reb78 Posted April 21, 2018 Share Posted April 21, 2018 After a nasty accident in my bmw last week, it appears I need a new car. There are a number of what look like good condition well serviced D4 and L322s out there around the £10k mark but the downside is they are high milers, many having covered 180k plus. I know servicing counts for a lot but is there a limit you wouldn’t go beyond? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Poore Posted April 22, 2018 Share Posted April 22, 2018 Guess I'm the only one with an L322 then... Although I know Chris (GBMUD) had / has one. I bought mine with ~100k on the clock for ~£16.5k about 5 years ago. I did my research and knew there would likely be a few issues but was semi-prepared for them. I'd rejected D3s because of the issues they seemed to have. D4s were within budget but stretching it, then the L405 was introduced and more L322s became available. I settled on a TDV8 because of the mileage I was doing and didn't want the gearbox issues associated with the Td6. Quick summary of the issues I've had: ~100k: Fuel pump in tank went (under warranty), relatively simple job to do if the tank is empty I understand. ~120k: Alternator packed up (known issue on TDV8s) - pig of a job did it myself and saved ~£800 (paid ~£130 for the alternator from AdvancedFactors), nothing particularly difficult just really inaccessible and working blind. ~130k: Front air struts developed leak - both for ~£600 from Island 4x4 and after Keith at Challengers quoted me £120 to swap them I left it up to them. ~130k: Diagnostics flagged a fault with EGRs - replaced them myself for ~£300 for the parts The single biggest expense was from me flooding the transfer box when on Strata Florida. As far as I know I'm the only person to have done this so it look a couple of garages quite a while to diagnose the problem (several days). In the end the fix was a couple of fluid changes... Since then it's been ~50k of absolutely plain sailing and racking up some seriously big trips. I wouldn't hesitate to jump in it and drive to the Highlands / south of France - in fact have done on multiple occasions. Knowing what I know now I wouldn't be put of by high milers, they're actually not that bad to work on (in fact most service things are nicer than on a Defender). Yes there are known issues but as long as you know what they are and budget accordingly I wouldn't worry about them. Definitely get an IID tool though (the diagnostics tool) - they're not cheap but you'll save the money very quickly and they do allow you to tweak the vehicle settings to your preference. I'd recommend sticking with the Ford era ones (i.e. 56MY onwards) - they sorted a lot of the other issues. The other thing is (particularly the diesels) is they like being driven, I've not had issues with things bunging up etc., but then again I regularly do long motorway journeys so gives it a chance to stretch its legs (and boy do they have some legs as I've found out to my cost). Towing wise there's not much that compares to them - pulled 3.5 tonnes behind mine effortlessly and will still out-accelerate the majority of vehicles on the road, with or without a trailer. Happy to offer more advice but I'd focus on whether its' been looked after over mileage. Mine might not be the most pristine example aesthetically but always looked after the mechanicals and it's served me well. Ironically I've been thinking of selling it for a while now... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Poore Posted April 22, 2018 Share Posted April 22, 2018 Also (but I'm biased) I'd say L322 rather than D4, it's not quite as practical but it's more luxurious and there's a certain air to it - also find it very relaxing to drive. I have a good friend who had a brand new D4 HSE Luxury or whatever it was called (top of the line) and I gave him a lift to the pub in the Range Rover one evening and he commented that the seats were waaaay more comfortable than the D4 (bearing in mind mine was 8 years older than his). And you don't have a V8 option in the Discovery Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reb78 Posted April 22, 2018 Author Share Posted April 22, 2018 Thanks Ed. Thats useful. I will be doing a fair few miles in whatever we buy, so it may seem like a silly option to some, but i am willing to trade the fuel economy for the car I want - recent events kind of make me think lifes too short. I am most tempted by the L322 over the D4. Also, I have finally managed to get a four post lift, so hopefully that will make working on all of my cars a lot easier and quicker. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Poore Posted April 22, 2018 Share Posted April 22, 2018 If you're ever Farnham direction you're more than welcome to pop in, have a brew or beer (very very close to Hogs Back Brewery) and go out for a spin on mine. To be fair it's not that bad on fuel, I rarely see below mid 20s and motorways is usually mid 30s. Lowest journey I had was towing 2 tonnes of milling machine on a 1.5tonne trailer across the Welsh mountains and that was 19. Apparently even the 5l supercharged can see 30 on the motorway with the 8 speed ZF. That's naturally very difficult with a 5l V8 and most peoples right foot. I doubt I'd ever see that Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
=jon= Posted April 22, 2018 Share Posted April 22, 2018 I've got a 322 as well, not as high mileage as Ed's, but at just over 110K it's high-ish... Had it a year, other that some reasonably routine things it's been very good - other than standard servicing it's needed a couple of rear brake calipers (they are known for seizing), and one of the rear height sensors is playing up at the moment (although it seems to have cleared itself the day the replacement arrived, typically!). It's averaging about 26mpg according to the computer, but a lot of that it sat on the mway commuting. If I had to replace it, I really don't know what I'd get instead, it really is a fabulous car - it's quiet on the mway, incredibly comfortable, 'fast enough', the stereo is incredible. I'd probably have to get another one... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Poore Posted April 22, 2018 Share Posted April 22, 2018 On a serious note about the speed. The 322 gathers it so quietly you don't often realise how much you've gathered until you wonder why it's struggling to stop for the corner. You glance down and doing 60 not 30 as you thought... A friend drove mine to the Highlands and commented on how it was a bit wallowly in the corners, I admitted it was but they're designed for comfort. Then suggested he look at the speedo, turns out he was attempting the corner about 20mph more than he thought... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
=jon= Posted April 22, 2018 Share Posted April 22, 2018 Yeah - considering it's the best part of 2.7 tonnes of metal, they go pretty well and corner pretty well too! On the motorway it's fairly easy to cruise along at well over the limit if you are careful, so you need to watch out a bit... Mine's got all of the adaptive stuff which is supposed to make them a bit less wallowy, but it's definitely not a sports car! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Poore Posted April 22, 2018 Share Posted April 22, 2018 @reb78 Just go and drive one, or come up and take mine for a spin. Your mind will be made up then, its just a matter of which one you want then. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L19MUD Posted April 23, 2018 Share Posted April 23, 2018 I also have a 3.6 TDV8 but the later 2010MY one. I agree with all of the above comments Reb - stop procrastinating and buy one! I seem to remember you being tempted by my old L322 that I sold 2 and a half years ago! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reb78 Posted April 23, 2018 Author Share Posted April 23, 2018 2 hours ago, L19MUD said: Reb - stop procrastinating and buy one! I seem to remember you being tempted by my old L322 that I sold 2 and a half years ago! Yep, that was me. I seem to think for a long time, but like you say, this might be the time to do it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L19MUD Posted April 23, 2018 Share Posted April 23, 2018 2 and a half years of depreciation saved! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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