including discos) seemed to be coping fine with. Slightly concerned at the lack of grip I looked into the tyres on the vehicle. When I purchased the car I asked the sales guy about the history of it, and with it already having a towbar, what it had been used for. The previous owner was a regualr LR customer and the salesman confirmed that he had used the disco to tow his caravan to and from France. With a bit of further investigation, it looks like the tyres on it are really suitable for roads only. In terms of experience driving off road I have driven my mother-in-laws L reg discovery tdi across the fields for years (since I started dating my wife when I was 16) and have had no problems coping with worse that I have put my disco through. Her discovery has now gone as we have the horse and she can't remember what tyres she had on it. Bearing in mind that I do spend the majority of time driving the car on the roads, I am looking for a tyre when it comes to replacing them that is mainly for road use, but will have grip in minor offroading, I'm not going to be doing anything major, but dont want to get stuck in a field at an event with the horse on the back. Any recommendations? Thanx