Range Rover P38 Ownership/Mpg?
Discussion
Since forever I have longed for a Range Rover - I now find myself old enough (24) to be in a position to possibly make this happen.
Im looking for a '97-51 P38 2.5 DHSE.
I made the situation worse when I popped in to a local landrover specialists and had a walk around their forecourt - I love these beasts.
My main concern are the current adverts where people state: "must sell as i need to pay mortgage" that's bananas - what are these things like?
Would appreciate your comments.
Im looking for a '97-51 P38 2.5 DHSE.
I made the situation worse when I popped in to a local landrover specialists and had a walk around their forecourt - I love these beasts.
My main concern are the current adverts where people state: "must sell as i need to pay mortgage" that's bananas - what are these things like?
Would appreciate your comments.
BLUETHUNDER said:
Money pit. I suffered one for nine years. And have more experience than most on what goes wrong. All I can say is never again.
This seems the general response for this model. Just need to get over it haha.I assume you knew the risks before buying, most likely did your research, and held out until the 'perfect one' came along, so why take the plunge and buy one?
Before making assumptions. I had the vehicle back in 98 when it was just 3 years old. All the problems you hear of now were just coming about back then. It was a case of fix one problem and the next one came along. Back then there was no Rangerover.net or any kind of helpful sites. It was a case of pay the main dealer to sort the problems as the indies didnt have the software then. Yep they look great and drive well. But they really are crap. I would take a Defender over one any day of the week. And that says it all that a 50 year old design is a better vehicle.
I bought a 4.6 from ebay about 2.5 years ago and its been fine. One new hose, new o rings on the heater and a new boot lock (again from ebay).
I know they are supposed to be crap, but its been absolutely great
Its a 99 car and I 19mpg in mixed driving - 25 on a run if I'm really careful
Good luck
I know they are supposed to be crap, but its been absolutely great
Its a 99 car and I 19mpg in mixed driving - 25 on a run if I'm really careful
Good luck
Yes they can be a reliability nightmare.
However, now with the internet and loads of owners forums, every problem they can throw up is documented and how to fix it is there to be found.
Buy wisely, keep cash aside for "preventive maintanance" and get a good indy who has the software to read the many electricial systems and you could get lucky.
However, now with the internet and loads of owners forums, every problem they can throw up is documented and how to fix it is there to be found.
Buy wisely, keep cash aside for "preventive maintanance" and get a good indy who has the software to read the many electricial systems and you could get lucky.
Haralabos said:
Since forever I have longed for a Range Rover - I now find myself old enough (24) to be in a position to possibly make this happen.
Im looking for a '97-51 P38 2.5 DHSE.
I made the situation worse when I popped in to a local landrover specialists and had a walk around their forecourt - I love these beasts.
My main concern are the current adverts where people state: "must sell as i need to pay mortgage" that's bananas - what are these things like?
Would appreciate your comments.
The internet will tell you all the issues with this car. I don't quite know what you are expecting to get out of this thread??Im looking for a '97-51 P38 2.5 DHSE.
I made the situation worse when I popped in to a local landrover specialists and had a walk around their forecourt - I love these beasts.
My main concern are the current adverts where people state: "must sell as i need to pay mortgage" that's bananas - what are these things like?
Would appreciate your comments.
The 2.5DSEs are 6cyl lumps from BMW and are pretty reliable. You can chip them too.
Compressors and air suspension are known to be problem areas. Bags can fail and unions on the compressor can fail and the suspension won't rise properly.
One poster mentioned the O rings in the dash. To replace these the entire dash has to come out!
The V8s are pretty touch, but there is a lot going on in those engine bays and its pretty cramped.
Have a look at landyzone.co.uk Loads of info on there.
Insurance is pretty cheap. I was quoted £250 on a limited mileage policy
I looked at buying a P38, but I just didn't want to dealing with electrical niggles. I'm not going at taking interior parts apart.
bakerstreet said:
Haralabos said:
Since forever I have longed for a Range Rover - I now find myself old enough (24) to be in a position to possibly make this happen.
Im looking for a '97-51 P38 2.5 DHSE.
I made the situation worse when I popped in to a local landrover specialists and had a walk around their forecourt - I love these beasts.
My main concern are the current adverts where people state: "must sell as i need to pay mortgage" that's bananas - what are these things like?
Would appreciate your comments.
The internet will tell you all the issues with this car. I don't quite know what you are expecting to get out of this thread??Im looking for a '97-51 P38 2.5 DHSE.
I made the situation worse when I popped in to a local landrover specialists and had a walk around their forecourt - I love these beasts.
My main concern are the current adverts where people state: "must sell as i need to pay mortgage" that's bananas - what are these things like?
Would appreciate your comments.
The 2.5DSEs are 6cyl lumps from BMW and are pretty reliable. You can chip them too.
Compressors and air suspension are known to be problem areas. Bags can fail and unions on the compressor can fail and the suspension won't rise properly.
One poster mentioned the O rings in the dash. To replace these the entire dash has to come out!
The V8s are pretty touch, but there is a lot going on in those engine bays and its pretty cramped.
Have a look at landyzone.co.uk Loads of info on there.
Insurance is pretty cheap. I was quoted £250 on a limited mileage policy
I looked at buying a P38, but I just didn't want to dealing with electrical niggles. I'm not going at taking interior parts apart.
You're right, my current car sometimes has problems and the first thing I do is find a forum and hey presto a solution can be found.
I had one for 2 years mate, and I loved every minute of it.
I found them easy to pull apart and play with, and very easy to work on for the car you get. Don't be put off by talk of air suspension and all that, it's a simple system, and air bags are even cheaper than replacement springs.
I would have a look about, and personally, I wouldn't even consider a diesel of any trim level. The petrols aren't particularly brisk, but they move along fine, and the diesels have half the power of the 4.6 pretty much. Factor in tops of 26mpg avg from the diesel vs 18-19 of the petrol, the higher cost of diesel, and the fact that the petrol cars and cheaper to buy, for me it was a no brainer, not to mention the glorious noise.
Overall though, it's easy to get parts, and I loved mine. I'd have another in a flash. If I could find one as nice as mine when I'd finished lol.
Here's a link to mine if you're interested, I kept a record of all the jobs I did on it, it'll give you an idea about working on them if nothing else!
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
I found them easy to pull apart and play with, and very easy to work on for the car you get. Don't be put off by talk of air suspension and all that, it's a simple system, and air bags are even cheaper than replacement springs.
I would have a look about, and personally, I wouldn't even consider a diesel of any trim level. The petrols aren't particularly brisk, but they move along fine, and the diesels have half the power of the 4.6 pretty much. Factor in tops of 26mpg avg from the diesel vs 18-19 of the petrol, the higher cost of diesel, and the fact that the petrol cars and cheaper to buy, for me it was a no brainer, not to mention the glorious noise.
Overall though, it's easy to get parts, and I loved mine. I'd have another in a flash. If I could find one as nice as mine when I'd finished lol.
Here's a link to mine if you're interested, I kept a record of all the jobs I did on it, it'll give you an idea about working on them if nothing else!
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
D4MJT said:
I had one for 2 years mate, and I loved every minute of it.
I found them easy to pull apart and play with, and very easy to work on for the car you get. Don't be put off by talk of air suspension and all that, it's a simple system, and air bags are even cheaper than replacement springs.
I would have a look about, and personally, I wouldn't even consider a diesel of any trim level. The petrols aren't particularly brisk, but they move along fine, and the diesels have half the power of the 4.6 pretty much. Factor in tops of 26mpg avg from the diesel vs 18-19 of the petrol, the higher cost of diesel, and the fact that the petrol cars and cheaper to buy, for me it was a no brainer, not to mention the glorious noise.
Overall though, it's easy to get parts, and I loved mine. I'd have another in a flash. If I could find one as nice as mine when I'd finished lol.
Here's a link to mine if you're interested, I kept a record of all the jobs I did on it, it'll give you an idea about working on them if nothing else!
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
Nice eclectic mix. The RR looks brand new - Amazing wheel refurb too. Thanks!I found them easy to pull apart and play with, and very easy to work on for the car you get. Don't be put off by talk of air suspension and all that, it's a simple system, and air bags are even cheaper than replacement springs.
I would have a look about, and personally, I wouldn't even consider a diesel of any trim level. The petrols aren't particularly brisk, but they move along fine, and the diesels have half the power of the 4.6 pretty much. Factor in tops of 26mpg avg from the diesel vs 18-19 of the petrol, the higher cost of diesel, and the fact that the petrol cars and cheaper to buy, for me it was a no brainer, not to mention the glorious noise.
Overall though, it's easy to get parts, and I loved mine. I'd have another in a flash. If I could find one as nice as mine when I'd finished lol.
Here's a link to mine if you're interested, I kept a record of all the jobs I did on it, it'll give you an idea about working on them if nothing else!
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
I have a '99 4.6 HSE as a winter smoker and it's great. I do have a workshop full of LR factory trained technicians out the back though....
The thing to remember with these cars is that they were expensive when new and they are still quite expensive to fix. But there are plenty of specialists around who can look after them at reasonable cost. The air suspension is not really an issue as long as it has been looked after and even if it does fail it can be relatively easy to fix. Best to buy one that is in good nick to start with though. Find a specialist and try to have him look at the car before you buy it so you make an educated decision.
I had one new on Jan 1st 1995 and it was the worst car I ever owned. Towed 4 times in 2 years. Swore I'd never buy another...... Here I am though and in the Midwest winter of 10/11 I wouldn't have wanted to be in anything else.
The thing to remember with these cars is that they were expensive when new and they are still quite expensive to fix. But there are plenty of specialists around who can look after them at reasonable cost. The air suspension is not really an issue as long as it has been looked after and even if it does fail it can be relatively easy to fix. Best to buy one that is in good nick to start with though. Find a specialist and try to have him look at the car before you buy it so you make an educated decision.
I had one new on Jan 1st 1995 and it was the worst car I ever owned. Towed 4 times in 2 years. Swore I'd never buy another...... Here I am though and in the Midwest winter of 10/11 I wouldn't have wanted to be in anything else.
I had a '95 reg 4.6HSE a while back and was pretty good (paid 8.5k for it at the time)
The suspension failed (the air compressor) but i managed to fix it myself. The aircon slowly packed in (leak) that I never bothered to fix.
The biggest gripe I had was the battery drain. Whether I was unlucky I don't know, but if I left it for mroe than a few days (intermittently) it'd run the battery flat. Went through a few new batteries and never found a cause for the drain though there were talks at the time of the remote alarm picking up radio signals from other cars, getting confused - waking the car up (but not unlocking) and then staying awake or going back to sleep to wake up again later (hence the drain).
It was a great car. Most comfortable I've ever owned (current BMW 645 included).
These days it's undepowered compared to most new 4x4 stuff, but it's a 2-3k car now, so bangernomics money !!
If you're handy with a spanner and have time they CAN be kept on the road for not a lot...but obviously it'll always cost more to run than a 1.1 Fiesta doing home mechanics.
As for 19mpg combined and 26 on a run...that's fantasy mpg in my experience for a petrol. Mine was MAX 19mpg cruising at about 70(ish) - one day I reset the trip whilst on the M3 at a asteady flat 75 and got 19 over a few miles - and low teens around town. BUT put it in sport mode and hoon it about and it'll do single figures...I regularly saw 8 or 9mpg when hooning in sport mode....
Bargain basement luxury...
The suspension failed (the air compressor) but i managed to fix it myself. The aircon slowly packed in (leak) that I never bothered to fix.
The biggest gripe I had was the battery drain. Whether I was unlucky I don't know, but if I left it for mroe than a few days (intermittently) it'd run the battery flat. Went through a few new batteries and never found a cause for the drain though there were talks at the time of the remote alarm picking up radio signals from other cars, getting confused - waking the car up (but not unlocking) and then staying awake or going back to sleep to wake up again later (hence the drain).
It was a great car. Most comfortable I've ever owned (current BMW 645 included).
These days it's undepowered compared to most new 4x4 stuff, but it's a 2-3k car now, so bangernomics money !!
If you're handy with a spanner and have time they CAN be kept on the road for not a lot...but obviously it'll always cost more to run than a 1.1 Fiesta doing home mechanics.
As for 19mpg combined and 26 on a run...that's fantasy mpg in my experience for a petrol. Mine was MAX 19mpg cruising at about 70(ish) - one day I reset the trip whilst on the M3 at a asteady flat 75 and got 19 over a few miles - and low teens around town. BUT put it in sport mode and hoon it about and it'll do single figures...I regularly saw 8 or 9mpg when hooning in sport mode....
Bargain basement luxury...
Oh, and if youre new to them make sure you know how they work first as thngs like the air suspension only work with doors closed engine on etc etc...stay lowered under certain mph etc..
And as said before the deisels were always a bit iffy - VERY slow, more expensive, and not THAT much more ecconomical...
Plenty around to get bit from and part for....
And as said before the deisels were always a bit iffy - VERY slow, more expensive, and not THAT much more ecconomical...
Plenty around to get bit from and part for....
I'm on my 3rd P38 and i really like them. You have to be prepared to fix things yourself, otherwise you will end up spending a fortune.
Luckily there are plenty of resources on the internet that makes DIY easy on them.
Rangerovers.net is very good and I have lots of photos of the common diy tasks on my pages as well.
Luckily there are plenty of resources on the internet that makes DIY easy on them.
Rangerovers.net is very good and I have lots of photos of the common diy tasks on my pages as well.
eliot said:
I'm on my 3rd P38 and i really like them. You have to be prepared to fix things yourself, otherwise you will end up spending a fortune.
Luckily there are plenty of resources on the internet that makes DIY easy on them.
Rangerovers.net is very good and I have lots of photos of the common diy tasks on my pages as well.
Thanks for your comment.Luckily there are plenty of resources on the internet that makes DIY easy on them.
Rangerovers.net is very good and I have lots of photos of the common diy tasks on my pages as well.
There are alot of 4.6 owners and not much heard from the diesel ones. I would have thought than the more economical dhse (BMW engine) would have been far popular.
How come you haven't gone for one?
Haralabos said:
Thanks for your comment.
There are alot of 4.6 owners and not much heard from the diesel ones. I would have thought than the more economical dhse (BMW engine) would have been far popular.
How come you haven't gone for one?
The man's got a turbo Chevy V8 offroader...mpg seems to not be his biggest fear...There are alot of 4.6 owners and not much heard from the diesel ones. I would have thought than the more economical dhse (BMW engine) would have been far popular.
How come you haven't gone for one?
In my post just above...the diesels are a bit better fuel wise, but not a great deal, so the extra refinement and pace and sound the V8 gives makes more sense...it's quite old diesel technology in those cars, so a bit agricultural still. Basically I think most people see the benefits of the nice woolly V8 utweigh the small benefit in mpg...
We ran one for 5 years (it's just waiting for new tyres before being sold on).
As others have said, there is a set of things that are likely to go wrong that you want to make sure have been remedied. Mainly: heater o-rings, replacement air bags, recent leads, air compressor seals and heating system (our had a new block at 60k miles due to overheating).
We averaged about 19-20 mpg and that was on LPG which in theory should be lower than petrol in a 4.6v8 vogue.
They're decent cars, especially if you're not adverse to doing some of work yourself or have a good specialist to keep on top of any niggles.
As others have said, there is a set of things that are likely to go wrong that you want to make sure have been remedied. Mainly: heater o-rings, replacement air bags, recent leads, air compressor seals and heating system (our had a new block at 60k miles due to overheating).
We averaged about 19-20 mpg and that was on LPG which in theory should be lower than petrol in a 4.6v8 vogue.
They're decent cars, especially if you're not adverse to doing some of work yourself or have a good specialist to keep on top of any niggles.
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