Looking to buy a '99 Range Rover Need Some Advice.

[BlazinBWF]

Hi all this I am new to the forum and looking for a little advice.

I am looking to buy a 1999 P38 (<--I think thats right) Range Rover 4.6HSE with 52k miles. I have had a Defender 90 and my father has had a few Range Rovers (his '96 caught fire). I currently drive a 1979 Porsche 911SC...I love it but I am moving to California and I need something that will be more comfortable to drive in traffic and something with A/C. This body style Range Rover has been my dream car for a good while now...I have such fond memories of riding in them. I have come close to buying them in the past but I have always chickened out near the last minute. My mechanic has told me in the past that if I were to buy one it needs to be inspected very regularly and he said that I should reserve around $2500 a year for repairs, which I really cannot afford...however a fairly comprehensive warranty can be had for around $2500 3 years 30k miles. I have had experience buying warranties and I know this is a good one. The Range Rover is just about the only car I can afford and justify trading my Porsche in for. I just do not know if it is worth it. My business relies on my car and I need transportation every week day. I will be driving a short distance every week day (less than 5 miles) and no more 100 miles on the weekends. Is it worth it? I do not want something that will be in the shop all the time. Are some just bad ones? I know the first few years were worse than the others but I have not heard great things about any of the years.

I would really like to know what you guys think.
Thanks for your time

 

[highlander]

I would recommend a Range Rover to anybody, but you do need to take into account that they demand attention! I have a '99 4.6 HSE which I have driven everyday for the last two years. It has over 175,000kms (110,000 miles) on it and it drives exactly as it did when I bought it.

I live in the Middle East so the temperatures are high all year and the car never has had any problems in terms of AC or engine cooling. I had the windows tinted when I bought it and it makes a difference!

I travel around 35,000kms (22,000 miles) every year with it, mostly in dense traffic within Dubai. Occasionally I have time to get into the desert where it performs faultlessly, even rescuing Grand Cherokees and Land Cruisers!

Just make sure that you change the oil regularly and attend to any little problems as soon as they appear. If you dont, they tend to get bigger and more expensive!

Its a great car, those that have them know it, those that dont are missing out!

 

[Kestreljr]

Highlander- I am in the exact same boat as Blazin- I would really like to get about a '99 to '00 Range Rover with 60-80 miles on it.

Are there certain things that WILL wear out it is just a matter of when- that I should check for when looking these things over, such as air suspension problems, sunroof leaking, etc...

I realize this is an open ended question, but as a DISCO owner I know a list of things to ask if one was going to buy a used disco and I am looking for a similar list for a RR.

 

[highlander]

Hi there,

You are right it is open ended!

I had a Range Rover Classic (93) years ago and I abused the hell out of it. It carried equipment into the desert for me (I work in event production) and towed my trucks out when they got stuck. I even moved a stage with it once as we had built it in the wrong place! So when I was looking for another car, I decided to get another Range Rover, but a P38a this time.

I am lucky as I have a Range Rover specialist near my office who carry out everything that needs to be done to them. I did speak to them before finding my current one, and they told me the most important thing to look for was a history. Its the same with any car, but the RR really demands someone who knows what they are doing.

Unfortunately Land Rover suffered from lack of real investment for years so the RR's suffer from a lot of faults. My biggest issue was the air suspension which gave up completely after about 45,000kms. As the car was not under warranty I had to dig into my pockets. The cost of replacement is high but my specialist told me that going back to standard springs would have little or no affect on the car. Yes you can raise the ride height and it wont lower itself on the highway, but really this is not a major concern.

Once the springs were on, i took the car out into the desert for work etc and it still did what it had to do with no complaint. The Disco works on springs so there is no reason for the RR not to.

The other problems you will probably get are electronic. For some reason my one likes to tell me that the drivers door is open when it is obviously not. A small alarm goes off everytime you start driving, but I have got used to it! Its probably a small thing that can be easily fixed, but everytime I fix one, another one starts!

At the moment it is getting a new propshaft, new head gaskets and a new exhaust system. But i have no intention of selling it as the plus points outweigh the negative many times over.

Just make sure that whatever you buy has been looked after and spoilt by the previous owner/s. Main dealer history or specialist history is a must have. If someone says they have never had any issues with it and hence no bills or receipts, they are probably lying to you!

RR's are like pets. They demand attention, but they will repay you with unparralled off road abilities and great road manners. Good luck!

 

[Kestreljr]

thanks for the time and advice- you are right, a tracked maintaince report would be a great first step.

 

[missyinbrazil]

I'm new to this forum as well but here is a little of what I know. I have a RR and live in los angeles. My best advice is to contact Great Lakes warranty. Several RR repair shops in the area said great lakes is good. I had 68,000 miles and was able to get extended warranty to 100,000 for $2500 with no deductible. The trick is to use an address outside of california and florida to get better coverage not better rates. I confirmed that is it ok to do this and it is ok to have my car repaired in california or anywhere in the country. When you sign up they will ask you to take the car to an authorized mechanic who will write a report detailing anything currently wrong with the car. These items will not be covered as they are pre-existing but once you fix them then it will be covered in the future. You then have to drive the car 350 miles before you can make a claim for new repairs. Its that simple. I love it. If you want more info I can email you a link. sendme an email at [email protected]