LR Disco or Jeep XJ

[Brezzi]

Hey r3v,

I'm looking for a $2k - $3k do anything ride. I've narrowed it down to a 90's or early 2000's Land Rover Discovery or a Jeep Cherokee XJ.

I want to be able to drive to over 7 hours a few times a year, handle rough terrain easily, be comfy, and haul shit. I will also use this so I can pull my e30 apart and still have something to get around in.

I understand I will likely do some kind of work or maintenance to get either of these options to achieve all four of those. I expect to get the mod bug eventually and do a mild lift with some chunky tires

Please advise.

I'm leaning slightly toward the disco right now. Purely for the euro swag factor.

[Jb325is]

Land Rovers are much cooler, have better build quality, and are more capable (on and off road) in stock form but you will be spending some money and time keeping it on the road... Seriously. Plan on doing headgaskets.

XJ's are bulletproof, but like any American car they are built with horribly cheap materials and the fit and finish is awful.

I think the LR is worth the added headaches, if you're a capable wrench. If not, just get the XJ.

[sgtskid]

I am going to go the other way and say XJ. I've owned many of them all with over 200k. Yes they rattle...but it's a Jeep and that's how you know they are still running. Parts are easy to find and cheap. Just about every JY is going to have several and many parts are interchangeable across the years. Aftermarket support is huge and lift kits are as much or as little as you would like to spend.

IMO 99's are the best. They have the better intake without the crappy head that is notorious for cracking. You can find 00 and 01's cheap with a cracked head, replace it, and you're golden. Or, you can find a 97/98 and swap the better intake manifold (not a huge difference but some). The pre 97 Cherokees are good as well but will have slight differences in the axles (spline count on the 8.25's and high pinion vs low pinion on the D30)........

I could go on and on. Go XJ.

Mines the one not on the trailer.


I towed our racecar for a little while.


The one on the trailer is now sitting on 1 tons with 37s

[Poorhouse]

Add the 1993-1997 Land Cruiser to your radar.

Beautifully built vehicles that are far more reliable than a Jeep or LR.

I daily drove one for 7 years and 70k miles with nothing other than regular maintenance. Only sold it because our boat was to big for it to tow.

Here's one just out of your price range. Note the dial to the left of the steering wheel. That is the factory front and rear locker selector. Very desirable, only optioned on about 10% of LCs from the factory.

https://newyork.craigslist.org/fct/cto/6073595452.html

[djjerme]

I'd say older Jeep.

Or - find a 4WD Dodge Dakota.. Like a 2000ish. 318 V8 for pulling, full size bed for hauling, and decent interior for cruising. I rocked one as a daily for a while and never had an issue. Gas mileage wasn't great, but it was reliable.

[slammin.e28]

We all know where I stand.

Best 4x4xFar.

[kronus]

I had the same goals and got an xj. It's currently down for a cracked head.

To be fair, a disco probably would be broken now too.

[djjerme]

a disco probably would be broken now too.

To be fair, they were broken when they left the factory.

I know people that work at an LR repair facility here in town, and even they talk sh*t about them. But people still buy them... It's like the Mini's - people just like the stigma that goes with ownership I guess.

[MR E30 325is]

1st gen Tundra...... I kid, I kid.

But seriously. I have had 4 XJ's so far (though I don't think I'll have another one, unless it is an insane build that isn't driven on the streets) and I do not regret the switch to a V8 pickup.

My last XJ, a fully loaded 2000 with low low miles, was pretty cool. Had a winch, bumpers, small lift and 32's. Traveling up the 17 (fairly hilly freeway with a few long, steep climbs) the thing would barely do 50 mph when it had nothing but me in it. This was incredibly annoying, and the longest drive I ever did in it was only 3 hours. Could not imagine another 4 hours in the thing. Not to mention I spent tons and tons of money on trying to fix death wobble, but the pain in the ass problem still existed, even after lots of HD modifications.

Good luck towing even a jet ski with a moderately modified XJ.

My 01 Tundra on the other hand can maintain 65 up the same freeway, while towing 6000 lbs worth of stuff behind it. And the Tundra has a leveling kit and 33's.

The XJ had problem after problem. You could tell it was poorly made, obviously. I enjoyed its offroad capabilities a lot, but the truck does just as well (I don't ever do super hardcore shit, just an FYI)

I have no experience with Disco's firsthand, so cant provide any input there.

If you are looking for practicality, leave the XJ behind. Go Toyota.

[sgtskid]

Toyota is a good option as well depending on how much off-road you want to do and how serious the trails are. Tacomas and 4-runners (still no pulling power) are notorious for snapping the front cvs and Tundras are a little heavy. Land Cruisers are tanks but even their Birfield joints pop and they can get expensive to replace.
The group I used to ride with was split between Toyotas and Jeeps.
There was one Ford Ranger.... he didn't last long....

[James]

1999 D1 SD. Done.

[Sirotto]

XJ or Toyota anything

I love me some Disco but you will spend more time and money than it could ever be worth.

I have had all three by the way .

[exhaust]

Run from the disco. Two friends of mine are into them and both are on their second engines. One just received news that his second one is on its way out too. My parents had one when they were new and it went through an engine and a transmission. I'm open minded about almost any car but discos have a special place in hell.

Get the XJ or a Toyota. I think my Tacoma will outlive me at this rate and I'm running ~10lbs of boost through it.

[Staszek]

XJ all the way. I like the disco but they are unreliable as hell.

I owned a brand new XJ back in 2000, loved that thing sometimes I wish we never sold it. I cant find any old pics of it but this was the exact one we had.

[Haystack]

XJ. The 4.0 Motor will never die. The rest of the vehicle will turn to dust, the earth will crash into the sun, but that motor will still start.