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[belldarr]

Has anyone got any advice on the old shape Range Rover (1994 - 2002) on what to look at when buying?  I am going to look at a 4.6 Vogue at the weekend and it has only done 38,000 miles, apparently stored from 2005 - 2010 and this is validated by no MOT history on VOSA and a couple of the old style MOT's.  Will of course check the air suspension, rear tailgate, electrical items, roof lining but what else is a common failure on these?

All help aprecciated and yes it will be getting an LPG conversion straight away

Darren

[Pippin]

A big issue with these engines is overheating and coolant loss...if i remember correctly, there was something to do with the block becoming porous and water getting into the combustion chambers requiring a modification called top hats on the bores....

[belldarr]

Yes I have read about the engine over heating issue but I am hoping that issue affected the 4.0 litre units more than the 4.6 - and something about the piston liners coming loose but hopefully if that has happened the engine will sound like a box of spanners.....

Cheers for the comment

Darren

[Marks DTM Calib]

Yes I have read about the engine over heating issue but I am hoping that issue affected the 4.0 litre units more than the 4.6 - and something about the piston liners coming loose but hopefully if that has happened the engine will sound like a box of spanners.....

Cheers for the comment

Darren

It affected both the 4.0 (which is actualy a 3.95!) and the 4.6 as they are the same block and bore. The cc difference is down to the stroke only which is achieved with different rods, crank and pistons.

Not the greatest engine and very long in the tooth, needs regular oil changes or the cam lobes wear and the timing chains are pretty slack once they hit 50k miles.

Often small issues go unnoticed as its not easy to detect an engine running on 7.5 cylinders for most people!

[2woody]

I have a copy of LandRover Owner mag which has a "10 reasons NOT to buy a P38" article in it. Says it all really.

looks also for out-of-control aircon controls.

Disco II TD5 is a much better vehicle. Or indeed a Disco I

but really, it's probably the only proper car I wouldn't touch with a bargepole !

[belldarr]

Blimey - some glowing reccomendations NOT to buy it then lol.

 I am prepared for some of the issues this car may have and the plan is to use it on the odd weekend to tow my boat so it won't be a daily driver - good feedback though so thank you for the comments so far - anyone got any other things to look for or be aware of?

Darren

[the alarming man]

Looking for a rangie myself but certainly won't be buying a p38...very unreliable...disco far better bet or an old rangie

[Crazycarzowner]

I've had the RR classic, P38 and a Disco v8. Out of the 3 of them I'd have the Disco v8 any day. Many many faults on the RRovers & I had the P38 4.6 too so I know what I'm talkin about with them. The 4.6 engine is WORSE than the 4.0 litre as it was bored out more. This caused the cylinder walls to crack due to not much meat being between them & the water jackets. They over-heat and then cook the cylinder heads. Having the liners replaced and various other fixes that can be done will prolong the engine life (and is expensive), but in essence once it goes, sadly its better having a brand new unit (see RPI engineering ont interweb).
My heads started leaking water at the rear (nearest the bulk head area). You could see it pouring down the block once the engine was warm. 
Air-suspension  great drive when it works, right PITA  once it starts playin up. There's a lot that can go wrong with it thats why so many owners rip it out & replace it with springs (Really spoils the drive though). If you look at the ends of the rubber bladders if they seem perished they will start to leak and want replacing soon. Hight ride sensors are another PITA, as are the compressors  . In the end I ripped the whole lot out and started again, new bags, sensors, compressor, valve block etc... as it always seemed as soon as I'd fixed one problem another one raised its bloody head. 
Then there's the air-con!!!! HEVAC systems have a mind of their own when they start getting elderly!!! Many owners have had problems with the temperature sensors saying one thing and it being totally opposite??? If the little book on the HEVAC system is flashing get your wallet out again
Also check the headlining & sunroof for leaks. Blocked scuttle panels can wreek havoc with water ingress & with all the electricery in a P38 water is not a friend!!!
After saying all of that, I actually loved it when it worked    I know I've slagged it off somewhat, but when they run well nothing can beat em. Your high up, sat in an a comfy armchair and waft around in luxury. Offroad capability is second to none & even an elderly P38 can show the newer X5's & such a thing or two
I was lucky enough to be able to do the majority of repairs needed to mine myself, but if you can't its roughly £80 at dealers just for a diagnostic check
Mine was LPG'd & it bloomin needed to be, MPG is only about 16ish if you tickle the gas pedal with a feather raises to about 19-20 on a run. There's quite a few dedicated sites that show how to's just like this one, I used this one a lot Rangerovers.net its very informative and the problems and fixes guides are brill.
For reliability (and I use the term loosely) my Disco V8 was a lot better. No Air-suspension, smaller better engine 3.9l and not as much electricery to go wrong. But even that had its moments.

[Steve Brookman]

I've had my 99 4.6HSE for nearly 5 years. I've changed the tyres, exhaust and front steering arm.

I've got a slight leak from the heater matrix "o" rings-will eventually have to change them- been like it for two years and thats it.

steve

[belldarr]

Cheers Jason - that has scared me enough to be having second thoughts already!!  I have always fancied a Rangie since I was a wee boy so maybe owning one even briefly will get it out my system and I can move on with my life lol.

What sort of value would you put on a 38,000 mile vogue on a W plate?

Regards

Darren

[belldarr]

Thanks for offering a little ray of hope Steve

Darren

[Crazycarzowner]

Its a bit difficult to put a price on that one due to the mileage being so low, looking at similar ones on the bay of E & autotrader the going rate is roughly £5500 - £7500.
The one your looking at has the 'Thor' engine which is the later better one & slightly better fuel consumption. Also if you are looking at LPGing it, consider - the only realistic place to put a tank is in the spare wheel well, or in the boot itself. Put it in the boot you restrict boot space. Put it in the spare wheel well and you have either no spare, or again restrcited boot space.

[Marks DTM Calib]

I've had the RR classic, P38 and a Disco v8. Out of the 3 of them I'd have the Disco v8 any day. Many many faults on the RRovers & I had the P38 4.6 too so I know what I'm talkin about with them. The 4.6 engine is WORSE than the 4.0 litre as it was bored out more. This caused the cylinder walls to crack due to not much meat being between them & the water jackets. They over-heat and then cook the cylinder heads. Having the liners replaced and various other fixes that can be done will prolong the engine life (and is expensive), but in essence once it goes, sadly its better having a brand new unit (see RPI engineering ont interweb).
My heads started leaking water at the rear (nearest the bulk head area). You could see it pouring down the block once the engine was warm. 
Air-suspension  great drive when it works, right PITA  once it starts playin up. There's a lot that can go wrong with it thats why so many owners rip it out & replace it with springs (Really spoils the drive though). If you look at the ends of the rubber bladders if they seem perished they will start to leak and want replacing soon. Hight ride sensors are another PITA, as are the compressors  . In the end I ripped the whole lot out and started again, new bags, sensors, compressor, valve block etc... as it always seemed as soon as I'd fixed one problem another one raised its bloody head. 
Then there's the air-con!!!! HEVAC systems have a mind of their own when they start getting elderly!!! Many owners have had problems with the temperature sensors saying one thing and it being totally opposite??? If the little book on the HEVAC system is flashing get your wallet out again
Also check the headlining & sunroof for leaks. Blocked scuttle panels can wreek havoc with water ingress & with all the electricery in a P38 water is not a friend!!!
After saying all of that, I actually loved it when it worked    I know I've slagged it off somewhat, but when they run well nothing can beat em. Your high up, sat in an a comfy armchair and waft around in luxury. Offroad capability is second to none & even an elderly P38 can show the newer X5's & such a thing or two
I was lucky enough to be able to do the majority of repairs needed to mine myself, but if you can't its roughly £80 at dealers just for a diagnostic check
Mine was LPG'd & it bloomin needed to be, MPG is only about 16ish if you tickle the gas pedal with a feather raises to about 19-20 on a run. There's quite a few dedicated sites that show how to's just like this one, I used this one a lot Rangerovers.net its very informative and the problems and fixes guides are brill.
For reliability (and I use the term loosely) my Disco V8 was a lot better. No Air-suspension, smaller better engine 3.9l and not as much electricery to go wrong. But even that had its moments.

Is it 'dangle berries', they both share the 94mm bore block, one has an 82mm stoke and the other 71mm.

If there is one V8 I know all to well its the Rover one, in fact I still have at least one in the garage (and probably enough bits to make up a few more).

And they both suffer the same issue.

The real interesting fact is that the 3.9 (which is the same cc as the 4.0 actualy)  which arrived in 1989 in the Range Rover did not suffer the liner issues.

The later block is cross bolted so clearly they screwed something up when re-working the moulds.

But, the cam wear and chain issues are common across them all (and the ealry ones suffer headgasket issues to due to the extra row of head bolts).

[Omegatoy]

I used to look after three P38 range rovers for friends two were the 2.5td engine, and one the v8 both td had clocked up well over 150k no problem, one did have two airbags, another did have problems with the tech centre but a disconnect and reconnect while pressing fob sorted that, known fault is the air cmpressor over heating usually caused by leaky air bags or faulty sensors, the v8 one had far more problems and although the smoothness was nice when driving it, it was no contest really, I would have had a 3.5td anytime, in fact was looking for one when was told about the current mig estate or i would have one now!!

[belldarr]

Thanks for all the comments and pointers - I went and had a look at the Rangie and have bought it!! - the engine was pretty sweet and someone has changed the plugs, HT leads but no stamps in the service book since 2001 so I have taken a chance.  Air suspension was excellent and it went up and down smoothly and quickly although it is pretty grubby inside but nothing a good clean won't sort out.

Thanks all 

Darren