The Rover-Landers of BC

Pros & cons between Disco 1 & Disco 2?

Disco 1 full floater rear axle, Disco 2 unit bearings?

Disco 2 wheel well openings bigger? Can you run bigger tire stock hieght?

Anything else?

Discovery 1 shorter vs Discovery 2

Discovery 1 has Center Diff Lock vs Discovery 2 no center Diff lock until 2004 unless modified.

Discovery 1 rear suspension triangulated, little more travel vs Discovery 2 WATTS Linkage a little less articulation.

Discovery 1 ok 4.0l engine vs nice 4.6l Discovery 2 (2000 +)

D2 cv joints on front axle = no swivelballs means no leaks but doesn't turn as sharp

D2 wheelbase is the same but rear overhang is longer on D2 so more rear storage room however more overhang also means reduced departure angle (aka - tail dragging off-road)

D2 from some years can have shift linkage retro-fitted to make centre diff locking operable plus a little tinkering with the wiring means you can have a locking centre diff and traction control on the axles which behaves similar to locking diffs (but not exactly the same as it is braking to limit slip rather than gears)

D2 fenders handle 245/75R16s without any rubbing (no trimming required)

D2 has traction control and hill descent control - both systems have enthusiasts and critics

If you want seven seats (which my Wife is insisting on this time), the D2 has real third-row seating facing forwards with shoulder belts and head rests. The D1 jump seats to me don't look safe for anything above walking speed.

The locking transfer case actuator was deleted sometime early '00, and the mechanism itself deleted from the transfer case in late '00, definitely by '01/'01. Sometime in late '03 the locking mechanism and actuator was re-added (I can't find any firm dates or VINs for this, in typical British fashion).

All D2 seven-seaters -- except for AndyD's :) -- came with air-suspension, which added off-road ride height and tongue-weight capability but added complexity. Many I've seen have been changed to coils.

D2s are slightly wider as well as having about a 7" longer butt. I couldn't drive a D1 without taking off the inner door pull.

Can you tell I'm be shopping for a seven-seater D2?

All good points...

One correction of note, some D2 7 seaters came with standard Coils (No air bag suspension) I only know that because I have one! :?

Cheers,
Andy

david.randall wrote: The locking transfer case actuator was deleted sometime early '00, and the mechanism itself deleted from the transfer case in late '00, definitely by '01/'01. Sometime in late '03 the locking mechanism and actuator was re-added (I can't find any firm dates or VINs for this, in typical British fasion).

Info & x'fer case serial numbers on the CDL here.....

http://www.ashcroft-transmissions.co.uk ... ductId=137

AndyD: I had no idea any seven seaters came new with coils. Neat to know.

LandyAndy: Thanks for the transfer case info, that'll help.

Well, we bought a replacement D2 today. It's an 11/00 build seven seater with 91K kms and air suspension (new air bags recently). It's not as pretty as Cyndi's previous D2 was before the accident, but since she was insisting on seven seats, this was the best I could find.

Word of warning: the '04 green D2 on Vancouver Craigslist has a quite badly bowed-out right rear quarter panel that the guy "forgot" to mention. I walked away without even driving it.

http://vancouver.en.craigslist.ca/van/c ... 21101.html

The guy now mentions it in the ad, but it is not "minor quarter panel damage that is not serious."

From http://www.ashcroft-transmissions.co.u ... uctId=137

"If you have the diff lock stud on your unit you will only require the linkage parts, to determine this you will need to find the transfer case serial number and check it starts with either 41D or 42D."

The transfer case on the Disco2 I got yesterday starts with a 42D: whoohoo!

Another note on the Discovery I...they are prone to rusting through in the rear wheel arch, right where the wheel arch meets the door C pillar. I don't think this is as much of an issue on the Discovery II. A good number of the cars I have seen have this problem.

Also, check for rust under the rear tub upholstery, and around the clips that hold the front inner-fender plastic guards to the metalwork.