Cheap Range Rovers - good idea?
Discussion
I've been after a Range Rover for ages, but at the moment finances don't really allow me to go for the sort that I'd really like (late P38 model, or early versions of the current shape).
I have however noticed quite a few classics for sale on Autotrader in seemingly good condition for around the £1500 mark (example here and I'd be well up for one of these in the meantime, as long as it's not going to be a bottomless pit of money to keep running.
I'm happy to maintain it myself (I did most of the servicing on my dad's 110), and I'm not worried if non-essential bits stop working sometimes, but I do want something that will get me from A-B without too many worries.
Any thoughts?
I have however noticed quite a few classics for sale on Autotrader in seemingly good condition for around the £1500 mark (example here and I'd be well up for one of these in the meantime, as long as it's not going to be a bottomless pit of money to keep running.
I'm happy to maintain it myself (I did most of the servicing on my dad's 110), and I'm not worried if non-essential bits stop working sometimes, but I do want something that will get me from A-B without too many worries.
Any thoughts?
I've had quite a few Classics over the years, and just sold my P38. As you state "seemingly good condition" - if it is in genuinely good condition for that sort of money then you will have a great value Rangie. My experience is that many are sheds in need of lots of maintenance. If you can find one that has been well looked after and maintenance has been kept on top of then it should be a reliable motor. They are expensive new and still expensive to keep in good condition, so although people buy them cheap they often can't afford to maintain them so get sold on very quickly. 3.9's are best but you'll probably need to go on condition rather than the year. My opinion is at £1,500 you will probably need to look at quite a few before you find a good one from someone who's cherished it.
I could probably bump up the budget to £2.5k - are most of these examples still likely to be sheds, or will this see me in something good?
Any suggestions for the best places to look? So far, Autotrader seems to have the biggest selection at the best prices, while ebay and the owners club seem overpriced.
Running costs aren't really an issue - from what I've seen, parts prices are very reasonable (compared to a Tuscan anyway
)
Any suggestions for the best places to look? So far, Autotrader seems to have the biggest selection at the best prices, while ebay and the owners club seem overpriced.
Running costs aren't really an issue - from what I've seen, parts prices are very reasonable (compared to a Tuscan anyway
)I bought mine off ebay for 2750
LPG converted and receipts for a new engine, gearbox, transfer box, abs pump and various odds and sods.
Had been maintained regardless of cost.
Working on them is a doddle, and parts are not to bad price wise.
The worst thing is rot. Chassis, sills, doors, tailgates(upper and lower).
They are brilliant motors and very capable off road too.
LPG converted and receipts for a new engine, gearbox, transfer box, abs pump and various odds and sods.
Had been maintained regardless of cost.
Working on them is a doddle, and parts are not to bad price wise.
The worst thing is rot. Chassis, sills, doors, tailgates(upper and lower).
They are brilliant motors and very capable off road too.
Liszt said:
I bought mine off ebay for 2750
LPG converted and receipts for a new engine, gearbox, transfer box, abs pump and various odds and sods.
Had been maintained regardless of cost.
Working on them is a doddle, and parts are not to bad price wise.
The worst thing is rot. Chassis, sills, doors, tailgates(upper and lower).
AFAIK, original upper tailgates for Classic RR's are unobtainable (this may have changed - I changed to Discoveries about 8 years ago). Famous 4x4 do aluminium frames which you transfer the glass and the catches over from, but they Ain't Cheap.
As for rot, Land Rover didn't seem to have grasped the concept of electrolytic corrosion, so the aluminium crumbles away everywhere it touches the steel underpinnings; doors, bonnets, wings, tailgates, everywhere. None of it's structural, though.
£2,500 would buy you a better example but you really need to get out there and view whats available from £1k to £3k. You may pick up a great one for £1.5k or a dog for £2.5k, so be careful. As stated rot is an issue and ideally get one thats been used as a "car" perhaps to tow a caravan rather than a horse box. Muddy underside does not help the rot problem. I would try and get a pre-cat 3.9Efi Vogue around the 90-92 vintage. Mileage is not a problem if maintained as the V8 will do 200k+, and also means its probably been a reliable car used regularly. If your not bothered about manual or auto the manuals are cheaper like for like.
We recently traded in our latest solihull offering, as seemingly endless succesion of bodywork problems were apparently overwhelming both myself and the local garage,
Now this was a Discovery (second attempt)
but what I think is relevant, and peculiar to Land rover folk, is that
at the point of sale, if shed load of oily bits are proffered as
'might prove handy in the future mate, dy'a want them?'
it seems a handy gauge, of the sale vehicles adhesion (component-wise)
to summarise then
car for sale as a stand-alone item= good
car for sale C/W spares= Run away
Now this was a Discovery (second attempt)
but what I think is relevant, and peculiar to Land rover folk, is that
at the point of sale, if shed load of oily bits are proffered as
'might prove handy in the future mate, dy'a want them?'
it seems a handy gauge, of the sale vehicles adhesion (component-wise)
to summarise then
car for sale as a stand-alone item= good
car for sale C/W spares= Run away
After owning 5 Range rover classics my experiences are:
They are very cheep cars to run (not including fuel)
Parts are cheap and even land rover are getting a good stock of classic parts,
Avoid anything with air suspension,
Avoid LPG, I have had 2 on LPG and you can never get them to run right.
If your looking for the cheapest running option go for a 91-92 (J-K reg) without ABS/cat as these are the last ones before land rover stated adding all the electrical bits, that when go wrong are expensive.
Avoid diesel to slow and noisy for a Range rover,
Must be an auto,
Agree with the other posts,
High miles are not a problem as long as its been looked after,
There are lots out there most are old and doggy, even the newest ones are 11 years old!!! most other cars are in scrap yards by then
95% have the same problems/rusty bits (have a look at a few in car parks and such like you will soon spot the usual bad bits.
If you want something a bit special go for a later soft dash but expect to pay £1000 pound more for the privilege, (after 25 years Land rover finally got it right)
To sum up they are cracking cars that will go anywhere and have all the comforts you need, as an all-round value for money vehicle they cannot be beat,
That feeling you only get from driving a Range rover.
They are very cheep cars to run (not including fuel)
Parts are cheap and even land rover are getting a good stock of classic parts,
Avoid anything with air suspension,
Avoid LPG, I have had 2 on LPG and you can never get them to run right.
If your looking for the cheapest running option go for a 91-92 (J-K reg) without ABS/cat as these are the last ones before land rover stated adding all the electrical bits, that when go wrong are expensive.
Avoid diesel to slow and noisy for a Range rover,
Must be an auto,
Agree with the other posts,
High miles are not a problem as long as its been looked after,
There are lots out there most are old and doggy, even the newest ones are 11 years old!!! most other cars are in scrap yards by then
95% have the same problems/rusty bits (have a look at a few in car parks and such like you will soon spot the usual bad bits.
If you want something a bit special go for a later soft dash but expect to pay £1000 pound more for the privilege, (after 25 years Land rover finally got it right)
To sum up they are cracking cars that will go anywhere and have all the comforts you need, as an all-round value for money vehicle they cannot be beat,
That feeling you only get from driving a Range rover.
farmeryellow said:I've been looking at a few on Autotrader, and I have taken a fancy to the soft-dash versions
If you want something a bit special go for a later soft dash but expect to pay £1000 pound more for the privilege, (after 25 years Land rover finally got it right)
I've now narrowed it down to an auto 3.9 or 4.2 LSE soft dash which is LPG-free - ideally under 100k miles. Unfortunately that's shot my £1500 budget to bits but I'm happy to stump up a bit more if it gets me a good one, but there don't seem to be many around.
Any suggestions for good places to pick them up - are there any decent specialist dealers who won't charge an arm and a leg, or is Autotrader and ebay my best bet? Also, Farmeryellow, I noticed you might be selling your soft dash - please drop me a mail if you'd like to talk more about it
Got a 4.2 LSE that I am looking to sell. Go to www.matabooboo.com and for password Type LSE. Should be pics up there of the car. Mail me if interested
1994 Soft Dash
>> Edited by rex on Tuesday 14th February 20:43
1994 Soft Dash
>> Edited by rex on Tuesday 14th February 20:43
rex said:YHM
Got a 4.2 LSE that I am looking to sell. Go to www.matabooboo.com and for password Type LSE. Should be pics up there of the car. Mail me if interested
1994 Soft Dash
>> Edited by rex on Tuesday 14th February 20:43
I bought my 3.5 EFI in 2000 for about £2K. I've since spent a little bit on it.
I'd suggest a 3.5 is best - later cars have potential engine problems - the 3.9's can overheat and split cylider liners resulting in a scrap engine. I tried to do a deal a few years ago on a 92 car with a blown 3.9 engine and despite the most vigorous searching it was well nigh impossible to get one. P38's can suffer similar problems. When mine burnt a piston ( clogged injectors) my engine builder just popped in a new piston and away we went.
91-93 cars are built using not very good russian steel - check the chassis very carefully
We all know that Tailgates rot - you can't currently get a new one although there are some decent ones in the scrappers if you look hard. Parts are easy and mostly cheap. Irritations are things like sagging headlinings and minor electrics like courtesy lights giving up the ghost.
I've done the tailgate replacement bit on mine, fitted some new doors ( £15.00 for 3 on ebay) new drivers seat and electrical bits ( £50.00 the lot from the scrappies)and it's getting a respray next week
You should pay about £1000 for a pre 92 car unless it's exceptional and the good news is - when it dies - it's worth more than that as parts. Cheap motoring, recycling and fun all together!
I'd suggest a 3.5 is best - later cars have potential engine problems - the 3.9's can overheat and split cylider liners resulting in a scrap engine. I tried to do a deal a few years ago on a 92 car with a blown 3.9 engine and despite the most vigorous searching it was well nigh impossible to get one. P38's can suffer similar problems. When mine burnt a piston ( clogged injectors) my engine builder just popped in a new piston and away we went.
91-93 cars are built using not very good russian steel - check the chassis very carefully
We all know that Tailgates rot - you can't currently get a new one although there are some decent ones in the scrappers if you look hard. Parts are easy and mostly cheap. Irritations are things like sagging headlinings and minor electrics like courtesy lights giving up the ghost.
I've done the tailgate replacement bit on mine, fitted some new doors ( £15.00 for 3 on ebay) new drivers seat and electrical bits ( £50.00 the lot from the scrappies)and it's getting a respray next week
You should pay about £1000 for a pre 92 car unless it's exceptional and the good news is - when it dies - it's worth more than that as parts. Cheap motoring, recycling and fun all together!
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