I have hit the 100,000 mile mark with my 1999 Discovery II and thought maybe others could profit or find some comfort in my experience.
My 1999 was purchased from Land Rover, Barrington (now defunct). It was a demo with a few miles. There's an amusing ancedote regarding how I ended up purchasing the D2.
I had been looking at SUV's for some time and had a short list of Lincoln Navigator, Mercedes ML430, and the Discovery. The Lincoln was quickly marked off the list when we found it was too tall to fit in the garage. I put money down on an ML430 at Mark's Motors (Mercedes). Imagine my suprise to return a couple of days later to take delivery only to find it leaving the dealership with a stogie-smoking passenger. It seems as though the vehicle was still being used for test drives and to ferry the dealership's owner to his home. My wife and I took our money and drove to Land Rover.
The Barrington dealer was pleasant and the test drive was satisfactory. I told them I would purchase as long as the D2 would fit in my garage. With my wife watching, I carefully pulled into the garage....she was under strict orders to tell me if the D2 was too tall and about to scrape. The D2 went in without incident and my wife and I decided to eat lunch before returning to the dealer with good news. Unfortunately, backing the D2 out of the garage produced a loud scraping noise and thump from the rear sunroof. I pulled back in and surveyed the damage----a nasty, 3" wide, 7" long scrape on the roof and a buggered gasket on the sunroof. I escaped the garage by deflating the tires and having the wife sit on the rear bumper. The culprit of the scrape was a large trim-board that (once ripped off with my bare hands) allowed an extra 2" of clearance. The dealer was understanding (amused?)and fixed the problem without changing the deal.
Before I start on the issues, let me state up front that ownership has caused me very conflicting emotions. I've owned many vehicles that ranged from crappy (Opel Kadet) to phenomenal (Mercedes S500). By quick count, I've owned 20cars/trucks and usually trade every 3-4 years. The D2 is unusual in that I have owned it 7 years...longer than any other vehicle. When the D2 is running well, it is a heavenly motoring experience. But, when the D2 is malfunctioning (a regretably frequent occurance) it is highly irritating. My D2 has never stranded me. It is often sick but it always soldiers on--albeit with blinking warning lights, strange chimes, and odd noises)
Here is the list of issues... since this is getting long, I'll deal with them in a separate posting.
1. Leaking radiator
2. Rear tail lights burning out
3. Malfunctioning front wipers
4. Seized rear wiper motor
5. Brake-wear/pulsating brake pedal
6. Transmission slippage at temps lower than 28F
7. Leaking valve covers
8. Replacement of Intake manifold gaskets
9. Severe rattling noise (from driver's side valve train)
10. Misfires and engine stumbling
11. Malfunctioning radio (distortion when cold or unable to get any stations)
12. Leaking driver's side exaust manifold
13. Strange gurgling/sloshing sounds when accelerating
(well, there they are...13...hmmmmm)
I will go into each of these in further detail (including the fixes) in other posts....
My 1999 was purchased from Land Rover, Barrington (now defunct). It was a demo with a few miles. There's an amusing ancedote regarding how I ended up purchasing the D2.
I had been looking at SUV's for some time and had a short list of Lincoln Navigator, Mercedes ML430, and the Discovery. The Lincoln was quickly marked off the list when we found it was too tall to fit in the garage. I put money down on an ML430 at Mark's Motors (Mercedes). Imagine my suprise to return a couple of days later to take delivery only to find it leaving the dealership with a stogie-smoking passenger. It seems as though the vehicle was still being used for test drives and to ferry the dealership's owner to his home. My wife and I took our money and drove to Land Rover.
The Barrington dealer was pleasant and the test drive was satisfactory. I told them I would purchase as long as the D2 would fit in my garage. With my wife watching, I carefully pulled into the garage....she was under strict orders to tell me if the D2 was too tall and about to scrape. The D2 went in without incident and my wife and I decided to eat lunch before returning to the dealer with good news. Unfortunately, backing the D2 out of the garage produced a loud scraping noise and thump from the rear sunroof. I pulled back in and surveyed the damage----a nasty, 3" wide, 7" long scrape on the roof and a buggered gasket on the sunroof. I escaped the garage by deflating the tires and having the wife sit on the rear bumper. The culprit of the scrape was a large trim-board that (once ripped off with my bare hands) allowed an extra 2" of clearance. The dealer was understanding (amused?)and fixed the problem without changing the deal.
Before I start on the issues, let me state up front that ownership has caused me very conflicting emotions. I've owned many vehicles that ranged from crappy (Opel Kadet) to phenomenal (Mercedes S500). By quick count, I've owned 20cars/trucks and usually trade every 3-4 years. The D2 is unusual in that I have owned it 7 years...longer than any other vehicle. When the D2 is running well, it is a heavenly motoring experience. But, when the D2 is malfunctioning (a regretably frequent occurance) it is highly irritating. My D2 has never stranded me. It is often sick but it always soldiers on--albeit with blinking warning lights, strange chimes, and odd noises)
Here is the list of issues... since this is getting long, I'll deal with them in a separate posting.
1. Leaking radiator
2. Rear tail lights burning out
3. Malfunctioning front wipers
4. Seized rear wiper motor
5. Brake-wear/pulsating brake pedal
6. Transmission slippage at temps lower than 28F
7. Leaking valve covers
8. Replacement of Intake manifold gaskets
9. Severe rattling noise (from driver's side valve train)
10. Misfires and engine stumbling
11. Malfunctioning radio (distortion when cold or unable to get any stations)
12. Leaking driver's side exaust manifold
13. Strange gurgling/sloshing sounds when accelerating
(well, there they are...13...hmmmmm)
I will go into each of these in further detail (including the fixes) in other posts....
