Buying a Range Rover

[SmasherWebbs]

Im contimplating getting myself a Range Rover on a budget of around £3000-£4500

Needs to be a manual Diesel

Would love one but not a must with adjustable ride hight suspension but not easy in budget i know.

Been doing some interwebing and have found a few but need some help finding the best.

What i would like to know is-

What should i steer clear off

Best models in budget

Road tax

MPG ( I only do 5000miles a year max and when i do its 50% towing )

Insurance ball park figure (10 years with no claims or cons)

one example Range Rover 2.5 DSE. Any good?

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201301285084423/sort/default/usedcars/fuel-type/diesel/transmission/manual/model/range_rover/make/land_rover/onesearchad/used/page/1/radius/100/postcode/so318gy?logcode=p

[DrRob]

Don't get a p38. I would advise a disco 2 td5 with air suspension on rear. Latest LRM has a buying article.

[g&t]

Judging by the posts on this & 'other' forums I would avoid P38's & stick to the Classic, but with the following reservations : Most are rot-boxes & although I've only ever owned V8 classics the only time I drove a 300tdi powered/manual Disco (basically the same vehicle underneath) it reminded me of a tractor. If you are fortunate enough to find a genuine rot-free Classic be prepared to pay good money for it, because such examples are now rare indeed.

[q-rover]

Hmmm

My 4.6 V8 was a much more reliable car than the D2 I have, although the D2 seems to be behaving itself now.

Performance for the D2 is useless compared to the P38, but ACE is nice to have. Fuel consumtion is not

a Td5 auto strongpoint either. I would get 550-600 kms on a tank of petrol, and get 700-750Kms on a tank

of diseasel.

[elbekko]

Eh, even with all of its faults, my P38 4.6 is a nice car to drive, and a whole lot of car for what I paid for it!

[neonovice]

For £3,000-£4,500 you could get a very nice DSE. As with any car over 10 years old you should be prepared to do some maintenance and will need to be reasonable with a spanner. It is also a good to befriend someone with a good diagnostic machine.

If you are not short on money a 4.6 HSE is a brilliant car. I got one in pristine condition last year for half your budget. I had to sell it though as 10-11 MPG is not nice and my first name is not sheik

I have 2.5 DT at the moment and it has had issues (immobiliser problem) but what with the snow falling here, I would not swap it.

Near you on Gumtree:

http://www.gumtree.com/p/cars-vans-motorbikes/2000-w-reg-land-rover-range-rover-dse-76000-miles/1008771751

[SmasherWebbs]

For £3,000-£4,500 you could get a very nice DSE. As with any car over 10 years old you should be prepared to do some maintenance and will need to be reasonable with a spanner. It is also a good to befriend someone with a good diagnostic machine.

If you are not short on money a 4.6 HSE is a brilliant car. I got one in pristine condition last year for half your budget. I had to sell it though as 10-11 MPG is not nice and my first name is not sheik

I have 2.5 DT at the moment and it has had issues (immobiliser problem) but what with the snow falling here, I would not swap it.

Near you on Gumtree:

http://www.gumtree.com/p/cars-vans-motorbikes/2000-w-reg-land-rover-range-rover-dse-76000-miles/1008771751

neonovice your the man!

I will be having a look at that DSE the first chance i get.

Do Range Rovers of this spec and price come up often?

Also im a large scale service engineer so even older ones are more a project than a pain. Just coming to the end of my current project (1988 defender) so looking to 'upgrade' and not to a disco!!

[neonovice]

That was 10 seconds of searching. You will find loads. Shop around. Try all the buttons especially the suspension.

[Escape]

Don't get a p38. I would advise a disco 2 td5 with air suspension on rear. Latest LRM has a buying article.

The P38a is so much more of a car than the Discovery2, with all do respect. I do prefer the TD5 to the BMW diesel in the Range, but even then there is no doubt which I'd drive. The P38a is a bit heavier, wider and has a longer wheelbase than the Classic, combined with the EAS this makes for an excellent towing vehicle. The diesel does suffer from lack of torque low down, so you need to take it easy when starting off with a heavy trailer.

Just make sure you find one well withing your budget, as said they have their years by now and given the complexity, some repairs will be inevitable. But don't let that stop you, properly looked after they will offer a great ride for many years and miles more. I'm on my 3rd P38a as a daily driver at the moment, and she still took me to work with a big grin this morning.

Filip

[daveturnbull]

I'm a fairly recent DHSE owner, thanks to the kamikaze spanish lady who wrote off my defender hybrid.

Overall it's a nice sociable car. Like people say they do have issues, but so long as you are handy with a set of spanners it's all fairly fixable. A friend with an autologic box certainly helps tho.

Mine has at some point in the past been tinkered with by J.E Engineering and Rimmer Bros, so when you want it to it does move along quickly. I have managed to scare myself on the odd occasion too.

If you can, try and get one with a Harman Kardon stereo. Definitely a worth while upgrade.

But if I had to choose one car, I'd still rather be driving my Hybrid.

[bishbosh]

A couple of observations:

1. A Range Rover with a diseasel engine is wrong, just soooo wrong.

2. If you are only doing 5k a year is a petrol engine really out of the question? You will have greater choice and often much lower mileage examples to choose from. Initial purchase prices will be lower than equivalent diseasels too. (see point 1 )