Discovery vs. Challenger

yep! from experience with auto's the best is toyata 80 or 100 series

Dennis

I drove a V8 Disco for about 7 years. Not had anything to do with a Challenger but I've seen them in action.

If you're not into grunt .. give the V8 a miss and go the oil burner Disco. The 8'll keep you poor.

Typical Landie with all their idiosyncrasies ... but then again I luv em. Excellent off road and dare I say definitely has an edge on the Challenger. The auto is an excellent unit.

The level of interior trim and fancy do-dahs is probably better in the Jap.

Don't believe what Truck will tell you about running costs ... all 4WD's can be prohibitively expensive in upkeep. Not sure about the Jap, but with the Landie there are heaps of suppliers of genuine parts ... but not in an LR box for about 1/2 the price.

I've ridden in the back of a Paj and was sorry I didn't take my kidney belt .. I think the Disco has an edge here.

To sum it all up ... if you're not into serious off road I expect either rig would keep you happy.

Cheers and happy motoring

Hi Dennis
I drive a 2002 Challenger XS which was special release that has all the features of the PA but withouth the leather seats. All I can say about it is that it is a good honest wagon. It is based on the Triton and I haven't had any problems or dramas at all with it. I have had it off road and it has handled everything I have chucked at it. Except for the tyres that they supply the wagon with I have no regrets with it.

Hi Dennis,
A comparison between these two would differ in that the challenger is only available in petrol form and the discovery in petrol v8 or diesel.It is no secret that the disco v8 is very thirsty but smooth and gutsy to drive.Those who own the diesels love em ,frugal on fuel,so good on road and better off,the best driving position going around,very well appointed and can tow anything.At around 24K you will find a very nice 98 or 99 tdi and if you could stretch the budget a bit further could get into the even better td5.I personally have a td5 and couldn't be happier.Keep doing your homework and good luck with your choice.
cheers Mark

DennisV

Don't own either but have mates who own both.

The mate with the Discover will gladly sell you his...cost him a packet in services and repairs on lots of little minor things that seem to cost a big bucks. Last year alone he spent over 4K in services etc...ouch! Parts are dear and so are the servicing centres.

As for the Challenger...have heard no complaints except they are no long manufacturing them...wether that will be a problem later on with parts etc??? Mate drove his across Simpson and apparently went OK. Do you know a good 4WD mehanic? Ask him?

Good luck
Sparky

Dennis,
I bought a new Disco TDI in 97 & still own it. I have had problems with oil leaks etc & the worse problem being a cracked drive plate on the torque converter. I have done a lot of research on the 300TDI & now carry out my own servicing & medium duty jobs like timing belt renewal. There is a good framework of Land Rover specialist in Oz therefore your not tied to a dealer for parts or service. I have not had any problems in the past 3 years so hopefully the earlier problems have been ironed out. I would go for a post 97 TDI model as there were problems with the timing belts breaking on earlier models & a kit was developed to remedy. Great car on big trips & fuel economy is unbeatable in this class of 4x4. Look out for rust around the alpine windows (roof) on models around 97 - 98, mine was fixed under warranty. My car has just turned 90,000km & is only really used on trips & weekends, probably 40% of which has been off road, with a polish car is still like new. Automatic + 300TDI is great combination on/off road & especially towing.
Cheers

I'm not a fan of Disco's myself, but a good friend bought one a couple of years ago. He got a 1998 turboed oil burner for around $24K and tells me that he is very happy with it. Copped a lot of stick from his mates as he was always a Tojo man, but he's still got the Disco even though he can afford a Toyota again. Maybe there's something in that.
The Disco's not bad off road, but you wouldn't want to get too radical in it.
As for the Challenger, the only person I know who bought one only kept it for 6 months, then bought a Patrol. Didn't ask why.

Dennis,

The V8 Disco is a nice machine but a gas guzzler, the auto diesel would be an excellent all rounder with heaps more subtlety in the off road and dirt road cruising than the Challenger. Have you not considered the Nissan Pathfinder of the same vintage. I bought a new Pathy back in 2000 over a Chellenger and Prado (latter was too expensive). I took the Pathy due to better off road capability (Patrol rear axle) and the engine/gearbox was tuned for off road use where as the Challenger engine is set up as a car engine. Definitely recommend autos as I had the same usuage profile as yourself except I took the Pathy into a lot of hard off roading and it was just amazing. Challenger leaf rear springs are better if you do a lot of towing but that is all.

JohnS

Does the Challenger share the same auto box as the Triton ? If so, I'd do some homework on the reliability of the auto. My neighbour has an auto Triton that has had mutiple auto gearbox problems under warranty. Not sure of details othen than he doesn't tow with it nor take it off road.

Yeah I've heard about LR reliability problems but I've recently heard as many stories about Mitsubishi auto problems.

Hi Dennis
I have no personal exp. with either, but listen and read a lot and in a recent copy of 4wd monthly they did a write up on the challenger and gave it a good wrap up (check thier website and forum site )and I know people with discos who could not say the same! Personally for 24k I like many would stick with cruiser or patrol, not much diffence in fuel consumption to either of the other 2 but a lot easier and cheaper to get aftermarket parts and gear for.

Cheers Steve

I understand that the engine in the Challenger is from the superceded Pajero, so it has proven reliable. Parts might not be a problem if many are shared with Triton or Pajero.

One dealer to try is Fine Choice Auto Sales in East Brighton - very good range of 4WDs. I haven't bought from them though - others might have comments on what they are like.

I suspect when you have driven a few Challengers and Discoverys you will have a preference between them.

Dennis, if still considering Mitsubishi why not a Triton dual cab ute. Most handy machine with heavy stuff isolated from the cab in the tray.
The running gear is strong, have a look at their rear axle, and the TD2.8 has eliminated the rubber drive belts. The motor is well proven & economical.
I understand their manual box is stronger nowadays but cant comment on the auto.
if available.

Dennis - I think you'll be surprised how much fuel 6-cyl petrols like Challengers use around town and off-road (like up to 40l/100km in sand). The TDi Disco (and you could get an excellent 4cyl one for $15-20K) gets 10l/100km in most conditions and probably doesn't blow out beyond 20l/100km off road.

I don't know if you've driven both, but Discos have a great ride and a great driving position - you have a panoramic view unlike in Jap 4WDs where you sit right down in the vehicle like a car - not great for off-road vision. If the Patrol had a similar driving position, it would be my first choice of 4WD...

mate o mine was in the market for a 2nd hand 4by bout 2 years ago and looked at an auto td5 landie----- til he drove it and found it had half the power of a 2.4l hilux he purchased a v6 jackeroo and has been most happy. In my opinion if you will be seeing little bush work and mostly mums taxi city driving a petrol might be the go as they cope with that style of driving much better

Dennis,
We run a 1998 Challenger and are pretty happy with it. We tow an offroad trailer and it has gone everywere we have asked it to. Without the trailer we crossed the Coorong in sand and did the 4WD tracks around Arkaroola easily. Like you we did not want to do heavy duty 4WD but wanted to get to a bigger range of camping sites than we could in a car. The Challenger has been great for this and handles well on the open road and is comfortable, smallish to park etc and not bad around the city.
We test drove a Disco TD before buying and decided it was too much like a truck for our needs. That's not so much a crit of the Disco as an expression of what we wanted.
It seems to me that if it's called Land Rover it will go anywhere but at some cost whereas the Challenger cost us $2.1K at auction and will do what we want if used with care. One problem you might find with a petrol Challenger is that petrol is not as good as diesel for the downhill stuff I can vouch for that from experience. Choosing an auto will only add to this problem. (We should all lobby Mitsi to importthe diesel ones they sell in NZ)
Best of luck with your decision.
Camper

Hi Dennis, I have a 98 Land Rover Discovery TDI, it has travelled over 350000 km over the last 5 years, over the last couple of years I travel about 12000 km a month over some really rough terrain throughout the weast of Qld and into the Cape and Gulf (Business Cattle). Although I have had some minor problems it has been great, but in saying this I have it serviced every 10000-12000 km and my repairer fixes or replaces parts if needed (not very often). I have put a Bilstein suspension kit under it (much better ride on both road and dirt) and a set of BF Goodrich on it and thats about it. I do hear that the newer models have had some problems but am unsure, all I know is that mine has done a great job for me and has very inexpensive to maintain given the Km I have done.
Regards
Philip Mackness