Truly "Happy" Disco owners- let me know if you exist!

[damnskippy]

Thanks Joey, I gotcha...anybody else out there want to weigh in on this subject?

 

[jmrivera]

Well, my family and I LOVE our '03 HSE7!!! My wife and I wanted one since the day we first saw the Discovery (in 2002), but we opted for an Audi A4 at that time and had regretted it until we got our '03 this past October... We have never been happier with a vehicle.

Of course, it has its little quirks, as do all vehicles. The unhappy owners I had read about prior to my purchase were unhappy for reasons other than what they were complaining about (can we say therapy and prescription drugs?).

When I bought it, I knew the gas mileage was not the best and the ride was a little rough. But I also knew that my family would be 100% comfortable and it would be an adventure vehicle occasionally...

Just to be clear, it has been an awesome vehicle and I do not regret buying it...

 

[damnskippy]

Jonathan, I was wondering since you have a 7 seater, how much of the cargo space in the back is lost...more specifically, if jump seats are not down but locked into sides would one have a lot less room then with no jump seats? I really don't want jump seats but some of the '04's I have my eyes on as possible good deals all seem to to have the 7 seats. I need to be able to fit a somewhat sizeable dog crate in that back area behind second seats, between the jump seats. Also, do you think those rubber cargo liners fit the same with or without jump seats? I was looking at Atlantic British catalog who sells them and they didn't seem to distinguish there being a difference.

I also wanted to ask you what extended warranty you ended up buying and through who? Was it through those folks you got your Disco from (they're in Arizona, right?). What were the terms of the warranty and about how much $$$. I'm seeing some Disco's out there that have remaining factory warranties but others that have no current existing warranty so if no existing warranty-what is the best way to go in your opinion?

Thanks so much for your time and reply! A.J.

 

[Cascade Rovers]

I'm happy with my 99DII. It's my favorite out of the fleet.

 

[wolf]

It sounds like he is clueless first of all... since ABS issues on an older disco cost almost nothing to fix... on a Disco II that is a different case, but most issues were ironed out prior to the 03/04 Model Years.

Getting an 04 D2 would be excellent for what you are looking for. My D1 has been almost trouble free for the 5 years I have had it... Don't get me wrong I have had some minor issues, but nothing yet that has left me stranded. As with any vehicle on the road they can all have issues, some are more issues then others.

If you want to learn even more about discos, I would suggest contacting Bill Burke http://www.bb4wa.com/

He will not only be able to teach you how to drive your Disco, but how to do basic repairs out in the field... his web site also has tons of good info.

I am with Joey on this - what's not to like?

My 1997 Disco has never left me stranded - and a couple of times it had some seriously good reasons to - such as when I towed 5000 lbs up a pass in 105 degree heat with a stuck thermostat (i.e., not stuck open but stuck closed - as it turned out) went into some relatively serious overheating and had to cool the engine down, etc. (after putting some dirty water in the rad that a rancher gave me) but I made it through without cracking that darned aluminum block or slipping its sleaves.


As for 'squirrley in snow' don't make me laugh - I have driven in mountain snow and ice most of my life and I have never seena vehicle perform as well as my Disco; recent case in point - I was headed up a mountain road that was about a lane and a half wide and near the summit a brand new Ford heavy duty 4X4 with deisel engine had slid sideways and bent itself on a massive rock on the inside corner. Every other vehicle (all 4X4's) had not made it as far as the Ford - and some of these had chains on. I was towing my open trailer with three hundred pounds of Wolf-Husky hybrid dogs (2 wolves to be precise) in the back and I had not even bothered to put my Disco into Diff Lock or Lo gear range. I had simply geared down into regular first on my autotrans; well, the Disco made it around the Ford but I had to stop because my trailer was sliding sideways and threatened to carry us into the Ford. But pretty much on sheer ice - I backed that Disco down under control! I was amazed at its traction under such circumstances - I had just good Michelin AT's on with no chains! Going down roads with fresh deep snow on (always more dangerous than going up in my opinion) I have never had it lose control. Now I will grant you that a few times I have had to crawl down with diff-lock on and in Lo first gear but that was because everyone else was in the ditch or into the trees!

Are they finnicky with silly stuff like light-bulbs burning out? Sure and so what? If you want non-finnicky buy a RAV 4 and bore your self to death. I have had a few Japanese 4X4's and they are nice but they cannot compare to the feel of my Disco - on or off road.

 

[lowwill]

Been very happy with my 98 Disco. All vehicles have thier problems but this one has been the least. As far as carfax goes. I bought my truck from a corner dealer with 94,*** miles for $8000.00. Clean truck with a 2year or 24,*** miles warrenty which ever came first. Used twiced for a alternator and water pump (indy-rover shop). Inspection was done a year prior to my purchase in Mass. Carfax fax said that it had 183,092 miles on it. Then I bought it with 94,000 miles. Yeah thats 89,092 in 1 year. Hell yeah I went bezerk. Indy shop check the dash for signs of tampering, check all the vin# components. Said every looks good. Interior was perfect not all worn that might be consistant with that type of milage. Is it possible for that milage a year? Yeah. If so there should have been a lot more maintance done on it. Couple of LR maintaince was done on it. Best damn vehicle I ever owned and I would recommened it. Good luck with your purchase. Have to go and see if it will start now. Probally jinksed my-self. No problem still have 6-months of warrenty left.

 

[joey]

I never trust carfax... I looked at a Jaguar the other day with a clean carfax at the Jaguar dealer. You could tell the rear end had been resprayed (overspray on the gas tank) and it had been clear coated (palm print and finger on front fender). Not only that, but the rear window showed signs of leaking.

Carfax is good to a point, but if someone doesn't turn it into the insurance, guess what never gets told to carfax.

 

[jmrivera]

Jonathan, I was wondering since you have a 7 seater, how much of the cargo space in the back is lost...more specifically, if jump seats are not down but locked into sides would one have a lot less room then with no jump seats? I really don't want jump seats but some of the '04's I have my eyes on as possible good deals all seem to to have the 7 seats. I need to be able to fit a somewhat sizeable dog crate in that back area behind second seats, between the jump seats. Also, do you think those rubber cargo liners fit the same with or without jump seats? I was looking at Atlantic British catalog who sells them and they didn't seem to distinguish there being a difference.

I also wanted to ask you what extended warranty you ended up buying and through who? Was it through those folks you got your Disco from (they're in Arizona, right?). What were the terms of the warranty and about how much $$$. I'm seeing some Disco's out there that have remaining factory warranties but others that have no current existing warranty so if no existing warranty-what is the best way to go in your opinion?

Thanks so much for your time and reply! A.J.

Very little space is lost... One of the seats (the passenger side) just replaces the storage compartment in the 5 seater (it adds a cupholder and a storage tray under the seat when folded away). I have put a large-sized dog crate in the rear with no issues, so I think it will be fine. However, if you don't need the rear seats, opt for a 5 passenger, but get the rear A/C... You can always remove the rear seats and store them away for a rainy day if you get a 7 seater.

As far as the cargo liners go, they only difference in the installation would be to remove some small sections of the liner to allow for the jump seats to secure to the locks in the floor... They are exactly the same for both layouts...

the warranty I got with my Disco. came with the vehicle and didn't cost me any money... now, that is an abstract concept since I know it wouldn't make any sense that a guy could sell me a vehicle and a warranty without making some money... The company is Warranty Administration Services Inc (www dot warrantyadminservices dot com).... the only downfall to this specific company is they require you to have the vehicle serviced by a commercial service center per manufacture scheduled maintenance... I'm not sure if other third-party warranty companies do the same....

 

[tempestv8]

Howdy again,

I guess my comment about some owners being lukewarm about their vehicles are the ones who just want to drive a nice "badge" but don't really take their vehicles offroad to do anything of the things that it is capable of.

But that's to be expected because not all drivers are enthusiasts. You can't expect all drivers to be true enthusiasts or fans of the marque.

Cheers,

Lawrance

 

[joey]

Hey Lawrance, I can agree with that 100%....