LR Discovery II TD5

Schacksta.
The series 2 td5 is the most economical vehicle with good off road ability, 9/10 l/100k is easy to acheave, the vehicles are basicly reliable, but they do have some problems with door locks and electrical problems. I have used them on trips and have always got home ok but with a list of minor things to fix. Eric.

Schacksta
I have owned my Disco 2 Td5 Auto SLS since new and have just turned over 100,000 klms and have recently been on the forum getting advice about replacement tyres. The forum can give some good feedback. My Td5 has run faultlessly and gets used for highway touring, lots of dirt roads and towing my tandem trailer which varies between 1-2 tonne of towing weight. I had two Disco Tdi series 1 before I purchased the Td5. I find the Td5 requires less ongoing maintenance than the Tdi. It has a cam chain which does not need to be replaced as does the cam belt on the Tdi. Tappets don't need to be done, engine oil changes are at longer intervals due to the addition of a centrafugal rotor filter as well as the full flow filter and wheel bearings are sealed (and there is more). I chose the vehicle because it was a capable off roader, excellent highway cruiser and had ABS and twin air bags. As I have only done limited off road work in my Td5 till now, I spoke to ARB yesterday and asked them had they had any problems with their Td5 fleet vehicle as I aw trying to gauge whether to keep running my Td5 till it wears out and he said that they had not experienced any problems and their vehicles get worked hard over a lot of kilometers. There may be a Td5 owner that has had problems but I have not heard a thing and I always ask.
I'll stop here as I am not sure how much info you require. This of course is my experience so far, of my Td5. Hope this helps you.
Stephen B

Schacksta.

The door lock problems are mianly the soleniod in the rear door. The electrical problems are things like getting a message on the dash "abs fialure" these are cleared under waranty so I dont know about cost, As I say the vehicle has always got us home ok. Eric.

Ken,

I don't have any practical experience, but I have been lurking in forums like this for a couple of years, gathering info for when I buy a new(ish) medium 4WD later this year. The Disco was originally not near the top of my list due to the reliability problems of the earlier models, but from what I have seen it has improved enormously over the years, and is now on a par with the Japs (but without their bland appearance and dull character).

It is now at the top of my list and I would have no hesitation in buying a late-model TD5 (with service record, of course).

Stephen F.

Schacksta

I owned a TDI for a 2.5 yrs year (65,000k's) then a Series II TD5 Auto (with ACE & SLS) from Sept 99 to Sept 2002 covering about 85,000k. I now have a 100 Series T/D auto.

The Series II was a huge improvement in all respects especially reliability and build quality and I know that they have got better since 99.

I had minmal problems with the Series II and it was really a very good vehicle although I was concerned about the long term durability of the electrics as they are very advanced in this area and can be prone to problems. (& big costs)

Comparing to the Toyota (only done 20,000k's) servicing costs are probalby comparable. Whilst the service intervals are much greater (20k Vs 5k) for the Discovery the actual service costs were fairly high although I must admit I could have saved considerable money by not servicing at the Landrover Dealer. (which has other negatives)

Fuel economy - consistent 12.5 l / 100 km city or highway except when towing (boat or Van) which then increased to about 15 l / 100 km. I still do not believe what Landrover say the economy is because even driving ultra conservatively (no A/C, 100 km/hr steady, no load etc etc) I still got 12.5 on the HWY.

Great vehicle to tow with except really the TD5 does lack grunt compared to other T/D of today becasue of its capacity.

Great vehicle to drive - almost sports car like with ACE

One of the best auto trannies in the business - super smooth and responsive (hint, hint Toyota which is a crash box by comparision)

Off road I found was good even with T/C and no centre diff lock. Just need to learn how to drive with the T/C - great vehicle to drive where good visibility is required.

Much more character and asthetics compared to Japanese 4WD's especially Toyota's and Nissans.

Reaons I went to the Toyota T/D - COSTS, ROOM and OOMPH

Despite what everyone says, when I compared a replacement Disco (TD5, ACE etc etc but not leather) the initial purchase price was not all that different to the Cruiser and over 3 years with the better resale the Cruiser plus comparable servicing costs the Cruiser will probaly work out cheaper by a fair bit.

Discovery's used to be cheap (in 97 auto TDI about $40k) but now they are an expensive although very well equipped vehicle.

The other negative about the Disco was the space particularly in the back seat where my kids are now of a size that it was becoming a problem. Surprisingly the cargo space is quite good especially if you have a barrier and can make use of the height.

If you can live with the interior size, and the $ make sense I think that you will be very happy with a Series II TD5

Rgds

David

Mine is a 1998 TD5 5 speed manual which i actually preferred over the auto which i purchased second hand from a guy who towed his tandem horse floats around with it.They excel as a long range touring vehicle as they offer comfort,great driving position and of course the economy is legendary.They are probably too classy for hardcore offroad but that hasn't stopped me as on a few club trips we have vetured into places i normally wouldn't go but its off road abilityis really good.I spent the $600 and had the electronic centre diff lock actuator fitted which is well worth it for serious off road.The real question here is reliability because if you believe some of the stuff on this predominently nissan site its a wonder l/r are still in business.Mine now has 87000klms on it and is very reliable.Obviously there were some problems on earlier models such as axles etc but i would say with BMW'S influence on the series 11 they have ironed out the bugs.On the last trip melb-fraser is.-cape trib and back did 9040klms on $685 diesel and forced to cruise at 90 k/hr down the coast achieved 1000klms to tank.Hit monster storms out of sydney and constant 4x4 really comes into its own.I'm happy marcus.