Rotbox, i'm a professional auto technician, and we have had these in our shop before, and have desided to turn them away from now on . They are difficult to work on, need special tools etc. You have listed several reasons why not to buy one and you are still interested? Buy the Toyota and thank yourself everyday.
Wrong,,, mostly. I work at the Centerville Land Rover dealer, unless you are talking about newer (2005 and newer) vehicles, almost everything is basic. Exceptions are the security system and the ABS system, both require specialized computers to communicate with the vehicle.
Rot Box,
If you are looking for a Discovery, go after a 1994-1999 Series 1 Discovery for simplicity. Stay away from 1999-2003 Series 2 Discovery's, 2004's are the cream of the crop
If you are looking at series 1 Discovery's don't pay more that 7k for one. Try to get the 99 model year. If you want a Discovery that will give you almost zero problems get the basic model, no sunroofs (which tend to leak water), no rear A/C (lines tend to leak freon), rear jump seats rattle like crazy offroad and make changing brake light bulbs a PITA.
Pro's for the 99's include a u-jointed rear driveshaft, earlier versions have a rubber coupler called a roto-flex that cracks and does not like to be lifted, you can swap to a u-jointed driveshaft easily if you get the earlier years. The ABS and engine management systems seem to be less problematic on the 99's. I have never had a check engine light or ABS problem on my 99.
The 1994-1995ish to 1996 Discovery's came with a 3.9 V-8 that used a distributor. 1996-1999 came with 4.0 V-8 that is much smoother and distributorless ignition. As you know they are not very powerful, 182 hp and 250 ft-lbs, but if you dont overheat them the engine will run forever. (My 89 Range Rover has well over 300K on the original engine and trans)
The earlier Discovery's came with manual transmissions as an option, they are odd to drive at best. Better MPG, but the trans are not considered to be very strong. The ZF auto that comes in most is a far better choice and practically bomb proof behind the 4.0's.
Here is what you will have problems with:
Biggest issue's for Discovery's is oil leaks, look closely at headgaskets for oil and coolant leaking externally. Oil cooler lines, and power steering lines are VERY common leak points. Transfer case leaks at the intermidiate shaft o-rings are common, although not a huge deal (will leak forever, as long as you keep the fluid up it wont cause any problems).
Parts can be expensive,, but there are easy ways around almost everything. Lots of the techs here have figured out ways to properly use american parts for almost every failure point (fuel pumps, injectors, wheel bearings, ect...) The vehicles are not hard to work on. I replaced headgaskets on my 99 last november in my garage in about 16 hours, and that includes time to clean the heads.
The vehicles tend to have a bad rap, but I really enjoy driving mine. I am lifted with 32's and get 16 mpg on the highway. The aftermarket support is growing for the older Land Rovers, and again,, they are getting cheaper everyday.
If you want to get a cheap one, look for a 94. Can find em for under 4k
Again,, just make sure that the engine has not been overheated. You will have problems if its been overheated.
