C.J. Posted January 15, 2007 Share Posted January 15, 2007 Didn't get to get my mate to inspect this Disco' today that I've been sniffin' around, as rampant toothache cut short my visit of inspection. Tomorrow beckons. On the quick inspection I made though, I found a few faults faults: 1. Front o/s leccy window didn't operate. 2. Rear door would only open on the key 3. Aerial half up, or should that be half down? Is it electric? Couldn't test it because the radio wasn't working. 4. N/S door mirror hanging off, clipped it back into place but when I closed the door it fell down again. 5. Corrosion??? on the edges of the rear wheel archs. Paint peeling. Normal? Just needs primering and painting I assume? Other than that it looked pretty damned good inside and out, spotless inside in fact, apart from the peeling dahboard. The stick on door protectors that it's had fitted...as much as I hate them...indicate that the previous owner was perhaps quite conscientious. 1996 Tdi ES model anyway, in dark green, 105k with full service. Doesn't look as though it's been abused, but under the ramp may reveal some secrets tomorrow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
manic Posted January 15, 2007 Share Posted January 15, 2007 how much is it mate ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geoffbeaumont Posted January 15, 2007 Share Posted January 15, 2007 1. Front o/s leccy window didn't operate.2. Rear door would only open on the key 4. N/S door mirror hanging off, clipped it back into place but when I closed the door it fell down again. Probably not too difficult or expensive to sort out, and should help knock the price down if the rest of the truck is okay. Window may have been disconnected because the regulator channel is knackered and it falls to bits if you lower it...must fix the one on the rangie sometime... Have a look on eBay to get a rough idea of what second hand mirrors are changing hands for. 3. Aerial half up, or should that be half down? Is it electric? Couldn't test it because the radio wasn't working. It's not on my base Tdi, no idea about ES spec. Ariels aren't expensive, even powered ones (twenty odd quid). 5. Corrosion??? on the edges of the rear wheel archs. Paint peeling. Normal? Just needs primering and painting I assume? Standard - it's probably got it's own part number... Other than that it looked pretty damned good inside and out, spotless inside in fact, apart from the peeling dahboard. The stick on door protectors that it's had fitted...as much as I hate them...indicate that the previous owner was perhaps quite conscientious. 1996 Tdi ES model anyway, in dark green, 105k with full service. Doesn't look as though it's been abused, but under the ramp may reveal some secrets tomorrow. What sort of money are we talking? There are plenty of discos around, so don't rush into anything - have a look at a few and make sure you're getting a good deal. If you don't mind doing a bit of work on it, a few niggles like this could land you a bargain, but make sure it hasn't been neglected in more serious ways. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C.J. Posted January 15, 2007 Author Share Posted January 15, 2007 £3995. Not the cheapest around granted but it does look pretty damned straight and tidy. Tells me that all the niggles will be put right. My mate will give it 'The Mother' of goings over tomorrow though, so I fully expect the list of faults to grow. Bloody minefield out there, and not for the faint hearted ignorant ones either. Need to find out when the cam belt was changed too I suppose. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freeagent Posted January 15, 2007 Share Posted January 15, 2007 £3995. Not the cheapest around granted you're not wrong there.... that price is quite near the top of what you want to pay, so make sure everything is done... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C.J. Posted January 15, 2007 Author Share Posted January 15, 2007 you're not wrong there.... that price is quite near the top of what you want to pay, so make sure everything is done... I'd rather pay a bit over the odds and get a reasonably unabused one, than pay a grand less for something thats had a a hard life off road with subsequent and expensive grief to follow in future months. Scanning Autotrader it seems to be within the normal price catergory. Buying privately would no doubt reveal some cheaper ones, but with no definately NO come backs, and probably no option of taking it away for a couple of hours to get it on the ramp for a full inspection either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Posted January 15, 2007 Share Posted January 15, 2007 Make sure you take a good look under the boot carpet (I mean lift the whole lot up, foam insulation and all, till you can see metal!) - on a '96 the Boot floor is likley to be starting to go. Also check the the inner and outer sills. They should have a plastic cover on the outside, but get underneath and look at the bottom and inside of them. Last thing to check is the footwells and the inner wings. These are all the common rust traps on a Disco. If any of them are starting to go then make sure you are happy repairing them yourself when the time comes, ar be prepared for some quite involved bills All the other stuff you mention is easy to fix for a diy type mechanic, and parts are fairly cheap and plentiful. They do give you good bargaining power though... Enjoy Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C.J. Posted January 15, 2007 Author Share Posted January 15, 2007 I'd rather pay a bit over the odds and get a reasonably unabused one, than pay a grand less for something thats had a a hard life off road with subsequent and expensive grief to follow in future months.Scanning Autotrader it seems to be within the normal price catergory. Buying privately would no doubt reveal some cheaper ones, but with no definately NO come backs, and probably no option of taking it away for a couple of hours to get it on the ramp for a full inspection either. I've made a list of things to check. Sad get. Thanks for the advice. I fully expect to be reporting back here tomorrow night, to tell you all it was a shed worth about a bag of carrots. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C.J. Posted January 16, 2007 Author Share Posted January 16, 2007 I've made a list of things to check. Sad get. Thanks for the advice. I fully expect to be reporting back here tomorrow night, to tell you all it was a shed worth about a bag of carrots. Just as predicted. It's a no goer. About 5 miles on the way to my mates, the flamin' brakes failed. Panic stamping up and down on the pedal retrieved full retardation, and then it continued to behave itself from then on. Weird. Was bloody scary though. Could have been water on the discs, but I really don't think so tbh. Anyway, boot floor rotting nicely, clutch master cylinder leaking, ball joints knackered, front prop shaft excessive play, back door won't work on the central locking, same door has quite a bit of rust bubbling through at the bottom edge too, 2 leccy windows failed, n/s mirror housing broken Think their were a couple of smaller things too, but can't remember now. Reckoned about £1-1500 would have it as a decent motor. Reckoned it wasn't actually too bad a motor,with probably only light off road use, and certainly useable for now, but warned of impending bigish bills around the corner. Suggested knocking him down to £2500-£3000 to take into account the repairs required. Dealer claims he paid just over 3k for it himself, so had to leave it there. The search continues. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geoffbeaumont Posted January 16, 2007 Share Posted January 16, 2007 £2500-3000 sounds a lot for one in that condition. I'd be expecting a pretty decent disco for that. Maybe mine's worth more than I think it is? Fat chance... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LR90 Posted January 16, 2007 Share Posted January 16, 2007 There's good and bad at the budget end. At least now you've seen a poor one and having managed to walk away you'll be much better placed to recognise a good one when you see it. Just to reassure you I bought my 200TDi for a little over your budget with 120K miles on it. Several years later and approaching 180K it is now suffering the usual rust issues (though repairable and not as bad as some) and the noisy gbox is still going. All I've had to do to it so far is oil, tyres, alternator, cambelt, clutch, wiper linkage,.. (maybe I shouldn't have started that list but most I would consider service/consumable). It has been very reliable and I'm quite willing to spend a few quid on it each year to keep what is really a very cheap to run motor going. Would be hard to find a replacement. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C.J. Posted January 16, 2007 Author Share Posted January 16, 2007 There's good and bad at the budget end. At least now you've seen a poor one and having managed to walk away you'll be much better placed to recognise a good one when you see it. Certainly. It's proving to be a rapid and very interesting learning curve for me this, and I am so grateful having someone...and you lot ...to help guide me through the minefield of a possible expensive and potentially disatrous purchase. Thought I knew quite a lot about cars, but Land Rovers are a whole new ball game to me. As a footnote, does anyone know where I can purchase mud/sand mats (several) from at a reasonable cost? Tried army surplus sites, but they seem to mainly just sell clothes. Don't seem to able to post in the classifieds section for some reason. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Posted January 17, 2007 Share Posted January 17, 2007 You need 20 posts to post in the classifieds - have a read of the sticky threads in there, but basically it just keeps the spammers out... Mud/Sand Mats? Not entirely sure what you mean, but if you mean the standard ex-military sand ladders someone like anchor supplies will do them, but depending on where you are, the shipping might make it impractical. You may find that a pair of waffles would be more use in the UK: (seen here being used as a seat, cos it's the only decent picture I could find) Hope that helps Cheers Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orgasmic Farmer Posted January 17, 2007 Share Posted January 17, 2007 I have a large quantity of these waffles now at my disposal. Mostly green. 38mm thick and various sizes...just cut to suit your own needs with an angle grinder. Will be about £50 a pair with delivery extra. I ussually carry a few sets to sell at various challenge events so delivery via the LR4x4 courier network can sometimes be arranged!! PM if interested Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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